Family History
The Maniago family is one of the oldest feudal families in Friuli: in 1195 they settled, together with other families, in the castle of Maniago with the duty to defend the surrounding countryside.
In 1277 Olvrado di Maniago bought from the Flagognas the part of the castle they owned and began to consolidate his position, until he became, thanks to the acquisitions made by his son Galvano I, undisputed lord of the castle.
Family’s fortunes continued during the fourteenth century, when the Maniagos successfully defended the castle from various sieges carried out by neighbor lords and permanently occupied a set in the Parlamento della Patria, actively contributing to the military defense of the territory on behalf of the Patriarch of Aquileia.
In 1420 Venetian troops occupied the castle and count Bartolomeo di Maniago swore allegiance to the Republic: this act led to the ratification of the Convention which ended the wars between the Patriarchate and Venice.
The Maniago continued to be men at arms (5 family members served on the Venetians and Knights of Malta’s vessels in Lepanto). They ruled civil and criminal justice in Maniago, Poffabbro and Casasola’s territories and contributed to the development of the agricolture and the art of blacksmithing carring out the canalization of the Cellina stream.
Count Fabio II di Maniago (1777-1842), an important art historian, deserves to be mentioned: his best known work: “Storia delle belle arti friulane” (History of Friulian fine arts) was published in Venice in 1819, and in 1825 he published an art historian guide on Udine and Cividale. We owe him the creation of the Palace English Park.
Family’s main branch, which originated by Galvano I, ended 1852 with Nicolò Giacomo di Maniago, who, having no sons, will adopt his nephew Pietro Antonio, son of his sister Laura and of count Giovanni Enrico d’Attimis.
From that moment, this side of the family, whose descendants are the current owners of the Palazzo, will continue with the surname d’Attimis-Maniago
