Michel Riccio (1445–1515) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

-born

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

lawyer, public official and historian. He was known in Italian also as Michele Riccio / Rizzo or Ricci, in Latin Michael Ritius, and in the French form Michel de Ris or de Rys.

Biography

Early life

Michel Riccio was born in 1445 in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Jean Scholastique Pitton, ''Histoire de la ville d'Aix, capitale de la Provence, Jusques en l'annee 1665'', David, Charles, 1666, p. 52

/ref>Marc Antoine René de Voyer Argenson, Contaht d'Orville André Guillaume, ''Mélanges tirés d'une grade bibliothèque ...: De la lecture des livren françois'', Moutard, 1783, p. 12

/ref>Fleury Vindry, ''Les parlementaires français au XVIe siècle: Parlements d'Aix, Grenoble, Dijon, Chambéry, Dombes'', H. Champion, 1909, p. 19,

Career

He started his career as a lawyer under

Ferdinand I of Naples Ferdinand I (2 June 1424 – 25 January 1494), also known as Ferrante, was king of Naples from 1458 to 1494. The only son, albeit illegitimate, of Alfonso the Magnanimous, he was one of the most influential and feared monarchs in Europe at the ...

(1423–1494). He moved to France under the reign of King

Charles VIII of France Charles VIII, called the Affable (; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13. His elder sister Anne acted as regent jointly with her husband Peter II, Du ...

(1470–1498), for whom he served as an Advisor. In 1495, he served in the Parliament of Dijon, also known as the Parliament of Bourgogne.Jacques Le Long, Charles M. Fevret de Fontette, ''Bibliothèque Historique De La France: Contenant Le Catalogue des Ouvrages, imprimés & manuscrits, qui traitent de l'Histoire de ce Royaume, ou qui y ont rapport : Avec Des Notes Critiques Et Historiques'', Herissant, 1769, Volume 2, p. 4

/ref> In 1498, King

Louis XII of France Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), also known as Louis of Orléans was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples (as Louis III) from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Marie of Cleves, he succeeded his second ...

(1462–1515) appointed him Senator of

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 ...

. From 1501 to 1502, he served as the first President of the

Parlement of Aix-en-Provence The Parlement of Aix-en-Provence was the provincial ''parlement'' of Provence from 1501 to 1790. It was headquartered in Aix-en-Provence, which served as the ''de facto'' capital of Provence. History Provence was incorporated into the Kingdom of ...

. However, he was soon replaced by Antoine Mulet. In 1505,

Pope Julius II Pope Julius II (; ; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death, in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope, the Battle Pope or the Fearsome ...

(1443–1513) sent him on a mission in

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, ...

. The following year, in 1506, King Louis XII sent him to

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 ...

to put an end to a local revolt, to no avail. As a historian, he wrote volumes about the

Italian Wars The Italian Wars were a series of conflicts fought between 1494 and 1559, mostly in the Italian Peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and Mediterranean Sea. The primary belligerents were the House of Valois, Valois kings o ...

and the dynastic rulers of the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples (; ; ), officially the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302). Until ...

Death

He died in 1515. The ashes of the

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

are kept in the funeral chapel of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Riccio / Rizzo / Ritius in the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

of San Domenico Maggiore in

. A commemorative epigraph is still visible on the funeral monument.“MICHAELI RICCIO CIVILIS – PONTIFICIIQ. JURIS CONSULTIS. – IN ITALIA ET GALLIA AMPLIS. – HONORIBUS FUNCTO – JO. SEBASTIANUS PATRI B. M. AN. MDXV.”

Bibliography

* ''Historia profectionis Caroli VIII'' (1496) * ''Traité du devoir des gens de guerre et de leurs privilèges'' (1505) * ''Defensoria oratio pro Ludovico XII'' (1506) * ''De regibus Francorum libri III'' * ''De regibus Hispaniæ libri III'' * ''De regibus Hierosolymorum liber I'' * ''De regibus Neapolis et Siciliæ libri IV'' * ''De regibus Ungariæ libri II''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riccio, Michel 1445 births 1515 deaths 15th-century Neapolitan people Lawyers from Milan People from Aix-en-Provence Politicians from Dijon Immigrants to France 15th-century Italian historians 16th-century Neapolitan people Writers from Milan 16th-century Italian historians 16th-century Italian male writers Italian male non-fiction writers