| « Previous « | Borromean Rings Homepage | » Next » |
Cabrino Fondulo (1370-1425) was a mercenary. He conquered the city-state of Cremona in 1406, taking advantage of feud in the ruling family. In 1413, he was made Count of Soncino, Marquis of Castiglione, and `Vicario' (representative) for the Emperor Sigismund (1368-1437). The three interlaced rings seem to have been an emblem of the city, and are said to symbolise the close friendship between Fondulo, Sigismund and `antipope' John XXIII (1370-1419). The rings appear on a Cremonese coin [Sant'Ambrogio].
When the city came under attack from the Milanese, Fondulo surrendered the city to Filippo Maria Visconti (1392-1497), Duke of Milan, for 35000 scudos, retaining for himself the title of Marquis and the town of Castiglione. With Pandolfo Malatesta, he plotted against the Duke, but in 1424, he was betrayed by his two `close friends', taken to Pavia, and beheaded.
In this way, Cremona became incorporated into the duchy of Milan in 1420. Visconti sought a husband for his illegitimate daughter Bianca Maria (1423-1468). At her engagement to Francesco Sforza (1401-1466) in 1432, she was formally given Cremona to be her dowry. Francesco fought his prospective father-in-law on many occasions, and in 1440 he conquered Cremona for himself, except for the small town of Casalmaggiore. The following year, he reached agreement with the Duke to resolve the dispute. They ratified the accord in Cavriana near Mantua and decided to conclude the marriage. The ceremony took place in the Church of San Sigismondo in Cremona the same year (see pictures below).
In 1446, the fighting began again. Cremona was retaken for the Duke by Francesco Piccinino, and this started a protracted war between the duchy of Milan and the Venetian Republic. The Duke, in desperate trouble, asked the King of Naples, the ruler of Rimini, the Pope, and even his son-in-law for help. Having no legitimate male heir, the Duke promised Sforza he would inherit everything.
After the Duke's death the following year, the duchy of Milan was replaced with a popular government - the Ambrosian Republic. However, this was short-lived. In 1450, Francesco was staying at the Borromean castle at La Peschiera, south-east of Milan. The Milanese surrendered and he was welcomed in by the burghers as absolute ruler, and offered the title Duke of Milan.
Francesco rewarded his friends and allies in the noble families, granting them his own symbol: the three rings. They were the emblem of the only land to which he had legal title, Cremona. Besides the Borromeo family, he gave the honour to the families Cavazzi della Somaglia, Sanseverino, and Birago. Consequently, the rings can be found on many monuments in and around Milan.
|
Cremona lies about 90km south-east of Milan.
The rings can be found in the decorations under the
colonades in the courtyard of the Palazzo del Comune (town hall),
opposite the cathedral.
|
|
|
Bianca Maria Visconti and Francesco Sforza married in the Church of San Sigismondo on Via Marmolada, in 1441. In the right side of the church is a doorway into the cloisters. Made from walnut, the doors are elaborately carved with Sforza family emblems, including three alternating rings. The doors were made by local Cremonese craftsmen Paolo and Giuseppe Sacca in the period 1536-42.
|
|
|
In one of the courtyards of the Sforza Castle in Milan, there is a `fountain' in the wall. The front of the basin is decorated with five squares containing symbols of the Sforza. The left-hand square contains three interlaced rings. They are the (3,3)-torus link - pattern (f).
|
| « Previous « | © Copyright 2007 | » Next » |
