Gonfalonier of the Church


The Gonfalonier of the Church or Papal Gonfalonier was a military and political office of the Papal States. Originating from the use of the Papal banner during combat, the office later became largely ceremonial and political. At his nomination, the Gonfalonier was given two banners, one with the arms of the Church and another with the arms of the reigning pope. The Gonfalonier was entitled to include ecclesiastical emblems upon his own arms, usually only during his term of office but on occasion permanently. Pope Innocent XII ended the rank, along with the captaincy general, and replaced them both with the position of Flag-bearer of the Holy Roman Church, which later became hereditary in the Naro Patrizi.

List of Gonfaloniers of the Church

Term of officePortraitGonfalonierAppointing PopeNotes
1059 — ?Robert GuiscardNicholas II
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1063 — 1075Saint ErlembaldAlexander II
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c. 1118Stephen the NormanWith Pier Leoni, rescued Pope Gelasius II from Cencio II Frangipane.
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c. 1296James II of AragonBoniface VIII
King of Aragon and Valencia; Gonfalonier, admiral, and Captain General of the Church; appointed to encourage him to wage war against his brother Frederick III
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1372 — ?Galeotto I MalatestaGregory XI
Commander of the Papal Army against Bernabò Visconti, whom he defeated at Montechiaro.
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1377 — 1384Ridolfo II da Varano di CamerinoGregory XI
Appointed by Gregory XI and served as Commander of the Papal Army during the final years of the Avignon Papacy.
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1384 — 1385Charles III of NaplesUrban VI
King of Naples. Excommunicated and removed from office, his forces besieged the pope at Nocera, while the pope later attempted to usurp Naples for his nephew.
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1387 — ?Carlo I MalatestaUrban VI
A condottiero.
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c. 1399Martin of AragonAntipope
Benedict XIII		King of Aragon and Sicily. Gonfalonier of the Western antipope, but refused to wage war against France during the siege of Avignon
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1403 — ?Niccolò III d'EsteBoniface IX
A condottiero; also Lord of Ferrara. Appointed in opposition to Milan. Possibly reappointed by Pope Martin V.
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1406 — ?Ladislaus of NaplesInnocent VII
King of Naples; appointed for his assistance in helping Innocent VII against the Roman mob. Routed at Roccasecca in 1411, he abandoned Pope Gregory XII in favor of the antipope John XXIII, who appointed him his gonfalonier.
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1409 — 1411Louis II of NaplesAntipope
Alexander V		Opposed to Ladislaus for the Kingdom of Naples, was appointed gonfalonier by the Pisan faction's antipope Alexander V. Despite winning a major victory at Roccasecca, though, abandoned the field and returned to France.
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1412 — ?Gianfrancisco I GonzagaGregory XII
A condottiero; also Lord of Mantua.
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1431 — ?Niccolò FortebraccioEugene IV
A condottiero; despite his failure to recapture Città di Castello, was hired as Gonfalonier to oppose Sigismund of Hungary in Tuscany and the Prefetti di Vico in Lazio, but fired for using his position to advance his own interests. Thereafter went to war against the Papal States for Milan.
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1433 — 1434Giovanni VitelleschiEugene IV
Commander of the Papal Armies for a short time under Pope Eugene IV.
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1434 — 1442Francesco I SforzaEugene IV
A condottiero; while working for Milan, received the position of Gonfalonier along with Ancona as part of the terms of a peace with Eugene, then led the campaign against former Gonfalonier and his former ally Niccolò Fortebraccio. Lost his position after Milan allied with the Papacy against him.
1442 — ?Niccolò PiccininoEugene IV
