The Alidosi or Alodosi are a family of

Romagna Romagna () is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, in northern Italy. Etymology The name ''Romagna'' originates from the Latin name ''Romania'', which originally ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, who held the ''

signoria A ''signoria'' () was the governing authority in many of the Italian city-states during the Medieval and Renaissance periods. The word ''signoria'' comes from ''signore'' (), or "lord", an abstract noun meaning (roughly) "government", "governi ...

'' of the city of

Imola Imola (; or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical region Romagna ...

during the Late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. They were originary of the

Santerno The Santerno is a river in Romagna in northern Italy. It is a major tributary of the river Reno. In Roman times, it was known as the ''Vatrenus'' (small ''Renus''), although, in the Tabula Peutingeriana, it was already identified as the ''Santernus ...

valley.

History

During the 13th century, the Alidosi supported the Guelph cause during the

Guelphs and Ghibellines The Guelphs and Ghibellines ( , ; ) were Political faction, factions supporting the Pope (Guelphs) and the Holy Roman Emperor (Ghibellines) in the Italian city-states of Central Italy and Northern Italy during the Middle Ages. During the 12th ...

conflicts. The Alidosis ruled Imola beginning with 1341, when Pope

Benedict XII Pope Benedict XII (, , ; 1285 – 25 April 1342), born Jacques Fournier, was a cardinal and inquisitor, and later, head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1334 to his death, in April 1342. He was the third Avignon pope and reformed monasti ...

turned the city and its territory over to

Lippo II Alidosi Lippo II Alidosi (also called Litto; died 1350) was a ruler of Imola, a member of the Alidosi family. He was elected "Captain of the People" of Imola in 1334, the same year in which he was ''podestà'' of Bologna. Two years later Benedict XII g ...

with the title of pontifical vicar. The family would rule the city until 1424, when it would be stripped from them by

Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447) was the duke of Duchy of Milan, Milan from 1412 to 1447. Reports stated that he was "paranoid", but "shrewd as a ruler." He went to war in the 1420s with Romagna, Republic of Florenc ...

, forcing them to retreat to the countryside seigniory of

Castel del Rio Castel may refer to the following places: In France Castel is the Occitan word for the Latin '' Castrum'' (small caserna military castrum) and occurs very often in southern France toponyms especially mixed with the adjective ''nau'' (which means ...

, in the Romagna

Apennines The Apennines or Apennine Mountains ( ; or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; or – a singular with plural meaning; )Latin ''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which would be segmented ''Apenn-inus'', often used with nouns s ...

. Several member of the Alidosi family were employed by the

Grand Duke of Tuscany Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), se ...

which put them at odds with the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

and the

Roman Inquisition The Roman Inquisition, formally , was a system of partisan tribunals developed by the Holy See of the Catholic Church, during the second half of the 16th century, responsible for prosecuting individuals accused of a wide array of crimes according ...

. In 1608,

Rodrigo Rodrigo () is a Spanish, Portuguese and Italian name derived from the Germanic name ''Roderick'' ( Gothic ''*Hroþareiks'', via Latinized ''Rodericus'' or ''Rudericus''), given specifically in reference to either King Roderic (d. 712), the la ...

, the then head of the family, was accused of various offences, chief among them protecting Germans. This resulted in a lengthy trial which saw the Grand Duke clash with the prosecuting efforts of the Inquisition. They were ultimately ousted from the Castel del Rio in 1638 by

Pope Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII (; ; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death, in July 1644. As pope, he expanded the papal terri ...

Notable members

Another notable member was Cardinal

Francesco Alidosi Francesco Alidosi (145524 May 1511) was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and condottiero, remembered as a friend and favourite of Pope Julius II, used by Michelangelo to smooth his relations with his difficult patron. He accompanied Giuliano della R ...

(1455–1511), who was a friend of

Pope Julius II Pope Julius II (; ; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death, in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope, the Battle Pope or the Fearsome ...

. He is mentioned by several sources as having been appointed

Cardinal protector of England The Cardinal protector of England was an appointed crown-cardinal of England from 1492 until 1539. A cardinal protector is the representative of a Roman Catholic nation or organisation within the College of Cardinals, appointed by the pope. T ...

in 1509, but this appointment "cannot be exactly established" as his only surviving letters to England do not mention the protectorate. He was murdered in 1511 by members of the

Duke of Urbino The Duchy of Urbino () was an independent duchy in early modern central Italy, corresponding to the northern half of the modern region of Marche. It was directly annexed by the Papal States in 1631. It was bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the ea ...

's entourage, after being accused of treason.

Alidosi rulers of Imola

Roberto Alidosi Roberto Alidosi (died 29 November 1362) was a lord of Imola in the 14th century. He was appointed as Papal vicar in the city in December 1350, and in 1356 he was captain of the Papal army. Roberto Alidosi married Michelina Malatesta, daughter of ...

(986-1001) * Ugolino Alidosi (1029–1032) * Riccardo Alidosi (1032–1046) * Ranieri Alidosi (1046–1054) * Lippo I Alidosi (''de facto'', 1278–1288) *

Alidosio Alidosi The Alidosi or Alodosi are a family of Romagna, Italy, who held the ''signoria'' of the city of Imola during the Late Middle Ages. They were originary of the Santerno valley. History During the 13th century, the Alidosi supported the Guelph caus ...

(1290–1293 and 1302–1311) *

(1334–1350) *

(1350–1362) *

Azzo Alidosi Azzo Alidosi (died 1372) was an Italian condottiero and a lord of Imola. The son of Roberto Alidosi, he was governor of Fermo in 1364–1367, and succeeded his father in Imola after his death. Named papal vicar of the city under the control of ...

(1362–1363 and 1365–1372) *

Bertrando Alidosi Bertrando Alidosi (died 12 November 1391) was an Italian condottiere and the Lord of Imola(as Papal vicar) from 1372 until 1391. He was the son of Roberto Alidosi, and succeeded in his signoria to Azzo Alidosi, to whom he had been associated by wil ...

(1372–1391) *

Luigi Alidosi Luigi Alidosi (also Ludovico, died 1430) was the lord of Imola (as Papal vicar) from 1391 until 1424, the last ruler of the city from his family. He was the son of Bertrando Alidosi and Elisa Tarlati. According to some sources in 1401, his sister ...

(1391–1424) *Lippo Alidosi (associated 1391-1396)

References

{{reflist