On This Day in Italy

July

July 1st
​1592: Death, in Cremona, of the composer Marc'Antonio Ingegneri, the teacher of Claudio Monteverdi.  

1610: Birth of the Roman sculptor Cosimo Fancelli (d. 1688). 
Angel with Veronica's Veil (Sudarium) by Cosimo Fancelli, Ponte Sant' Angelo, Rome
Angel with Veronica's Veil by Fancelli, Ponte Sant' Angelo, Rome
July 3rd
​1756:  Death, in Rome, of the architect and surveyor Giovanni Battista Nolli (b. 1701), best known for his ichnographic plan of Rome, the Pianta Grande di Roma. 
The Nolli Map of Rome
The Nolli Map of Rome
July 4th
​1807: Birth of Giuseppe Garibaldi (d. 1882). Garibaldi was born in Nizza, which since 1860 has been the French city of Nice. 
Monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi, Piazzale Garibaldi, Rome
Monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi, Piazzale Garibaldi, Rome
July 7th
​1901: Birth, in Sora, of the film director Vittorio de Sica (d. 1974). Ladri di Biciclette (Bicycle Thieves) is perhaps his most famous movie. 
July 8th
1593: Birth of the Roman painter Artemisia Gentileschi (d. 1653).
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1822: Percy Bysshe Shelley drowned in the Gulf of Spezia, when his boat sank in a summer storm. The poet was less than a month short of his thirtieth birthday. His ashes are interred in the 'Protestant' Cemetery in Rome. 
Grave of Percy Bysshe Shelley, Protestant Cemetery, Rome
Grave of Percy Bysshe Shelley, Protestant Cemetery, Rome
July 9th
​1737: Death of Gian Gastone de' Medici, the last member of the Medici family to reign as Grand Duke of Tuscany. 

1856: Death, in Turin, of the scientist Amedeo Avogadro (b. 1776). 
Bust of Gian Gastone de' Medici, Santa Maria Nuova, Florence
Bust of Gian Gastone de' Medici, Santa Maria Nuova, Florence
July 10th
​138 CE: Death, in Baiae, of Emperor Hadrian (r. 117-38).
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1510: Death, in Venice, of Caterina Cornaro (b. 1454), the last Queen of Cyprus. 
Head of Emperor Hadrian, Vatican Museums, Rome
Head of Emperor Hadrian, Vatican Museums
July 11th
1593: Death, in Milan, of the painter Giuseppe Arcimboldo (b. 1527), best known for his imaginative depiction of people made entirely of objects, such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish and books. 
vertumnus-by-giuseppe-arcimboldo
vertumnus-by-giuseppe-arcimboldo
July 12th
​100 BCE: Birth, in Rome, of Gaius Julius Caesar (d. 44 BCE). 
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1643: Death, in Livorno, of François Duquesnoy (b. 1597), a Flemish Baroque sculptor, who was active in Rome for most of his career.
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1884: Birth, in Livorno, of the painter and sculptor Amadeo Modigliani (d. 1920). 
20th century bronze statue of Julius Caesar, Via dei Fori Imperiali, Rome
Statue of Julius Caesar, Via dei Fori Imperiali, Rome
July 13th
​1814: Creation of the Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali (Carabinieri Royal Corps), the oldest of Italy's two national police forces.  
July 14th
​1902: Collapse of the ancient bell tower of St Mark's Basilica, in Venice. 
July 14 1902 Collapse of the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice
Collapse of the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice
July 15th
​1823:  The ancient church of San Paolo fuori le Mura (St Paul Outside the Walls), in Rome, was nearly destroyed by fire. 
July 16th
​1228:  Canonisation of St Francis of Assisi (c. 1181-1226) by Pope Gregory IX (r. 1227-41). 
July 17th
​1486:  Birth of the Florentine painter Andrea del Sarto (d. 1530). 
Self-portrait of the painter Andrea del Sarto
Self-portrait
July 18th
​1610:  Death of the painter Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (b. 1571). 
Caravaggio (c. 1621) by Ottavio Leoni
Caravaggio (c. 1621) by Ottavio Leoni
July 20th
​1304: Birth, in Certaldo, of the poet Francesco Petrarca (d. 1374), known in English as Petrarch. 

1609: Death of the painter Federico Zuccari (b. 1539). 

1890: Birth, in Bologna, of the painter Giorgio Morandi (d. 1964). 

1903: Death of Leo XIII (r. 1878-1903), one of only three popes to have reigned for twenty-five years or more.

​1937: Death of Guglielmo Marconi (b. 1874), who is credited with the invention of radio. In 1909 Marconi won the Nobel Prize for Physics. 
Photograph (1898) of Pope Leo XIII
Photograph (1898) of Pope Leo XIII
July 21st
​1515: Birth, in Florence, of St Philip Neri (d. 1595). 
St Philip Neri
St Philip Neri
July 23rd
1373: Death, in Rome, of St Bridget of Sweden. 
July 24th
1943: Dismissal and arrest of the Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini (1883-45), who had ruled Italy since 1922. 
Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
July 27th
1498: Death, in Florence, of the humanist and book-seller Vespasiano da Bisticci (b. 1422). 
Possible portrait of the Florentine book-seller, Vespasiano da Bisticci
Possible portrait of Vespasiano da Bisticci
July 29th
​1644: Death of Pope Urban VIII (r. 1623-44).  ​

1883: Birth of Benito Mussolini (d. 1945), who founded and led the Partito Nazionale Fascista. Mussolini ruled Italy from 1922 to 1943.
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1900: Assassination, in Monza, of Umberto I (r. 1878-1900), the second king of Italy.
Pope Urban VIII by Bernini, Capitoline Museums, Rome
Pope Urban VIII by Bernini, Capitoline Museums, Rome
July 30th
1511: Birth, in Arezzo, of the painter and writer Giorgio Vasari, whose book The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, first published in 1550, led to him being hailed as the world's first art historian.  

1549: Birth, in Florence, of Ferdinando I de' Medici (d. 1609), the third Grand Duke of Tuscany. 
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2007: Death, in Rome, of the film director Michelangelo Antonioni (b. 1912). 
Monument to Giorgio Vasari, Arezzo
Monument to Giorgio Vasari, Arezzo
July 31st
1556: Death of St Ignatius of Loyola (b. 1491), the founder of the Jesuits, who is buried in the Chiesa del Gesu in Rome. 

1598: Birth, in Bologna, of the Baroque sculptor Alessandro Algardi (d. 1654). 

1686: Birth of the Venetian composer Benedetto Marcello (d. 1739). 
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1919: Birth, in Turin, of Primo Levi (d. 1987), chemist, writer and holocaust survivor. His most famous book is, perhaps, The Periodic Table. 
Tomb of St Ignatius of Loyola, Chiesa del Gesu, Rome
Tomb of St Ignatius of Loyola, Chiesa del Gesu, Rome
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