Bartolomeo Fanfulla's parents, Domenico Alon and Angela Folli, gave him multiple names: Giovanni or Giovanni Battista, Bartolomeo and Tito. Born in the province of Lodi, Fanfulla almost certainly died 24 February 1525 in the battle of Pavia. He had at least four children and nine grandchildren. He was first a soldier of fortune, then knight and finally captain of a flag between 1499 and 1525. They say of him: In his life he fought on the side of Florence, Spain and empire having as enemies Pisa and France. Together with Ettore Fieramosca he was the main character of the famous battle of Barletta, which on 13 February 1503 saw thirteen Italian warriors fight against the same number of Frenchmen. Having remained horseless during the fight, he fought on foot killing the horses of the French jousters. At the end of the battle, he was knighted by the Spanish potestà Consalvo di Cordoba. He is one of the main characters of the novelEttore Fieramosca o La disfida di Barletta, by the politician and man of lettersMassimo d'Azeglio, in which the author's phantasy introduces him as an astute, fun and jolly man. The resulting colourful portrait of heroic soldier of fortune gave Fanfulla his fame. Fanfulla is considered one of the symbols of the town of Lodi and of its territory, so much so that a number of local sports clubs take inspiration from his figure: among the most awarded there is the A.S.Ginnastica e Scherma Fanfulla 1874, l'Atletica Fanfulla and the Associazione Calcio Fanfulla 1874. Moreover, the biscuits Amaretti Fanfullini, a typical product of Lodi, owe their name to him. A famous Italian goliardic song from the 20th century has been also dedicated to Fanfulla: Fanfulla da Lodi. In the city ofLecce, bronze statue of him by the Italian sculptor Antonio Bortone from Ruffano is found in the square Raimondello Orsini.
Battles he took part in
He took part in all the main battles of the 16th century. Always giving proof of his great courage he travelled throughout Italy taking part in:
probably also the battle of Pavia of 24 February 1525.
Famous quotations
They have said of him:
"The warrior svelto di corpo e bizzarro d'ingegno, il cavaliere di ventura ricco d'ardimento, con qualche macchia forse, but certainly fearless and with an enormous carica enorme di simpatia, true symbol of the human and Italian saper vivere".
"Uomo valoroso. Disprezzava ogni pericolo della vita in battaglia".
"Di animo altero e superbo".
"Despising any danger in the battle".
"Fanfulla is the unpredictable and unexpected side of a Lodi otherwise known as placid and slow-paced; however, there is vitality, it exists, it manifests itself and it certainly does so in the sports field. That little bit or a lot of Fanfulla, swordsman of good fortune, which still resides in us all citizens of Lodi, must push us to revive sport in Lodi" .
