Alberto da Giussano

Monument to Alberto da Giussano in Legnano, Milan province

Alberto da Giussano was a Lombard legendary Guelph warrior during the wars of the Lombard League against Frederick Barbarossa in the 12th century.

History

Despite the legend, the real condottiero who took part in the battles of the Lombard League was Guido da Landriano. A tradition, probably fabricated by 14th century Milanese chroniclers, attributes Alberto the deed of forming the "Company of Death" that defended the Carroccio of the League at the Battle of Legnano. The first historical citation of his name is in 1196. He is thought to have been a notaro and a podestà.

Legacy

Italian political party Lega Nord makes use of his myth. The electoral emblem of the party features Alberto with an image inspired by the statue of him erected at Legnano in 1900. Also the infantry brigade Legnano of the Italian Army used the image of this statue as symbol.

Popular culture

In the 2009 film Barbarossa, Alberto played by Raz Degan is featured as the protagonist.

Sources

See also

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/26/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.