Orazio Ludovisi (1561–1624) was an Italian nobleman, military commander and patrician of Bologna. During his brother's reign as Pope Gregory XV, he became Commander of the Papal Armies and Duke of Fiano and Zagarolo.

Early life

Ludovisi was born in 1561, son of Pompeo Ludovisi, a patrician of Bologna, and his wife Camillia Bianchini.[1] He was the older brother of Cardinal Alessandro Ludovisi.

He married Lavinia Albergati[2] and the two had a number of children including:[3]

Papacy of Gregory XV

In February 1621 Ludovisi's brother, Alessandro Ludovisi, was elected to the papal throne as Pope Gregory XV.[5] A month later, on 13 March 1621, Ludovisi moved to Rome and was immediately appointed Commander of the Papal Armies by his brother. Setting a precedent for his successor (Pope Urban VIII, who would later make habit commonplace), the Pope also purchased the comune of Fiano from the House of Sforza[6] for 200,000 Écu[7] and Ludovisi was duly appointed Duke of Fiano and also Duke of Zagarolo.

During his brother's reign, Ludovisi and his wife were patrons of the Bolognese painter Giovanni Valesio.

References

  1. ↑ André Decloitre, Généalogies Royales et Princières: Genroy
  2. ↑ Her nephew, Niccolò Albergati, would later add the Ludovisi name to his and become Niccolò Albergati-Ludovisi
  3. ↑ Davide Shamà and Andrea Dominici Battelli, Genealogie delle Dinastie Italiane: Sardimpex
  4. ↑ Some detracting sources suggest that Ludovico was in fact the Pope's illegitimate son who was adopted by Orazio but made a Cardinal so as to relieve the brother of any burden of inheritance. While this may be a possibility, there is no specific evidence available to confirm either story.
  5. ↑ George L. Williams, Papal Genealogy: The Families And Descendants Of The Popes (2004)
  6. ↑ Philippe Levillain, The Papacy: Gaius-Proxies (2002)
  7. ↑ This reference, including the value of the comune, comes from a French author who quotes the French Écu rather than the Papal States scudo or Italian scudo which would more likely have been used for this particular transaction.
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