The Da Filicaja family is the name of a noble Tuscan family,[1] of ancient Roman origins, from Pontassieve (province of Florence, Italy). Its most famous member is the late-17th-century poet Vincenzo da Filicaja, best remembered for his patriotic poems, particularly those celebrating the liberation of Vienna from the Ottoman Empire in 1683. His work earned him the admiration of various European rulers, and he was supported by Christina, the ex-Queen of Sweden. Filicaia held high positions in Tuscany, serving as governor of Volterra and Pisa, and was later appointed senator by the Grand Duke Cosimo III.
The family has deep historical roots, with the Palazzo Da Filicaja[3] in Florence being one of their notable estates. The Filicaja coat of arms and other historical landmarks associated with the family are still visible in places like Volterra.
The Filicaia name continues to carry historical significance in Italy, associated with literary and political contributions during the Renaissance and Baroque periods.
The Legend
According to legend, a young noble from Volterra, Ajone,[4] once traveled through a distant land and deep in the forest met Ine, who was weeping for her beautiful daughter, Figline, abducted by a man named Gambasso.[5] Ajone decided to bring Figline back and waged war against Gambasso. After successfully returning her to her mother, Ajone received permission to marry Figline. He then founded both the village of Monte Ajone (modern-day Montaione) and the castle of Figline nearby. Despite this, the descendants of Ajone and Gambasso maintained a bitter rivalry.[6]
One day, the descendants of Ajone and Figline were attacked by an enemy army that destroyed the castle after a long siege, killing all defenders. Following this defeat, the people of Montaione reverted to idolatry and decided to sacrifice the village’s most beautiful girl, Filli, to the gods in hopes of securing peace and happiness. A Florentine knight, upon hearing of this, rushed to Montaione, horrified by the human sacrifice, and forced the villagers to release Filli and sacrifice a calf instead. The knight was thereafter known as the "Sire della Vitella" (Lord of the Calf).
Grateful to her rescuer, Filli gave him her red dress, torn during her ordeal, which he proudly used as his banner. The two married and rebuilt the castle of Figline, where they lived for many years. The Sire della Vitella, deeply in love with Filli, would often call her "Filli my beauty," "Filli my beloved," and "Filli dear." Over time, the place where they lived and the couple themselves came to be known as "Fillicara." Their descendants were called "Fillicara," "Filicaja," or "da Filicaja," and adopted the symbol of Filli’s dress as their emblem.
In reality, Gambassi (now Gambassi Terme)[7] is a neighboring village of Montaione, long under its dominance but historically a rival. Figline, named after the Latin "figulinae" (statuettes), was where the Romans discovered many Etruscan artifacts. The Figline castle was purchased in 1452 by Ser Giovanni di Simone da Filicaja[8] for strategic military reasons. The da Filicaja family, initially known as "della Vitella" or "Tebaldi" until the mid-13th century, changed their name to "Filicaja" (from Felceto, a place where they had a castle near Florence) to avoid appearing noble and to be eligible for public office under the Florentine Republic. The strategy worked, as from 1284 to 1523, they produced 12 Gonfaloniers and 66 Priors for the Republic.[9]
Origins
At the end of the 11th century, a family called Tebaldi, but also 'della Vitella' or 'd'Aquona' (from the place where they lived, the castle of Quona), dominated the town of Pontassieve, east of Florence. It seems that this family later took the name 'Filicaja' (meaning 'ferny area,' from the original toponym of the area covered by ferns), from the name of the area surrounding the castle, also called Costa Filicaia. The Tebaldi (or della Vitella), whose prominent figure was Tebaldo della Vitella, knighted by Charlemagne in 786, supposedly changed their name to Filicaja with the rise of the Republic in Florence, to appear non-noble and thus be able to hold public offices. The Filicaja family later moved to Florence, and in 1207, they sold almost all of their assets in Pontassieve to the Florentine bishopric.
