Agnese Farnese

Agnese Farnese in a portrait attributed to Bernardino di Betto (called Pinturicchio) or one of his pupils. Black and white reproduction.

Farnese coat of arms

Agnese Farnese (* around 1450 in Rome , † October 8, 1509 in Siena ) was an Italian noblewoman.

biography

Family origin

Agnese Farnese belonged to an ancient and famous Roman family. She was probably born around the middle of the 15th century to Gabriele Francesco di Ranuccio and Isabella di Aldobrandino Orsini, daughter of the Count of Pitigliano. Her family began building a complex network of marital alliances with the most powerful families of the time, including the Salimbeni of Siena and the Monaldeschi of Orvieto, from the early 14th century. In this context, Agnese, in her youth, adopted the belief that it is essential and paramount to have friends and relatives who are exclusively of the ghota of the nobility.

Among the spouses of her father's uncles were members of the Anguillara, Colonna , Malatesta , Sforza , Savelli and Caetani families, who could count on commanders, pontifexes and heads of state in their families. Her brother Ranuccio was married to Ippolita, daughter of the powerful Pallavicino and Malaspina families .

In addition, her first cousin was Alessandro, who later became Pope by the name of Paul III. has been.

Marriage to Andrea Piccolomini Todeschini

Even Agnese did not escape the rules of this family policy and an important wedding was decided for her. In 1476 she married Andrea Piccolomini Todeschini son of Laudomia Piccolomini , sister of Pius II , and brother of Francesco, later Pope Pius III. With this union, the Farnese family intended to re-establish the old alliance with the Republic of Siena, which had been weakened by the ongoing disputes with the Orsini , their close relatives. For this purpose, the Piccolomini, then one of the most influential and wealthy families in Siena, were the best choice.

Madonna and Child Enthroned with Saints John the Baptist, Peter, Paul and Sebastian (Francesco Orioli), originally in the chapel of Castel Rosi, commissioned by Andrea Piccolomini (c. 1487)

Andrea had received rule over the islands of Giglio and Castiglione della Pescaia from his uncle Pius II , whose income further increased his solid financial position, which were among the most prosperous in the Sienese republic.

He was a man with a gentle personality. Together with his brother Francesco, Archbishop of Siena (later Pius III ), they enjoyed a great reputation, which allowed him to take a non-partisan position and to act as a moderator in the bloody disputes that shook the republic , while the other brothers Giacomo and Antonio now lived far from the city and were involved in the administration of their fiefdoms.

Agnese, as her correspondence shows, was a cultured and distinguished woman who devoted herself with all love to the growth of her many children. The reserved character of the man, who was mainly devoted to literary studies, and his role as a peacemaker in urban disputes, left her plenty of room in the administration of the house and in the education of her children. Sigismondo Tizio, a priest and scholar who had just arrived in Siena, was chosen to be a tutor and was part of the family for a long time.

The little news about the early days of their married life makes it impossible to report on their way of life and the relationships they had with Sienese society.

There is no doubt that periods of lightheartedness, during which the family of brother-in-law Giacomo spent long vacations on their property at Castel Rosi in the Marche, alternated with turbulent periods associated with the misfortunes of the city.

To avoid the plague in 1486, they had to leave the city in a hurry with their sons and their trusted teacher. Because of the return of the displaced in 1487, in anticipation of unrest in the city, Andrew and his brother the cardinal had to seek refuge in Castel Rosi. To avoid the worst, Agnese took refuge with her children in the Abbazia di Torri. Then again, in 1494, with the entry of Charles VIII into Siena, she had to hide in the Basilica dell'Osservanza , while Andreas, in order to prevent looting, brought her most valuable things to the Rocca di Crevole, near Murlo.

Such turmoil in Italy at that time was not entirely the fate of Siena. Agnese certainly lived with her children in times of great unrest. There was also an unfortunate episode with her daughter Montanina's friend, Sallustio Bandini, who, when the Rocca di Crevole fell into the hands of the French, tried to secure part of Andreas's treasures for himself in a letter. This episode could never be fully clarified, but it did not encourage Agnese's benevolence towards the nobility of Siena.

The last years of the marriage

In 1503 the last chapter of her life began. The archbishop's ascension to the papal throne and his sudden death highlighted the difference between their view of family management and that of the Piccolomini . Tizio, in his Historiae Senenses, emphasizes the difference between the characters of her family members and her own, so that anything that could be of use to his loved ones was of vital importance, and " ... did not resemble that of her husband Andreas, the worthy brother of Pius III .... "

“Semper suis in rebus tardus ac desidiosus ...”

"They are lazy, slow, and always on the business of their own ..."

