Saint Adela Capet of France is my 29th Great Grandmother.   It’s a long road there through French, Flemish, Spanish and finally Italian ancestors.  Her father was Robert II Capet King of France. Saint Adela (3), January 8 (Adelais, Adelaide). + 1071. Princess of France. Countess of Flanders. Abbess of Mecsene. The countess-queen. Daughter of Robert the Pious, king of France, 996-1031. Sister of Henry I, 1031-1000. Wife of Baldwin V. (of Lille), count of Flanders, 1084-1067. Mother of Baldwin VI. Mother-in-law of William the Conqueror. This appears to be the same princess who was married in her infancy to Richard, duke of Normandy. Whether Baldwin of Lille was her first or second husband, she was married to him in her childhood, and was taken by his father, Baldwin IV, to Flanders, to be brought up in his own family. The town of Corbio was her dowry. Baldwin rebelled against his father, stirred up, says Sismondi, by the pride of his wife, who, being a king’s daughter, thought she ought to have the first place in the house of a count. Finding the fortune of war against him, and no help coming from the king of France, he craved mercy and pardon. A reconciliation was made, on Baldwin swearing, in presence of the Flemish bishops and barons and of the bodies of Saints Pharaildis, Walburga, and other famous patron saints of Flanders, to submit to the count’s authority and keep the peace. In the same year, 1031, Robert, king of France, Adela’s father, died, and was succeeded by his son Henry I. In 1036 died count Baldwin IV after a long and prosperous reign. He left his country at peace, both with the Emperor and the king of France a circumstance which had seldom, if ever, occurred before. Adela’s husband succeeded as Baldwin V. He was constantly at war, either refusing to do homage to the Emperor or to the king of France for his possessions, or punishing others for refusing to acknowledge his suzerainty. Nevertheless, he was considered the best prince of his time, and was loved by his subjects and respected by his neighbours. On the death of his brother-in-law Henry I of France (1060), he was chosen regent of France and guardian of the young king Philip I, the Fair, Adela’s nephew, then only eight years old. His letter of foundation to the church of Saint Peter at Lille says – “I Baldwin, marquis of the Flemings, Count, regent of France, guardian of King Philip . . . considering that by building a house of God on earth, I prepare for myself a dwelling in heaven, . . . and acquiescing in the good advice of my wife Adela, and my son Baldwin . . . have founded a college of canons to implore day and night the clemency of God for . . . my soul, the souls of my predecessors, my wife and children, and all faithful souls. . . . “Done at Lille, in the Basilica of Saint Peter, in the presence of Philip king of France, in the seventh year of his reign.” King Philip also signed the deed. Baldwin and Adela built the Benedictine monastery of Meescne. Several grants by them, to Mecseno and other churches, are to be found in Le Mire’s Notitia Ecclesiarum Belgii. They rebuilt the monastery of Einham, or Iham, on the Scald, and gave it to the Benedictines in 1063. Baldwin made the Fosse neuf, a great canal between Flanders and Artois. In 1069 he gave his whole attention to his approaching death and the completion of his pious works. His last public act was the dedication of his new church of Saint Bavo, on the site of the former one, at Ghent. He died 1 September 1069 and was buried in the church of Saint Peter at Lille, where his tomb and epitaph were to be seen in the 18th century. After his death, Adelaide chose the monastery of Meesene as her residence, that she might spend the remainder of her life in silent prayer. She wished to receive the religious veil from the hands of the Pope, and for that purpose went to Rome. She travelled in a car, covered with a curtain, to protect her from wind and rain, that her prayers might not be interrupted on the journey. She obtained from the Pope some of the relics of Saint Sidronius, as well as the veil and the papal blessing. She then returned to Meesene, and remained there until her death in 1071. Her children were Baldwin VI of Mons (the Good), Robert the Frisian, Henry, Matilda (married William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, and king of England), Judith (married, 1st, Tosti, brother of Harold, king of England; 