Conventional Long Name: | County of Santa Fiora |
Common Name: | Santa Fiora |
Event Start: | Division of the lands of Aldobrandeschi family in two branches |
Year Start: | 1274 |
Year End: | 1806 |
P1: | Contado |
P2: | Aldobrandeschi familyContado of the Aldobrandeschi |
S1: | Grand Duchy of Tuscany |
Flag S1: | Flag of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany (Medici period).svg |
S2: | Papal States |
Flag S2: | Flag of the Papal States (pre 1808).svg |
Flag Type: | Coat of arms (Sforza di Santa Fiora) |
Image Map Caption: | 15th and 16th centuries |
Image Map2: | Grandi Casate Italiane nel 1499.png |
Image Map2 Caption: | Italy in 1499 |
Capital: | Santa Fiora |
Government Type: | Absolute Monarchy (County) |
Title Leader: | Count |
Leader1: | Ildebrandino X Aldobrandeschi |
Year Leader1: | 1274–1283 |
Leader2: | Mario II Sforza |
Year Leader2: | 1631–1658 |
Religion: | Roman Catholicism Minority: Judaism |
Event1: | The County is annexed by the Grand Duchy of Tuscany |
Date Event1: | 1633 |
Flag P2: | Coat of Arms of the House of Aldobrandeschi.svg |
Border P2: | no |
The County of Santa Fiora (Italian: Contea di Santa Fiora), also known as State of Santa Fiora (Italian: Stato di Santa Fiora|links=no)[1] was a small historical state of southern Tuscany, in central Italy. Together with the county of Sovana, it was one of the two subdivisions into which the possessions of the Aldobrandeschi, then lords of much of southern Tuscany, were split in 1274.
At the moments of its creation it included part of today's province of Grosseto, up to the Isola del Giglio, and Castiglione d'Orcia, in what is now the province of Siena. In the 14th century the Republic of Siena was able to capture Isola del Giglio, Roccastrada, Istia d'Ombrone, Magliano in Toscana, Selvena, Arcidosso and Castiglione d'Orcia, reducing the county to its capital, Castell'Azzara, Semproniano and Scansano.
In 1439, after the marriage of Bosio I Sforza and the last Aldobrandeschi heir, Cecilia, the county was inherited by the Sforza family, who would become ruler of the Duchy of Milan and owned also other possessions in Tuscany and the Marche.
The sovereignty of the county was ceded to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in 1633.[2]
The Jewish presence in the County of Santa Fiora was significant, the first evidence dates back to the second half of the 15th century, while a jewish ghetto was established in 1714, when the state was already subject to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany for about 80 years.[3]
Title | Name | Start | End | Consort | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Count | Bonifacio Aldobrandeschi | 1216 | 1229 | Ruling house of Aldobrandeschi | |
2 | Count | Ildebrandino (X) | 1229 | 1283 | ||
3 | Count | Ildebrandino (XII) | 1283 | 1331 | ||
4 | Conte | Stefano | 1331 | 1346 | ||
5 | Count | Senese | 1346 | 1386 | ||
6 | Count | Guido I Aldobrandeschi | 1386 | 1438 | Elisabetta Salimbeni | |
7 | Countess | Cecilia Aldobrandeschi | 1438 | 1451 | Bosio I Sforza, brother of Francesco I Sforza | |
8 | Count | Bosio I Sforza | 1439 | 1476 | Widower of countess Cecilia Aldobrandeschi | Ruling house changes to Sforza |
9 | Count | Guido II Sfora di Santa Fiora | 1476 | 1508 | Francesca Farnese | |
10 | Count | Federico I Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1508 | 1517 | Bartolomea Orsini di Pitigliano | |
11 | Count | Bosio II Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1517 | 1535 | Costanza Farnese | |
12 | Count | Sforza I Sforza | 1535 | 1575 | Luisa Pallavicino, Caterina Nobili | |
13 | Count | Mario I Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1575 | 1591 | Fulvia Conti | |
14 | Count | Alessandro I Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1591 | 1631 | Eleonora Orsini di Bracciano | |
15 | Count | Mario II Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1631 | 1658 | Renata di Lorena | |
16 | Count | Ludovico I di Santa Fiora | 1658 | 1685 | Artemisia Colonna, Adelaide di Thianges | |
17 | Count | Francesco I di Santa Fiora | 1685 | 1707 | Dorotea Tocco | |
18 | Count | Federico II Sforza di Santa Fiora | 1707 | 1712 | Livia Cesarini | |
19 | Count | Gaetano I Sforza-Cesarini | 1712 | 1727 | Vittoria Conti | Ruling house changes to Sforza-Cesarini |
20 | Count | Sforza Giuseppe I | 1727 | 1744 | Maria Francesca Giustiniani | |
21 | Count | Filippo I | 1744 | 1764 | Anna Maria Colonna Barberini | |
22 | Count | Gaetano II Sforza Cesarini | 1764 | 1776 | Teresa Caracciolo, Marianna Caetani | |
23 | Count | Francesco II Sforza Cesarini | 1776 | 1806 | Geltrude Conti; ultimo conte sovrano | |