Angelo Acciaioli I was an Italian Roman Catholic bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

 from Florence

Florence

Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....

.

Biography

Angelo was born in Florence of the noble Acciaioli family, the son of Monte, the grandson of Tommaso Acciaiuoli, also known as Mannino Acciaiuoli.

He entered the church and was bishop of Aquila from 1328 to 1342. From there he transferred back to Florence. He then became a Dominican

Dominican Order

The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...

 friar, and was afterwards the bishop of Florence from 1342 to 1355, the successor to Francesco Silvestri

Francesco Silvestri

Francesco Silvestri, O.P. was an Italian Dominican theologian. He wrote a notable commentary on Thomas of Aquinas's Summa contra gentiles, and served as Master General of his order from 1525 until his death.-Life:...

. In 1355 he accepted the office of bishop of Monte Cassino in order to be closer to his new residence in Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

, where he lived for fourteen years..

At the beginning of his episcopate he was at the head of a group of plotters against the tyrannical Duke of Athens and dominated the city for a few years after his expulsion. He was head of the Balia Fourteen from July 1343. He was also a diplomat who was sent three times by the Florentine Republic as legate to the papal court at Avignon

Avignon

Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...

 in 1344, 1348 and 1351. In 1345 he celebrated a diocesan synod, the oldest in Florence that has been documented. His successors in Florence were his brothers Francis Acciaiuoli, Martinaccio Acciaiuoli, Dardano, Alamanno, John, Bishop of Cesena, and Lina. By 1383 the see of Florence had passed to yet another family member, Angelo Acciaioli II, sometimes called Angelo Acciaoli junior.

Despite residing in Florence he remained in contact with the officials in the Kingdom of Naples

Kingdom of Naples

The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...

. In 1349 he was appointed Registrar and Chancellor of the kingdom by Louis, King Consort of Naples and Queen Joan I

Joan I of Naples

Joan I , born Joanna of Anjou, was Queen of Naples from 1343 until her death. She was also Countess of Provence and Forcalquier, Queen consort of Majorca and titular Queen of Jerusalem and Sicily 1343–82, and Princess of Achaea 1373/5–81....

. Also in 1349 under his leadership the Studio Fiorentino was initiated, the nucleus of the later University of Florence

University of Florence

The University of Florence is a higher study institute in Florence, central Italy. One of the largest and oldest universities in the country, it consists of 12 faculties...

.

Angelo and his cousin Niccolò Acciaioli

Niccolò Acciaioli

Niccolò Acciaioli was an Italian noble, a member of the Florentine banking family of the Acciaioli. He was the grand seneschal of the Kingdom of Naples and count of Melfi, Malta, and Gozo in the mid-fourteenth century. He was the son of Acciaiolo, a wealthy Florentine merchant...

 were the founders of the ambitious Florence Charterhouse at Galluzzo

Galluzzo

Galluzzo is a suburb of Florence, Italy, located in the southern extremity of the Florentine commune. It is known for the celebrated Carthusian monastery, the Galluzzo or Florence Charterhouse , which was founded in 1342 by Niccolò Acciaioli.- History :- The autonomous commune :Galluzzo was an...

.

He died in Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

on October 4, 1357.

Sources

• Archbishop Curia, 1970: The Florentine Church. Florence
• Litta, Pompeo: Acciaioli di Firenze, in Famiglie Celebri Italiane, 1830-45
• Ugurgieri della Berardenga, Curzio, 1962: Gli Acciaioli di Firenze nella Luce de' Loro Tempi. Leo Olschki
• Catholic Encyclopedia 1913 online: Acciajuoli