Pio di Savoia
Encyclopedia
Pio di Savoia, an ancient noble Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 family, first mentioned by good authorities in the 14th century. From the house of Este
Este
The House of Este is a European princely dynasty. It is split into two branches; the elder is known as the House of Welf-Este or House of Welf historically rendered in English, Guelf or Guelph...

 they received the lordship of Carpi, and later they acquired the fiefs of Meldola
Meldola
-History:The area of Meldola was inhabited since very ancient times. The Romans built here a large aqueduct which served the military port of Classis. To the 5th-6th century belongs a large patrician villa which is now under the historical centre.In the Middle Ages a castle was present, the name...

, Sassuolo
Sassuolo
Sassuolo is an important industrial centre of the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The town stands on the right bank of the river Secchia some 17 km south-west of Modena.-History :...

, etc. Many members of the family were distinguished as condottieri
Condottieri
thumb|Depiction of [[Farinata degli Uberti]] by [[Andrea del Castagno]], showing a 15th century condottiero's typical attire.Condottieri were the mercenary soldier leaders of the professional, military free companies contracted by the Italian city-states and the Papacy, from the late Middle Ages...

, diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

s and ecclesiastics.

Alberto Pio obtained from the house of Savoy
Savoy
Savoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....

 in 1450 the privilege of adding "di Savoia" to his name as a reward for his military services. Another Alberto Pio
Alberto III Pio, Prince of Carpi
Alberto III Pio, Prince of Carpi , was one of the most intellectually renowned humanist princes of the Renaissance and an intimate of the Medici popes. Born in 1475, only two years before the death of his father, he had been raised under the guardianship of his paternal uncle Marco and his maternal...

(1475–1531), who was French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....

 in 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...

, won fame as a man of learning, and Cardinal Rodolfo Pio (1516–1564) was a trusted adviser to Pius III and helped to establish the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...

 at Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

. Ascanio Pio (died 1649) was a dramatic poet of some merit. Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

conferred the title of prince on the family, and one branch of it is to this day established in Spain.
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