A condottiero. Originally helped Fortebraccio and Sforza against the Papacy, appointed Gonfalonier to recover Sforza's holdings in the Marche.
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1444 — ?Louis, Dauphin of FranceEugene IV
Appointed for his actions in Switzerland against the Council of Basel and the antipope Felix V.
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c. 1455Francesco I SforzaSecond term. Now uninvested duke of Milan.
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1456 — 1458Pedro Luis BorgiaCallixtus III
Also Captain General. Rodrigo Borgia's older brother.
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1462 — 1468Federico da MontefeltroPius II
A condottiero; also Conte di Urbino. Appointed against Sigismondo Malatesta, lord of Rimini. Originally reappointed by Pope Paul II to oppose Venice, but challenged in his acquisition of Rimini following the victory at Molinella, switched sides.
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1474 — 1482Federico da MontefeltroSixtus IV
Second term. Now styled Duke of Urbino; married his daughter to Pope Sixtus's favorite nephew, who inherited the duchy following the death of Federico's own son.
1484 — 1489Giovanni della RoverePope Innocent VIII
Also Captain General.
1489 — 1496Niccolo OrsiniPope Innocent VIII
Also Captain General.
1496 — 1497Giovanni BorgiaAlexander VI
Son; Duke of Gandia and also Captain General; assassinated by unknown agents.
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29 March 1500 — 1503Cesare BorgiaAlexander VI
Son; former cardinal, Duke of Valentinois and also Captain General.
1504 — 1508?Guidobaldo da MontefeltroJulius II
A condottiero; also Duke of Urbino. Son of Federico da Montefeltro; adopted Francesco Maria I della Rovere, his nephew and the pope's.
19 April 1509 — 1510Alfonso I d'EsteJulius II
Also Duke of Ferrara and Captain General. Commanded forces against Venice during the second phase of the War of the League of Cambrai. Removed from his post and excommunicated with all his family in order to return Ferrara to direct Papal administration.
1510 — ?Francesco GonzagaJulius II
Also Duke of Mantua and Captain General.
1513 — 1516Giuliano de'MediciLeo X
Also Captain General and Duke of Nemours.
1516 — ?Lorenzo II de'MediciLeo X
Also Captain General: commanded the papal army in the War of Urbino, before being wounded at the siege of Mondolfo
1519 — ?Federico II GonzagaJulius II
Also Duke of Mantua and Captain General of the Church, as well as Captain General of the Republic of Venice. Was not required to oppose the Holy Roman Empire and so failed to intervene in the Sack of Rome
1 February 1537 — 1547Pier Luigi FarnesePaul III
Son of Paul III; also Duke of Parma, Piacenza, and Castro.
1547 — 1551Ottavio FarnesePaul III
Son of Pier Luigi Farnese; also Duke of Parma, Piacenza, and Castro
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c. 1565Jacques Annibal de Hohenembs
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1566 — ?Ottavio FarnesePius V
Second term.
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1572 — 1585Giacomo BoncompagniGregory XIII
Son; also Captain General of Spanish Milan, purchased the Duchies of Sora and Arce, Aquino and Arpino. Removed as Gonfalonier upon the election of Pope Sixtus V.
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c.1621 — ?Odoardo FarneseGregory XV
Also Duke of Parma and Piacenza. Excommunicated and prohibited from use of Gonfalonier emblems by Pope Urban VIII.
? — 1630Carlo BarberiniUrban VIII
Brother of Pope Urban VIII and Antonio Marcello Barberini. Father of Taddeo Barberini.
1630 — 1636Torquato ContiUrban VIII
Duke of Guadagnolo and Field Marshal of the Holy Roman Empire
1639 — 1644Taddeo BarberiniUrban VIII
Nephew of Pope Urban VIII and Prince of Palestrina. Appointed Commander of the Papal Army during the Wars of Castro. Went into exile after the 1644 election of Pope Innocent X and died, without returning to Rome, in 1647. Dates are approximate.
1649 — ?Maffeo BarberiniInnocent X
Son of Taddeo Barberini who was appointed to his father's previous titles after the reconciliation of the Pamphili and Barberini families.
? - 1689Livio OdescalchiInnocent XI Nephew of Innocent XI; also Captain General