In the 15th century, the Filicaja family, by then a Florentine family, seemed to have a certain interest in the area around Montaione (Florence), so much so that in the mid-century, Giovanni da Filicaja bought the castle of Figline from the Figlinesi family, which from that moment on would be called Filicaja (or Al Filicaja), and later Villa da Filicaja.[citation needed]
Among the offices held by members of this family in Florence, we remember:[10]
He was born in Florence on August 13, 1429, the son of Antonio di Luca da Filicaja and Bartolomea di Giovanni di Paolo Morelli. Until the age of thirty, he lived exclusively on the income from his real estate holdings. In 1459, however, he began his cursus honorum by being appointed podestà of Montevarchi. From that moment until his death, Alessandro served as podestà, vicar, or captain of numerous areas or cities. He was twice Gonfaloniere of Justice (in 1467 and 1474), once a member of the Twelve Good Men (in 1486), and once of the Sixteen Gonfaloniers (in 1501). He held dozens of other offices throughout his life. In 1455, Alessandro, bound by a close friendship with Lorenzo de' Medici, married a Medici. He was also very close to Marsilio Ficino.
'Salutat Alexander Filicarius tuus, vir quantum probus tantum nobis carus, ergo carissimus' (January 13, 1474, Marsilio Ficino to the Magnificent (L. de' Medici, p. XXII)).
Although he belonged to a family closely aligned with the Medici, he continued to accumulate offices even during the popular regime that followed the expulsion of the Medici from Florence in 1494. Among other things, he participated in the Pratiche Riunite convened in 1505, which discussed measures to be taken for the reconquest of Pisa, which had rebelled in 1494 and was finally brought back under Florentine control only in 1509, with the entry into the city of his cousin Antonio da Filicaja, along with Averardo Salviati and Niccolò Capponi. The last record of him dates to August 12, 1512."
Antonio da Filicaia
He was born in Florence on July 7, 1455, the son of Niccolò di Antonio da Filicaja and Marietta di Giannozzo Pandolfini. His first appointment came in 1489 when he was selected as a member of the Twelve Good Men for the district of San Giovanni. He served multiple times as one of the Consoli del Mare, and during one of his stays in Pisa while holding this office, his daughter Ersilia died and was buried in the church of S. Martino a Chinzia. Antonio’s responsibilities increased following the expulsion of Piero de' Medici from Florence and the establishment of the republican regime. In 1494, Pisa rebelled against Florentine rule, and for five years (1495-1499), Antonio da Filicaja was almost continuously stationed at Rosignano, tasked with defending the stretch of coastline from the tower of Vada (now in the municipality of Rosignano Marittimo) to Livorno. In 1500, he was appointed Commissioner of Livorno to defend the mouth of the Arno from possible Pisan incursions. In 1501, he requested and was granted a galleon of the Florentine Republic anchored in the port, valued at 60 gold florins, as compensation for his services. In the summer of 1501, just before returning to Florence, he met the Prince of Piombino (Iacopo IV d'Appiano), who, while fleeing toward France pursued by Valentino, entrusted his son to Antonio’s care.
He later became Captain of Pistoia, and in 1503 he was appointed to the Priors for the first time. Also in 1503, he served in Valdichiana as Podestà of Castiglion Fiorentino, but with special attributions in rebus bellicis. There, he organized an extraordinary levy to prevent raids by Miguel Corella, Valentino's lieutenant, who was passing through the area on his way to Romagna. The men of Valdichiana, led by Filicaja and Giovanni Ridolfi, commissioner in Arezzo, managed to defeat Corella’s troops and capture him.
In 1504, he served for six months on the Council of Ten and was sent to Livorno to negotiate the hiring of a captain of galleys from the King of Naples, who was tasked with blockading the mouth of the Arno. He was subsequently sent to Livorno many more times to oversee fortification work at the port and handle other military matters along the coast. The Council of Ten wrote to him in 1508, stating that he had by then acquired more knowledge of that region than any other of our citizens. In the early months of 1509, after a very contentious vote, Antonio da Filicaja, Averardo Salviati, and Niccolò Capponi were elected commissioners for the region around Pisa. On June 8 of the same year, the three commissioners entered Pisa as victors, followed by their troops, and their names were inscribed on a marble slab at the entrance to Palazzo Pretorio as a perpetual reminder of their achievements. It is worth noting that in July, six years earlier, the Florentine government had sent Leonardo da Vinci, Gerolamo da Filicaja, and Alessandro degli Albizi to study how to divert the course of the Arno to flood the areas around Pisa. Gerolamo informed the Magnifici et Excelsi Domini of the Florentine government on July 22, 1503, that Alessandro degli Albizi, Leonardo da Vinci, and four others had arrived in the area of operations. Leonardo provided designs for an excavation machine but did not personally participate in the excavation, which was eventually abandoned. It is unclear whether this was due to excessive costs, technical impossibilities, changing political conditions, or other reasons.
