September 23, 2025 • 26 mins
The bloody murder of an adultrous brother and wife was just the beginning for the Malatesta family, whose family tree would be dotted with murders and betrayals for decades.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Romberto Malatesta loved a good banquet. He had long thought
nothing could top the magnificent banquet he had thrown with
his cousin Farentino and his uncle Pandolfo back in thirteen
twenty four. On that occasion, they had invited Ramberto's other cousin, Uberto,
(00:28):
who had not only become an obstacle for them politically,
but had also represented the deep cutting betrayal perpetrated by
Uberto's father Paulo against Ramberto's own father back around twelve
eighty five. They all had a lovely meal together, and
(00:49):
then they killed Uberto. Ramberto was very proud of that
little bit of well executed political intrigue, and he had
thought it cemented a good relationship with his other cousin
Farentino and uncle Pandolpho. So it's no surprise really that
(01:11):
two or so years later, when Pandolpho died and cut
Romberto out of the line of succession of Reminy, the
oh so successful banquet they had all thrown together was
on Ramberto's mind. What better revenge, he must have thought,
than to stage a repeat performance. So Ramberto planned another
(01:36):
banquet and invited his entire family to join in the revelry.
This time there would be no one left to sully
his good name or challenge his power. Ramberto was going
to kill them all. I'm Dana Schwartz and this is
(01:57):
noble blood. Uberto Maltesta grew up in the shadow of
his father's death. When Uberto was a teenager, his father, Paulo,
was killed alongside his lover Francesca de Polenta. The murder
(02:18):
was perpetrated by Paolo's own brother, Jianchoto, who also happened
to be Francesco's husband. Gianchoto had caught them in flagrante
after what was apparently a year's long passionate affair. After
the murder of Uberto's father, Uberto was brought along with
(02:39):
his mother and younger sister, into the household of his
father's murderer, where Uberto lived under Gianchoto's tutelage. This was
evidently and understandably an unbearable arrangement. By twelve ninety seven,
Uberto fled Remini, and he took refuge with a family
(03:01):
of Gibelines, enemies of his gwelp sympathizing family. Just as
a reminder, the Ghibelines and Guelphs were rival groups here,
with the Guelphs supporting the Pope and the Ghibelines supporting
the Holy Roman Emperor. In Uberto's new surroundings, he developed
a Ghibeline leaning that mixed well with his desire for
(03:24):
revenge against his family. He participated in numerous military campaigns
with the Ghibelines, including one in thirteen hundred in which
he defeated his own uncle Malatstino, conquering the city of Chesna.
A few years later, Uberto became the Pudesta and captain
(03:45):
of Chesna, although he was apparently run out of the
city not long after for showing some tyrannical tendencies. Some
sources say that in thirteen oh four Uberto got the
ultimate revo by killing his uncle John Choto. Supposedly, he
was able to hide the murder by killing his uncle
(04:07):
in battle under the guise of their Gwelph Gibbeline animosities.
In a bloody moment in Italian history. It would have
been the perfect murder, really hidden in plain sight. Unfortunately, though,
we're pretty sure of Jannchoto's date of death, and we
have no sources verifying how he died or the role
(04:30):
Uberto may or may not have played in it, but
the fact that the story has endured speaks to the
dangerous ways political and familial tensions could and did intersect
during this period. In any case, for the next couple
of decades, Uberto seems to have committed himself to conquering
(04:53):
more and more land on behalf of the Gibeline faction
and of course himself. In thirteen twenty one, he allied
with the Montrafelto family in an attack on Remani. By then,
Uberto's uncle Pandolfo had become the city's Podesta, and he
had appointed Uberto's cousin Ferantino to lead in the defense
(05:16):
against the invasion. They defeated Umberto and his Gibelin forces handily.
This was the last straw for Uberto. Dealing with his
family had felt like one betrayal after another, and so
a plan began to form in his head, the ultimate retribution.