- Sigismondo Tizio

Agnese complained in particular that Pius III, who left the office of Archbishop of Siena to her son John, had not elevated him to the rank of cardinal on this occasion, as was customary for the holder of this chair, which was only fifteen years later following the intervention of Pope Leo X . happened. This neglect of her brother-in-law seriously affects his nephew's future career.

In 1503, another episode changed the family's life significantly. In the past few years, which were marked by ups and downs in her life, Pandolfo Petrucci was in exile. He turned to the great authority Andreas enjoyed over the citizens and involved him in his plans to facilitate his return home. While Andreas was working on pacifying the various factions, Petrucci returned triumphant to Siena in March of this year, accompanied by cavalry and infantry. An incident that deeply disappointed Piccolomini's expectations. After leaving public life behind, he retired to the country, severed all ties with Petrucci and entrusted his wife with the duties and responsibilities necessary to run a large family.

Function as head of the family

Agnese Farnese, will be particularly remembered for the skill and strength with which she assumed the role of head of the family, a privilege reserved for only a few women during the Renaissance. A role that she took on in full in 1505 when her husband died under circumstances that had never been clarified and with the suspicion that his death was due to poisoning.

The facade of the Palazzo of Andreas and Agnese Piccolomini

She managed one of the largest estates of the time. This emerges as the result of the alliramento with her three sons, who were the highest that there has ever been in the republic. She managed all the financial transactions that belonged to a large fortune, consisting of the income of the fiefs of Castiglione della Pescaia and the island of Giglio , combined with payments for the many works initiated by her husband, such as the grandiose Palazzo Piccolomini in Siena, Pinturicchio's fresco cycle in the Piccolomini Library in Siena Cathedral and a host of other tasks closely related to the opulence of an extended family.

Above all, however, she took care of the establishment of the children. The two eldest daughters Montanina and Caterina were married to members of famous families such as the Bandini and Tolomei. Nevertheless, the lack of care for the two sons Pierfrancesco and Alessandro did not rest. For the latter, in fact, the Farnese family did not expect adequate marriages with representatives of the Sienese aristocracy. An aristocracy who distrusted them because of the excessive partiality of its members.

A letter from her to her son, Archbishop Giovanni, in 1508 reveals all of her worries. Already ill she realized that nor "the spade and the hoe" can heal her, and wrote:

"Veramente non so come ci potiamo mai consolare a vedere horamai due homini in casa e non esserci uno figliolo ... Se il mio marito faceva a mio modo et havesse pensato di non vivere semper, lassava assettati i suoi figlioli .."

- Agnese Farnese Piccolomini. Letter of April 1, 1508, published by Alessandro Lisini in Nozze Piccolomini-Gigli. 1887 Siena

Due to the relationships they maintained with their family of origin, their sons later joined the old line of Conti and Savelli, who played an important role in the Roman nobility and provided several popes and numerous cardinals in the church.

Resistance to Pandolfo Petrucci

A great annoyance was reserved for the last act of her life. Pandolfo Petrucci had become, after the serious disagreements with her husband, an unsuitable person with whom she had no relationship. But Petrucci, who had become ruler of Siena, in order to consolidate his family's position in the city, wanted his son Borghese to be married to the most important family of the old republic. The choice fell on the youngest of her children: Vittoria. Agnes rejected this marriage in all respects but was ultimately forced to surrender by the overwhelming power of the Petrucci.

She pretended to be sick and did not want to attend the wedding planned for September 22, 1509. According to tradition, pain turned the simulated illness into a real illness and after a few days, on October 8th, 1509, she died.

Your image in the portrayal of Pinturicchio

In 1492, Agnese's brother-in-law, Archbishop Francesco Piccolomini Todeschini (later Pope Pius III), began building the Piccolomini library in the cathedral of Siena . At the end of 1502, Bernardino di Betto (known as Pinturicchio) was commissioned to paint a cycle of frescoes.

Agnese Farnese (in the center) in a fresco by Pinturicchio (detail)

In the first phase, the sudden death of the Pope caused an interruption in the work, which did not resume until 1505 , probably with a new contract signed by the heirs.

Only Andreas was present in Siena and after his death on September 10th of that year the family was represented by Agnese, who presumably followed the creation of the entire fresco cycle until 1507 , when the work was completed.

Traditionally, Pinturicchio depicted various personalities among the audience of the meeting, including Andreas Piccolomini and Agnese Farnese, who are represented in the portrait in the fresco entitled " Enea Silvio Piccolomini, Archbishop of Siena, introduces Eleonora of Portugal to Emperor Frederick III " .

In an unexpected way, the image of Agnese was left for posterity. It is probably the female figure with the black and white horizontally striped top that is located immediately behind the bride. Behind her with absent eyes, lost in his thoughts, is the figure of Andreas Piccolomini.

