The Frangipani family was a powerful

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

patrician clan in the

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 ...

. The family was firmly

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

in sympathy. The name has many spellings, which include Frangipane, Freiapane, Fricapane and Fresapane. In his '' Trattatello in laude di Dante'',

Boccaccio Giovanni Boccaccio ( , ; ; 16 June 1313 – 21 December 1375) was an Italian writer, poet, correspondent of Petrarch, and an important Renaissance humanist. Born in the town of Certaldo, he became so well known as a writer that he was s ...

traces the descent of

Dante Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

from the family.

History

The family claimed descent from the

plebeian In ancient Rome, the plebeians or plebs were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words "commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Etymology The precise origins of the gro ...

family of

Anicii The gens Anicia (or the Anicii) was a plebeian family at ancient Rome, mentioned first towards the end of the fourth century BC. The first of the Anicii to achieve prominence under the Republic was Lucius Anicius Gallus, who conducted the war aga ...

; however, the first mention of the family dates only from 1014, in a document relating to the Abbazia di Farfa. A

parchment Parchment is a writing material made from specially prepared Tanning (leather), untanned skins of animals—primarily sheep, calves and goats. It has been used as a writing medium in West Asia and Europe for more than two millennia. By AD 400 ...

diploma of

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...

in the Frangipani archive at Castello di

Porpetto Porpetto () is a (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Udine in the Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about south of Udine. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,717 a ...

, 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 ...

, is dated 10 January 973. They played a significant part in the struggle between Pope Gregory VII and Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV, and briefly governed Rome from 1107 to 1108. In the feud between the

Orsini Orsini is a surname of Italian origin, originally derived from Latin ''ursinus'' ("bearlike") and originating as an epithet or sobriquet describing the name-bearer's purported strength. Notable people with the surname include the following: * Aaro ...

and

Colonna Colonna is an Italian word for column. The name Colonna may refer to: People * Colonna family, a noble family from Rome * Colonna (surname), an Italian surname Places ;Italy * Colonna, Lazio, a ''comune'' in the Province of Rome * Colonna, Cit ...

families, they supported the Orsini. Their power was at its greatest when they achieved the election of Pope

Honorius II Pope Honorius II (9 February 1060 – 13 February 1130), born Lamberto Scannabecchi,Levillain, pg. 731 was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 December 1124 to his death in 1130. Although from a humble background, ...

in 1124. From no later than 1130 the Frangipani held the

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; , ultimately from Ancient Greek word "kolossos" meaning a large statue or giant) is an Ellipse, elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphi ...

of Rome, which they had fortified and which gave them strategic control of the approaches to the

Lateran Palace The Apostolic Palace of the Lateran (; ), informally the Lateran Palace (), is an ancient palace of the Roman Empire and later the main pope, papal residence in Rome. Located on Saint John's Square in Lateran on the Caelian Hill, the palace is ...

, the papal residence, from the north and west; the family lost control of the Colosseum to the

Annibaldi The Annibaldi were a powerful baronial family of Rome and the Lazio in the Middle Ages. They began to rise to prominence in the 13th century with the favour of Popes Gregory IX and Alexander IV, in the vacuum left by the Counts of Tusculum. In th ...

in the mid-thirteenth century. In 1268 Giovanni Frangipane, lord of Astura, betrayed

Conradin Conrad III (25 March 1252 – 29 October 1268), called ''the Younger'' or ''the Boy'', but usually known by the diminutive Conradin (, ), was the last direct heir of the House of Hohenstaufen. He was Duke of Swabia (1254–1268) and nominal King ...

, the teenage Duke of Swabia and last of the

Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...

dynasty, who took refuge with him after his defeat at the

Battle of Tagliacozzo The Battle of Tagliacozzo was fought on 23 August 1268 between the Ghibelline supporters of Conradin of Hohenstaufen and the Guelph army of Charles of Anjou. The battle represented the last act of Hohenstaufen power in Italy. The capture and e ...

. Frangipane arrested him and handed him over to

Charles of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou or Charles d'Anjou, was King of Sicily from 1266 to 1285. He was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the House of Anjou-Sicily. Between 1246 a ...

, who beheaded him. The family had

feuds A feud , also known in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, private war, or mob war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because ...

in the

Campagna Campagna (Italian: ) is a small town and ''comune'' of the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of Southern Italy. Its population is 17,148. Its old Latin name was Civitas Campaniae (City of Campagna). Campagna is located in one of the ...

south of Rome, among them Astura,

Cisterna A cisterna (: cisternae) is a flattened membrane vesicle found in the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus. Cisternae are an integral part of the packaging and modification processes of proteins occurring in the Golgi. Function Proteins begi ...

, Marino, Ninfa and

Terracina Terracina is an Italian city and ''comune'' of the province of Latina, located on the coast southeast of Rome on the Via Appia ( by rail). The site has been continuously occupied since antiquity. History Ancient times Terracina appears in anci ...

