Signoria facts for kids

Palazzo Vecchio, a famous building in Florence where the Signoria used to meet.

A signoria was a type of government in many Italian city-states during the Medieval and Renaissance times. Think of it as a way a city was ruled.

The word signoria comes from signore, which means "lord" or "master." So, signoria basically means "lordship" or "governing power." When there was more than one, they were called signorie.

Why Signoria Governments Started

In Italian history, the rise of the signoria often happened when the older "commune" system of government was having problems. A "commune" was like a city-republic where citizens had a say in how things were run.

Many people at the time, and historians now, believe that signorie appeared because the communes struggled to keep peace and order. There was often a lot of fighting between different groups and families within the cities.

When things got chaotic, people often looked for strong leaders to take control. These leaders, or "strong men," were seen as able to bring back order and stop the feuding.

Sometimes, cities would even ask a powerful person to become their signoria leader to save the state. For example, the city of Pisa in Tuscany asked Charles VIII of France to rule them. They hoped he would protect them from their enemy, Florence. Similarly, Siena asked Cesare Borgia to take charge.

Different Kinds of Signorie

The way a signoria worked was different in each city.

• Family Rule: In some places, like Verona under the Della Scala family or Florence with the Medici family (like Cosimo de Medici and Lorenzo the Magnificent), one powerful family basically ran everything. It was like a "one-family rule." In Florence, this was not officially written down in their laws until later.
• Official Rule: In other cities, like Milan under the Visconti family, the family's right to rule as signoria was officially recognized. The people and even the pope or the Holy Roman Emperor agreed to it.

How the Word Was Used

Sometimes, the word signoria was used in different ways:

• Republic Government: In some republics, like Florence or Venice, the word signoria could refer to the official government itself, not just one ruler.
• Specific Government Groups: The word could also mean a specific part of the government. For example, in the Republic of Florence, the signoria was the highest group of leaders. In the Republic of Venice, the Signoria was mainly a group that handled legal matters.

List of Signorie Governments

Here are some examples of cities that had signoria governments and the families who ruled them:

City	Ruling Family	Time Period	Group They Supported	Notes
Monaco	Grimaldi	1287–1612	Guelph	Became independent from Genoa in 1287. Later became Princes of Monaco from 1612.
Milan	Della Torre	1259–1277	Guelph	Removed from power by the Visconti family.
	Visconti	1277–1302	Ghibelline	Took over Milan after a battle. Removed by Della Torre in 1302.
	Della Torre	1302–1311	Guelph	Removed and sent away by Emperor Henry VII.
	Visconti	1311–1395	Ghibelline	Put back in power by Henry VII in 1311. Later became Dukes of Milan from 1395.
Mantua	Bonacolsi	1272–1328	Variable	Overthrown in a revolt supported by the Gonzaga family.
	Gonzaga	1328–1433	Ghibelline	Became Margraves of Mantua from 1433.
Verona	Della Scala	1282–1387	Ghibelline	Overthrown by a revolt supported by the Visconti family.
Treviso	Da Camino	1283–1312	Guelph	Overthrown in a plot.
Padua	Da Carrara	1318–1405	Guelph	Overthrown by the Republic of Venice.
Ferrara	Este	1209–1471	Guelph	Became Dukes of Ferrara from 1471.
Modena		1336–1471		Became Dukes of Modena and Reggio from 1471.
	Pio	1336–1599	Unclear	Ruled as Lords of Carpi and Sassuolo.
Bologna	Pepoli	1337–1350	Guelph	Overthrown by the Visconti army.
	Bentivoglio	1401–1506	Ghibelline	Overthrown by Pope Julius II.
Ravenna	Da Polenta	1275–1441	Guelph	Overthrown and sent away by the Republic of Venice.
Forlì	Ordelaffi	1295–1359 (Break in rule) 1376–1480	Ghibelline	Declined due to problems within the city. Peacefully removed in 1480.
	Riario	1480–1499	Guelph	Was like a satellite state of Milan from 1488. Overthrown by Cesare Borgia.
	Borgia	1499–1503	Guelph	Ruled over all of Romagna, with Cesare as its Duke.
	Ordelaffi	1503–1504	Ghibelline	Family line ended in 1504.
Pesaro	Malatesta	1285–1445	Guelph	Overthrown by the Sforza family.
Rimini		1295–1500		Overthrown by Cesare Borgia.
Cesena		1378–1465		Family line ended in 1465.
Urbino	Da Montefeltro	1213–1234	Ghibelline	Became Counts of Urbino from 1234.
Lucca	Quartigiani	1308–1316	Guelph	Overthrown by the Antelminelli family.
	Antelminelli	1316–1328	Ghibelline	Overthrown by the Guelph party.
	Guinigi	1400–1430	Guelph	Removed when the Republic was restored.
Florence	Medici	1434–1494 (Break in rule) 1512–1527 (Break in rule) 1530–1532	Guelph	Became Dukes of Florence from 1532.
Pisa	Della Gherardesca	1316–1347	Ghibelline	Removed and replaced by the Gambacorta family.
	Gambacorta	1347–1392	Guelph	Overthrown in a plot.
	Appiano	1392–1399	Unclear	Overthrown by the Visconti.
	Visconti	1399–1406	Ghibelline	Overthrown by the Republic of Florence.
Siena	Petrucci	1487–1525	Ghibelline	Peacefully removed by the republican government.

See also

• Seignory
• Signoria of Florence
• Signoria of Venice
• Forni della Signoria