Durastante Natalucci
Encyclopedia
Durastante Tommaso Francesco Emiliano Natalucci (September 17, 1687 – May 22, 1772) was an Italian historian who specialized in history of Trevi
, in Umbria
.
Born at Picicche di Trevi into one of the prominent families of the area, he was tonsured at age 7, upon the death of an uncle of his who had been priest of SS. Crocifisso: he received the benefice of that church from Pope Innocent XII. He studied with the Jesuits in nearby Spoleto
from 1704 to 1709, when he moved to Rome
to study law. His father had died in 1705, so when his mother fell ill around 1710, he returned to Trevi to take care of his family's affairs, in which task he succeeded well enough that he was entrusted similar work on behalf of other local families. Over the next ten or twelve years he accompanied the bishop of Spoleto on his pastoral rounds, possibly serving as a reliable secretary versed in the affairs of Trevi whenever the bishop needed to visit the northern area of his large diocese. This experience deepened his interest in the history of his hometown and its dependencies. He started to consign the historical information he collected to a series of notebooks, and gradually formed them into what would become his Historia Universale dello stato temporale ed eclesiastico (sic) di Trevi. In 1726 he was elected attorney for the comune
of Trevi, and later became magistrate with the town council.
He was, however, suddenly afflicted with total blindness in 1747, which put an end to his efforts; in that same year, having been a lifelong bachelor, he decided to marry a noblewoman from Spoleto, who bore him three children, Giuseppe, Maria, and another who lived only a few days. His work, though well advanced, remained unpublished, in the state it had reached in 1745, until 1985, when thanks to Giuseppe Natalucci, a descendant, the sole manuscript was made available to another Trevi historian, Carlo Zenobi, who produced a careful edition.
Natalucci's history of Trevi, though still essentially a draft, exhaustively documents the history of the Trevi area based on many hundreds of meticulously noted sources. It focuses primarily on land parcels and the families and church entities that controlled them, and provides a minute picture of rural Umbria in the Middle Ages through the first half of the 18th century. It is of particular value in that many of his sources — cartularies, cadastral documents, etc. — no longer exist, and Natalucci showed himself a true scholar in scrupulously sourcing his facts.
Trevi
Trevi is an ancient town and comune in Umbria, Italy, on the lower flank of Monte Serano overlooking the wide plain of the Clitunno river system. It is 10 km SSE of Foligno and 20 km north of Spoleto....
, in Umbria
Umbria
Umbria is a region of modern central Italy. It is one of the smallest Italian regions and the only peninsular region that is landlocked.Its capital is Perugia.Assisi and Norcia are historical towns associated with St. Francis of Assisi, and St...
.
Born at Picicche di Trevi into one of the prominent families of the area, he was tonsured at age 7, upon the death of an uncle of his who had been priest of SS. Crocifisso: he received the benefice of that church from Pope Innocent XII. He studied with the Jesuits in nearby Spoleto
Spoleto
Spoleto is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is S. of Trevi, N. of Terni, SE of Perugia; SE of Florence; and N of Rome.-History:...
from 1704 to 1709, when he moved to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
to study law. His father had died in 1705, so when his mother fell ill around 1710, he returned to Trevi to take care of his family's affairs, in which task he succeeded well enough that he was entrusted similar work on behalf of other local families. Over the next ten or twelve years he accompanied the bishop of Spoleto on his pastoral rounds, possibly serving as a reliable secretary versed in the affairs of Trevi whenever the bishop needed to visit the northern area of his large diocese. This experience deepened his interest in the history of his hometown and its dependencies. He started to consign the historical information he collected to a series of notebooks, and gradually formed them into what would become his Historia Universale dello stato temporale ed eclesiastico (sic) di Trevi. In 1726 he was elected attorney for the comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
of Trevi, and later became magistrate with the town council.
He was, however, suddenly afflicted with total blindness in 1747, which put an end to his efforts; in that same year, having been a lifelong bachelor, he decided to marry a noblewoman from Spoleto, who bore him three children, Giuseppe, Maria, and another who lived only a few days. His work, though well advanced, remained unpublished, in the state it had reached in 1745, until 1985, when thanks to Giuseppe Natalucci, a descendant, the sole manuscript was made available to another Trevi historian, Carlo Zenobi, who produced a careful edition.
Natalucci's history of Trevi, though still essentially a draft, exhaustively documents the history of the Trevi area based on many hundreds of meticulously noted sources. It focuses primarily on land parcels and the families and church entities that controlled them, and provides a minute picture of rural Umbria in the Middle Ages through the first half of the 18th century. It is of particular value in that many of his sources — cartularies, cadastral documents, etc. — no longer exist, and Natalucci showed himself a true scholar in scrupulously sourcing his facts.