The Boncompagni is a princely family of the
Italian nobility
The nobility of Italy (Italian language, Italian: ''Nobiltà italiana'') comprised individuals and their families of the Italian Peninsula, and the islands linked with it, recognized by the sovereigns of the Italian city-states since the Middle Ag ...
who settled in
Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...
around the
14th century, but which was probably originally from
Umbria
it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman)
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.
In 1572 they obtained the papal throne thanks to Ugo Boncompagni, who, with the name of
Pope Gregory XIII
Pope Gregory XIII ( la, Gregorius XIII; it, Gregorio XIII; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585), born Ugo Boncompagni, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for ...
, was elected pope. Since then, the rise of the family began. In fact, in 1579, the pope bought the
Duchy of Sora
The Duchy of Sora was a semi-independent state in Italy, created in 1443 by King Alfonso I of Naples and dissolved in 1796. It occupied the south-eastern part of what is today Lazio, bordering what is now Abruzzo. Its capital was first Sora, a ...
from the
Della rovere family for his son
Giacomo, whose descendants reigned there as dukes until 1796. Later they also obtained the
Principality of Piombino, following the marriage of
Gregorio II Boncompagni with
Ippolita Ludovisi, princess of Piombino and last of her dynasty. They reigned over Piombino, like Boncompagni-Ludovisi, until the deposition in 1801 of the last prince, Antonio II Boncompagni Ludovisi.
History
Bolognese family, perhaps originally from Umbria, rose from the middle class to which it belonged thanks to the marriage of Cristoforo Boncompagni (1470 - 1546) with the noble Angela Marescalchi. In 1572 the son of Cristoforo and Angela, Ugo Boncompagni, was elected to the papal throne as the 226th pope of the Catholic Church with the name of Gregory XIII. Since then the luster and power of the family could only increase.
Numerous members obtained important positions in the Church and 5, in addition to Ugo, were created cardinals: Filippo (1548 - 1586), Francesco (1592 - 1641), Girolamo (1622 - 1684), Giacomo (1652 - 1731), Ignazio Gaetano (1743 - 1790); of these, among other posts, one was
Archbishop of Naples
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Naples ( la, Archidioecesis Neapolitana) is a Roman Catholic archdioceses in southern Italy, the see being in Naples. A Christian community was founded there in the 1st century AD and the diocese of Naples wa ...
and two were
Archbishops of Bologna, while another was also
Secretary of State of the Holy See.
was
lord of Piombino from 1706 to 1707.
The family later merged with the
Ludovisi family
The House of Ludovisi was an Italian noble family, originating from Bologna. They had close ties with the Papacy and were influential in the Papal States. Alessandro Ludovisi became a cardinal and later Pope Gregory XV. His cardinal-nephew was ...
. The 19th century mathematician
Baldassarre Boncompagni-Ludovisi was a member of the family.
Prince
Francesco Boncompagni Ludovisi (1886-1955) was
Governor of Rome in 1928-1955.
References
Sources
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{{Authority control
Duchy of Sora
Italian noble families
Papal families