Gonfalonier of the Church

The Gonfalonier of the Church or Papal Gonfalonier (, "standard-bearer"; ) was a military and political office of the Papal States. Originating from the use of the Papal banner during combat, the office later became largely ceremonial and political. At his nomination, the gonfalonier was given two banners, one with the arms of the Church (vexillum cum armis Ecclesiæ) and another with the arms of the reigning pope (cum armis suis). The gonfalonier was entitled to include ecclesiastical emblems (the Keys of St. Peter and the ombrellino) upon his own arms, usually only during his term of office but on occasion permanently. Pope Innocent XII ended the rank, along with the captaincy general, and replaced them both with the position of flag-bearer of the Holy Roman Church (), which later became hereditary in the Naro Patrizi.

List of gonfaloniers of the Church

Term of office Portrait Gonfalonier Appointing Pope Notes1059–1063Robert GuiscardNicholas II(1059–1061)Alighieri, Dante. Trans. Musa, Mark. Divine Comedy: Inferno. Accessed 5 June 2010. 1063–1075Saint ErlembaldAlexander II(1061–1073)c. 1118Stephen the NormanMontalembert, Charles F. The Monks of the West from St. Benedict to St. Bernard, Vol. 6. Accessed 5 June 2010.With Pier Leoni, rescued Pope Gelasius II from Cencio II Frangipane.c. 1296James II of AragonBoniface VIII(1294–1303)King of Aragon and Valencia; Gonfalonier, admiral, and Captain General of the Church; appointed to encourage him to wage war against his brother Frederick III (cf. Sicilian Vespers)1372–?Galeotto I MalatestaGregory XI(1370–1378)Commander of the Papal Army against Bernabò Visconti, whom he defeated at Montechiaro.1377–1384Ridolfo II da Varano di CamerinoGregory XI(1370–1378)Appointed by Gregory XI and served as Commander of the Papal Army during the final years of the Avignon Papacy.1384–1385Charles III of NaplesUrban VI(1378–1389)King of Naples. Excommunicated and removed from office, his forces besieged the pope at Nocera, while the pope later attempted to usurp Naples for his nephew.Baddeley, Welbore. Charles III of Naples and Urban VI. Accessed 5 June 2010.1387–?Carlo I MalatestaUrban VI(1378–1389)A condottiero.c. 1399Martin of AragonAntipopeBenedict XIIIKing of Aragon and Sicily. Gonfalonier of the Western antipope, but refused to wage war against France during the siege of AvignonChaytor, H.J. A History of Aragon and Catalonia. Accessed 5 June 2010.1403–?Niccolò III d'EsteBoniface IX(1389–1404)A condottiero; also Lord of Ferrara. Appointed in opposition to Milan. Possibly reappointed by Pope Martin V.1406–?Ladislaus of NaplesInnocent VII(1404–1406)King of Naples; appointed for his assistance in helping Innocent VII against the Roman mob.Muratori, Lodovico Antonio. Annali d'Italia ed altre opere varie: Dall'anno 1358 all'anno 1687, Vol. IV. Accessed 5 June 2010. Routed at Roccasecca in 1411, he abandoned Pope Gregory XII in favor of the antipope John XXIII, who appointed him his gonfalonier.Catholic Encyclopedia. "Antipope John XXIII." Accessed 5 June 2010.1409–1411Louis II of NaplesAntipopeAlexander VOpposed to Ladislaus for the Kingdom of Naples, was appointed gonfalonier by the Pisan faction's antipope Alexander V. Despite winning a major victory at Roccasecca, though, abandoned the field and returned to France.Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911. "Alexander V." Accessed 5 June 2010.1412–?Gianfrancesco I GonzagaGregory XII(1406–1415)A condottiero; also Lord of Mantua.1431–?Niccolò FortebraccioEugene IV(1431–1447)A condottiero; despite his failure to recapture Città di Castello, was hired as Gonfalonier to oppose Sigismund of Hungary in Tuscany and the Prefetti di Vico in Lazio, but fired for using his position to advance his own interests. Thereafter went to war against the Papal States for Milan.1433–1434Giovanni VitelleschiEugene IV(1431–1447)Commander of the Papal Armies for a short time under Pope Eugene IV.1434–1442Francesco I SforzaEugene IV(1431–1447)A condottiero; while working for Milan, received the position of Gonfalonier along with Ancona as part of the terms of a peace with Eugene, then led the campaign against former Gonfalonier and his former ally Niccolò Fortebraccio.Machiavelli, Niccolò. History of Florence. Accessed 5 June 2010. Lost his position after Milan allied with the Papacy against him.Ady, Cecilia M. A History Of Milan Under The Sforza. Accessed 5 June 2010.1442–?Niccolò PiccininoEugene IV(1431–1447)A condottiero. Originally helped Fortebraccio and Sforza against the Papacy, appointed Gonfalonier to recover Sforza's holdings in the Marche.1444–?Louis, Dauphin of FranceEugene IV(1431–1447)Appointed for his actions in Switzerland against the Council of Basel and the antipope Felix V.c. 1455Francesco I SforzaSecond term.Vasari, Giorgio. Lives of the Most Eminent Painters Sculptors and Architects, Vol. III. Accessed 5 June 2010. Now uninvested duke of Milan.1456–1458Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . pp. 56, 77.Pedro Luis BorgiaCallixtus III(1455–1458)Also Captain General. Rodrigo Borgia's older brother. 1462Mourby, Adrian. The Independent. "In search of: Federico in Urbino." 