2nd, Guelph, duke of Bavaria, founder of the younger line of the house of Guelph, from whom the present royal family of England are descended). Baldwin VI was a good prince; in his time, doors were left open, and people could go about without sticks or daggers. His secretary, Thomellus, a monk, has left an account of the youth of his master, valuable as illustrating the manners of the time. A story of the wooing of Matilda by William of Normandy has often been rejected by modern writers as incredible; but Lo Glay thinks it not at all inconsistent with what is known of the times and the people, and says it is related in some very old chronicles. The account is as follows – William, duke of Normandy, sent a message to Baldwin, count of Flanders, to ask the hand of his daughter Matilda. Baldwin was pleased with the offer, but when ho told Matilda of it, she answered that she would never marry a bastard. Baldwin made the most polite excuses he could for his refusal. A considerable time passed before William heard what the young lady had said. He was extremely sensitive on the subject of his birth, and bitterly resented any slight or insult grounded on that misfortune. When Matilda’s answer was told to him, he went to Lille; rushed, unannounced, into Adela’s apartment, where her daughters were sitting with her; seized Matilda by her long plaits, dragged her through the room, threw her down, and kicked her; then, disappearing as suddenly as he had entered, mounted his horse and rode away to his own dominions. Very soon alter this strange incident, the young people were reconciled and betrothed. As Pope Leo IX raised objections to the marriage, on tho ground of consanguinity, there was some delay; they were married, nevertheless, at Eu, in 1050, and afterwards obtained a dispensation, on condition that each should build a church. William built the abbey of Saint Etienne, at Caen, and Matilda that of the Holy Trinity, in tho same town. Matilda had a great deal of influence over her husband, which she always used for good. MLA Citation Agnes B C Dunbar. “Saint Adela”. A Dictionary of Saintly Women, 1904. CatholicSaints.Info. 25 September2012. Web. 17 April 2019. <http://catholicsaints.info/dictionary-of-saintly-women-saint-adela-3/> Relationship Saint Adela Capet’s relation to you: Direct ancestor (31 generations) Here’s how: 1. Nicholas Victor Sorrentino is your father 2. Maria Luigia Piromallo is the mother of Nicholas Victor Sorrentino 3. Maria Emilia Caracciolo is the mother of Maria Luigia Piromallo 4. Filippo Caracciolo is the father of Maria Emilia Caracciolo 5. Prince Luigi Caracciolo is the father of Filippo Caracciolo 6. Prince Ambrogio II Caracciolo is the father of Prince Luigi Caracciolo 7. Prince Luigi Caracciolo is the father of Prince Ambrogio II Caracciolo 8. Ambrogio Caracciolo is the father of Prince Luigi Caracciolo 9. Prince Marino III Caracciolo is the father of Ambrogio Caracciolo 10. Prince Francesco Marino Caracciolo is the father of Prince Marino III Caracciolo 11. Francesca D’AVOLOS is the mother of Prince Francesco Marino Caracciolo 12. Innico III D’Avalos is the father of Francesca D’AVOLOS 13. Lucrezia Del Tufo is the mother of Innico III D’Avalos 14. Margaret Palaiologos is the mother of Lucrezia Del Tufo 15. Anne Alencon is the mother of Margaret Palaiologos 16. Renè Valois is the father of Anne Alencon 17. Jean II Alencon is the father of Renè Valois 18. Jean 1 le Sage Alencon is the father of Jean II Alencon 19. Pierre II Alencon is the father of Jean 1 le Sage Alencon 20. Charles II Alencon is the father of Pierre II Alencon 21. Charles IV Alencon is the father of Charles II Alencon 22. Isabella Aragon is the mother of Charles IV Alencon 23. Yolande Hungary is the mother of Isabella Aragon 24. Yolande Courtenay is the mother of Yolande Hungary 25. Yolanda Flanders is the mother of Yolande Courtenay 26. Baldwin V Hainault is the father of Yolanda Flanders 27. Baldwin IV Hainault is the father of Baldwin V Hainault 28. Baldwin III Hainault is the father of Baldwin IV Hainault 29. Baldwin II Hainault is the father of Baldwin III Hainault 30. Baldwin I Hainault is the father of Baldwin II Hainault 31. Saint Adela Capet is the mother of Baldwin I Hainault Charles II Valois 18th GG Charles II of Alençon, called the Magnanimous(1297 – 26 August 1346) was the second son of Charles of Valoisand his first wife Margaret, Countess of Anjou, and brother of Philip VI of France. He was Count of Alençonand Count of Perche(1325–1346), as well as Count of Chartresand Count of Joigny(1335–1336). In April 1314 he married Jeanne of Joigny, who succeeded her father John II as Countess of Joigny in 1335, but died on 2 September 1336. They had no children. He showed a marked, if foolhardy courage from the time of his first taking up arms (1324, in Aquitaine), and took part in the Battle of Cassel(1328). In December 1336, he married Maria de La Cerda y Lara(1310 – 19 November 1379, Paris), the daughter of Fernando de la Cerda, Lord of Lara.