The bishops of the Lanfranchi family and the Royal Patronage dioceses in the Kingdom of Naples after the revolt of Masaniello (1648-1675)

The text focuses on the promotion of candidates to the dioceses of the Royal Patronage of the Kingdom of Naples after the revolt of Masaniello (1647-1648). The loyalty and the mediation exercised in the final phase of the conflict by the members of some families closed to the "Popolo" influenced the dynamics of attribution of the Royal Patronage dioceses in the following twenty years. In the context of the Theatine order, the three bishops of the Lanfranchi family represent a very suggestive case. The mediation of Girolamo Lanfranchi, bishop of Cava, during the revolt and the presence of the brothers Andrea and Vincenzo Lanfranchi at the royal court in the same months, gave rise to a "team game" of the brothers. It favored the construction of the reputations of the family which is represented in the construction and decoration of the old Matera seminary, nowadays known as Palazzo Lanfranchi.