Castracani, Castruccio

Castracani, Castruccio

▪ Italian condottiere
born 1281, Castruccio, Tuscany [Italy]
died September 3, 1328, Lucca

      condottiere, or captain of mercenaries, who ruled Lucca from 1316 to 1328.

      When the Guelfs gained power in Lucca in 1300, Castruccio's family, the wealthy Antelminelli, were exiled from Lucca. Castruccio served successively as condottiere for the French, the English, and the Lombards. When the German king Henry VII entered Italy to be crowned Holy Roman emperor, Castruccio supported him by allying himself with the powerful Uguccione Della Faggiuola, lord of Pisa, and led the pro-imperial Ghibelline forces back to Lucca (1314), over which Uguccione was given power. The rivalry between the two leaders was settled when Uguccione was overthrown in 1316, and the victorious Castruccio was made lord and protector of Lucca.

      In 1320 the emperor Frederick III appointed Castruccio imperial vicar of Lucca, Versilia, and Lunigiana. When the emperor Louis IV entered Italy to be crowned in Rome, Castruccio became one of his most active counselors. In 1324 Louis appointed him count of Latran, duke of Lucca, with rights of succession for his heirs, and senator—i.e., governor—of Rome. His victory over the Florentines at Altopascio in 1325 brought almost all Tuscany under his sway, and he became one of the most powerful men in Italy.

      Castruccio's long fight against the papalist Guelfs brought him, however, into conflict with the papacy, and he was twice excommunicated by John XXII (pope from 1316 to 1334). Castruccio's sudden death, in 1328, left his empire disorganized, an easy prey for the Florentines, who soon recaptured most of his holdings.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Castruccio Castracani — degli Antelminelli (auch Interminelli, Interminegli; * 29. März 1281 in Lucca; † 3. September 1328) war ein spätmittelalterlicher Condottiere, der sich durch politisches und militärisches Geschick als Herzog von Lucca etablieren konnte und seiner …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Castruccio Castracani degli Antelminelli — (auch Interminelli, Interminegli; * 29. März 1281 in Lucca; † 3. September 1328) war ein spätmittelalterlicher Condottiere, der sich durch politisches und militärisches Geschick als Herzog von Lucca etablieren konnte und seiner Stadt zeitweise… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Castruccio Castracani — degli Antelminelli (1281 ndash;September 3, 1328) was an Italian condottiero and duke of Lucca. BiographyCastracani was born in Lucca, a member of the noble family of Antelminelli, of the Ghibelline party. In 1300 he was exiled with his parents… …   Wikipedia

  • Castruccio Castracāni — (spr. struttscho), aus dem Haus Antelminelli, Herzog von Lucca, geb. 29. März 1281 in Castruccio bei Lucca, gest. 3. Sept. 1328, kämpfte, aus der Heimat verbannt, 1303 als Söldnerführer im Dienste Philipps IV. von Frankreich in Flandern, dann in… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Castruccio Castracani —   [ka struttʃo ], italienischer Condottiere, Herzog von Lucca (seit 1327), * Castruccio (bei Lucca) 29. 3. 1281, ✝ Lucca 3. 9. 1328; aus der Familie der Antelminelli, als Ghibelline verbannt, leistete er in England und Frankreich Kriegsdienste.… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Castruccio — (spr. Kastrutscho), 1) C. Castracani, geb. 1281 in Castruccio bei Lucca, flüchtete mit seinen Eltern, Ghibellinen, nach Ancona, ging 1301 nach England u. von da nach Flandern, wo er sich durch Tapferkeit auszeichnete u. die Gunst Philipps des… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Castruccio Castracani — Portrait présumé de Castruccio Castracani au Camposanto de Pise. Castruccio Castracani, né en 1281 à Lucques, mort le 3 septembre 1328 à Lucques, était un condottiere, qui fut duc de Lucques. Biographie Né dans une famille inféodée aux …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Valperga, or the Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca — Titelseite des zweiten Bands von Valperga Valperga, or the Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca ist ein 1823 erschienener Roman der britischen Autorin Mary Shelley. Mary Shelleys ursprünglicher Titel ist heute der Subtitel des… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • CASTRUCCIO-CASTRACANI —    Duke of Lucca, and chief of the Ghibelline party in that town, the greatest war captain in Europe in his day; lord of hundreds of strongholds; wore on a high occasion across his breast a scroll, inscribed, He is what God made him, and across… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Machiavelli, Niccolò — Ma·chi·a·vel·li (măk ē ə vĕlʹē, mä kyä ), Niccolò. 1469 1527. Italian political theorist whose book The Prince (1513) describes the achievement and maintenance of power by a determined ruler indifferent to moral considerations. * * * born May 3,… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”