(05:41):
For a few years he continued to operate as usual,
but all the while he was dreaming of taking over Remany. Finally,
in thirteen twenty four, he decided to put his plan
into action. He reached out to his cousin Ramberto Romberto
(06:01):
was the son of Jianchoto by his second wife, Sambrasina
de Zambrasi. We don't know his exact birth year, but
it's possible that he was born while Uberto was still
under his uncle's care. They might have been living in
the same house. By now, Ramberto would have been at
least nineteen years old. Ramberto had evidently inherited the power
(06:27):
hungry tendencies of his male family members, and Uberto bet
that he could get him to turn on the family. Together,
the two cousins made a plan to depose their uncle
Pandolfo and take remedy for themselves. But as we know
if you remember the names in the introduction, Ramberto had
(06:49):
other plans. He informed Pandolpho and Farentino of Uberto's treacherous proposal,
and together they planned to exact their revenge for Uberto's
various betrayals of the family and, by proxy, his fathers.
They invited Uberto to a banquet. Uberto came, thinking that
(07:12):
he was the one in cahoot with Ramberto. It was
a double cross. He was wrong. The assassination of Uberto
Malatesta complete the three murderers. Ramberto Farantino, and Pandulfo quickly
(07:34):
set about covering up their crime. Although they were between
the three of them powerful enough to get away with murder,
it was still important to be smart about it, especially
given that the person that they had just murdered was
not only their kinsmen, but also an ally of their
most powerful enemy, the Montefeltro family. The three of them
(07:59):
cleaned up the banquet and placed Uberto's body in a
sack before burying him in a nearby town. Ramberto, Farantino,
and Pandulfo don't seem to have ever faced any consequences
for the cold blooded murder they committed. It's likely the
murder scandalous, as it was simply faded into the background
(08:22):
of ever present violence, much of it straddling the boundaries
between personal and political. Was it murder or was it warfare?
And who was going to prosecute the murder? The magistrates
in charge were the very people who were murdering their
relatives to gain political power. In any case, With their
(08:45):
crime unpunished, the murderers went about their business, fighting the
Ghibelins and attempting to expand their power in various bloody ways.
Ramberto was sure that he had cemented his good standing
in the family by foiling his wayward cousin's treasonous plot.
How could he not have He had had a chance
(09:07):
to betray them when Umberto proposed his plan, and he
didn't take it. He double crossed Uberto. Surely he would
be rewarded for his loyalty with the rest of the family.
Two years after Uberto's death, in thirteen twenty six, Pandulfo
Maltesta died. He was the last remaining son of Malitesta
(09:31):
de Verrocchio, after Paolo and John Choto, the adulteress and
murderous brothers. The only other son, Maltestino, had died about
ten years earlier, and so Pandolfo had inherited the better
part of the Malitesta dominions. Before he died, he dictated
(09:52):
his wishes for the successions of his vast holdings and
most importantly, the lordships of Pesaro and Remy. He left
the lordship of Pesaro to his own son, Maltesta. The
second riminy he left to his nephew and co conspirator
in the murder of Uberto Farantino, to Ramberto. He left nothing.
(10:19):
We don't know why. Ramberto was excluded in this way,
he does seem to have been something of a rogue
element of the family. We have no clear evidence that
he ever married, and while he clearly held several properties
and engaged in all sorts of military campaigns and intrigue,
he doesn't seem to have ever held any real power.
(10:43):
His father had been the Lord of Pesaro. Perhaps he
might have inherited it himself had he been older at
the time of his father's death, but he was just
a child, and unlike the monarchies in northern Europe, where
a child could inherit a throne with which the regency,
during this period in the Italian city states, it was
(11:04):
more common for another family member to well just take
the power for themselves outright, and so when Pandolpho died,
Ramberto was left with nothing in a cruel twist of fate.
Perhaps now he knew how Uberto must have felt deeply
(11:25):
betrayed by his own family and angry enough to retaliate
where Uberto had gone off and joined his family's political
enemies in warfare. However, Ramberto decided to make his revenge
a little more personal. In July thirteen twenty six, not
(11:48):
long after Pandolpho's death, Ramberto planned another banquet, this time
at his home right in Rimany. He invited practically the
whole family, or at least any member of the family
who could either inherit anything or exact vengeance. That is,
all of the men. Historians agree that his plan was
(12:13):
most likely to execute a mass family murder, a brutal,
bloody and theatrical end to any branch of the Malatesta
line but his own. But his plan quickly hit a snag.
Farantino showed up, but along with his family members, but
(12:33):
Malatesta the Second was away fighting ghibelines along the eastern
shores of the Marque. Although a few of his family
members still attended, Ramberto knew he could not execute his
plan while someone was still alive to avenge the murders,
especially not someone as powerful as Malatesta the Second, not
(12:56):
to mention as ruthless. He had to think on his feet.