[1] Charles Valois 19th GG Charles had as appanagethe counties of Valois, Alençonand Perche(1285). He became in 1290 count of Anjouand of Maineby his marriage with Margaret, eldest daughter of Charles II, titular king of Sicily; by a second marriage, contracted with the heiress of Baldwin II de Courtenay, last Latin emperorof Constantinople, he also had pretensions on this throne. But he was son, brother, brother-in-law, son-in-law, and uncle of kings or of queens (of France, of Navarre, of England, and of Naples), becoming, moreover, after his death, father of a king (Philip VI). Isabella of Aragon 20th GG Isabella was the daughter of King James I of Aragon[5]and his second wife Violant of Hungary[6]and thus granddaughter of Yolanda de Courtenay. In Clermonton 28 May 1262, Isabella married the future Philip III of France, son of Louis IXand Margaret of Provence. She became queen upon the accession of her spouse in 1270. She accompanied her husband on the Eighth Crusadeagainst Tunis. On their way home, they stopped in Cosenza, Calabria. Six months pregnant with her fifth child, on 11 January 1271 she suffered a fall from her horseafter they had resumed the trip back to France. Isabella gave birth to a premature stillborn son. She never recovered from her injuries and the childbirth, and died seventeen days later, on 28 January. Her husband took her body and their stillborn son and, when he finally returned to France, buried her in the Basilica of St Denis.[7]Her tomb, like many others, was desecrated during the French Revolutionin 1793.

Bob and Linda Match Click here to Join Italian Genealogy on Facebook I’ve made several cousin connections using ancestry.com.  With many of them we will simply exchange an email here and there on ancestry.com and compare some notes.  I find that most people go to ancestry.com mainly to have a DNA test, an aren’t that interested in building a family tree, making connections, or sharing information. Occasionally, you hit the jackpot like I did with Linda.  Linda, who was researching her Piromallo grandmother came across my tree and sent me a message.  I always suspected that my grandmother’s aunt had come to the US in 1905, but I could never really make a firm connection.   Over the course of the next 18 months, we would message back and forth with some known or new information and share storied and photos.  I invited Linda to our Family Facebook group as well as some of her immediate family.  While I had a lot of information from Italy, from both my own research and from a local research specialist, Linda did not.   Recently, Linda hired a researcher also, that turned up a lot of information that started to prove the theory.  I was 100% certain, however, Linda still had some doubts.  Earlier this year she did her first DNA test and BINGO 3rd cousins once removed.  In the last few days Linda has been sending some photos.  Her Great Grandmother and my Grandmother were 1st cousins, so this is very exciting to see. For more on the Piromallo Family check these posts. Piromallo Family History Nicola Piromallo Count Giacomo Piromallo     Research Links 1st Cousins Maria Luisa Piromallo Maria Pergamo I am still working on verifying the photo below,  but I am now leaning towards that these are the 2 cousins above with their grandmother. Update:  I think we confirmed based on photos.  My Great Grand Aunt ( My great grandfather’s sister ) Maria Piromallo Update After 18 months of comparing notes and collaborating on email and phone.  Bob and Linda meet for first time.  Linda came over with her first cousin Gene.  What was truly amazing to learn was that Gene and I lived only about 3 blocks from each other in Flushing NY for 4 years.  Gene and Linda’s grandmother had a two family home there.  Their grandmother was my dad’s second cousin.  