In the following years, he served as commissioner or captain in many cities. In 1517, he was sent to Arezzo as commissioner during the war undertaken by the Medici, who had regained power in Florence, to seize Montefeltro. After this region was annexed, its government was entrusted to Antonio, first as special commissioner and later as captain of San Leo until 1522, when he requested to be relieved from his duties for health reasons. After serving six months as captain in Pistoia in 1523, he finally reached the pinnacle of Florentine institutions, obtaining the office of Gonfaloniere of Justice. He died in Florence on May 17, 1526.
Baccio da Filicaia
Between the mid and late 16th century, the Filicaja family heavily invested in trade with the Americas. During this period, they purchased palaces and warehouses in Lisbon, aided in this endeavor by an agreement between Francesco I de' Medici and King Sebastian of Portugal, under which several Florentine merchants, including the Filicaja family, obtained a privileged concession for importing pepper and other spices. However, a few years later (1580), the unification of the kingdoms of Portugal and Spain under Emperor Philip II led to a significant decline in Lisbon's commercial importance, eventually forcing the Filicaja family to close their Portuguese operations. As a result, Baccio da Filicaja (1575–1610), who had arrived in Portugal at a young age during the height of its trade, found himself as an adult needing to reinvent his career. At the age of twenty, he landed in Brazil, where he was appointed by Governor Francisco de Sousa as Chief Engineer, tasked with fortifying ports, building some fortresses, and restoring others. At the same time, he was appointed Captain of Artillery, responsible for training bombardiers and supplying arms to military bases. During this period, after the annexation of Portugal to the Imperial Crown and the defeat of the Spanish Armada, Brazil was subject to constant English raids and the slow settlement of French colonists in the northern area of Pernambuco. Over the next ten years, Baccio held various positions in Brazil, including the conquest, under Pietro Coelho de Sousa, of the territories between the Maranhão River and the Amazon River, the construction of the church of Monte Serrat (Santos), and an attempt to explore the mouth of the Maranhão River by ship. This last operation failed, and, due to bad weather, the ship was lost and ended up in present-day Mexico. For some unclear reason—perhaps out of frustration or simply homesickness for Lisbon—Baccio set sail for Europe. In the same year that Baccio arrived in Lisbon (1608), Philip III appointed Francisco de Sousa, former governor of Brazil, as Superintendent of Mines. Sousa again requested Baccio's services to build and repair fortifications. Thus, Baccio set out once more for Brazil, but he never arrived. According to some, though unverified, while traveling on a ship flying the Imperial flag, he was intercepted by the English, captured, and killed; according to others, more simply, he was caught in a storm. What is certain is that his traces were lost in the Atlantic.
Some authors believe that he is the same 'Bacho de Filicaya' who appeared in Buenos Aires as a merchant in 1611. This Bacho, in 1613, built the first city council building and the San Martín de Tours hospital. In 1619, he was tasked with reinforcing the prison walls of the Cabildo 'for the security of the detainees.' However, this 'Bacho de Filicaya' would have been 32 years old in 1611 (while Baccio would have been 36). Despite the many coincidences (a Baccio da Filicaja disappeared in the Atlantic in 1610 while en route to Brazil; a nearly coeval Bacho de Filicaya appeared in Buenos Aires in 1611; the latter was assigned engineering and architectural tasks, while the former was an engineer/architect), no documents have yet been found to support the—albeit likely—hypothesis that they were the same person.