He couldn't kill them, but maybe there was another way
this could all work out. He decided to try to
leverage his captives to get Mali Testa to help him
get what he felt he deserved. Ramberto began by releasing
(13:19):
the members of Maltesta's family. Maybe he thought he could
get Malatesta to align with him willingly against Farentino to
take reminy, and of course he could just deal with
Malatesta himself later. It's possible Mali Testa considered his cousin's proposal.
It would certainly not have been the first time he
(13:41):
double crossed a relative, but will never know for sure, because,
as it would turn out, Ramberto's half baked plan was
foiled not by Malatesta or by Farentino, but by one
of the female relatives. He seems to have completely forgotten about,
(14:02):
Polentissana de Polenta, the wife of Farentino's son Mela Testino Novella.
Apologies really for all of these names, but just know
that this woman took to the straits of Remeny. She
rallied the people against her cousin in law. He was
holding her family, his own family hostage. He planned to
(14:26):
take remedy for himself with not a thought for its people.
It seems the support of the people, plus pressure from
Polentisana's powerful family of origin, who were, as it happens,
relatives of the long since murdered Francesca de Polenta convinced
(14:47):
Mala Testa to bring an army into Rmany. Cornered, Ramberto
freed his family members, slash hostages and fled to one
of his estates in the country. But he wouldn't stay
away from remedy for long. Ramberto was reconciled with his
(15:10):
family about a year after his attempted family mass murderer
coup in thirteen twenty seven, with the help of Cardinal
Bertrand de Pouget, a papal diplomat. We don't know exactly
how this truth came to be, but we can nonetheless
appreciate the diplomat's clear skill. If a TV show had
(15:33):
a priest character bringing a man who had only a
year before attempted a mass murder of his whole family
back into the fold, I think we would call it
unrealistic writing. And yet here we are. And the craziest
part is this happened twice. A year or so after
(15:54):
this papal Diplomat's masterful reconciliation, Ramberto made an another attempt
on remeny. This time he went more by the late
Uberto's playbook and allied with a political enemy of the
Malatestas he was aided by his brother, the archpriest Guido Maltesta,
(16:16):
about whom we know very little, but who clearly also
wished to topple his family's dynasty in Remeny. As you
can probably guess, the attempted takeover of Remedy did not
go well. Ramberto, Guido, and their supporters were soundly defeated
and run out of the city. But before long the
(16:37):
wayward Mala Testa brothers were once again inexplicably accepted back
into the folds of their family, their trespasses apparently forgiven.
Perhaps Romberto thought it was odd that he was given
so many chances by his family. He had seen several
(16:58):
of his relatives slaughtered for offenses much less grievous than
his own. Maybe he thought that his failures to execute
his various treacherous plans made them somehow less treacherous or
less likely to be punished. When Malatistino Novello, the son
of Ramberto's cousin Farentino, both of whom let's remember he
(17:20):
had imprisoned in his home just a few years prior,
invited Ramberto to his hunting lodge at Pujano in thirteen
thirty for a few days of hunting and hawking. Perhaps
Romberto thought he might finally really have a chance to
truly and fully be restored to his family's good graces.
(17:43):
As sources would later tell it, Ramberto arrived at the
lodge in the early evening. Malatustino wasn't there. It was January,
and so Ramberto sat by the fire, staving off the chill,
waiting for his host to arrive. When Mali Testino finally
(18:04):
strolled in, as dusk settled over the palazzo, Ramberto fell
to his knees before him, he begged Mala Testino's forgiveness
for the kidnapping, for the treachery, for all of it.
Did he mean it? Was he truly sorry? To Mala Testino,
it didn't matter. As he placed one hand on his
(18:26):
cousin's shoulder, he used his other hand to reach for
his dagger. At this point, Ramberto must have realized this
invitation had been a trap. The banquet murderer had lost
at his own game. While the rest of the family
had sincerely or otherwise made amends with Ramberto, Malatestino had
(18:50):
long since decided that he had had enough of the
endless plots, machinations, and betrayals. He had lured Ramberto here
with promises of a good hunt, a good meal, and
perhaps forgiveness. But this had been the plan all along.
