Ottaviano di Campofregoso

Ottaviano di Campofregoso (also: Fregoso) (* 1470 in Genoa ; † May 15 or 16, 1524 in Ischia ) was the 44th Doge of the Republic of Genoa . Between 1515 and 1522 he was Genoese governor for King Francis I of France.

biography

Ottaviano Fregoso (di Campofregoso), portrait

Ottaviano's parents were Agostino Fregoso (1442–1486), Condottiere and Count of Sant'Agata Feltria and Gentile di Montefeltro (1448–1529), the illegitimate daughter of Federico da Montefeltro . He was born in Genoa, but spent a large part of his youth at the court of Urbino , where he, like his siblings Federigo , Costanza († 1531, ⚭ Marcantonio Landi from Piacenza, Count of Compiano ), Bettina († 1516, ⚭ Onorato I Grimaldi) , Mr. zu Boglio ) and Margherita († 1541, ⚭ Matteo de Baschi from Orvieto), received a classical humanistic education and u. a. was friends with Pietro Bembo and Baldassare Castiglione , who were close to him throughout his life.

Following the family tradition, Ottaviano embarked on a military career. In 1497 he made a first unsuccessful attempt to drive the Sforza out of Genoa with the support of the French King Charles VIII . In the Romagna campaigns he participated in the defense of the duchy of his uncle Guidobaldo I da Montefeltro against Cesare Borgia . In 1506 he was given the rule of Sant'Agata Feltria, formally confirmed in 1513 by Pope Leo X. After unsuccessful attempts in 1507 and 1510, Ottaviano succeeded in 1512, together with his relative Giano Fregoso , for his family over Genoa and to oust the Ghibelline opponents, primarily the Adorno. After a brief interlude in May and June 1513, Ottaviano was appointed Doge on June 20, 1513. His Doganate ended on September 7, 1515 with the recognition of the sovereignty of King Francis I of France over Genoa. From November 20, 1515 Ottaviano held the office of governor and was able to hold on to power until after the defeat of the French in the Battle of Bicocca on April 27, 1522.

Reign 1513–1522

During his reign, important public works were built in Genoa, including the modernization of the port and the campanile of Genoa Cathedral . Ottaviano tried very hard to consolidate his position of power and at the same time to stabilize the political situation. He was especially forgiving and generous towards his political opponents. He knew how to preserve the city of Genoa considerable autonomy and to protect its economic interests. With the resumption of the ruling wars for Milan after Charles V was elected emperor , the first threats to Genoa came again from internal political opponents. In 1520 Ottaviano succeeded in thwarting a coup by Alessandro Fregoso. In the following year, 1522, an uprising of the Adorno faction supported by Spanish infantrymen was suppressed. The fall of Milan in November 1521 aggravated the situation again. After the defeat of the French at Bicocca on April 27, 1522, Genoa was seized by a naval blockade by the imperial armies. The siege began on May 20, 1522. At the end of the month Ottaviano was imprisoned by the Marquis of Pescara and, in the hope of paying a ransom, deported to Aversa in Campania and later to Ischia . He remained in captivity on Ischia until his death in mid-May 1524. It is disputed whether he died of natural causes or whether he was poisoned.

legacy

With his policy aimed at compromise and consensus, Ottaviano di Campofregoso was an important pioneer for the profound reform of the Genoese state constitution, which in 1528 led to the establishment of a republic with an aristocratic constitution under Andrea Doria . Niccolò Machiavelli and Francesco Guicciardini praised him for his outstanding political competence and the courage to lead a city shaken by party hatred. In addition to politics, Ottaviano was also very interested in literature, science and art. For B. Castiglione he was the role model of a politically committed and at the same time highly cultivated courtier.

Ottaviano di Campfregoso's heir was his illegitimate son Aurelio († 1581 or early 1582), who was married to Lucrezia Vitelli, daughter of Niccolò II Vitelli (1496–1529) and the Gentilina della Stafa. Lucrezia came from the infamous Umbrian condottiere family from Città di Castello and was a cousin of Cardinal Vitellozzo Vitelli . Aurelio Fregoso worked as a mercenary leader in French and Florentine services. He and his descendants ruled Sant'Agata Feltria until 1660, when the family with Aurelio II died out.

literature

• Giampiero Brunelli:  Fregoso, Ottaviano. In: Fiorella Bartoccini (ed.): Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (DBI). Volume 50:  Francesco I Sforza-Gabbi. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 1998.
• Christine Shaw: Barons and castellans. The military nobility of Renaissance Italy, Leiden 2015
• Franco dall'Ara: Briganti e gentiluomini. Vicende di storia d'Italia viste da una buona terra di montagna Sant'Agata Feltria, Loreto 2009
• Franco dall'Ara: Sant'Agata Feltria. Terra in Romagna dove i Signori Fregoso hanno reparato la loro nobilità, 2005