Content deleted Content added
m Dating maintenance tags: {{Clarify}} |
|||
| (27 intermediate revisions by 15 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{Short description|Administrative title used in Italy during the Middle Ages}}
{{
[[File:Gonzaga-Portraits G 0276 III 11.jpg|thumb|235px|Ludovico I Gonzaga, elected in 1328 as the first ''capitano del popolo'' of the city of [[Mantua]]]]
'''Captain of the people''' ({{langx|it|capitano del popolo}}) was an administrative title used in [[Italy]] during the [[Middle Ages]], established essentially to balance the power and authority of the noble families of the [[Italian city-states]].<ref name="najemy">Najemy, John M. 2006. ''A History of Florence 1200-1575''. Blackwell Publishing. {{ISBN|1-4051-1954-3}}. pp. 66–7, 75, 83–4,
94, 123, 157, 172, 178, 248.</ref>
== History ==
It was created in the early 13th century when the ''populares'', the increasingly wealthy classes of commoners (merchants, professionals, craftsmen and, in maritime cities, ship-owners) began to acquire roles in the [[comune|communal administration]] of various Italian city-states, and needed a municipal officeholder able to counter the political power of the nobles (called ''potentes''), represented usually by the ''[[podestà]]'' (a title used for chief magistrates and other top administrators in medieval Italian cities). One of the first ''capitani del popolo'' was created in [[Bologna]] in northern Italy, appointed in 1228.
The ''capitano del popolo''
In the [[Republic of Florence]], a ''capitano del popolo'' existed from 1250 as part of the attempt to free the city from the rule of [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor|Frederick II]].{{clarify|date=September 2016}}
Such office also existed in the early stages of the [[Republic of Genoa]], that elected [[Guglielmo Boccanegra]] as its first ''capitano del popolo'' in 1257.
Towards the second half of the 13th century, however, the communal title of ''Capitano del popolo'' became a breeding ground for despotism and hereditary lordship. By gaining control of the election process for choosing the title-holder, many influential families (including aristocrats that the establishment of this office had contributed to keeping out of power) gained control over their cities and towns of residence, thus assuring their long-lasting influence and progressively transforming the ''Comune'' into a ''[[Signoria]]'' (i.e. lordship). ▼
▲Towards the second half of the 13th century, however, the communal title of ''
==See also==
* [[Captains Regent]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Bibliography==
* {{cite book|author=Giuliano Milani|title=I comuni italiani|publisher=Laterza|date=2005|lang=it}}
[[Category:Gubernatorial titles]]
[[Category:Italian city-states|*]]
[[Category:Medieval history of Italy]]
[[Category:2nd millennium in Italy]]
[[Category:Legal history of Italy]]
| |||