Without a word, Malatistino plunged his dagger into Ramberto's neck,
(19:13):
killing him almost instantly. It was a fitting end for
a man who represented a gruesome and dramatic era of
his family's history. He lived his life tangled in the
personal and the political. Is violence, guided by a craving
for power and a thirst for vengeance that he shared
(19:37):
with nearly every member of his family, much as they
might have denied it. He had a flare for the theatrical,
perhaps inherited from his father, whose murder of his own
wife and brother became one of the best known stories
of star cross lovers in history and had set the
tone for half a century of parricide. That's the end
(20:06):
of the story of the many murders and betrayals plaguing
the Malatesta family. But keep listening after a brief sponsor
break to hear about a few more. For good measure.
(20:28):
I would love to end this episode by saying that
Ramberto's murder closed the chapter of bloody violence in this
family's history, but it very much did not. It would
only be a few years before the Malatestas turned on
each other again. Mali Testa, the second an uncle of Ramberto's,
(20:49):
was known for much of his life by a nickname
guas the Familia, as with John Chotto before him, whose
nickname was Scunchot, though, which was a reference to his
supposed ugly appearance. Guilsta Familia's nickname was a nod to
his most notable attribute, it means family ruiner. As it
(21:11):
would turn out, Ramberto was not the only member of
the family with designs on remeny, perhaps harboring some resentment
that his cousin Farantino had inherited the powerful dominion upon
his father's death in thirteen thirty, he this family ruiner
concocted a series of intrigues to have the Papal legate
(21:34):
ban Farentino from Rimini and allow him to take control
of the city. That worked well enough until April thirteen
thirty three, when Maltesta and his brother Gallioto, who seems
to have managed to stay out of the previous decades
of family drama, were both captured in battle. When they
(21:55):
were freed some time later, they had to reconquer Rumeny,
and they fought alongside the papal troops to expand the
family's dominion to Fossombrone and Fano. In the meantime, they
temporarily reinstated Farentino as Lord of Remedy. Farentino ruled Remedy
(22:15):
again from thirteen thirty four until thirteen thirty five, when
Malitesta made his move. He captured Farentino, his son Maltstino Novello,
the one who, if you remember, had murdered Ramberto knife
in the neck, and his grandson Guido. It's likely that
Malitesta murdered Mala Testino and Guido during their imprisonment. Farentino
(22:41):
was eventually freed Bynulfo de Montrefelto the latest in a
long line of Montefeltro enemies of the Malatesta family, and
that sparked a war that ended in papal intervention. In
thirteen forty two, Maltesta and Gallioto signed a piece with
the Pope confirming Gallioto as Lord of Fano. Mala Testa
(23:04):
lord of Remeny, and his sons were given dominion in Pesaro.
Farentino was left out in the cold. His last dominion
Montiano would be taken not long after by Malatesta and
Gallioto when they themselves betrayed the pope and allied with
the Ghibelins. It's all very complicated, but what you need
(23:27):
to know is Farentino died in thirteen fifty three, having
lost pretty much all of his power, but also having
seemingly managed to avoid being murdered by his cousin. Mala
Testa and Gallioto continued their bloody crusades, even having to
pay a ransom in thirteen fifty to retain remedy after
(23:50):
one of their enemies attacked it in vengeance. In something
of a twist, in thirteen sixty three, mala Testa retired,
leaving remedy to be shared between his sons and his
brother Gallioto. Gallioto, it turns out, would go on to
outlive his nephews the normal way, not the classic Maltesta
(24:13):
murder way, and he would inherit the entirety of the
Malatesta dominions, with the line of succession now much simpler,
contained in one set of sons rather than spread between
brothers and nephews and cousins. It seems that the infighting
between malatestas finally ceased, and so instead they began to
(24:39):
turn their gaze outward to patronage of literature and the arts,
a series of advantageous political marriages, legitimizing children they had
out of wedlock, fighting in all manner of wars, and
hosting banquets where nobody got murdered. Noble Blood is a
(25:07):
production of iHeart Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey.
