Colleoni (noble family)
The Colleoni are an old Italian noble family , originally from Bergamo , which still exists today in numerous branches.
history
When the Visconti dukes of Milan conquered Bergamo, the followers of the Guelphs , including the Colleoni, had to go into exile. Paolo Colleoni captured Trezzo Castle in 1404 and held it until he was murdered by his relatives, presumably on behalf of the Visconti. His son became the most famous representative of the family, the condottiere Bartolomeo Colleoni , captain-general of the Republic of Venice . He and his daughter Medea († 1470) were buried in the Cappella Colleoni in Bergamo, an important building of the Renaissance. The equestrian statue by Andrea Verrocchio erected for him in Venice is counted among the most important sculptures of the Italian Renaissance.
Another member of the family was Margherita Colleoni, first wife of the Italian general Gian Giacomo Trivulzio , who was buried in the Cappella Trivulzio in San Nazaro Maggiore in Milan.
After northern Italy came under Austrian rule from the 16th century , the Colleoni entered the service of the Habsburgs . As one of 64 noble families, the family had a hereditary seat in the manor house , the upper house of the Austrian Imperial Council .
The family crest shows three pairs of testicles and is probably an allusion to coglione , an Italian name for testicles.
Bartolomeo Colleoni (1400-1475)
Bartolomeos equestrian statue (by Andrea Verrocchio ) in Venice
Cappella Colleoni in Bergamo
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literature
- Antonio Cornazzano: Vita di Bartolomeo Colleoni , a cura di Giuliana Crevatin. Manziana, Vecchiarelli ed., 1990, ISBN 88-85316-16-6 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Photo of the sarcophagus with inscription
- ↑ Keith Christiansen and Stefan Weppelmann (eds.): Faces of the Renaissance . Masterpieces of Italian portrait art. Hirmer, Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-7774-3581-7 , pp. 110 .