Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 11.djvu/360

 oRsisins

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ORTELIUS

Rllianco of Rome with the Hohenstaufcn Konrailiii. A son of this Hinaldo, (4) Matteo Orsini, was twice senator in Rome. His wise and energetic uncle, Nicholas III (q. v.). to show that papal rule was once more dominant in Rome, deprived Kinji Charles of Anjoil of ihf senatorial dijrnily, and in 1127S (lublished the decree that thenceforth no foreign enipiror or king could become senator, a Roman being alone eligible for the dignity, and then only with the consent of the pope and for one year. The power of 1 he rsini was in general much strengthened by this cajiable pope of their race.

In the course of the fourteenth and fifteenth cen- turies, the following were particularly famous as mili- tary leaders in the numberless internal wars of Italy;

(5) P.\OLO Orsini, who in the beginning of the fif- teenth century fought as condotliere in the service of several popes, wjis taken prisoner by Ladislas of Naples, again set at liberty, and fell in battle against Braccio da Montone before Perugia on 5 July, 1416.

(6) ViRGiNio Orsini, Lord of Bracciano, was leader of the forces of Sixtus IV (1471-84) in the war against Ferrara, and victor at the battle of Campo Morto against the Neapolitans (14S2). Later, however, he entered the service of Naples to oppose King Charles VIII of France (1483-98); in 1494, however, he took the side of the latter, and was imprisoned on this ac- count. He died on 18 January, 1497, in prison at Naples. (7) NiccoLO Orsini, Count of Petighano, was, at this time, in the service of the Anjous, military leader in the war against Naples, Sixtus IV, Siena, Florence, and Venice. Later, however, he went over with his army to the Venetian standard, and became general-in-chief of the Venetian Republic in the war against the League of Cambrai. He captured Pailua, but was defeated in 1.509, and died in the following year. Of the members of the Orsini family who flour- ished during the sixieenth century (S) Paolo Gior- dano Orsini is also worthy of mention. Born in 1.541, he was created a duke, with the title of Brac- ciano, by Pope Pius IV (1500). Under Paul IV, he was general of the papal troops in the war against the Turks (1566). His first wife, Isabella Medici, being murdered, he took as his second wife Vi ttoria Accoram- boni, widow of the murdered Francesco Peretti, a nephew of Sixtus V. Accused of murdering the latter, Paolo Giordano was obliged to leave Rome. He died at Salo in 1585. (9) FuLvio Orsini was distinguished as a humanist, historian, and archaeologist, b. on 11 December, 1529; d. in Rome, 18 May, 1600. He was the natural son probably of Maerbale Orsini of the Une of Mugnano. Cast off by his father at the age of nine, he found a refuge among the choir boys of St. John Lateran, and a protector in Canon Gentile Delfini. He applied himself energetically to the study of the ancient languages, published a new edition of Amobius (Rome, 1.583) and of the Septuagint (Rome, 1587), and wrote works dealing with the history of Rome — "Familise Romana; ex antiquis numismati- bus" (Rome, 1577), "Fragmenta historicorum" (Ant- werp, 1595), etc. He brought together a large collec- tion of antiquities, and built up a costly library of manuscripts and books, which later became part of the Vatican library (cf. de Nolhac, "La bibliotheque de Fulvio Onsini", Paris, 1887).

A woman of the Orsini family likewise played an important political role in the seventeenth century: Marie Anne, nee de la Trdmoille, b. 1642. Her first husband was Talleyrand, Prince de Chalais, after whose death she married Flavio Orsini, Duke of Bracciano, who remained loyal to Pope Innocent XI in his difficulties with Louis XIV of France. Marie Anne used her influence with the Curia in the inter- ests of France and of Louis XIV, and in 1701, after the death of her husband, went to Madrid as mistress of the robes to Queen Marie- Louise, who, together with her husband Phihp V of Spain, was completely

under her influence. She ilid nuich to strengthen the throne of llic.^e rulers, but, nevertheless, in 1714 when I'liilip married Mli/.abctli l''anicsc, she was dis- missed with ingratitude ami returned lo Rome, whore she (lied on 5 December, 1722 (.see Hill, "The Princess Orsini", London, 1899).