Noble Blood is hosted by me Dana Schwartz, with additional
writing and research by Hannah Johnston, Hannahswick, Courtney Sender, Amy
Hit and Julia Milaney. The show is edited and produced
by Jesse Funk, with supervising producerrima Ill Kali and executive
(25:30):
producers Aaron Manke, Trevor Young, and Matt Frederick. For more
podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or
wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
Romberto Malatesta loved a good banquet. He had long thought
nothing could top the magnificent banquet he had thrown with
his cousin Farentino and his uncle Pandolfo back in thirteen
twenty four. On that occasion, they had invited Ramberto's other cousin, Uberto,
(00:28):
who had not only become an obstacle for them politically,
but had also represented the deep cutting betrayal perpetrated by
Uberto's father Paulo against Ramberto's own father back around twelve
eighty five. They all had a lovely meal together, and
(00:49):
then they killed Uberto. Ramberto was very proud of that
little bit of well executed political intrigue, and he had
thought it cemented a good relationship with his other cousin
Farentino and uncle Pandolpho. So it's no surprise really that
(01:11):
two or so years later, when Pandolpho died and cut
Romberto out of the line of succession of Reminy, the
oh so successful banquet they had all thrown together was
on Ramberto's mind. What better revenge, he must have thought,
than to stage a repeat performance. So Ramberto planned another
(01:36):
banquet and invited his entire family to join in the revelry.
This time there would be no one left to sully
his good name or challenge his power. Ramberto was going
to kill them all. I'm Dana Schwartz and this is
(01:57):
noble blood. Uberto Maltesta grew up in the shadow of
his father's death. When Uberto was a teenager, his father, Paulo,
was killed alongside his lover Francesca de Polenta. The murder
(02:18):
was perpetrated by Paolo's own brother, Jianchoto, who also happened
to be Francesco's husband. Gianchoto had caught them in flagrante
after what was apparently a year's long passionate affair. After
the murder of Uberto's father, Uberto was brought along with
(02:39):
his mother and younger sister, into the household of his
father's murderer, where Uberto lived under Gianchoto's tutelage. This was
evidently and understandably an unbearable arrangement. By twelve ninety seven,
Uberto fled Remini, and he took refuge with a family
(03:01):
of Gibelines, enemies of his gwelp sympathizing family. Just as
a reminder, the Ghibelines and Guelphs were rival groups here,
with the Guelphs supporting the Pope and the Ghibelines supporting
the Holy Roman Emperor. In Uberto's new surroundings, he developed
a Ghibeline leaning that mixed well with his desire for
(03:24):
revenge against his family. He participated in numerous military campaigns
with the Ghibelines, including one in thirteen hundred in which
he defeated his own uncle Malatstino, conquering the city of Chesna.
A few years later, Uberto became the Pudesta and captain
(03:45):
of Chesna, although he was apparently run out of the
city not long after for showing some tyrannical tendencies. Some
sources say that in thirteen oh four Uberto got the
ultimate revo by killing his uncle John Choto. Supposedly, he
was able to hide the murder by killing his uncle
(04:07):
in battle under the guise of their Gwelph Gibbeline animosities.
In a bloody moment in Italian history. It would have
been the perfect murder, really hidden in plain sight. Unfortunately, though,
we're pretty sure of Jannchoto's date of death, and we
have no sources verifying how he died or the role
(04:30):
Uberto may or may not have played in it, but
the fact that the story has endured speaks to the
dangerous ways political and familial tensions could and did intersect
during this period. In any case, for the next couple
of decades, Uberto seems to have committed himself to conquering
(04:53):
more and more land on behalf of the Gibeline faction
and of course himself. In thirteen twenty one, he allied
with the Montrafelto family in an attack on Remani. By then,
Uberto's uncle Pandolfo had become the city's Podesta, and he
had appointed Uberto's cousin Ferantino to lead in the defense
(05:16):
against the invasion. They defeated Umberto and his Gibelin forces handily.
This was the last straw for Uberto. Dealing with his
family had felt like one betrayal after another, and so
a plan began to form in his head, the ultimate retribution.
(05:41):
For a few years he continued to operate as usual,
but all the while he was dreaming of taking over Remany. Finally,
in thirteen twenty four, he decided to put his plan
into action. He reached out to his cousin Ramberto Romberto
(06:01):
was the son of Jianchoto by his second wife, Sambrasina
de Zambrasi. We don't know his exact birth year, but
it's possible that he was born while Uberto was still
under his uncle's care. They might have been living in
the same house. By now, Ramberto would have been at
least nineteen years old. Ramberto had evidently inherited the power
(06:27):
hungry tendencies of his male family members, and Uberto bet
that he could get him to turn on the family. Together,
the two cousins made a plan to depose their uncle
Pandolfo and take remedy for themselves. But as we know
if you remember the names in the introduction, Ramberto had
(06:49):
other plans. He informed Pandolpho and Farentino of Uberto's treacherous proposal,
and together they planned to exact their revenge for Uberto's
various betrayals of the family and, by proxy, his fathers.
