Luca Savelli was a Roman senator who in 1234 sacked the

Lateran 250px, Basilica and Palace - side view Lateran and Laterano are names for an area of Rome, and the shared names of several buildings in Rome. The properties were once owned by the Lateranus family of the Roman Empire. The Laterani lost their p ...

in a revolt against

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX (; born Ugolino di Conti; 1145 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and the ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decretales'' and instituting the Pa ...

. He was the father of

Pope Honorius IV Pope Honorius IV (born Giacomo Savelli; — 3 April 1287) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 April 1285 to his death on 3 April 1287. His election followed the death of Pope Martin IV and was notable for its sp ...

Life

Savelli was born in about 1190, into an old senatorial family; and married Vana Aldobrandeschi. Savelli became Senator of the Roman Commune and attempted to extend Roman control over Tuscia and the province of Marittima e Campagna, the later part of the

Patrimony of Saint Peter The Patrimony of Saint Peter () originally designated the landed possessions and revenues of various kinds that belonged to the apostolic Holy See. Until the middle of the 8th century this consisted wholly of private property; later, it correspon ...

.''The New Cambridge medieval history: c.1024-c.1198'', volume 4, Part 1, p. 288 The Roman militia seized and occupied the castle of Montalto di Castro - directly subject to the Church of Rome - to make it a stronghold in the military maneuvers against

Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...

. Gregory took refuge in

Rieti Rieti (; , Sabino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 47,700. It is the administrative seat of the province of Rieti and see of the diocese of Rieti, as well as the modern capital of the Sabina region. T ...

and in May 1234 excommunicated Savelli and a number of his supporters and organized a counter-offensive. Much to the surprise of the Romans,

Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor 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, Holy Roman ...

, who was frequently at war with the papacy, sided with the Pope this time. Frederick II moved from southern Italy with an army, joining the papal troops under Raniero Capocci at

Montefiascone Montefiascone is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Viterbo, in Lazio, central Italy. It stands on a hill on the southeast side of Lake Bolsena, about north of Rome. History The name of the city derives from that of the Falisci (''Mons Fa ...

. On October 8, the Romans attacked Viterbo, but were beaten back. The defender's then besieged the Romans at a fortress a few kilometers south of Viterbo and Capocci was able to defeat them. Savelli responded by banishing Cardinal Capocci from Rome and declaring the Pope exiled until he should pay compensation for war damages. To this end, he began requisitioning assets from the dioceses of Ostia, Tusculum and Palestrina and other religious institutes of the Patrimony. In April 1235, Savelli was replaced as Senator.Vendittelli, Marco. "Savelli, Luca", Treccani, 2017
/ref> Savelli was again Senator in May 1266. He died in office that year, still attempting to extend Roman authority and recover war damages from the

Curia Curia (: curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally probably had wider powers, they came to meet ...

. His tomb is found at the

Santa Maria in Aracoeli Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

"Our Lady of The Heavenly Altar", along with his wife, and his son Giacomo ( Honorius IV). The papal tomb was actually designed for Luca's wife Vana. Another son, Pandolfo, was the ''

podestà (), also potestate or podesta in English, was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of central and northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a c ...

'' of

(1275).

References

13th-century Italian people 1190s births 1266 deaths {{AncientRome-bio-stub