“Behind these figures are several portraits, in particular that of Aringhieri, with the cross of the Knights of Rhodes on his chest, in a dark blue dress with a black stole on the neck and a black cap. The modeling of this head was worked out very carefully. Behind him is one of the well-known youthful heads, recoiled and looking up, and next to it another portrait depicting some people Andrea di Nanni Piccolomini Todeschini, brother of Pius III. want to recognize.
He is dressed in black and has a beardless and very individual face. The light hair and complexion as well as the white neck and the white breast of an imposing female figure stand out against his black coat. The equipment and the costume show that it is also a portrait. Her hair is parted in the middle and close to the head, except for two light, thin strands that hang from her temples on either side of her face. She is a woman of a somewhat rigid type, with a pointed nose, a large, straight mouth and almond-shaped eyes with a certain expressiveness. Her white bodice has dark horizontal stripes, her dress and coat are of dark material embroidered with gold, and her sleeves are red and yellow. In her hand, on which there are several rings in relief, she carries her handkerchief. It is very likely that she is Agnese di Gabriele Francesco Farnese, wife of the aforementioned Andrea Piccolomini. "

- Corrado Ricci, Pintoricchio , ed. Vincenzo Bartelli, Perugia 1912, p. 283

The wide spaces around them, their centrality among the many figures, seem to underline the role that this person played in their surroundings.

On January 18, 1509, she paid Pinturicchio the last part of his wages in her name and that of her children, as heirs of her late husband.

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Agnese Farnese was buried in the family chapel in the Basilica di San Francesco . Pinturicchio had painted the altarpiece for the chapel dedicated to St. Andrew, probably commissioned by her husband, but it was undoubtedly paid for by Farnese himself. The chapel and the painting as well as most of the basilica were destroyed by a major fire in 1655. On the threshold there is an inscription in memory of this noble Sienese Renaissance ladyː "Andreas Pic [colomineus] de Castella eques dignis [simus] sibi et Agneti coniugi posterisque sacellum p [osuit]".

family tree

Ranuccio Farnese ( 1390 - 1450 )

Silvio Piccolomini ( 1371 –....)

Pier Luigi ( 1435 - 1478 )

Gabriele Francesco ( 1420  ? - 1471 )

Laudomia Piccolomini ( 1415  ? –....)

Pius II ( 1405 - 1464 )

Paul III ( 1468 - 1549 )

Agnese ( 1450  ? - 1509 )

Andrea ( 1445 - 1505 )

Pius III ( 1439 - 1503 )

Sallustio Bandini

Montanina ( 1476 –....)

Borghese Petrucci

Vittoria ( 1494 - 1570 )

Pierfrancesco ( 1478 - 1525 )

Francesca Savelli

Alessandro ( 1484 - 1537 )

Francesca de 'Conti

Caterina ( 1491 –....)

Lattanzio Tolomei

Giovanni ( 1475 - 1537 )

Continued-as Bandini Piccolomini

Line extinct

Inigo Piccolomini d'Aragona, IV Duca d'Amalfi (1523–1566)

Silvia ( 1520 - ...)

Line extinct

Line extinct

Costanza V Duchessa d'Amalfi ( 1553 - 1610 )

literature

• Cristina Acidini : Pittori del Rinascimento . Ed .: Scala. Florence 2004, ISBN 88-8117-099-X , Pintoricchio (Italian).
• Giuseppe Alberigo: Francesco Bandini Piccolomini . Ed .: Istituto della Enciclopedia italiana. Rome 1963 (Italian).
• Manuela Doni Garfagnini: Il teatro della storia fra rappresentazione e realtà: storiografia e trattatistica fra Quattrocento e Seicento . Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura. Rome 2002, ISBN 978-88-8498-061-8 (Italian).
• Vittorio Lusini: Il duomo di Siena . Ed .: San Bernardino. Siena 1911 (Italian).
• Patrizia Meli: Gabriele Malaspina marchese di Fosdinovo: condotte, politica e diplomazia nella Lunigiana del Rinascimento . Ed .: Firenze University Press. Florence 2009, ISBN 978-88-8453-859-8 (Italian).
• Raffaello Morghen: Savelli . Ed .: Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato. Rome 1949 (Italian).
• Peta Motture, Michelle O'Malley: Re-thinking Renaissance Objects: Design, Function and Meaning . Ed .: John Wiley & Sons. Hoboken, New Jersey 2011, ISBN 978-1-4443-3775-4 (English).
• Paolo Piccolomini: La vita e l'opera di Sigismondo Tizio (1458-1528) . Ed .: L. Lazzeri ,. Siena 1885 (Italian).
• Giovanni Battista Picotti: Conti . Ed .: Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato. Rome 1949 (Italian).
• Corrado Ricci: Pintoricchio . Ed .: Vincenzo Bartelli. Perugia 1912 (Italian).
• Marice Rose, Alison C. Poe: Receptions of Antiquity, Constructions of Gender in European Art, 1300-1600 . Ed .: BRILL. Boston 2015, ISBN 978-90-04-27874-5 (English).
• Vittorio Spreti: Enciclopedia Storico Nobiliare Italiana 1928-1936 (Ristampa anastatica) . Ed .: Forni Editore Bologna. Bologna 1981 (Italian).
• Sigismondo Tizio: Historiae Senenses . Siena 1516 (Italian).
• Carla Zarilli:  Farnese, Agnese. In: Fiorella Bartoccini (ed.): Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (DBI). Volume 45:  Farinacci – Fedrigo. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 1995.
• Andrea Zorzi: Gabriele Francesco Farnese . Ed .: Istituto della Enciclopedia italiana. Rome 1995 (Italian).
• Andrea Zorzi: Ranuccio Farnese . Ed .: Istituto della Enciclopedia italiana. Rome 1995 (Italian).

