Niccolò Vitelli

Niccolò Vitelli (1414–1486) was an Italian condottiero of the Vitelli family from Città di Castello.

The son of Giovanni Vitelli and Maddalena dei Marchesi di Petriolo, he was orphaned and grew under the tutelage of his uncle Vitellozzo who introduced him into the political life of the area. He was podestà in some of the major Italian cities, such as Florence, Siena, Genoa ans Perugia.

He frequently clashed with the Popes Paul II and Sixtus IV for the rule of Città di Castello. In 1474 he was besieged in the city by Giuliano della Rovere (future Pope Julius II) and Federico III da Montefeltro. He had to cease the city, in which he however returned in 1482 after ravaging for years the castles and estates in the area. The following year he was excommunicated and, in 1484, left Città di Castello again, only to return shortly after Sixtus IV's death.

At his death, in 1486, the city's people had the definition Pater Patriae ("Father of the Nation") written on his tomb. His son Chiappino was also a military leader for Tuscany and Spain.

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