13 November 2001. Accessed 5 June 2010.–1468Federico da MontefeltroPius II(1458–1464)A condottiero; also Conte di Urbino. Appointed against Sigismondo Malatesta, lord of Rimini. Originally reappointed by Pope Paul II to oppose Venice, but challenged in his acquisition of Rimini following the victory at Molinella, switched sides.Sloan, John. "Dukes of Urbino." Accessed 5 June 2005.1474–1482Federico da MontefeltroSixtus IV(1471–1484)Second term. Now styled Duke of Urbino; married his daughter to Pope Sixtus's favorite nephew, who inherited the duchy following the death of Federico's own son.1484Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . p. 141.–1489Giovanni della RoverePope Innocent VIII(1484–1492)Also Captain General.1489Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . p. 149.–1496Niccolo OrsiniPope Innocent VIII(1484–1492)Also Captain General.1496Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . p. 213.–1497Giovanni BorgiaAlexander VI(1492–1503)Son; Duke of Gandia and also Captain General; assassinated by unknown agents.29 March 1500Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . pp. 257, 259.–1503Cesare BorgiaAlexander VI(1492–1503)Son; former cardinal, Duke of Valentinois and also Captain General.1504–1508?Guidobaldo da MontefeltroJulius II(1503–1513)A condottiero; also Duke of Urbino. Son of Federico da Montefeltro; adopted Francesco Maria I della Rovere, his nephew and the pope's.Passavant, J.D. Rafael of Urbino and his Father, Giovanni Santi. Op. cit. The National Quarterly Review. Accessed 5 June 2010.19 April 1509 – 1510Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . pp. 341, 342.Alfonso I d'EsteJulius II(1503–1513)Also Duke of Ferrara and Captain General. Commanded forces against Venice during the second phase of the War of the League of Cambrai. Removed from his post and excommunicated with all his family in order to return Ferrara to direct Papal administration.Roscoe, William. The life and pontificate of Leo the Tenth, Vol. II. Accessed 5 June 2010.1510Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty. Quercus. . pp. 342.–?Francesco GonzagaJulius II(1503–1513)Also Duke of Mantua and Captain General.1513–1516Giuliano de'MediciLeo X(1513–1521)Also Captain General and Duke of Nemours.Symonds, John A. Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece. Accessed 5 June 2010.1516–?Lorenzo II de'MediciLeo X(1513–1521)Also Captain General: commanded the papal army in the War of Urbino (1517), before being wounded at the siege of Mondolfo1519–?Federico II GonzagaJulius II(1503–1513)Also Duke of Mantua and Captain General of the Church, as well as Captain General of the Republic of Venice.Setton, Kenneth M. The Papacy and the Levant (1204–1574). Vol. III. The Sixteenth Century to the Reign of Julius III. Was not required to oppose the Holy Roman Empire and so failed to intervene in the Sack of RomeBascapè, Giacomo & al. Insegne e Simboli, Araldica Pubblica e Privata Medievale e Moderna. Ministero per i beni culturali e ambientali, Roma: 1983. Op. cit. "Heraldry in Pre-Unification Italy." Accessed 5 June 2010.Hare, Christopher & al. Courts & Camps of the Italian Renaissance. 1908.1 February 1537 – 1547Pier Luigi Farnese, Duke of ParmaPaul III(1534–1549)Son of Paul III; also Duke of Parma, Piacenza, and Castro.1547–1551Ottavio FarnesePaul III(1534–1549)Son of Pier Luigi Farnese; also Duke of Parma, Piacenza, and CastroMuratori, Lodovico Antonio. Annali d'Italia dal principio dell'era volgare sino all'anno MDCCXLIX, Vol. XIV. Accessed 5 June 2010.c. 1565Jacques Annibal de Hohenembs(or Count Hannibal of Altemps.)Levillain, Philippe. The Papacy: An Encyclopedia. "Heraldry." Accessed 5 June 2010.1566–?Ottavio FarnesePius V(1566–1572)Second term.Ed. Crosby, Allan J. Calendar of State Papers, Foreign: Elizabeth. Vol. 8 (1566–1568). "Elizabeth: February 1566." Accessed 5 June 2010.1572–1585Giacomo BoncompagniGregory XIII(1572–1585)Son; also Captain General of Spanish Milan, purchased the Duchies of Sora and Arce, Aquino and Arpino. Removed as Gonfalonier upon the election of Pope Sixtus V.c.1621–?Odoardo FarneseGregory XV(1621–1623)Also Duke of Parma and Piacenza. Excommunicated and prohibited from use of Gonfalonier emblems by Pope Urban VIII.?–1630Carlo BarberiniUrban VIII(1623–1644)Brother of Pope Urban VIII and Antonio Marcello Barberini. Father of Taddeo Barberini.1630–1636(?)Torquato ContiUrban VIII(1623–1644)Duke of Guadagnolo and Field Marshal of the Holy Roman Empire1639–1644Taddeo BarberiniUrban VIII(1623–1644)Nephew of Pope Urban VIII and Prince of Palestrina. Appointed Commander of the Papal Army during the Wars of Castro. Went into exile after the 1644 election of Pope Innocent X and died, without returning to Rome, in 1647. Dates are approximate.1649–?Maffeo BarberiniInnocent X(1644–1655)Son of Taddeo Barberini who was appointed to his father's previous titles after the reconciliation of the Pamphili and Barberini families.?–1689Livio OdescalchiInnocent XI (1676–1689)Nephew of Innocent XI; also Captain General

See also Gonfaloniere Gonfalone of the Church Captain General of the Church

References