The Villa del Principe, Palazzo del Principe, or Palace of Andrea Doria in Fassolo is one of the main historical suburban villas of Genoa, Italy. It was built in the 16th century in an area that it is now located in the city center, but at the time of the construction of the villa was just outside of the city walls towards Capo di Faro and the Lanterna.
The villa was intended as the private residence of the Genoese admiral Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi, who often hosted emperors, kings and other foreign authorities. The villa was nonetheless never officially listed as a Palazzo dei Rolli of the Republic of Genova as it was a suburban villa and not an urban palace.
From his residence, Andrea Doria was able to exert a strong political influence on the city, while staying away from the Doge's Palace and the often-treacherous political life of the Republic.
The villa is considered one of the masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance. The interior, recently restored, is decorated with frescoes, stuccoes, tapestries and historical wooden furniture. Particularly noteworthy are Perino del Vaga's frescoes in the Salone dei Giganti and in the Loggia degli Eroi (1533), and the Flemish tapestries portraying the Battle of Lepanto (1571).
It still belongs to the Doria Pamphili family and it is open to the public as a museum.
History
Andrea Doria e la liberation of Genoa in 1528
Andrea Doria (Oneglia, 1466 – Genova, 1560) was a Genoese aristocrat, statesman and naval commander who served for many years in the Genoese navy, as well as offering his services as mercenary commander.
In 1528, when Genoa was under French military occupation, he attacked the harbor with thirteen galeas and took control of the city. Once the battle was over, he was offered to become the Head of State, but he declined the offer saying that he was “not interested in the perks of power, but only in the independence and prosperity of the Republic”. Realistically, many historians believe that his decision to decline the offer was dictated by his cautious approach and his deep knowledge of the Genoese political landscape.
The Doria family, one of the most illustrious among the Genoese nobility, had its quarters in the heart of the city, around the Church of San Matteo, a Romanic church under their patronage and burial place of the family from its foundation in 1125. On 12 September 1528, after the liberation of the city from the French, Andrea pronounced his non acceptance speech from the stairs of that iconic church. On the same day he received, as a thank you gift from the Senate, the Lazzaro Doria Palace in Piazza San Matteo, which he never inhabited. Instead, he preferred to live outside the city, where he could continue to wield considerable power on the life of the Republic without being entangled in lesser political skirmishes. Thus, twelve reformers were appointed to write the new Constitution, which sanctioned the status of Genoa as an oligarchic republic, and consacrated Andrea Doria as "Censor for life" and ‘Father of the Motherland”.
The Villa del Principe in Fassolo
Andrea Doria chose to live in his villa in Fassolo, in an area just outside the now demolished Porta di San Tomaso, where he lived until his death. He purchased the estate in 1521 from the Lomellini family who had acquired it from the Recanelli family in 1498. As the villa was significantly damaged during the war events of 1528, Andrea decided to purchase also the neighboring villa Giustinani Furneto and commissioned the restoration of the combined two villas to Perino Buonaccorsi, known as Perino del Vaga (1501–1547). The restoration took place from 1529 to 1533. After the death of Andrea in 1560, the villa was further enlarged by his successor Giovanni Andrea I Doria, who commissioned from Antonio Roderio the edification of the west wing and from Giovanni Ponzello the construction of the lateral loggias towards the sea.
The villa remained at the center of the political, artistic and mundane life of Genoa for the whole 16th century. In 1529 and 1533, it hosted the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and, in 1548, the King of Spain Philip II. In those occasions, according to the ancient chronicles, the prince organized sumptuous receptions by the seashore, jousts to celebrate his illustrious guests and fireworks to impress the crowds. In the 16th century, the villa was the one and only court that the Republic of Genoa has ever known.
In the 19th century, the villa was still renowned for its beauty and hosted the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, the King of Italy Victor Emmanuel II and the famous opera composer Giuseppe Verdi.