The ancient family of the Roman Orsini is extinct. The present princes of the family in Koine descend from the Neapolitan line, which may be lrac<d back to Fr.ancesco Orsini, Count of Traiii and Conversano. In 1463 they became Dukes of Gr.avina, later (1724) princes of the Em))ire an<l Roman princes. The head of the family always enjoys the dignity of assistant at the papal throne. The present head is Filippo Orsini-Gravina-Sarzina, b. 10 December, 1842. Sev- eral noble families outside of Italy trace back their descent to the ancient Italian Orsini, as for example the Juvenels des Ursins in France and the Rosenbergs in Austria and Germany.

San.sovino, Hist, di casa Orsini e degli uomini illusiri delta viedefiima (Venice, 1505); Inchoff, Genealogite familitB Ursiiut (.\msterdani, 1710); Ciaconius, Vitte et res gestcE Summorum PontiJ. Roman, et S. R. E. Cardinalium (4 vols., Rome, 1677). continued by Guarnacci (2 vols., Rome, 1751) ; Hdyskens, Kardinal Napoleo Orsini (part 1, Marburg, 1902); Idem, Das Kapitet von St. Peter unter dem Einfluss der Orsini {127e-lSJ,S) in Histor. Jahrb.. XXVII (1906). 266-90; Stebnfeld, Der Kardinal Johann Gaetan Orsini (Berlin, 1905) ; FlNKE, .4 us den Tagen Boni- faz VIII (Milnster, 1902), 96 sqq. (regarding Cardinal Matteo Rosso Orsini) ; Souchon, Die Papstwahlen von Bonifaz VIII bis Urban VI (Brunswick, 1888); CJregorovius, Gesch. der Stadt Ram im Mitlelaller (5th ed., Stuttgart, 1903); Reumont, Geseh. der Stadt Rom (3 vols., Berlin, 1867-70); Pastor, Gesch. der P&pste (4th ed., Freiburg, 1901 — ); Moroni, Dizionario di erudi- zione storico-ecclesiastica, s. v. Orsini.

3. P. KlRSCH.

Orsisius {' kpalaioi, Oresiesis-Heru-sa Ast), an Egyptian monk of the fourth century, was a disciple of Pachomius on the ishind Tabcnna in the Nile. When Pachomiusdied (3 IS), (_)r.sisius was chosen as his successor; but he resigned in favour of Theodore. It was not till Theodore's death (c. 380) that Orsisius, advised by St. Athanasius, accepted the ofl!ice of hegumen. Theodore and Orsisius are said to have helped Pachomius in the composition of his rule; Gennadius (De. vir. ill., IX) mentions another work: "Orcsiesis the monk, a colleague of Pachomius and Theodore and a man perfectly learned in the Scrip- tures, composed a Divinely savouretl book containing instruction for all monastic discipline, in which nearly the whole Old and New Testaments are explained in short dissertations in as far as they affect monks; and shortly before his death he gave this book to his breth- ren as his testament." This is supposed to be the work: "Doctrina de institutione monachorum" trans- lated by St. Jerome into Latin (P. L., CIII, 4.53 sq., and P. G., XL., 870-894). Migne i)rints after it (P. G., XL., 895 sq.) another work attributed to the same author: "De sex cogitationibus sanctorum", which, however, is probably by a later Oresius.

Cave, Srriptorum ercl. historia literaria, I (Basle, 1741), 209; Ceillier, Uistoire ginerale des auteurs sacris, IV (Paris, 1860), 235 .sq.

Adrian Fortescde.

Orte. See Civita Castellana, Orte and Gal- LESE, Diocese of.

Ortelius (Oertel), Abraham, cartographer, geog- rapher, and archa'ologist, b. in .\ntwerp, 4 April, 1527; d. there, 'JS June, 1.59S. His family came from Augs- burg, wlicrefore Ortelius frequently referred to him- self as " Belgo-Germanus". The death of his father in 1535, who had been a wealthy merchant, seems to have placed the family in difficulties, for Ortelius be- gan to trade or peddle geographical charts and maps while still a mere youth. When t wenty years of age he joined a guild as a eolourer of charts. IBy purchasing as valuable maps as possible, mounting them on can- vas, colouring, and re-selling them, he managed to as- sist in suiiporting the family, as may be gleaned from a contemporary letter. This trading in maps was prob-