Boccanegra

For other uses, see Boccanegra (disambiguation).

The surname Boccanegra (Italian) or Bocanegra (Spanish) originated in northern Italy during the 13th century.

The original

In the twelfth century, the Geneose were granted sovereignty over the port and the Rock of Monaco by the Emperor of Germany. In 1215, a fortress (now the Prince's Palace) was built. These were years of struggle between the Guelphs (who were followers of the Pope and church) and the Ghibellines (who were supporters of the Emperor).

In 1295, with the coming into power of the Ghibellines, an important Genoese family, the Grimaldi, who had taken the side of the Guelphs, were forced into exile in Provence. Francois Grimaldi who was set on the conquest of Monaco's Castle (Prince's Palace of Monaco) which was the stronghold of the Ghibellines, was advised by the Church to take a more passive approach, but had decided to go another route.

Legend has it that in 1297 under the guidance of a soothsayer known as Dracosia (a mystic from Genoa) who practiced Stregheris, sometimes referred to as "La Vecchia Religione" (meaning the Old Religion), who had advised François Grimaldi to disguise himself as a monk in order to gain entrance to the Ghibellines fortress, foretelling that this would insure his victory. Legend relates that François Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, sought shelter at the castle. On obtaining entry he murdered the guard, whereupon his men appeared and captured the castle.

For his use of the so-called dark arts, the church then persecuted Dracosia for Heresy and branded him and his family as those who “speak evil” or “evil Speakers”. The first Dracosia Boccanegra.

The name, the title, the label

In Italian, bocca means "mouth and Ne(g)ra "black", so in English Boccanegra means "black mouth". Translation – Mouth Black, or in English Black Mouth.

During the 13th century the representation or depiction of evil was black (or Darkness) and the representation or depiction of speaking was the Mouth.

To say that one had a "black mouth" was to say that one was an "evil speaker" or one who "spoke of evil".

Although possessors of wisdom and knowledge that could aid mankind, the ancestors of this name were regarded as mystics, soothsayers, and alchemists, being branded by some as heretics, sorcerers, necromancers and warlocks. Despite this, they were the healers of their time, counsel to kings, and, ultimately, bringers of peace.

The comeback

The Boccanegra family later rose to power in Genoa. Simone Boccanegra, who died 1363, was the first Doge of Genoa. The title of Doge was used for the elected chief of state in a number of Italian "crowned republics". The two best known such republics were Venice and Genoa, which rivaled each other, and the other regional great powers, by building their historical city-states into maritime, commercial, and territorial mini-empires. Simone Boccanegra was elected as doge for life on September 24, 1339, as the candidate of the "popular" Ghibelline faction. Boccanegra was opposed by the aristocratic Guelf faction, representing the old mercantile nobility, which his first actions excluded from public life. With the old nobility excluded from power, a new class of mercantile house arose. There were constant conspiracies and attempts against Boccanegra's life from the outset. (The first conspirator was executed on December 20, 1339) This led to the establishment of a bodyguard of 103 mounted soldiers. For Boccanegra's security these were drawn from Pisa, the inveterate enemy of Genoa, where, however, Simone's brother Niccolò was "captain of the people", their mother having been a Pisan aristocrat.

Boccanegra was forced to resign his office at a public meeting he had called in December of 1344. Giovanni Valente ruled as chief magistrate, until Boccanegra regained power in 1356. Boccanegra was fatally poisoned in 1363.

Simone Boccanegra's tomb in the church of San Francesco in Castelletto was decorated with a remarkable funeral sculpture, depicting him as if lying in state with extraordinary realism in his features. This sculpture is now in the Museum of Sant'Agostino.

Simone Boccanegra is an opera by Giuseppe Verdi, which depicts his life.

References

• San Luca, Church of the Spinola Family - archives and records
• San Lorenzo Cathedral - archive and records
• Family History Archive - Italy
• Genealogy, Ancestry and Family History - Genoese Journal of Economic History