Girolamo Caraffa

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Girolamo Caraffa (also Carafa) (dt. Hieronymus von Caraffa ), Marchese of Montenegro (* 1564 in the Abruzzo region , † April 1633 in Genoa ) was a Spanish and imperial general of Italian descent.

Life

Girolamo Caraffa came from the Italian noble family Caraffa . He was the son of Rinaldo Caraffa and the mother Portia Carracciola, a daughter of the Duke of Sigignano.

He went to Rome at the age of fourteen and received an academic and linguistic education under the guidance of his great-uncle Cardinal Antonio Carafa . He married Hippolyta von Lannoy, a granddaughter of the Spanish viceroy of Naples, Charles de Lannoy . Originally intended for civil service, he turned to Spanish military service against the will of his family in 1587. He initially served under Alexander Farnese in the fight against the insurgents in the Netherlands . He then fought in the Spanish War against Henry IV of France at Ligne (1590) and Rouen (1592), among others . He then received command of Spanish troops in Friesland . He led his troops through Brabant to Flanders . He then served on the French border and took part in various smaller skirmishes.

In 1597 he took part in the raid on Amiens . After the death of General Porto-Carero, Caraffa became the commander of the Spanish troops there. He defended Amiens against the French troops, which were commanded by King Henry IV himself, until he handed the city over to the French on the orders of the governor Albrecht VII of Austria . The Spanish troops received an honorable withdrawal. The French king later honored Caraffa for his bravery in Amiens after the peace agreement.

After leaving Amiens, Caraffa fought again in the Netherlands and took part, among other things, in the siege of Ostend . He spent a short time at the Spanish court before he was sent to Lombardy . On the way he was attacked by robbers, from whom he was badly wounded and managed to escape. In Italy the Spaniards fought against Savoy . After the peace treaty he returned to Spain.

After he had received command of the cavalry in Sicily, the request of Emperor Ferdinand II reached him to enter his service in order to fight the rebellious Bohemians at the beginning of the Thirty Years' War . With a small army he attacked Gábor Bethlen and prevented the unification of his troops with the Bohemians. He had a considerable share in the victory in the Battle of White Mountain in 1620. In 1621 he fought near Milan.

After the peace agreement with Gábor Bethlen, the emperor appointed Caraffa as imperial prince and secret imperial council. Caraffa served as a cavalry general in Lombardy in 1628, returned from there to Madrid, was appointed viceroy and captain general of Aragon by Philip IV in 1630 , and was to accompany the cardinal infante as a mentor to the Netherlands some time later, but died on the way there in April 1633 in Genoa.

Caraffa was strictly Catholic, spoke several languages ​​such as Italian, Spanish, French, Latin and Greek, was well-read and a devotee of astrology.

literature

personal data
SURNAME Caraffa, Girolamo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Caraffa, Hieronymus von; Carafa, Girolamo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Spanish and Imperial Field Marshal
DATE OF BIRTH 1564
PLACE OF BIRTH Abruzzo
DATE OF DEATH April 1633
Place of death Genoa