Cassone della Torre (or ''Casso'', ''Cassono'', ''Castone'', ''Gastone''), also called Mosca (died 20 August 1318) was an Italian medieval condottiero and feudal lord. A member of the Torriani family, he was

Archbishop of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has long maintained its own Latin liturgical rite usage, the Amb ...

from 1308 to 1316 and

patriarch of Aquileia This is a list of bishops and patriarchs of Aquileia in northeastern Italy. For the ecclesiastical history of the diocese, see Patriarchate of Aquileia. From 553 until 698 the archbishops renounced Papal authority as part of the Schism of the T ...

from 1317 to 1318.

Biography

Cassone was the second son of Corrado della Torre and grandson of Napo della Torre. In his youth, he stayed in

Friuli Friuli (; ; or ; ; ) is a historical region of northeast Italy. The region is marked by its separate regional and ethnic identity predominantly tied to the Friulians, who speak the Friulian language. It comprises the major part of the autono ...

, then ruled by his grand-uncle

Raimondo Raimondo is an Italian given name. Its English equivalent is Raymond. Notable people with the name include: * Raimondo Boucheron (1800–1876), Italian composer, chiefly of sacred music * Raimondo D'Inzeo (1925–2013), Italian show jumping ride ...

: here most members of the family lived in exile from

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

after their arch-rival

House of Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia fr ...

had been able to seize the power in that city. Cassone was appointed canon of

Cividale Cividale del Friuli (, locally ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in the Province of Udine, Regional decentralization entity of Udine, part of the Northern Italy, North-Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The town lies above sea-level in th ...

in 1296. When the della Torre were able to return to Milan in 1302, Cassone was appointed canon of the

Cathedral of Milan Milan Cathedral ( ; ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary (), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombardy, Italy. Dedicated to the Nativity of St. Mary (), it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Archbi ...

. In 1308 he succeeded Francesco da Parma as

, being elected by the

Chapter Chapter or Chapters may refer to: Books * Chapter (books), a main division of a piece of writing or document * Chapter book, a story book intended for intermediate readers, generally age 7–10 * Chapters (bookstore), Canadian big box bookstore ...

of the Cathedral, of Milan, confirmed by

Pope Clement V Pope Clement V (; – 20 April 1314), born Raymond Bertrand de Got (also occasionally spelled ''de Guoth'' and ''de Goth''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 June 1305 to his death, in April 1314. He is reme ...

and consecrated bishop in Milano by Ugaccione Borromeo bishop of Novara on about 12 October 1308. His appointment as Archbishop of Milano spurred a conflict with his cousin

Guido della Torre Guido della Torre (27 September 1259 – summer 1312) was a Lord of Milan between 1302 and 1312. Early life He was the son of Francesco della Torre (brother of Napoleone della Torre), Podestà of Novara (d. 1277) and his wife, Giulia, daughter ...

, who was afraid that Cassone could ally with the Visconti against him (two of the archbishop's brothers were married to nephews of Matteo Visconti's wife). In 1309 he took part to a successful papal military expedition against the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

, returning to Milan with great honors. On 1 October 1309 Guido's troops attacked the archbishop's palace in Milan, and imprisoned him. On 29 October 1309 he was exiled from Milan. He moved to

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

where the

papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...

Guido della Torre. Emperor Henry VII appointed Cassone mediator between the claims of the families Torriani and

Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...

who were in long conflict for ruling Milan. Cassone find an agreement between the two families but it was not accepted by Guido della Torre; Emperor Henry VII then forced Guido della Torre to flee from Milan and sold the title of imperial vicar for Milan to

Matteo I Visconti Matteo I Visconti (1250–1322) was the second of the Milanese Visconti of Milan, Visconti family to govern Milan. Matteo was born to Teobaldo (o Tibaldo) Visconti, Teobaldo Visconti and Anastasia Pirovano. In 1287, Matteo's uncle Ottone Visco ...

. Cassone re-entered in Milan and on 6 January 1311 he crowned Henry VII as

King of Italy King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...

. The debt due to the Emperor by the citizens of Milan created dissatisfaction and the Torriani instigated a revolt, which was suppressed by the Visconti, supported by the soldiers of the Emperor. Cassone then fled from Milan. Following the sacking of the episcopal palace in Milan in 1314, he excommunicated

. On 31 December 1316 Cassone renounced the title of See of Milan, and was appointed as secular patriarch of Aquileia by

pope John XXII Pope John XXII (, , ; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death, in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Papacy, Avignon Pope, elected by ...

. However, he never took the post

since he died in a fall from horse at

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

. There he was buried in the church of Santa Florence; his funerary monument is attributed to

Tino da Camaino 300px, Tomb of Antonio d'Orso, in Florence.html" ;"title="Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence">Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence. Tino di Camaino (c. 1280 – c. 1337) was an Italian sculptor. Biography Born in Siena, the son of architect Camain ...

Agostino da Siena Agostino da Siena or Agostino di Giovanni () was an Italian architect and sculptor, active between 1310 and 1347. Biography According to the Italian Renaissance biographer Giorgio Vasari, Agostino was born into a Sienese family of sculptors and ...

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Della Torre, Cassone 14th-century births 1318 deaths

Cassone A cassone (plural ''cassoni'') or marriage chest is a rich and showy Italian type of chest, which may be inlaid or carved, prepared with gesso ground then painted and gilded. ''Pastiglia'' was decoration in low relief carved or moulded in ...

Archbishops of Milan Patriarchs of Aquileia Deaths by horse-riding accident in Italy