Gottardo Frisiani

Gottardo Frisiani was one of the best donors of material to the museum when, in the late 40s, he decided to sell the precious relics of the rooms of St. Charles to the sanctuary's rector Giovanni Milani.

 

Recent studies of local writer Gepi Baroni made ​​a colorful and witty portrait of him, we can read below:

"His name was Gottardo as his illustrious ancestor that lived between 1555, the year of the First Miracle in Corbetta, and 1608, who was the proponent of the large estates of the noble family of Frisiani in Corbetta. The "our" count Gottardo Frisiani Parisetti (surname probably added by the maternal inheritance) lived instead in the twentieth century and was the last son of his house remained to occupy the great house of Corbetta.

He had famous ancestors because, in addition to the significant social role of Frisiani family, there were significant presence among his ancestors: Paolo Frisiani was a well known astronomer of the academy of Brera and hir own father, don Carlo, was a man of culture and an enlightened medical. Gottard, as often happens to those belonging to noble families, was a very original kind of man.

He received a noble education, with tutors and studies suited to his rank, he grew up in a family of great piety, nestled among the figures of his protective mother and sister Lina and the strong personality of the father, took his medical studies and responsibilities. He, Gottardo, burly, red-haired, a little 'clunky, certainly intelligent and educated enough to know the three parts of Dante by heart, but a little' lost behind his thoughts, was country gentleman chasing dreams of his medieval ancestors sometimes wearing their armor, but that, moreover, a man already, he was still playing hide and seek with the children of his tenants.

He wouldn't and couldn't grow. When he reached the age, between bewilderment and perplexity of his father (that in condition of medician could not ignore some of his physical limitations), married a doughter of Odescalchi family who lived in Rome most of their married life, living in the hig society party and, at the death of her father in law, began to squander the assets. Also from Rome our count on three occasions received the news of his paternity, from a distance, by phone ... but was equally happy!

He spent his days in the play of the seasons in his huge, beautiful, old garden, breeding pheasants to be released in its lands with the help of the faithful factor Bernardo accompanied by his beloved hunting dogs Zac, Isonzo and Bruk, or playing games in the pool room of the palace.

He was afflicted by a nervous tic: when he was tense or too concentrated, with a flick spread collar shirt and spitting in the air, chin down with short, dry taps.

Therefore, as has always been used in Corbetta, smacked him and became a nickname for the common people "cunt spùetta" ("spitting count"). Unfortunately, passing years, he was helped by unscrupulous people like antiques improvised, fake aides and advisers who used him for their illegal commerce and brought the economic collapse of his family, came to lead to the dismemberment of his considerable landed property, and he also sold in 1949 the palace in Corbetta that was bought by Mereghetti's family, needing space for their distillery.

As he ended his life we can't know but it certainly had an epilogue on the fate of life common to many other members of the landed gentry who, after experiencing ease and splendor, were unable to keep the rythm with times and ended up being victims of their same condition.

 

Of one thing we must be grateful to the noble Gottardo Frisiani, a gesture that deserves the gratitude of all citizens: the donation of the valuable furniture of the "Rooms of St. Charles" in accordance with the then rector of the Sanctuary, don Giovanni Milani . [...] These precious furnishings that were shown publicly for the first time during the celebrations of the fourth centenary of the birth of the saint, this year, the year Caroline, will be repeated in the Sanctuary during the Festa del Perdono in a new, more suitable as museum."

 

Gepi Baroni