Faà di Bruno
Encyclopedia
Faà di Bruno is the name of an Italian noble family based in the areas of Asti
, Casale
, and Alessandria
, which provided the Counts (later Marquises) of Bruno
. In 1703 the family became additionally counts of Carentino
.
The family arrived in Casale from Vignale
around 1500, in the person of Tommaso Faà, who was secretary to the Senate of Monferrato. The brothers Ardicino and Ortensio acquired the castle of Bruno
, near Acqui
, and were made joint-lords (consignori) of Bruno. Subsequently, prominent members included:
Asti
Asti is a city and comune of about 75,000 inhabitants located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about 55 kilometres east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River...
, Casale
Casale Monferrato
Casale Monferrato, population 36,058, is a town and comune in the Piedmont region of north-west Italy, part of the province of Alessandria. It is situated about 60 km east of Turin on the right bank of the Po, where the river runs at the foot of the Montferrato hills. Beyond the river lies the...
, and Alessandria
Alessandria
-Monuments:* The Citadel * The church of Santa Maria di Castello * The church of Santa Maria del Carmine * Palazzo Ghilini * Università del Piemonte Orientale-Museums:* The Marengo Battle Museum...
, which provided the Counts (later Marquises) of Bruno
Bruno (AT)
Bruno is a comune in the Province of Asti in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 70 km southeast of Turin and about 20 km southeast of Asti. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 379 and an area of 9.2 km²....
. In 1703 the family became additionally counts of Carentino
Carentino
Carentino is a comune in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 70 km southeast of Turin and about 15 km southwest of Alessandria...
.
The family arrived in Casale from Vignale
Vignale
Vignale was an Italian automobile coachbuilder company. Carrozzeria Alfredo Vignale was established in 1948 at Via Cigliano, Turin by Alfredo Vignale in Grugliasco, near Turin ....
around 1500, in the person of Tommaso Faà, who was secretary to the Senate of Monferrato. The brothers Ardicino and Ortensio acquired the castle of Bruno
Bruno
Bruno is a male given name. It is derived from the Germanic word brun meaning "brown". It is also one of the most frequent Italian surnames. It also occurs very frequently in continental Europe and parts of Brazil as a given name for men and boys...
, near Acqui
Acqui Terme
Acqui Terme is a city and comune of Piedmont, northern Italy, in the province of Alessandria. It is c. 35 km SSW of Alessandria...
, and were made joint-lords (consignori) of Bruno. Subsequently, prominent members included:
- Giovanni Matteo Faà di Bruno a musician of some importance from Casale who published two books of madrigals as well as vespers, psalms, motets and settings of the Magnificat. He was invested as first Count of Bruno in 1588.
- Camilla Faà di Bruno, (c.1599–1662), a society beauty who was married secretly, briefly and morganatically to Ferdinando IFerdinando I GonzagaFerdinand I Gonzaga was Duke of Mantua and Duke of Montferrat from 1612 until his death.-Biography:Born in Mantua, he was the son of Vincent I Gonzaga and Eleonora de' Medici....
the GonzagaHouse of GonzagaThe Gonzaga family ruled Mantua in Northern Italy from 1328 to 1708.-History:In 1433, Gianfrancesco I assumed the title of Marquis of Mantua, and in 1530 Federico II received the title of Duke of Mantua. In 1531, the family acquired the Duchy of Monferrato through marriage...
Duke of Mantua and Monferrato; her memoirs have been described as the first prose autobiography written by an Italian woman. - Ferdinando Faà di Bruno became the first Marquis of Bruno when the county was elevated into a marquisate on 31 March 1652.
- Ortensio Faà di Bruno (fl. 1686) was priestPriestA priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
in CarentinoCarentinoCarentino is a comune in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 70 km southeast of Turin and about 15 km southwest of Alessandria...
. - Antonino Faà de’ marchesi di Bruno, conte di Carentino (1762–10 November, 1829), Bishop of Asti.
- Alessandro Faà di Bruno (1809–1891), a member of the Accademia di Agricoltura di Torino he was an innovator in the field of agriculture. His estate was one of the largest in the areas of Alessandria and Acqui and he experimented with growing the North-American saagaban as a potato substitute crop.
- Emilio Faà di Bruno (1820–1866), officer of the Regia MarinaRegia MarinaThe Regia Marina dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification...
; as commander of the ironclad frigate “Re D’Italia” he fell at the Battle of LissaBattle of Lissa (1866)The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866 in the Adriatic Sea near the Dalmatian island of Lissa and was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrian Empire force over a superior Italian force...
during the Third Italian War of IndependenceThird Italian War of IndependenceThe Third Italian War of Independence was a conflict which paralleled the Austro-Prussian War, and was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire.-Background:...
. - The BlessedBeatificationBeatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
Francesco Faà di BrunoFrancesco Faà di BrunoFrancesco Faà di Bruno was an Italian mathematician and priest, born at Alessandria. He was of noble birth, and held, at one time, the rank of captain-of-staff in the Sardinian Army. He is the eponym of Faà di Bruno's formula...
(1825–1888), brother of Emilio, was a mathematician and priest. He is best known for Faà di Bruno's formulaFaà di Bruno's formulaFaà di Bruno's formula is an identity in mathematics generalizing the chain rule to higher derivatives, named after , though he was not the first to state or prove the formula...
. - Antonino Faà di Bruno (actor) (1910–1981) appeared in films by PasoliniPier Paolo PasoliniPier Paolo Pasolini was an Italian film director, poet, writer, and intellectual. Pasolini distinguished himself as a poet, journalist, philosopher, linguist, novelist, playwright, filmmaker, newspaper and magazine columnist, actor, painter and political figure...
(Pigsty), FelliniFederico FelliniFederico Fellini, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , was an Italian film director and scriptwriter. Known for a distinct style that blends fantasy and baroque images, he is considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers of the 20th century...
(AmarcordAmarcordAmarcord is a 1973 Italian comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age tale about Titta, an adolescent boy growing up among an eccentric cast of characters in the fictional town of Borgo in 1930s Fascist Italy...
) and ComenciniLuigi ComenciniLuigi Comencini was an Italian film director. Together with Dino Risi, Ettore Scola and Mario Monicelli, he was considered among the masters of the commedia all'italiana genre....
(La donna della domenica).