Best Italian Surname Search is an update from a our previous post from March 3.  Updated with some new information.  I attempted to find mostly free ones, but a couple may ask for sign up. This is a really cool site as it gives the origin for your name, also variations and popularity in the US — Behind the Name This is a pretty neat one as it shows the map of Italy with the names by region, heat map style — Brilliant Maps This one gives a heat map in a different style, and other countries as well — Italian Surname Map One more map, in a different style — Italian Names Surnames by region, type in a surname for the region and you get a list, you can also get the list of the most common names in a region — Italian Surnames This site gives a list of names by region also — Italy Heritage Italian Side gives you location and pronunciation — Italian Side Seven facts about Italian surnames from Ancestry.com  — Ancestry Italian Surnames Interesting article on the origin of Italian Surnames  ( over 1,000,000 )– La Gazzetta Extensive Italian Surname Searches  from BYU — BYU Italian List Brief article on Italian Surname Searches  from Ancestral Findings The ten most common Italian Surname searches in the US 1. Russo (45,787 people) 2. Marino (26,789 people) 3. Romano (24,280 people) 4. Rossi (23,879 people) 5. Bruno (22,917 people) 6. Esposito (21,438 people) 7. Caruso (19,400 people) 8. Rizzo (17,368 people) 9. Gallo (16,937 people) 10. Greco (16,178 people) Join our Facebook Group Some good articles  Thought.com La Gazetta Italiana Interesting article on where women cannot take there husbands surname Time The 20 most popular names from the Hipster Historian.  No surprise the names above are included, but he gives the meaning.

As part of an ongoing series of posts I’m going to provide information on Italian Immigration to Australia.  I never knew the impact until seeing how many Italian Australians read my blog.  Canada will be next. Click here to join our Facebook group Italian Migration To Australia Italian migration to Australia in the late 19th century and much of the 20th century was fueled by the same factors that drove Italians to the Americas – political upheaval and poor economic conditions at home. But changes in the US immigration policy had a direct effect on the flow to Australian shores. Perhaps the simplest way to document the story of Italian migration to Australia is in the form of a timeline, starting with a historic voyage that marks the beginning of Australia’s colonial history: 1770:  Captain James Cook sailed his ship, the Endeavor, into Botany Bay on Australia’s east coast, claiming the land in the name of the British crown. One of his crew was an Italian seaman named Antonio Ponto, so the first Italian to set foot on Australian soil did so at the very beginning of the colony’s ‘official’ history. But he was not the first Italian to actually see Australia. In 1520, Ferdinand Magellan’s voyage to the Pacific Ocean included a number of Italian crewmen. One, Antonio Pigafetta, recorded the epic journey in his log. Later, in 1789, Alessandro Malaspina led a scientific voyage to the South Pacific on behalf of the Spanish crown. He dropped anchor in 1793 at the British colony at Port Jackson, where two of the Italian artists on board captured the harsh Australian landscape. Early 1800s:  There was a small number of Italian convicts who had been unfortunate enough to be arrested by the British and transported to the penal colony in New South Wales. But the majority of prisoners were from the British Isles. 1840s:  Italian missionaries escaping negative conditions in Italy sailed to Australia to help ‘convert’ the aborigines to Christianity. Many returned home in defeat, but some stayed and enjoyed a harmonious relationship with the indigenous people, much to the chagrin of the British overseers. 1850s:  The first Italian community was established in the Victorian goldfields. In 1854, Rafaello Carboni, a participant in the miners’ rebellion at Ballarat, recorded the only eyewitness account of the infamous Eureka Stockade. 1871:  The 1871 census recorded 960 Italians resident in the state of Victoria. 1881:  The 1881 census was the first to record the number of Italian migrants in all states of Australia. One source reported 1,359 Italians resident in the state of Victoria, while another puts the figure at 947. There were 521 Italians in New South Wales, 250 in Queensland, 11 in Tasmania and 10 in Western Australia. 1883:  A commercial treaty between the King of Italy and the United Kingdom (the governors of Australia) granted Italian residents of Australia the following long-overdue rights: (1) the right to freedom of entry, travel and residence, (2) the right to acquire and own property, and (3) the right to carry on business activities. After the treaty came into effect, a thin flow of Italian migration to Australia continued until 1921. 1891:  The 1891 census recorded 3,899 Italians resident in the state of Victoria. In the same year, several hundred immigrants from Piedmont, Veneto and Sicily arrived in North Queensland to work in the sugar cane industry.  1920s:  The majority of sugar cane growers in North Queensland were Italians who employed other Italians. Older established growers tried (and failed) to drive them from the industry. In the same period, Italians began growing fruit in Stanthorpe in South East Queensland. 