, and later

Nemi Nemi is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome (central Italy), in the Alban Hills overlooking Lake Nemi, a volcanic crater lake. It is northwest of Velletri and about southeast of Rome. The town's name derives from the Lati ...

. The Roman branch of the family was extinguished in 1654 with the death of Mario Frangipane, marquis of Nemi. Two presumed branches continued, one in

and one in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

. The former had estates at

Tarcento Tarcento (; ) is a small city and (municipality) in the Regional decentralization entity of Udine in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of north-eastern Italy. The town officially became a city when the local church was given back its rank of . H ...

and

, and received patrician status in Rome. The latter descended from the lords of the island of Veglia (now

Krk Krk (; ; ; ; archaic German: ''Vegl'', ; ) is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of Primorje-Gorski Kotar county. Krk is tied with Cres as the largest Adriatic island, depending o ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

), who in the fifteenth century claimed to be related to the Roman family, took the name Frangipani (

Frankopan The House of Frankopan (, , , ) was a Croatian noble family, whose members were among the great landowner magnates and high officers of the Kingdom of Croatia in union with Hungary. The Frankopans, along with the Zrinskis, are among the mos ...

or Frankapan) on the basis of documents provided by

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the We ...

, and from about 1530 used the Frangipane

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

; Croatian historians dispute the historicity of this connection. The Frangipani had the right of burial at the church of

San Marcello al Corso San Marcello al Corso, is an ancient titular and conventual church in Rome, Italy. It has been served by friars of the Servite Order since c. 1375 and is the headquarters of their General Curia. The cardinal-protector of the church is norma ...

in Rome; their chapel – the Frangipani Chapel – in that church is dedicated to

Saint Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

. From 1558 or 1559 until his death in 1566,

Taddeo Zuccari Taddeo Zuccaro (or Zuccari) (1 September 15292 September 1566) was an Italian painter, one of the most popular members of the Roman mannerist school. Biography Zuccaro was born in Sant'Angelo in Vado, near Urbino, the son of Ottaviano Zuccaro, ...

worked there on a cycle of

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es of the life of the saint; the paintings were completed by his brother

Federico Federico (; ) is a given name and surname. It is a form of Frederick (given name), Frederick, most commonly found in Spanish language, Spanish, Portuguese language, Portuguese and Italian language, Italian. People with the given name Federico Ar ...

Members of the family

Cencio I Frangipane Cencio I Frangipane (also ''Cencius'' or ''Centius'') was a Roman nobleman of the Frangipani family of the latter half of the eleventh century. He was a Roman consul His parentage is cited first in 1066, when he appeared as ''Cencio vir magnific ...

Cencio II Frangipane Cencius II or Cencio II Frangipane was the son of either of Cencio I or of John, a brother of one Leo. He was the principal representative of the Frangipani family of Rome in the early twelfth century. One night in 1118, he interrupted the Coll ...

Oddone Frangipane Oddone Frangipane (also ''Oddo'' or ''Otto'', Latin: ''Odo Frajapanis'') was a Roman lord and military leader in the service of the Papacy in the 12th century. He was the son of Leo and grandson of Cencio II of the Frangipani family. Oddone had ...

Ottone Frangipane Ottone Frangipane (1040 – 23 March 1127), also known as Saint Ottone (or Saint Otho), was a Benedictine monk and a hermit. He is patron saint of Ariano Irpino and the diocese of Ariano Irpino-Lacedonia. Life Ottone is believed to have belon ...

; monk, later

canonised Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sai ...

. *

Aldruda Frangipane Aldruda Frangipane, Countess of Bertinoro, (after 1120 – after October 1173) was a twelfth-century Commune of Rome, Roman noblewoman and military leader. Aldruda is believed to have belonged to the Frangipani family, Frangipane family of Rome. ...

References

{{reflist, 45em, refs= David Lee Bomgardner (2000)
''The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre''
London: Routledge. {{ISBN, 9780415165938. Francesco Frascarelli (1970)
Frangipani
(in Italian). ''Enciclopedia Dantesca''. Archived 17 December 2013. Giovanni Frangipane
(in Italian). ''Enciclopedie on line''. Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed April 2015. Frangipane
(in Italian). ''Enciclopedie on line''. Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed May 2015. Eugenio Dupré Theseider (1932)
Frangipane
(in Italian). ''Enciclopedia Italiana''. Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed May 2015. Frankapan
(in Croatian). ''Hrvatska enciklopedija''. Accessed February 2019. Giuseppe Mazzatinti. (1988 899–1900
''Gli Archivi della Storia d'Ítalia''
(facsimile, in Italian). Hildesheim; New York: Georg Olms Verlag. {{ISBN, 3487090449. 10 - Cappella di San Paolo
(in Italian). Rome: Ministero dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali e del Turismo; Soprintendenza Speciale per il Patrimonio Storico-Artistico ed Etnoantropologico e per il Polo Museale della Città di Roma. Accessed June 2017. Medieval Rome Families of post-ancient Rome