Pohvalni govor Pavla Paladinića za Fridrika Aragonskog (1496)

In 1496, Pavao Paladinić (Paolo Paladini, Paulus Paladinus, c. 1465 – c. 1513), a humanist from Hvar, composed his longest preserved text, The Oration of Pavao Paladinić of Hvar delivered in Taranto, in praise of the divine Frederick, Prince of Altamura, Illustrious Admiral of the Kingdom of Sicily and Governor-General. The text survives in a codex held today in Valencia (Universitat de València, Biblioteca Històrica, MS 132). The manuscript was a gift for Frederick of Aragon (1451–1501), the second son of the king of Naples, Ferdinand I (Ferrante). Frederick himself became king of Naples in October 1496. The paper introduces both Paladinić and Frederick, outlines the rhetorical features of Paladinić’s panegyric, and evaluates two modern editions of the Latin text (VALERIO 2001, GRACIOTTI 2005). The panegyric is provided in Latin and Croatian translation. Frederick of Aragon was the last king of Naples from the House of Aragon, ruling briefly in 1496–1501, after French King Charles VIII seized Naples in February 1495 and claimed the kingdom’s crown. Frederick spent much time abroad and refused to take part in the revolt of the barons, remaining loyal to his father, brother, and nephew. As king, he was forced to abdicate when confronted with the treaty of Granada in 1500. He had a keen interest in the arts and literature; in 1476 Lorenzo de’ Medici presented him with the gift of the Libro di Ragona, a collection of 500 poems by Dante, Cavalcanti, Cino da Pistoia, Pulci, and Boiardo. In the preface Frederick is compared to Peisistratos of Athens, who organised the transcription of Homer’s poems. Frederick’s court at Naples included a number of Petrarchist poets. The Paladinić family came to the Adriatic island of Hvar at around 1430 from Lecce, which in 1463 became directly subject to the Aragonese Kingdom of Naples. In Hvar the Paladinići became one of the richest families. Nikola Paladinić (born ca. 1419), Pavao’s father, served as the sopracomito of the Hvar galley in the Venetian navy several times between 1471 and 1497. In 1475 he was awarded the Order of Saint Mark. He had three sons: Pavao, Toma (killed in 1514 during the Hvar Rebellion) and Frano. Pavao accompanied his father in military expeditions, taking part in the capture of Monopoli in 1495 and in the battle at the Bocca d’Arno in 1497. In 1510, he composed a report (in Italian) on the crucifix from Hvar that perspired blood. Pavao Paladinić was in contact with the Dalmatian and Italian humanis