They invited Uberto to a banquet. Uberto came, thinking that
(07:12):
he was the one in cahoot with Ramberto. It was
a double cross. He was wrong. The assassination of Uberto
Malatesta complete the three murderers. Ramberto Farantino, and Pandulfo quickly
(07:34):
set about covering up their crime. Although they were between
the three of them powerful enough to get away with murder,
it was still important to be smart about it, especially
given that the person that they had just murdered was
not only their kinsmen, but also an ally of their
most powerful enemy, the Montefeltro family. The three of them
(07:59):
cleaned up the banquet and placed Uberto's body in a
sack before burying him in a nearby town. Ramberto, Farantino,
and Pandulfo don't seem to have ever faced any consequences
for the cold blooded murder they committed. It's likely the
murder scandalous, as it was simply faded into the background
(08:22):
of ever present violence, much of it straddling the boundaries
between personal and political. Was it murder or was it warfare?
And who was going to prosecute the murder? The magistrates
in charge were the very people who were murdering their
relatives to gain political power. In any case, With their
(08:45):
crime unpunished, the murderers went about their business, fighting the
Ghibelins and attempting to expand their power in various bloody ways.
Ramberto was sure that he had cemented his good standing
in the family by foiling his wayward cousin's treasonous plot.
How could he not have He had had a chance
(09:07):
to betray them when Umberto proposed his plan, and he
didn't take it. He double crossed Uberto. Surely he would
be rewarded for his loyalty with the rest of the family.
Two years after Uberto's death, in thirteen twenty six, Pandulfo
Maltesta died. He was the last remaining son of Malitesta
(09:31):
de Verrocchio, after Paolo and John Choto, the adulteress and
murderous brothers. The only other son, Maltestino, had died about
ten years earlier, and so Pandolfo had inherited the better
part of the Malitesta dominions. Before he died, he dictated
(09:52):
his wishes for the successions of his vast holdings and
most importantly, the lordships of Pesaro and Remy. He left
the lordship of Pesaro to his own son, Maltesta. The
second riminy he left to his nephew and co conspirator
in the murder of Uberto Farantino, to Ramberto. He left nothing.
(10:19):
We don't know why. Ramberto was excluded in this way,
he does seem to have been something of a rogue
element of the family. We have no clear evidence that
he ever married, and while he clearly held several properties
and engaged in all sorts of military campaigns and intrigue,
he doesn't seem to have ever held any real power.
(10:43):
His father had been the Lord of Pesaro. Perhaps he
might have inherited it himself had he been older at
the time of his father's death, but he was just
a child, and unlike the monarchies in northern Europe, where
a child could inherit a throne with which the regency,
during this period in the Italian city states, it was
(11:04):
more common for another family member to well just take
the power for themselves outright, and so when Pandolpho died,
Ramberto was left with nothing in a cruel twist of fate.
Perhaps now he knew how Uberto must have felt deeply
(11:25):
betrayed by his own family and angry enough to retaliate
where Uberto had gone off and joined his family's political
enemies in warfare. However, Ramberto decided to make his revenge
a little more personal. In July thirteen twenty six, not
(11:48):
long after Pandolpho's death, Ramberto planned another banquet, this time
at his home right in Rimany. He invited practically the
whole family, or at least any member of the family
who could either inherit anything or exact vengeance. That is,
all of the men. Historians agree that his plan was
(12:13):
most likely to execute a mass family murder, a brutal,
bloody and theatrical end to any branch of the Malatesta
line but his own. But his plan quickly hit a snag.
Farantino showed up, but along with his family members, but
(12:33):
Malatesta the Second was away fighting ghibelines along the eastern
shores of the Marque. Although a few of his family
members still attended, Ramberto knew he could not execute his
plan while someone was still alive to avenge the murders,
especially not someone as powerful as Malatesta the Second, not
(12:56):
to mention as ruthless. He had to think on his feet.
