The Relentless Campaigns of Bisaccione against Brigandage in Renaissance Italy

The downfall of Alfonso Piccolomini and Marco Sciarra at the hands of a condottiero

Bisaccione (Bisaccione Bisaccioni). From Jesi. Count.

Born: 1541
Death: 1603, August

Year, Month	State, Comp. ventura	Opponent	Area of Activity	Actions Undertaken and Other Salient Facts
1570	Venice	Ottoman Empire	Cyprus
1571
Oct.	Church	Ottoman Empire	Greece	Participates in the Battle of Lepanto.
…………..	Florence	Ottoman Empire		Assists the Knights of the Order of Saint Stephen in hunting down Barbary corsairs.
…………..	Spain	Ottoman Empire	Holland and Belgium	Fights in the wars in Flanders.
…………..	Empire	Ottoman Empire	Hungary	Faces the Turks in Hungary.
…………..	Church	Huguenots	France
1585	Church	Comp. ventura	Romagna	Opposes in Romagna a group of bandits led by Alfonso Piccolomini.
…………..			Romagna	Governor of Castrocaro Terme.
1590
Oct., Dec.			Lazio	Hunts down bandits Alfonso Piccolomini and Marco Sciarra. Intercepts a group of outlaws belonging to their gangs, who had become isolated and were heading, like the rest of their companions, toward the salt flats of Ostia and Rome. Surprises them at Centeno: all the bandits, captured alive or dead in the fight, are hanged and left for several days on ten poles at the roadside. Engages in another clash with the remainder of the gang at Caprarola. Continues the pursuit even after the opponents manage to slip past the encirclement—laid at Montirosi by the grand ducal forces under Camillo del Monte at Santa Maria and by the papal troops of Virginio Orsini. Trails the bandits to Villa San Giovanni in Tuscia and Barbarano Romano; once again, they escape through a dense forest. It is still recounted in Barbarano Romano that, on August nights, one can hear the angry cries of the Bisaccione in frustration.
1591			Emilia	Receives command of a regiment of infantry; the operational base is now Ferrara. In January captures Alfonso Piccolomini near Cesenatico, who had been condemned to death in absentia by the Grand Duke of Tuscany. Leads him to Forlì with 300 infantry from his company. Has a dispute with the city’s governor, Pompeo Sperelli, who wants to arrest him on behalf of the papal authorities. The bells are rung in alarm to prevent the Florentine captain from taking Alfonso Piccolomini to Florence. The Bisaccione forces open a city gate and moves toward the grand ducal capital.
…………..	Church	Huguenots	France	Takes part in the Wars of Religion in France.
…………..			Umbria	Is appointed by the papal authorities as governor of Umbria.
1602	Church	Barbary corsairs	Campania	Flaminio Delfini, lieutenant of the papal fleet, grants him command of two galleys to hunt Barbary corsairs among the islands of the Gulf of Naples.
1603
…………..			Lazio	Holds the interim command of the papal fleet.
Aug.			Sicily	Sails to Messina with seven galleys to hand over their command to the new captain of the papal fleet, Ippolito Malaspina. Upon arrival in the city, dies suddenly at the end of the month. Is buried in the Church of San Giovanni. Ippolito Malaspina attends his funeral.

Sources

-“Valoroso guerriero, che meritò onorevoli cariche non solo del suo principe, ma anche dagli esteri..Del suo valor militare e della prattica che avea grandissimamnella tattica ne lasciò in testimonianza anche un’opera.” COLUCCI

-Con il fratello Desiderio “Hanno talmente allargata la fama del loro valore, che sono a comun voce posti fra i migliori soldati che vivano nella Marca.” GRIZIO

-“Conte, famoso condottiero e soldato di ventura…Trasforma la caccia ai Briganti, in particolare verso Alfonso Piccolomini e Marco Sciarra, in un fatto personale carico di sentimenti d’odio, così forte che era solito dire:”Senza pietà et senza tregua sino all’inferno lo voglio cercà.” SCIARRA

-Sul suo sepolcro è inscritto il seguente epitaffio ” D.O.O./ Bisaccionus ex Aesio Piceni oppido oriundus/ Post egregiam christianae reipublicae/ Multis, ac difficillimis bellis ad Cyprum insulam/ In Pannonia, in Gallia aliisq. locis navatam operam/ Cum militum in Umbria ecclesiastica provincia/ Dux esset/ Ac in pontificiam classem imperium/ Summo proximum obtineret/ Decessit Messanae annum agens LXII/ DIE XXI augusti MDCIII