Leonardo Cattaneo della Volta
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Leonardo Cattaneo della Volta | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 52nd Doge of the Republic of Genoa | |
| In office 4 January 1541 – 4 January 1543 | |
| Preceded by | Giannandrea Giustiniani Longo |
| Succeeded by | Andrea Centurione Pietrasanta |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1487 |
| Died | 1572 (aged 84–85) Genoa, Republic of Genoa |
Leonardo Cattaneo della Volta (1487 – 1572) was the 52nd Doge of the Republic of Genoa.
Son of Angelo Cattaneo della Volta and Maria Cattaneo di Quilico, he was born in Genoa around 1487.
His noble and needy figure is remembered in the historical records of the Genoese characters for having founded, in a period of maximum famine, the "Officio dei Poveri", made up of a magistrate together with eight Genoese citizens who, together with the parallel construction of numerous public barns, managed to coordinate and therefore provide support to about four thousand needy inhabitants.[1]
The first institutional position that Leonardo Cattaneo della Volta held was that of procurator of the Republic from 1533. In 1534, with the fresh appointment of governor, he was designated by the doge Battista Lomellini to guide the overseas territory of Corsica. Returning to Genoa in 1535 after his tenure as governor, a position he held for about two years, he was appointed governor of the Republic itself. It was at this stage that, during the establishment of Cristoforo Grimaldi Rosso, he suggested the institution and participated in the office.
According to various historical opinions, it was precisely his activism in managing the emergency of famine which, in fact, led him to the customs elections of 1541 as a personality designated to hold the highest office in the state. With 268 favourable votes, and among the acclamation of the Genoese people, Leonardo Cattaneo della Volta was elected on 4 January, seventh doge of Genoa, with a two-year office, and fifty-second in republican history.[1]