Vincenzo da Filicaia
In 1642, Vincenzo da Filicaja was born in Florence, who a few decades later would gain fame and prestige as a poet. More than in Florence, Vincenzo resided in Filicaja, which he fondly referred to by its old name, Figline. At the age of forty, he composed and published his first poetic works, which brought him fame, thanks in part to his cultural partnership and friendship with Queen Christina of Sweden, who had converted to Catholicism and was living in Rome. He distanced himself from 'Marinism' and showed greater interest in sacred, philosophical, or political themes. It is recorded that in 1687, the Queen of Sweden helped the poet pay the tuition at the Tolomei School for his son, Braccio. Indeed, the poet lived his life under financial constraints, always hesitant to accept public positions for fear of losing his freedom; and Christina was generous with her assistance. After Christina’s death, Vincenzo was forced to seek practical sources of support, eventually securing a position for his son Baccio as a page at the Medici court. However, Braccio died young, and the poet finally decided to accept the position of senator 'not out of ambition but out of necessity.' He was later appointed Commissioner of Volterra and then of Pisa. He died in Florence in 1707 of a 'chest illness' and was buried in the chapel of St. Julian in the church of St. Pier Maggiore. When the church was demolished at the end of the 18th century, a memorial plaque was placed in his honor in the Basilica of Santa Croce.
The curious story of Galletti
In 1688, after witnessing several hangings on the justice field outside Porta alla Croce, Giuseppe Galletti became so fascinated by the grim spectacle that he could no longer think of anything else. Galletti was the respected servant at the palace of Senator Vincenzo da Filicaja, who is said to have treated him with all due respect.
After attending yet another execution, enjoyed from the front row thanks to a generous tip secretly given to the executioner, Galletti became obsessed with the idea of wanting to meet the same fate as the condemned, with the rope tightening around his neck, choking the life out of him. To achieve this longed-for punishment, he needed to commit something truly grave, with irrefutable evidence that would leave no doubt about his guilt. At first, he began by stealing small sums from his master, then larger and larger amounts, but it seemed that da Filicaja either didn’t notice or pretended not to. So, he decided to commit an act so extreme that it couldn’t be ignored: one night, he cleverly broke into the little church of Santa Brigida on Via del Paradiso and stole an ancient, highly valuable silver bell.
Naturally, he did nothing to cover his tracks. On the contrary, he left clues everywhere so that the guards could find him as quickly as possible. He was caught, arrested, and sentenced to death, not so much for the theft itself but for having desecrated the sacred place where the bell had been carefully kept. On a grim morning that same year, Giuseppe Galletti was led to the scaffold, right where he had once watched the agony of thieves and murderers. He was calm, proud of his act, as if he were not heading to his death but to a celebration, so much so that the Confortatori Neri, the black-robed men who accompanied the condemned to their executions, were both astonished and, in a way, captivated by him. Thus ended the incredible story of this extraordinary man who, not content with witnessing the death of others, wanted to fully savor his own end down to the very last breath.
Lorenzo di Piero de' Medici, known as Lorenzo the Magnificent, was an Italian statesman, the de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic, and the most powerful patron of Renaissance culture in Italy. Lorenzo held the balance of power within the Italic League, an alliance of states that stabilized political conditions on the Italian Peninsula for decades, and his life coincided with the mature phase of the Italian Renaissance and the golden age of Florence. As a patron, he is best known for his sponsorship of artists such as Botticelli and Michelangelo. On the foreign policy front, Lorenzo manifested a clear plan to stem the territorial ambitions of Pope Sixtus IV, in the name of the balance of the Italic League of 1454. For these reasons, Lorenzo was the subject of the Pazzi conspiracy (1478), in which his brother Giuliano was assassinated. The Peace of Lodi of 1454 that he supported among the various Italian states collapsed with his death. He is buried in the Medici Chapel in Florence.
Mariotto di Bindo di Biagio Albertinelli was an Italian Renaissance painter active in Florence. He was a close friend and collaborator of Fra Bartolomeo.
Baccio Bandinelli, was an Italian Renaissance sculptor, draughtsman, and painter.
