Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
Alexander Farnese was an Italian noble and condottiero, and a general of the Spanish army, who was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1586 to 1592, as well as Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592. Thanks to a steady influx of troops from Spain, during 1581–1587 Farnese captured more than thirty towns in the south and returned them to the control of Habsburg Spain. During the French Wars of Religion he relieved Paris for the Catholic League. His talents as a commander on the battlefield, strategist and organizer earned him the regard of his contemporaries and military historians as the first captain of his age.
Equestrian statue of Don Alexander Farnese by Francesco Mochi.
Portrait of the Prince when he was 15 by Sofonisba Anguissola, 1560
Parma's bridge-of-boats over the Scheldt in 1585.
Alexander Farnese was made responsible for the failure of the Armada which marked the beginning of the end of his brilliant career.
Condottieri were Italian captains in command of mercenary companies during the Middle Ages and of multinational armies during the early modern period. They notably served popes and other European monarchs during the Italian Wars of the Renaissance and the European Wars of Religion. Notable condottieri include Prospero Colonna, Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, Cesare Borgia, the Marquis of Pescara, Andrea Doria, and the Duke of Parma.
The equestrian statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni in Venice, Italy
Luchino Visconti defeated the Company of Saint George of Werner von Urslingen at the Battle of Parabiago in Lombardy in 1339.
Alberico da Barbiano, a mercenary alongside John Hawkwood, founded his own (all Italian) condotta, the Company of St. George, and reached acclaim by defeating the Breton company of anti-pope Clement VII at Marino [fr] in 1379 as well as fostering notable other condottiere such as Facino Cane and Braccio da Montone.
Detail of the frescoes, with soldiers
