On This Day in Italy

September

September 1st
​1271: Election, in Viterbo, of Pope Gregory X (r. 1271-76), after the longest conclave in history. The election lasted almost three years. 
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1529: Birth, in Urbino, of the painter Taddeo Zuccari (d. 1566).
September 2nd
​1548: Birth, in Vicenza, of the architect and writer on architecture Vincenzo Scamozzi (d. 1616). 
Portrait of Vincenzo Scamozzi by Paolo Veronese
Vincenzo Scamozzi by Paolo Veronese
September 3rd
​1602: Death, in Rome, of the sculptor and architect Giacomo della Porta (b. 1532). 

1695: Birth, in Bergamo, of the virtuoso violinist and composer Pietro Locatelli (d. 1764).
September 4th
​476: Romulus Augustus (c. 465 - after 511), nicknamed Augustulus, the last Roman emperor of the west, was overthrown by Odoacer and sent into exile. He had reigned for little under a year. 
September 6th
​1475: Birth, in Bologna, of the architect Sebastiano Serlio (d. 1554). A three-part window, which is made up of a large, arched central light flanked by two narrower and shorter rectangular lights, is often known as a Serlian window. 

2007: Death, in Modena, of the tenor Luciano Pavarotti (b. 1935). 
An example of a Serlian window, Palazzo Pamphilj, Rome
A Serlian window, Palazzo Pamphilj, Rome
September 8th
​1296: The first stone of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Cathedral of Florence, was laid. 

1474: Birth, in Reggio Emilia, of the poet Ludovico Ariosto (d. 1533).

1504: Michelangelo's statue of David was unveiled in Florence's Piazza della Signoria. The statue remained in the piazza until 1873, when it was moved to the Galleria dell' Accademia.
Head of David by Michelangelo, Galleria dell' Accademia, Florence
David, Galleria dell' Accademia, Florence
September 9th
​1737: Birth, in Bologna, of the scientist Luigi Galvani (d. 1798), who, in 1780, discovered that the muscles of dead frogs' legs twitched when struck by an electrical spark. 
Portrait of the scientist Luigi Galvani
Luigi Galvani
September 10th
1482: Death of the condottiero Federico da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino (b. 1422), one of the most famous mercenaries of his age. 
Federico da Montefeltro by Piero della Francesca
Federico da Montefeltro by Piero della Francesca
September 11th
1599: Execution, in Rome, of Beatrice Cenci (b. 1577), who was convicted of murdering her father, Count Francesco Cenci. She was beheaded after a lurid murder trial, which gave rise to an enduring legend about her.  Beatrice Cenci was buried in the church of San Pietro in Montorio. Her tragic death inspired the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley to write The Cenci: A Tragedy in Five Acts (1819). 
Portrait of Beatrice Cenci attributed to Guido Reni, Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, Rome
Portrait of Beatrice Cenci attributed to Guido Reni
September 12th
​1943: German paratroopers and Waffen-SS commandos rescued the deposed Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini from custody on the Gran Sasso, in Abruzzo.
September 13th
​81 CE: Death of Emperor Titus (r. 79-81). During his reign, Titus completed the Colosseum, which had been begun by his father, the emperor Vespasian (r. 69-79).   

1506: Death, in Mantua, of the painter Andrea Mantegna (b. 1431). 

1583: Baptism (d.o.b. unknown), in Ferrara, of the composer Girolamo Frescobaldi (d. 1643). 
Bust of Mantegna by Cavalli
Bust of Mantegna by Gian Marco Cavalli
September 14th
​1322: Death, in Ravenna, of the poet Dante Aligheri (b. 1265). 

1523: Death of Pope Adrian VI (r. 1522-23), the last non-Italian to be elected pontiff for almost 500 years. He is buried in the church of Santa Maria dell' Anima. 
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1760: Birth, in Florence, of the composer Luigi Cherubini (d. 1842). 
Tomb of Dante Aligheri, Ravenna
Tomb of Dante Aligheri, Ravenna
September 15th
​1254: Birth of the Venetian merchant and explorer Marco Polo (d. 1324).  

1616:  José de Calasanz (1557-1648), a Spanish priest, opened in Frascati the first free public school in Europe. 
Plaque to Marco Polo, Venice
Plaque to Marco Polo, Venice
September 16th
​1782: Death, in Bologna, of the celebrated castrato Carlo Maria Michelangelo Nicola Broschi (b. 1705), better known as Farinelli.  
Portrait of Farinelli (1734) by Bartolomeo Nazari, Royal College of Music, London
Farinelli (1734) by Bartolomeo Nazari
September 17th
​1771: Death of the Scottish writer Tobias Smollett (b. 1721), who is buried in the Tuscan city of Livorno.
September 18th
​96 CE: Assassination of the Emperor Domitian (r. 81-96) in his palace on the Palatine hill. 
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1587: Birth, in Florence, of the composer and singer Francesca Caccini (d. 1640). Known locally as la Cecchina, she was the daughter of the composer Giulio Caccini (1551-1618). 
September 19th
​1985: Death, in Siena, of the novelist Italo Calvino (b. 1923), who penned If On a Winter's Night a Traveller. 
September 20th
​1870: Capture of Rome. Italian troops occupied the city, leading to the end of Papal rule and the eventual incorporation of Rome into the Kingdom of Italy.
September 21st
​19 BCE: Death of the poet Publius Vergilius Maro (b. 70 BCE), known in English as Virgil, author of the epic poem The Aeneid.      
Monument to the Latin poet Virgil, Mantua
Monument to Virgil, Mantua
September 23rd
​63 BCE: Birth of Gaius Octavian, who as Augustus, would become Rome's first emperor (r. 27 BCE - 14 CE).  
head-of-the-emperor-augustus-vatican-museums-rome
Augustus, Vatican Museums
September 25th
​1534: Death of Pope Clement VII (r. 1523-34). 

1599: Birth of the Baroque architect Francesco Borromini (d. 1667). 
Portrait of Pope Clement VII by Sebastiano del Piombo
Pope Clement VII by Sebastiano del Piombo
September 29th
106 BCE: Birth of the general & politician Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (d. 48 BCE), known in English as Pompey the Great. 
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29 CE: Death of Livia Drusilla (b. 59 BCE), who, as the wife of Augustus, was empress from 27 BCE to 14 CE. 
Statue of Pompey, Palazzo del Sodalizio Teutonico dell' Anima, Rome
Statue of Pompey, Palazzo del Sodalizio Teutonico dell' Anima, Rome
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