Cosimo I de' Medici was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. He built the Uffizi (office) to organize his administration, and conquered Siena to consolidate Florence's rule in Tuscany. He expanded the Pitti Palace and most of the Boboli Gardens were also laid out during his reign.
Vincenzo da Filicaja was an italian poet and politician, citizen of Grand Duchy of Tuscany. His poetry was compared to that of Petrarch, and his association with the Accademia della Crusca gave him access to royal patronage. He served as governor of Volterra and Pisa, successively, and finally in the Tuscan Senate.
The Pazzi conspiracy was a failed plot by members of the Pazzi family and others to displace the Medici family as rulers of Renaissance Florence.
Piero di Tommaso Soderini, also known as Pier Soderini, was an Italian statesman of the Republic of Florence.
Giuliano da Sangallo was an Italian sculptor, architect and military engineer active during the Italian Renaissance. He is known primarily for being the favored architect of Lorenzo de' Medici, his patron. In this role, Giuliano designed a villa for Lorenzo as well as a monastery for Augustinians and a church where a miracle was said to have taken place. Additionally, Giuliano was commissioned to build multiple structures for Pope Julius II and Pope Leo X. Leon Battista Alberti and Filippo Brunelleschi heavily influenced Sangallo and in turn, he influenced other important Renaissance figures such as Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, his brother Antonio da Sangallo the Elder, and his sons, Antonio da Sangallo the Younger and Francesco da Sangallo.
The Palazzo Vecchio is the town hall of Florence, Italy. It overlooks the Piazza della Signoria, which holds a copy of Michelangelo's David statue, and the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi.
Francesco Ferruccio was an Italian captain from Florence who fought in the Italian Wars.
The siege of Florence took place from 24 October 1529 to 10 August 1530, at the end of the War of the League of Cognac. At the Congress of Bologna, the Medici Pope Clement VII and Emperor Charles V agreed to restore the Medici family in Florence. A large Imperial and Spanish army under Philibert of Châlon, Prince of Orange and Pier Maria III de' Rossi surrounded the city and after a siege of nearly ten months, captured it. They overthrew the Republic of Florence and installed Alessandro de' Medici as the ruler of the city.
Castelfiorentino is a city and comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, central-northern Italy, located between Florence, Pisa (45 km) and Siena (55 km). The population numbers approximately 20,000 inhabitants. It is part of Valdelsa. Castelfiorentino borders the following municipalities: Certaldo, Empoli, Gambassi Terme, Montaione, Montespertoli and San Miniato.
Montaione is a comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 35 kilometres (22 mi) southwest of Florence. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia.
Lajatico is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 50 kilometers (31 mi) southwest of Florence and about 40 kilometers (25 mi) southeast of Pisa. Lajatico sits in mainly hilly terrain at variable elevations from 100 to 650 meters above sea level) and dominates both the end of the Valdera valley and the opening of the valley known as Val di Cecina.
Rinaldo degli Albizzi (1370–1442) was an Italian nobleman, a member of the Florentine family of the Albizzi. Along with Palla Strozzi, he was the primary opponent of Cosimo de' Medici's rise in Florence.
Matteo Rosselli was an Italian painter of the late Florentine Counter-Mannerism and early Baroque. He is best known however for his highly populated grand-manner historical paintings.
The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, often simply known as The Lives, is a series of artist biographies written by 16th-century Italian painter and architect Giorgio Vasari, which is considered "perhaps the most famous, and even today the most-read work of the older literature of art", "some of the Italian Renaissance's most influential writing on art", and "the first important book on art history".
Palazzo Ginori is a Renaissance-style palace in Via de' Ginori # 11 in the Quartieri San Giovanni of the city of Florence, Italy.
Claudio Kevo Cavallini was an Italian sculptor. His nickname was "Kevo" with which he signed his works. At the age of 50, Claudio discovered that he could make sculptural forms from wood.
Raffaello Borghini was a Florentine poet, playwright and art critic. His art treatise Il Riposo (1584) is an important work of the Counter-Reformation and Counter-Maniera.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
