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CARRARA, or CARRARESI
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See also:CARRARA, or CARRARESI , a powerful See also:family of Longobard origin which ruled See also:Padua in the 14th See also:century. They take their name from the See also:village of Carrara near Padua, and the first recorded member of the See also:house is Gamberto (d. before 970). In the See also:wars between Guelphs and Ghibellines the Carraresi at first took the latter See also:side, but they subsequently went over to the Guelphs. This brought them into conflict with Ezzelino da Romano; Jacopo da Carrara was besieged by Ezzelino in his See also:castle of Agna, and while trying to See also:escape was drowned. Another Jacopo led the Paduans in 1312 against Cangrande della Scala, See also:lord of See also:Verona, and though taken prisoner managed to negotiate a See also:peace in 1318. To put an end to the perpetual See also:civil strife the Paduans elected him their lord, and he seems to have governed well, leaving the See also:city at his See also:death (1324) to his See also:nephew Marsiglio; a See also:man famed for his cunning. But Cangrande was See also:bent on acquiring Padua, and Marsiglio, unable to resist, gave it over to him and was appointed its See also:governor. Cangrande died in 1319, being succeeded by his nephew Martino, and Marsiglio soon began to meditate treachery; he negotiated with the Venetians in 1336, and in the following See also:year he secretly introduced Venetian troops into Padua, arrested Alberto della Scala, Martino's See also:brother, then in See also:charge of the See also:town, and thus regained the lordship. He died in 1338, and was succeeded by his relative Ubertino, a typical See also:medieval See also:tyrant, who earned an unenviable notoriety for his murders and acts of treachery, but was also a See also:patron of the a.ts; he built the Palazzo dei Principi, the castle of See also:Este, constructed a number of roads and canals, and protected See also:commerce. He died in 1345. His distant kinsman Marsiglietto da Carrara succeeded to him, but was immediately assassinated by Jacopo da Carrara, a See also:prince famed as the friend of See also:Petrarch. In 1350 Jacopo was murdered by Guglielmo da Carrara, and his brother Jacopino succeeded, reigning together with his nephew See also:Francesco. In 1355 Francesco (il Vecchio) See also:rose against his See also:uncle and imprisoned him. Francesco changed the traditional policy of his house by quarrelling with the Venetians; in the See also:hope of obtaining more advantages from the See also:Visconti of See also:Milan. When the former were at See also:war with See also:Hungary over See also:Dalmatia in 1356 and asked Carrara to help them, he refused. Their resentment was all the more See also:bitter when at the instance of the See also:pope he mediated between them and Hungary and brought about peace on terms unfavourable to the See also:republic. He received See also:Feltre, See also:Belluno and Cividale from the Hungarian See also: Francesco See also:Novello, his son, resisted bravely, but was compelled to surrender owing to dissensions in Padua itself. He was forced to renounce his dominions, and received a castle near See also:Asti, but he escaped to See also:France, and after a See also:series of romantic adventures succeeded in making peace with Venice, who was becoming alarmed at the restless ambition and treachery of Visconti; in 1390 he raised a small armed force and seized Padua, where he was enthusiastically welcomed by the citizens, and for several years reigned there in peace. But in 1399 Visconti recommenced his wars of See also:conquest, which were to have included Padua had not death cut See also:short his schemes in 1402. Carrara then allied himself with Guglielmo Scala, seized Verona, and tried to capture See also:Vicenza. But the Vicentini had always hated the Carraresi, and after a short siege gave themselves over to Venice. This led to a war between that republic and Padua, for now that Visconti was dead the Venetians had no longer any See also:reason to protect Carrara. Padua and Verona were besieged; the latter, defended by Novello's son Jacopo, was soon captured. Novella himself, besieged in his See also:capital, although repeatedly offered favourable terms, held out for some months hoping for help from See also:Florence and also from certain Venetian nobles with whom he was intriguing. See also:Hunger, See also:plague, the treachery of his captains and See also:internal discontent at last forced him to surrender (See also:November 1405). He and his sons Francesco III. and Jacopo were conveyed to Venice, and at first treated with See also:consideration; but when their intrigues with Venetian traitors for the overthrow of the republic came to See also:light, they were tried, condemned, and strangled in See also:prison (1406). Novello's other son Marsiglio made a desperate See also:attempt to recover Padua in 1435, but was discovered and killed. With him the house of Carrara ceased from troubling. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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