He couldn't kill them, but maybe there was another way
this could all work out. He decided to try to
leverage his captives to get Mali Testa to help him
get what he felt he deserved. Ramberto began by releasing
(13:19):
the members of Maltesta's family. Maybe he thought he could
get Malatesta to align with him willingly against Farentino to
take reminy, and of course he could just deal with
Malatesta himself later. It's possible Mali Testa considered his cousin's proposal.
It would certainly not have been the first time he
(13:41):
double crossed a relative, but will never know for sure, because,
as it would turn out, Ramberto's half baked plan was
foiled not by Malatesta or by Farentino, but by one
of the female relatives. He seems to have completely forgotten about,
(14:02):
Polentissana de Polenta, the wife of Farentino's son Mela Testino Novella.
Apologies really for all of these names, but just know
that this woman took to the straits of Remeny. She
rallied the people against her cousin in law. He was
holding her family, his own family hostage. He planned to
(14:26):
take remedy for himself with not a thought for its people.
It seems the support of the people, plus pressure from
Polentisana's powerful family of origin, who were, as it happens,
relatives of the long since murdered Francesca de Polenta convinced
(14:47):
Mala Testa to bring an army into Rmany. Cornered, Ramberto
freed his family members, slash hostages and fled to one
of his estates in the country. But he wouldn't stay
away from remedy for long. Ramberto was reconciled with his
(15:10):
family about a year after his attempted family mass murderer
coup in thirteen twenty seven, with the help of Cardinal
Bertrand de Pouget, a papal diplomat. We don't know exactly
how this truth came to be, but we can nonetheless
appreciate the diplomat's clear skill. If a TV show had
(15:33):
a priest character bringing a man who had only a
year before attempted a mass murder of his whole family
back into the fold, I think we would call it
unrealistic writing. And yet here we are. And the craziest
part is this happened twice. A year or so after
(15:54):
this papal Diplomat's masterful reconciliation, Ramberto made an another attempt
on remeny. This time he went more by the late
Uberto's playbook and allied with a political enemy of the
Malatestas he was aided by his brother, the archpriest Guido Maltesta,
(16:16):
about whom we know very little, but who clearly also
wished to topple his family's dynasty in Remeny. As you
can probably guess, the attempted takeover of Remedy did not
go well. Ramberto, Guido, and their supporters were soundly defeated
and run out of the city. But before long the
(16:37):
wayward Mala Testa brothers were once again inexplicably accepted back
into the folds of their family, their trespasses apparently forgiven.
Perhaps Romberto thought it was odd that he was given
so many chances by his family. He had seen several
(16:58):
of his relatives slaughtered for offenses much less grievous than
his own. Maybe he thought that his failures to execute
his various treacherous plans made them somehow less treacherous or
less likely to be punished. When Malatistino Novello, the son
of Ramberto's cousin Farentino, both of whom let's remember he
(17:20):
had imprisoned in his home just a few years prior,
invited Ramberto to his hunting lodge at Pujano in thirteen
thirty for a few days of hunting and hawking. Perhaps
Romberto thought he might finally really have a chance to
truly and fully be restored to his family's good graces.
(17:43):
As sources would later tell it, Ramberto arrived at the
lodge in the early evening. Malatustino wasn't there. It was January,
and so Ramberto sat by the fire, staving off the chill,
waiting for his host to arrive. When Mali Testino finally
(18:04):
strolled in, as dusk settled over the palazzo, Ramberto fell
to his knees before him, he begged Mala Testino's forgiveness
for the kidnapping, for the treachery, for all of it.
Did he mean it? Was he truly sorry? To Mala Testino,
it didn't matter. As he placed one hand on his
(18:26):
cousin's shoulder, he used his other hand to reach for
his dagger. At this point, Ramberto must have realized this
invitation had been a trap. The banquet murderer had lost
at his own game. While the rest of the family
had sincerely or otherwise made amends with Ramberto, Malatestino had
(18:50):
long since decided that he had had enough of the
endless plots, machinations, and betrayals. He had lured Ramberto here
with promises of a good hunt, a good meal, and
perhaps forgiveness. But this had been the plan all along.
