Coat of arms of the House of della Gherardesca

The House of Gherardesca was an ancient Italian noble family of the

Republic of Pisa The Republic of Pisa () was an independent state existing from the 11th to the 15th century centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian t ...

, of Longobard origin. The family likely dates back as early as the 11th century. They were one of the most prominent families initially in

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

, then of

Volterra Volterra (; Latin: ''Volaterrae'') is a walled mountaintop town in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its history dates from before the 8th century BC and it has substantial structures from the Etruscan, Roman, and Medieval periods. History ...

and eventually of

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 ...

. They were of

Ghibelline The Guelphs and Ghibellines ( , ; ) were 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 and 13th centu ...

sympathies and held the county of Donoratico.

History

Constantine I of Gallura Constantine I was the Giudice of Gallura from probably before 1065 to sometime before 1100. He was probably a member of the Gherardeschi family of Pisa and governed Gallura on behalf of the Republic. Constantine was alive in 1073 and a letter of ...

may have been a member of the family, ruling

Gallura Gallura ( or ; ) is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy. The name ''Gallùra'' is allegedly supposed to mean "stony area". Geography Gallùra has an area of . It is from the Italian peninsula and from the French island of Corsica. ...

on behalf of the

Archdiocese of Pisa The Archdiocese of Pisa () is a Latin Church metropolitan see of the Catholic Church in Pisa, Italy.

. The Gherardeschi had a rivalry with the

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 ...

, another Ghibelline family of Pisa. In 1237, the Archbishop and the

Emperor Frederick II Frederick II (, , , ; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jerusalem from 1225. He was the son of Emperor Henry VI of the Ho ...

intervened in Pisa to reconcile the two rivals, but failed. In 1254, the citizenry rebelled and imposed twelve ''Anziani del Popolo'' ("Elders of the People") as their political representatives. Early on in the century, the Gherardeschi took an interest in the affairs of Pisa in

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

. In 1230, Ubaldo of Gallura, a Visconti, invaded the

Giudicato of Cagliari The Judicate of Cagliari (, ) was one of the Sardinian medieval kingdoms, four kingdoms or judicates (''iudicati'', literally "judgeship") into which Sardinia was divided during the Middle Ages. The Judicate of Cagliari occupied the entire southe ...

, but the Gherardeschi repulsed him in the name of Benedetta and the young William II. In 1258, they received a third of Cagliari after it was split up. Their third was the south-western third; in the 1272 circa the count

Ugolino della Gherardesca Ugolino della Gherardesca (March 1289), Count of Donoratico, was an Italian nobleman, politician and naval commander. He was frequently accused of treason and features prominently in Dante's ''Divine Comedy''. Biography In the 13th century, the ...

founded in the ''Cixerri'' the important mining town of ''Villa di Chiesa'', today Iglesias. A Gherardesca woman also married John Visconti, the

Judge of Gallura The kings or ''judges'' (''iudices'' or ''judikes'') of Gallura were the local rulers of the northeast of Sardinia during the Middle Ages. Theirs was the closest kingdom to Corsica. *Manfred (c. 1020 – c. 1040) * Baldo (c. 1040 – c. 1 ...

, who had received the northeastern third of Cagliari. This marriage brought final reconciliation between the Visconti and Gherardeschi. The Gherardeschi reached their height in Pisa in the person of Ugolino della Gherardesca in the 1270s and 1280s. He was forced to share power with his nephew Nino Visconti, but they soon quarrelled. The fed-up Pisans arrested Ugolino and deposed Nino from Gallura. After

's betrayal in the battle of Meloria, the

House of Orlandi The House of Orlandi was an Italian political and military family of the Republic of Pisa, dating back as early as the 10th century. History The Orlandi had a rivalry with the Della Gherardesca family, House of Della Gherardesca after Ugolino ...

also began rivalries with the Gherardeschi. There is a Gherardesca Chapel in the church of

Saint Francis St. Francis or Saint Francis may refer to: Roman Catholic saints *Francis of Assisi (1181–1226), Italian founder of the Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans) *Francis of Paola (1416–1507), Italian (Calabrian) founder of the Order of the Minims * ...

in Pisa.

Notable members

(c. 1220–1289), politician *Emilia della Gherardesca (d. 1349), duchess of

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

*Cosimo della Gherardesca (1567-1634), bishop *Tommaso della Gherardesca (1654-1721), archibishop *Ugolino della Gherardesca II (1823-1882), politician *Ugolino della Gherardesca III (1874-19572), politician *Giuseppe della Gherardesca (1876-1968), politician *Sveva della Gherardesca (b. 1930), wife of Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia *Manfredi della Gherardesca (1961-2022), art dealer *

Costantino della Gherardesca Costantino della Gherardesca Verecondi Scortecci (born 29 January 1977, in Rome), or simply Costantino della Gherardesca, is an Italian actor, journalist, radio presenter, television personality and presenter. Gherardesca is part of a notable ari ...

(b. 1977) actor, journalist, and television personality {{Authority control Families of Pisa Italian noble families Medieval Sardinia