Ranuccio Farnese (March 28, 1569 — March 5, 1622) or Ranuccio I, was the fourth Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1592 until his death. He was the son of Duke Alessandro Farnese and Maria of Portugal. The Farnese family was an influential family in Renaissance Italy. ... March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (88th in Leap years). ... Events January 11 - First recorded lottery in England. ... March 5 is the 64th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (65th in leap years). ... Events January 1 - In the Gregorian calendar, January 1 is declared as the first day of the year, instead of March 25. ... The Duchy of Parma was a small Italian state between 1545 and 1802, and again from 1814 to 1860. ... Parma is a medieval city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, with splendid architecture and a fine countryside around it. ... Piacenza is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, of approximately 104,000 inhabitants. ... Events January 30 - The death of Pope Innocent IX during the previous year had left the Papal throne vacant. ... Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza (1545 - 1592) was the son of Duke Ottavio Farnese, duke of Parma and Margaret, the illegitimate daughter of the Habsburg Emperor Charles V. Thus Alessandro was the nephew of Philip II of Spain and of Don John of Austria. ... Maria of Portugal (August 12, 1538,Lisbon-September 7, 1577, Parma, Italy) Princess of Portugal, she was the daughter of Prince Duarte, 4th Duke of Guimarães, and Isabel of Braganza. ...

His great-uncle Henry I of Portugal's death triggered the struggle for the throne of Portugal when Ranuccio was 11 years old. As the son of the late elder daughter of dom Duarte of Portugal, Duke of Guimaraes, the only son of Manoel I whose legitimate descendants survived at that time, Ranuccio was according to the feudal custom the first heir to the throne of Portugal. However his father was an ally and even a subject of the Spanish king, another contender, so Ranuccio's rights were not very forcibly claimed. Instead, Ranuccio's mother's younger sister Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, claimed the throne, very ambitiously, but failed. Henry, the cardinal or Henrique (in Portuguese) (January 31, 1512 - January 31, 1580), was the seventeenth King of Portugal between 1578 and 1580. ... In the era of decline of the Portugiese empire, 1578 the young king Sebastian died in battle without an heir (the body was not found), leading to a dynastic crisis. ...

Under Ranuccio I's rule, the dukedom annexed the territories of Colorno, Sala Baganza, and Montechiarugolo. He guided a cultural renewal in the city of Parma, supporting the arts and constructing the 4,500 seat Farnese Theater. Numerous improvements and monuments in Parma were constructed under Ranuccio I at his behest, including a revitalization of the University of Parma and the final expansion of the city walls. Construction of the Pilotta, the court palace of the Farnese family, was completed in 1620. Today the Pilotta serves as Parma's most important cultural center, housing the Palatina Library, the National Archeological Museum of Italy, the Bodoni Museum, and the National Gallery. Annexation is the legal merging of some territory into another body. ... The University of Parma, Italy, (Università degli Studi di Parma) is one of the oldest universities in the world, founded in the 11th century. ... The defensive wall of Braşov, Romania. ... The quintessential medieval European palace: Palais de la Cité, in Paris, the royal palace of France. ... Events September 6 - English emigrants on the Mayflower depart from Plymouth, England for the future New England and arrive at the end of the year. ...

Ranuccio I is also remembered for his cruelty, one infamous example being the public execution of over 100 Parma residents suspected of conspiring against him.

Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza (1545 - 1592) was the son of Duke Ottavio Farnese, duke of Parma and Margaret, the illegitimate daughter of the Habsburg Emperor Charles V. Thus Alessandro was the nephew of Philip II of Spain and of Don John of Austria. ... The Duchy of Parma was a small Italian state between 1545 and 1802, and again from 1814 to 1860. ... Odoardo Farnese (1573-1626), Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church in Italy. ... The Duchy of Parma was a small Italian state between 1545 and 1802, and again from 1814 to 1860. ...

References

http://www.comune.piacenza.it/english/history/Ifarnese.htm (Retrieved January 23, 2005) http://www.settorecrociato.it/ranuccio%20farnese.htm (Retrieved January 23, 2005) http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/users/99/maya/parma.html (Retrieved January 23, 2005)