Without a word, Malatistino plunged his dagger into Ramberto's neck,
(19:13):
killing him almost instantly. It was a fitting end for
a man who represented a gruesome and dramatic era of
his family's history. He lived his life tangled in the
personal and the political. Is violence, guided by a craving
for power and a thirst for vengeance that he shared
(19:37):
with nearly every member of his family, much as they
might have denied it. He had a flare for the theatrical,
perhaps inherited from his father, whose murder of his own
wife and brother became one of the best known stories
of star cross lovers in history and had set the
tone for half a century of parricide. That's the end
(20:06):
of the story of the many murders and betrayals plaguing
the Malatesta family. But keep listening after a brief sponsor
break to hear about a few more. For good measure.
(20:28):
I would love to end this episode by saying that
Ramberto's murder closed the chapter of bloody violence in this
family's history, but it very much did not. It would
only be a few years before the Malatestas turned on
each other again. Mali Testa, the second an uncle of Ramberto's,
(20:49):
was known for much of his life by a nickname
guas the Familia, as with John Chotto before him, whose
nickname was Scunchot, though, which was a reference to his
supposed ugly appearance. Guilsta Familia's nickname was a nod to
his most notable attribute, it means family ruiner. As it
(21:11):
would turn out, Ramberto was not the only member of
the family with designs on remeny, perhaps harboring some resentment
that his cousin Farantino had inherited the powerful dominion upon
his father's death in thirteen thirty, he this family ruiner
concocted a series of intrigues to have the Papal legate
(21:34):
ban Farentino from Rimini and allow him to take control
of the city. That worked well enough until April thirteen
thirty three, when Maltesta and his brother Gallioto, who seems
to have managed to stay out of the previous decades
of family drama, were both captured in battle. When they
(21:55):
were freed some time later, they had to reconquer Rumeny,
and they fought alongside the papal troops to expand the
family's dominion to Fossombrone and Fano. In the meantime, they
temporarily reinstated Farentino as Lord of Remedy. Farentino ruled Remedy
(22:15):
again from thirteen thirty four until thirteen thirty five, when
Malitesta made his move. He captured Farentino, his son Maltstino Novello,
the one who, if you remember, had murdered Ramberto knife
in the neck, and his grandson Guido. It's likely that
Malitesta murdered Mala Testino and Guido during their imprisonment. Farentino
(22:41):
was eventually freed Bynulfo de Montrefelto the latest in a
long line of Montefeltro enemies of the Malatesta family, and
that sparked a war that ended in papal intervention. In
thirteen forty two, Maltesta and Gallioto signed a piece with
the Pope confirming Gallioto as Lord of Fano. Mala Testa
(23:04):
lord of Remeny, and his sons were given dominion in Pesaro.
Farentino was left out in the cold. His last dominion
Montiano would be taken not long after by Malatesta and
Gallioto when they themselves betrayed the pope and allied with
the Ghibelins. It's all very complicated, but what you need
(23:27):
to know is Farentino died in thirteen fifty three, having
lost pretty much all of his power, but also having
seemingly managed to avoid being murdered by his cousin. Mala
Testa and Gallioto continued their bloody crusades, even having to
pay a ransom in thirteen fifty to retain remedy after
(23:50):
one of their enemies attacked it in vengeance. In something
of a twist, in thirteen sixty three, mala Testa retired,
leaving remedy to be shared between his sons and his
brother Gallioto. Gallioto, it turns out, would go on to
outlive his nephews the normal way, not the classic Maltesta
(24:13):
murder way, and he would inherit the entirety of the
Malatesta dominions, with the line of succession now much simpler,
contained in one set of sons rather than spread between
brothers and nephews and cousins. It seems that the infighting
between malatestas finally ceased, and so instead they began to
(24:39):
turn their gaze outward to patronage of literature and the arts,
a series of advantageous political marriages, legitimizing children they had
out of wedlock, fighting in all manner of wars, and
hosting banquets where nobody got murdered. Noble Blood is a
(25:07):
production of iHeart Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey.
Noble Blood is hosted by me Dana Schwartz, with additional
writing and research by Hannah Johnston, Hannahswick, Courtney Sender, Amy
Hit and Julia Milaney. The show is edited and produced
by Jesse Funk, with supervising producerrima Ill Kali and executive
(25:30):
producers Aaron Manke, Trevor Young, and Matt Frederick. For more
podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or
wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
Host
Dana Schwartz
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