Girolamo Cantelli

Count Girolamo Giuseppe Maria Gaspare Cantelli (sometimes also spelled Gerolamo Cantelli) (Parma, 22 June 1815 – Parma, 7 December 1884 ) was an Italian patriot and politician, senator and minister of the Kingdom of Italy.

Born a subject of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, he was educated at the :it: Collegio dei Nobili and trained in law. In 1845 he was chosen as podestà of Parma, a position he held under duchess Maria Luisa and Charles II. During the riots of 1848, he was a member of the regency (20-29 March 1848) and then President of the provisional government of the Duchy of Parma (11 April-14 May 1849 ), favouring the annexation of the Duchy of Parma to the Kingdom of Sardinia. When the new duke Charles III returned to the throne, Cantelli had his assets confiscated and went into exile in Genoa. He was able to return to his homeland only after duke Charles’ death. In 1859 he was elected president of the Assembly of the People's Representatives of the Duchy of Parma and played an important part in the annexation of Parma to Piedmont. in the second Minghetti government, following the resignation of :it:Antonio Scialoja, he also took on the role of Minister of Public Education on an interim basis. A few days later, other arrests followed, including Andrea Costa and the Garibaldian Alberto Mario. A few months later, on 5 December 1874, Cantelli, together with Justice Minister Paolo Onorato Vigliani, presented a bill aimed at outlawing the opposition, allowing for the house arrest of opposition figures for one to five years by decree of the Minister of the Interior on the proposal of the prefect. After the fall of the Right in 1876, the new Minister of the Interior Giovanni Nicotera attacked Cantelli in the Senate not only for his authoritarian policies, but also for his illicit interventions in elections and for his covert financing of certain newspapers.

Later years and personal life In his later years Cantelli dedicated himself to the administrative life of Parma (municipal councillor and president of the provincial council of Parma). — 13 maggio 1869

Gran Cordone dell'Ordine della Corona d'Italia — 1868