Andrea Doria

Andrea Doria (1466–1560), Prince of Melfi, was born at Oneglia into an old Genoese noble family. Orphaned young, he became a mercenary in the papal guard and then a naval commander fighting Turks and Barbary corsairs for France.

In 1528 he entered Charles V's service, drove the French from Genoa and restored the Republic, refusing the dogeship for the title Father of the Fatherland. His reforms made the doge a two-year office and narrowed rule to the patrician councils, a settlement that survived until 1797. His fleet helped secure the imperial sea routes between Spain and Italy. He died at Genoa in 1560.