principality · Italy
Principality of Piombino
Origins
In 1399 Gherardo Appiani, lord of Pisa, sold the city to Gian Galeazzo Visconti but kept Piombino, Elba and nearby islands as his own lordship. His family ruled it as lords and, from 1594, as imperial princes.
Rule and society
Piombino controlled the iron mines of Elba and the channel between Elba and the mainland, a strategic route for Mediterranean shipping. Its small size made it dependent on stronger powers: Cosimo I de' Medici built Portoferraio on Elba in 1548, and Spain later held Porto Longone. After the Appiani died out, the principality passed to the Ludovisi in 1634 and then to the Boncompagni-Ludovisi.
Decline and legacy
In 1805 Napoleon gave Piombino to his sister Elisa, merging it into the Principality of Lucca and Piombino. In 1815 the Congress of Vienna gave it to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.
Lineage
On the connections map
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- Principality of Piombino was a protectorate of Spanish Empire1557 CE – 1708 CE
Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Principality of Piombino. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-piombino
- MLA
- “Principality of Piombino.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-piombino. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Principality of Piombino.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-piombino.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Principality of Piombino’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-piombino (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