Cattaneo, Nicolo

The eldest son of Doge Giovanni Battista Cattaneo (1691–1693) and Magdalena Gentile, born in Genoa on July 18, 1679 , was baptized in the church of San Torpet, in the central district of Genoa. Inscribed in the Golden Book of the urban nobility on August 25, 1701 , at the age of twenty-seven years, he received his first position in the magistrate of forbidden books. At age 30 in 1709 , he became one of the youngest patrons of the Pammatone hospital.

Then he disappears from the chronicles for several years, probably at that time he was in one of the European courts, in some military department or in the navy.

Only in 1722, his figure reappeared as dean of the silk magistrate and head of the secret archives. In 1726, he was appointed commissar of the fortress of Savona, amid growing instability in Western Liguria due to new disagreements with the duchy of Savoy. Between 1731 and 1736, Nicolo held a number of government posts: a member of the Magistrate of Food and the Magistrate of Borders, a member of the Supreme Syndicaterie and one of the governors of the Republic.

On February 7, 1736, he resigned his post for the successful election to the post of Doge of the Republic, 153rd in the history of Genoa, at the same time becoming King of Corsica.

Board and recent years

There were signs of crisis in his reign, just a month after his election, the German Stefan Theodor von Neuhoff landed in Corsica with the support of the British and was proclaimed ruler of the independent Kingdom of Corsica. The Senate of Genoa was forced to ask for large loans from the Bank of San Giorgio to hire three regiments of the Swiss militia, and also through Ambassador Gianfranchesko Brignole Sale II to ask for help from France. The intervention of French soldiers led eight months later to the fall of independent Corsica.

His mandate ended on February 7, 1738 , after which he continued to serve the Republic as deputy head of the treasury, president of the magistrate of war (1739; 1742), dean of the magistrate of plenty (1740-1741; 1743), inquisitor of the state in 1746 and again dean of the magistrate of war in 1747, during the war for the Austrian inheritance . The last post for him was the post of intermediary between the state and the Genoese bank (1749).

He died in Genoa on July 5, 1751 and was buried in the church of San Domenico.

Personal life

From his marriage to Libya, Grimaldi had two sons, Giovanni Battista (1717) and Giacomo.

• Sergio Buonadonna, Mario Mercenaro, Rosso doge. I dogi della Repubblica di Genova dal 1339 al 1797, Genova, De Ferrari Editori, 2007.