Giovanni Battista Niccolini (29 October 1782 – 20 September 1861) was an Italian poet and playwright of the Italian unification movement or Risorgimento.[1]
In 1782, Niccolini was born in Bagni San Giuliano to a family of limited means.[2] He initiated studied in law at the University of Pisa, but also pursued studies in classical languages. The upheavals of the Napoleonic era and the early death of his father, led him to seek employment. In 1807, he was named professor of history and mythology at the Accademia di Belle Arti of Florence.
He wrote his first play in Greek in 1810. The play was strongly based on Greek legend and it was called Polissena. This tragedy about the sacrifice of a virgin was so favourably received that his next three plays were also tragedies.[3] He also served as librarian and tutor. Despite his republican leanings, he was spared retribution by the administration of the returning Grand Duke Ferdinand III, and obtained a post as Palatine librarian.
Over the years, Niccolini became more attached to the scholarly pre-eminence of classic learning, but also in the pre-eminence of the Tuscan dialect and writers such as Dante. In the post-napoleonic years, controversy arose about the Accademia della Crusca's dominance in defining the Italian language. In the 1820s, and unexpected inheritance from his maternal family, gave him some financial stability. In 1827, his play Foscarini, was mostly praised by audiences, although maligned by others for presumed anti-Catholic themes. His next play (1831) based on the controversial history of Giovanni da Procida, seen in this work as a defender of Italian liberty, faced opposition by both the French and Austrian diplomats. In 1834, he published another tragedy based on events of Italian history of Ludovico Sforza. This was followed by Rosmonda d'Inghilterra in 1839.[4] In 1847, he published Filippo Strozzi, in which the Florentine hero fights against foreign forces for the liberty of his Tuscany.
In 1846 his play, Arnold of Brescia: A Tragedy. was translated by the English immigrant Theodosia Trollope into English and published. This work was also taken up by Robert Browning. The work evoked the patriotism of those seeking to free Italy from the control of foreign and papal forces.[5]
^Garofalo, Piero (December 2011). "Giovan Battista Niccolini's Literary and Political Role in the Risorgimento". Rivista di Studi Italiani. 29 (2): 65–83.
^Vanucci, Atto (1866). Ricordi della Vita e delle Opere di G.-B. Niccolini. Florence: Felice Le Monnier.
^Cochrane, John (1836). "Niccolini Tragedies". The Foreign Quarterly Review. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
^Niccolini, Giovanni Battista (1839). Rosmonda d'Inghilterra: Tragedia (in Italian). Dalla Stamperia Piatti.
^The Poems of Browning 1846 - 1861. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. 2014. p. 215. ISBN978-1317905424.
^The memorial statue by Pio Fedi, is thought to have influenced Bartholdi's Statue of Liberty. Source: Santa Croce Opera.
^Via Giovanni Battista Niccolini, in Milan, OpenStreetMap, retrieved 23 November 2014
November 24, 2023
giovanni, battista, niccolini, october, 1782, september, 1861, italian, poet, playwright, italian, unification, movement, risorgimento, 1864, portrait, stefano, ussiborn29, october, 1782bagni, giulianodied20, september, 1861florencenationalityitalianoccupation. Giovanni Battista Niccolini 29 October 1782 20 September 1861 was an Italian poet and playwright of the Italian unification movement or Risorgimento 1 Giovanni Battista Niccolini1864 portrait by Stefano UssiBorn29 October 1782Bagni San GiulianoDied20 September 1861FlorenceNationalityItalianOccupation s poet and playwrightNiccolini Memorial Statue depicting Freedom of Poetry 1870 1876 Santa Croce Florence sculpture by Pio Fedi Contents 1 Life 2 Works 3 On popular culture 4 Legacy 5 ReferencesLife editIn 1782 Niccolini was born in Bagni San Giuliano to a family of limited means 2 He initiated studied in law at the University of Pisa but also pursued studies in classical languages The upheavals of the Napoleonic era and the early death of his father led him to seek employment In 1807 he was named professor of history and mythology at the Accademia di Belle Arti of Florence He wrote his first play in Greek in 1810 The play was strongly based on Greek legend and it was called Polissena This tragedy about the sacrifice of a virgin was so favourably received that his next three plays were also tragedies 3 He also served as librarian and tutor Despite his republican leanings he was spared retribution by the administration of the returning Grand Duke Ferdinand III and obtained a post as Palatine librarian Over the years Niccolini became more attached to the scholarly pre eminence of classic learning but also in the pre eminence of the Tuscan dialect and writers such as Dante In the post napoleonic years controversy arose about the Accademia della Crusca s dominance in defining the Italian language In the 1820s and unexpected inheritance from his maternal family gave him some financial stability In 1827 his play Foscarini was mostly praised by audiences although maligned by others for presumed anti Catholic themes His next play 1831 based on the controversial history of Giovanni da Procida seen in this work as a defender of Italian liberty faced opposition by both the French and Austrian diplomats In 1834 he published another tragedy based on events of Italian history of Ludovico Sforza This was followed by Rosmonda d Inghilterra in 1839 4 In 1847 he published Filippo Strozzi in which the Florentine hero fights against foreign forces for the liberty of his Tuscany In 1846 his play Arnold of Brescia A Tragedy was translated by the English immigrant Theodosia Trollope into English and published This work was also taken up by Robert Browning The work evoked the patriotism of those seeking to free Italy from the control of foreign and papal forces 5 Niccolini died in Florence in 1861 He is buried in the Church of Santa Croce Florence close to Machiavelli 6 Works editPolissena 1810 Edipo 1810 15 Ino e Temisto 1810 15 Medea 1810 15 Nabucco 1815 Matilde 1815 Giovanni da Procida 1817 Antonio Foscarini 1823 7 Lodovico il Moro 1833 Rosmunda d Inghilterra 1834 Beatrice Cenci 1838 49 Arnaldo da Brescia 1840 Le Coefore 1844 Filippo Strozzi 1846 Mario e i Cimbri 1848 On popular culture editSome of his words were used in the book reading by La lettrice sculpture created by Pietro Magni Legacy editThere is a Via Giovanni Battista Niccolini in Chinatown in Milan 8 References edit Garofalo Piero December 2011 Giovan Battista Niccolini s Literary and Political Role in the Risorgimento Rivista di Studi Italiani 29 2 65 83 Vanucci Atto 1866 Ricordi della Vita e delle Opere di G B Niccolini Florence Felice Le Monnier Cochrane John 1836 Niccolini Tragedies The Foreign Quarterly Review Retrieved 23 November 2014 Niccolini Giovanni Battista 1839 Rosmonda d Inghilterra Tragedia in Italian Dalla Stamperia Piatti The Poems of Browning 1846 1861 Hoboken Taylor and Francis 2014 p 215 ISBN 978 1317905424 The memorial statue by Pio Fedi is thought to have influenced Bartholdi s Statue of Liberty Source Santa Croce Opera Battista Niccolini Giovanni 1827 Antonio Foscarini tragedia in Italian Firenze Stamparia Piatti Via Giovanni Battista Niccolini in Milan OpenStreetMap retrieved 23 November 2014 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Giovanni Battista Niccolini amp oldid 1168169424, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
