Our navigation bar is loading . . .

Helping San Diego, California and beyond since 1997.

Do you need volunteer, community service, work, military or court hours?

Click here and add this page to your favorites!

Encyclopedia Britannica

FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530)

This article appears in Volume V10, Page 289 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: FAT-FLA

FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530) , Florentine captain. After spending a few years as a merchant's clerk he took to soldiering at an early age, and served in the Betide Nere in various parts of Italy, earning a reputation as a daring fighter and somewhat of a swashbuckler. When

Pope

Clement VII. and the emperor Charles V. decided to reinstate the Medici in Florence, they made war on the Florentine republic, and

Ferruccio

FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530)

was appointed Florentine military

commissioner

COMMISSIONER

Empoli

EMPOLI

, where he showed

great

GREAT

daring and resource by his rapid marches and sudden attacks on the Imperialists. Early in 1530 Volterra had thrown off Florentine allegiance and had been occupied by an Imperialist garrison, but

Ferruccio

FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530)

surprised and recaptured the city. During his absence, however, the Imperialists captured

Empoli

EMPOLI

by treachery, thus cutting off one of the

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

avenues of approach to Florence. Ferruccio proposed to the government of the republic that he should

march

on Rome and terrorize the

pope

by the threat of a sack into making peace with Florence on favourable terms, but although the war committee appointed him

commissioner

COMMISSIONER

-general for the operations outside the city, they rejected his

scheme

SCHEME (Lat. schema, Gr. oxfjya, figure, form, from the root axe, seen in exeiv, to have, hold, to be of such shape, form, &c.)

as too audacious. Ferruccio then decided to attempt a diversion by attacking the Imperialists in the rear and started from Volterra for the Apennines. But at Pisa he was laid up for a month with a fevera misfortune which enabled the enemy to get wind of his plan and to prepare for his attack. At the end of July Ferruccio left Pisa at the head of about 4000 men, and although the besieged in Florence, knowing that a large part of the Imperialists under the prince of Orange had gone to meet Ferruccio, wished to co-operate with the latter by (means of a sortie, they were prevented from doing so by their own traitorous

commander

COMMANDER

-in-

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

, Malatesta Baglioni. Ferruccio encountered a much larger force of the enemy on the 3rd of August at Gavinana; a desperate battle ensued, and at first the Imperialists were driven back by Ferruccio's fierce onslaught and the prince of Orange himself was killed, but reinforcements under Fabrizio Maramaldo having arrived, the Florentines were almost annihilated and Ferruccio was wounded and captured. Maramaldo out of personal spite despatched the wounded man with his own hand. This defeat sealed the fate of the republic, and nine days later Florence surrendered. Ferruccio was one of the

great

GREAT

soldiers of the age, and his enterprise is the finest episode of the last days of the Florentine republic. See also under FLORENCE and MEDICI.

End of Article: FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530)

If you wish, you can link directly to this article.

<a href="http://jcsm.org/StudyCenter/Encyclopedia/FAT_FLA/FERRUCCIO_or_FERRUCCI_FRANCESC.html">
FERRUCCIO, or FERRUCCI, FRANCESCO (1489-1530)
</a>

(Previous)
FERROL [El Ferrol]

(Next)
FERRULE

JCSM was founded in 1997 and exists to help the community and bring people into a life-changing and productive relationship with Jesus Christ. JCSM offers over 200,000 free web pages, including its weekly inspirational emails that were sent continuously for over a decade.

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries
P.O. Box 9297
San Diego, CA 92169
1-888-887-0417 or Email