Giacomo Lomellini ( Italian. Giacomo Lomellini ; Genoa , 1570 - Genoa , 1652 ) - Doge of the Republic of Genoa .
Giacomo Lomellini | |||||||
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ital Giacomo lomellini | |||||||
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Predecessor | Federico De Franchi | ||||||
Successor | Giovanni Luca Chiavari | ||||||
Birth | 1570 Genoa | ||||||
Death | April 1, 1652 Genoa | ||||||
Father | Niccolo Lomellini | ||||||
Mother | Battina Lomellini | ||||||
Spouse | 1. Violante Pinelli 2. Barbara Spinola 3. Magdalene Grillo 4. Pellegra Spinola | ||||||
Children | 1. Niccolo, Battina, Gianfrancesco, Giovanna; 2. Victoria, Agostino; 3. Teresa |
Biography
The son of Niccolo Lomellini and Battina Lomellini (from another branch of the family), was born in Genoa around 1570 . Giacomo, like other young people of his social status, paid equal attention to education and military career.
With the attainment of 25 years of age, he was able to get his first public office: in 1596 he was sent to Savona as commissioner of the fortress of Priamar. In February 1599, he was among the officials who accompanied Queen Margherita , wife of Philip III of Spain, during her visit to Genoa. In the same year, he was transferred to Riviera di Levante, where he was appointed a member of the syndicator, a government body established to verify and control the activities of local authorities.
Between 1604 and 1613, Giacomo again worked as Genoese magistrates: the magistrate of emergency situations, the magistrate of Corsica (1608) and the magistrate of foreign currency. In 1618, he was again appointed Commissioner of the fortress of Priamar. In 1621 he was elected to the Senate of the Republic. As a senator, he held senior positions in the Republican Syndicatory and supervised the magistrate of health, and then continued his work in the magistrates of taxes, foreign exchange and finance.
Board
His election was a doge dramatic for Genoa. From March 1625, the first signs of hostility from the Duchy of Savoy, with the support of France, which in a few months led to a real war, became apparent. The mandate of the acting Doge Federico De Franchi expired on June 25 of the same year, and the Grand Council of the Republic, considering it dangerous for re-election in the war, decided to terminate the powers of de Franca 9 days earlier and immediately elect the new Doge for the next 2 years. On June 16, the Doge resigned, and at an urgent meeting of the Council, 206 people out of 712 spoke in favor of Lomellini (his main competitor Giovanni Andrea Pallavicini scored 153 votes).
The mandate of Lomellini, for obvious reasons, was completely devoted to the defense of Genoa and Liguria from the Savoy. In addition to protecting the borders, Doge had to face numerous internal unrest in the territory of the republic, which he firmly suppressed. So, taking advantage of the war with the Savoy, in Savona and Gavi supporters of self-government lifted their heads, these events became known as the “Conspiracy de Marini”.
After several defeats in the first battles, the Spanish-Ligurian troops managed to change the situation in their favor. In October 1625, in order to raise the morale, at the most critical and difficult stage for the republic, a solemn coronation ceremony was held for the Doge. The Doge was declared the “savior of the Fatherland”, which allowed for the time being to achieve social unity.
In the context of continuing hostilities with the Duchy of Savoy, Doge Lomellini was able to implement a project to strengthen the defense of the capital: the construction of massive walls from San Beninho Hill to the mouth of the Bizano River (the “New Wall”) began. On December 7, 1626, the Doge laid the foundation stone for the wall and in subsequent years collected numerous donations from individuals, corporations and workshops, to which new taxes were added, specifically designed to support the costs of building the wall. The amount collected, about 2,100,000 pounds, could not fully cover the costs, but became the basis for the start of work.
Recent years
Upon the expiration of his term of office on June 25, 1627, Giacomo led the war magistrate from January 1628 to 1630 and was one of the main protagonists who uncovered the so-called “Vaquero plot” in March - an attempt by conspirators, including Giulio Cesare Vaquero and Giovanni Antonio Ansaldi , overthrow the government in favor of the Duke of Savoy. Then Lomellini was appointed commissioner to work on the construction of the city walls, which actually began only in 1630 .
In 1634, Lomellini was led by the magistrate of Corsica, and in 1644 he headed the Inquisition Commission in the process of the participants in the Vaquero conspiracy. In 1645 and until his death, he participated in the drafting of the restructuring of the Palazzo Ducale. He died in Genoa on April 1, 1652, and was buried in the Basilica of Santissima Annunziata del Vasto.
Personal life
He was married four times: on Violant Pinelli (bore him children: Niccolo, Battina, Gianfrancesco and Giovanna), Barbara Spinola (bore him Victoria and Agostino), Magdalene Grillo (bore him daughter Teresa) and Pellegre Spinola.
Memory
The figure of Giacomo Lomellini is mentioned in the chronicles among the richest (fourth place among the Genoese patricians, according to the census census of 1637 , with a capital of 2,144,444 lire) and the most authoritative Genoese. Almost certainly the Genoese victory over the troops of the Duke of Savoy fed his popularity and respect for him from both the nobility and the people.
He was a strong supporter of the economic independence of Genoa from Spain and the increase in defense spending of the country.
The Spanish crown helped the Genoese in the war of 1625 , but already in 1626 entered into an alliance with the Duke of Savoy against France, and the bankruptcy of Philip IV in 1627 seriously hit his Genoese creditors (among them was Lomellini).
Bibliography
- Sergio Buonadonna, Mario Mercenaro, Rosso doge. I dogi della Repubblica di Genova dal 1339 al 1797, Genova, De Ferrari Editori, 2007.