Princess Elvina Pallavicini (22 January 1914 – 29 August 2004) was an Italian noblewoman, member of the

Pallavicini family The Pallavicini (plural, often used in the singular Pallavicino for individual members) are an Italian nobility, Italian noble family whose name dates back to the 11th century. The first known representative of this name was Oberto il Pelavicino ...

, part of, and often considered the leader of, the so-called

Black Nobility The black nobility or black aristocracy () are Roman aristocratic families who sided with the Papacy under Pope Pius IX after the Savoy family-led army of the Kingdom of Italy entered Rome on 20 September 1870, overthrew the pope and the Papal ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

during the second half of the 20th century.

Early life

She was born in

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

on 22 January 1914 as Elvina dei Medici del Vascello, daughter of Giacomo dei Marchesi Medici del Vascello (1883–1949) and his wife, née Olga Leumann (d. 1966).

Later life

During the Nazi occupation of Rome after the

Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces The Armistice of Cassibile (Italian language, Italian: ''Armistizio di Cassibile'') was an armistice that was signed on 3 September 1943 by Kingdom of Italy, Italy and the Allies of World War II, Allies, marking the end of hostilities between It ...

, Princess Pallavicini supported Italian Royalist partisans and was later awarded bronze medal of military valor for doing so. Starting from 1977, Princess Elvina Pallavicini led a group of Black Nobility that provided support for Archbishop

Marcel Lefebvre Marcel François Marie Joseph Lefebvre (29 November 1905 – 25 March 1991) was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate who served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dakar, Archbishop of Dakar from 1955 to 1962. He was a major inf ...

. She was also actively involved in politics, in particular, supporting the policies of the US Vice President

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American former politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He has been called vice presidency o ...

and Secretary of Defense

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, businessman, and naval officer who served as United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and again ...

. Princess Elvina Pallavicini, sometimes called the “black queen” or the “first lady” of Roman nobility, died on 29 August 2004 at

Cortina d'Ampezzo Cortina d'Ampezzo (; , ; historical ) sometimes abbreviated to simply Cortina, is a town and ''comune'' in the heart of the southern (Dolomites, Dolomitic) Alps in the province of Belluno, in the Veneto region of Northern Italy. Situated on the ...

. Her funeral in the basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina was attended by numerous representatives of Italian government as well as nobility.

Marriage and family

In 1939, she married Guglielmo Marius Hubert Marie de Pierre de Bernis de Courtavel, who in 1937 was made Prince Pallavicini. The Prince was a military pilot in the

Regia Aeronautica The Royal Italian Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') (RAI) was the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Regio Esercito, Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was ...

and became

Missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty (person), casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoner of war, prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been ...

on 1 August 1940 after an air fight over the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

(he was officially declared dead by an Italian court ten years later, in 1950). The spouses' only daughter, Maria Camilla, was born after his death. Maria Camilla married, and later divorced, the grandson of Armando Diaz della Vittoria.Prince Pallavicini – MIA Western Desert (?) 1940
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pallavicini, Elvina Elvina Nobility from Genoa Princesses in Italy 1914 births 2004 deaths