note

1. ↑ It can be read in the text by Corrado Ricci and refers to the fresco by Pinturicchio in the Piccolomini library :

   “In Glasgow, in the Beattie collection, there is a portrait of the same lady; or rather, the same portrait with only a few variations in the dress, and we would say the same dress, but without a cape, and many pearls around the neck with a piece of jewelry hanging from it. It seems to be a portrait copied from the fresco by some of Pintoricchio's students with finesse, but also with indifference. "

   - Corrado Ricci : Pintoricchio, Vincenzo Bartelli eds., Perugia 1912, p. 284
2. ↑ Record of taxes
3. ↑ This version was questioned by Carla Zarilli in her work, as the marriage contract was concluded two years after the death of Agnese Piccolomini Farnese, the traditional version is also used by Alessandro Lisini , (Director of the State Archives of Siena from 1888 to 1912), in one short biography of the people on the page "Nozze Piccolomini-Gigli. 1887 Siena" reported.
   Given the adversity, it is unlikely that Agnese Farnese, as the head of the family, was ready to sign an agreement on any content she was against.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Corrado Ricci: archive.org ( en ) S. 195. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l} Carla Zarilli: treccani.it ( it ) In: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 45 . 1995. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Andrea Zorzi: treccani.it ( it ) In: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 45 . 1995. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
4. ↑ Patrizia Rosini: Genealogia di Casa Farnese (pdf) Retrieved January 9, 2019.
5. ↑ Patrizia Meli: Google Books ( it ) In: Gabriele Malaspina marchese di Fosdinovo, p. 168 . 2008. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
6. ^ ^{A b} Marice Rose, Alison C. Poe: google.books ( en ) In: Receptions of Antiquity, Constructions of Gender in European Art, 1300-1600 . Retrieved January 10, 2019.
7. ^ Goffredo Silvestri: Masterpieces from the country of Siena with eleven museums scattered between the city of Palio and its province ( it ) repubblica.it/. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
8. ↑ ^{a b c d} Vittorio Spreti, Vol. V, p. 327
9. ↑ Paolo Piccolomini, p. 50
10. ↑ Manuela Doni Garfagnini, p. 63
11. ↑ ^{a b} Paolo Piccolomini, pp. 53-60
12. ↑ ^{a b} Paolo Piccolomini, p. 60
13. ^ ^{A b} Sigismondo Tizio, Historiae Senenses , Tomo VI, p. 369, Siena. 1516
14. ↑ Paolo Piccolomini, p. 74
15. ^ Vittorio Spreti, Vol. V, p. 328
16. ↑ Paolo Piccolomini, p. 71
17. ↑ Paolo Piccolomini, p. 77
18. ^ Casa Farnese-Duchi di Parma e Piacenza. Papi . Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved March 3, 2016. 
19. ↑ Giovanni Battista Picotti, Vol XI, p 232
20. ↑ Raffaello Morghen, Vol XXX, p. 621
21. ↑ Peta Motture, Michelle O'Malley, chap. 5 google.books .
22. ↑ Cristina Acidini, p. 217
23. ^ Corrado Ricci, p. 283
24. ↑ Vittoro Lusini, Vol. 2, p 209
25. ↑ Corrado Ricci: Pintoricchio (Bernardino di Betto of Perugia) his life, work, and time ( s ) archive.org. 1912. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
26. ↑ Giuseppe Alberigo, Vol. 5, treccani.it
27. ↑ Piccolomini . genmarenostrum.com.

Web links

Commons : Portraits of the Piccolomini Family  - Collection of images, videos and audio files