1921:  The US government imposed stringent quotas on immigration from Italy, forcing many young Italians who had planned to immigrate to the USA to choose Australia instead.  As an American this is an interesting fact! 1921-1933:  The number of Italians in Australia trebled. Most were poor and illiterate, from rural areas. Their rural backgrounds allowed many to excel in farming and viticulture (wine growing), but others were forced to find work in factories, mining and retail (particularly in food related businesses such as fruit shops, delicatessens and bakeries). 1925:  The first Italian-Australian association was formed in Brisbane, Queensland. Similar organizations had been formed in all the major cities. 1930s-1950s:  Italians farmers revived the Australian tobacco industry, and controlled 75% of tobacco production by the 1950s. 1939:  Approximately 38,000 Italians were now living in Australia. 1939-1945:  Italian immigration to Australia had slowed, but World War II was a time of poor treatment of Italians at the hands of Australians. Italy’s alliance with Germany against the Allies added more pressure to an already negative situation. 4,721 Italian males were arrested and interned in camps as ‘enemy aliens’. Many of the prisoners’ wives were unable to hold onto their homes in the absence of the family breadwinner, and were forced to take their children and seek shelter with friends and relatives. In addition, 8,000 prisoners of war, many of them Italian, were shipped from the United Kingdom and other Allied bases to Australia for internment. Due to food shortages caused by the imprisonment of Italian-Australian farmers, many of the prisoners were commandeered to work on the land, and many chose to immigrate to Australia after the war ended. 1946:  Large-scale immigration of Europeans displaced after World War II created a major shift in the ethnic composition of the Australian population. Established migrants sponsored their families and relatives, leading to a peak in immigration levels. 1955:  As the economy grew, the Italian migration to Australia continued, with many gravitating to North Queensland where they worked in the sugar cane industry. The sugar industry’s rapid growth continued for the next 15 years. 1961:  The 1961 census recorded 228,296 Italian-born residents. 1971:  The 1971 census recorded 660,000 Italian-born residents. 1970-1980:  The economy slowed and unemployment became a growing problem. Many businesses began to go offshore. In Italy, economic conditions had greatly improved so there was no further incentive for her citizens to emigrate. Italian migration to Australia virtually stopped. By the mid-1970s, many Italians who had arrived in Australia after World War 11 ran successful businesses and owned their own homes and at least one rental property. Their children were studying at University or had well-paying jobs. They had seized their “second chance” and run with it, often incurring resentment from their Australian peers, who weren’t driven by the same work ethic. The older Italians who had arrived in earlier decades were now retiring, spending winters in their units on the Gold Coast and traveling overseas to visit Italy and Europe.  The term ‘multiculturalism’ began to crop up in political debates and in the media. And in this changing climate, the Italian contributions to Australian society were finally acknowledged. The 2006 Census counted 199,124 persons who were born in Italy. However, 852,417 persons identified themselves as having Italian ancestry, either alone or in combination with another ancestry. Italian is the fifth most identified ancestry in Australia behind Australian, English, Irish and Scottish. From www.italianlegacy.com National Archives of Australia Fact sheet provides links to many records regarding Italian Immigration to Australia. Italian Migration to Australia in Pictures https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S9i0wISfvs Watching this montage, it’s hard not to see the similarities between the Italians that migrated to Australia and America.  But we say “New Yawk”  I hope you enjoyed.  Please share. Genealogy Books

I call this Bob’s Osso Buco Stew as it is not Osso Bucco in the truest sense as you do not have a veal shank per person.  This recipe uses only one veal shank to keep the cost down, but keeps the flavor and the intent.  Serves 4 1 Veal Shank 1 1/2 Pounds veal or beef stew ( or you can combine ) 1 Tbsp Lemon Juice 1/2 cup dry red wine Olive Oil Flour 1 Carrot 1 Medium Onion 2 Celery Stalks 3 Garlic Cloves 2 Bay Leaves 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce 2 Ounces Tomato Paste 1 Cup Chicken Stock ( I use low sodium ) 2 Cups Water 2 Tbsp Italian Parsley Add some salt and black pepper to flour and dredge all the meat.  Put the carrots, celery, onion and garlic in a food processor and chop very fine.  Coat the bottom of a ceramic pot with olive oil and add the vegetables.  Cook for about 5 mins on medium while stirring.  Add the meat and brown on all sides.   Add the lemon juice and wine cook for 2 minute.  Add the chicken stock, bay leaf and worcestershire sauce.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Add tomato paste and enough water to cover meat.   Cook covered for 60 minutes.  Stir occasionally, add water if needed.  Uncover and cook until tender and the sauce is reduced.   I serve over risotto made with saffron and 1/2 water 1/2 chicken stock.  If there are left overs I shred the meat in the sauce and serve mixed with ziti. Mangia Visit Our Recipe Page