Fernando was born at
Naples, but his family was of
Aragonese origin, having arrived in southern Italy with
Alfonso V's general
Íñigo Dávalos, his grandfather. Fernando's father was Alfonso d'Ávalos d'Aquino, 4th marquis of Pescara (not to be confused with
Alfonso d'Ávalos, 6th marquess of Pescara and a cousin of Fernando).. During his life Fernando D'Ávalos was also known as "
Pescara", the city in the kingdom of Naples of which he was the Marquis. Proud of his Spanish origins and surrounded by Spaniards, he spoke Spanish at all times despite his Neapolitan extraction and
arranged marriage with a noblewoman from the Papal States. According to the Renaissance historian
Francesco Guicciardini, Fernando d'Ávalos considered himself more Spanish than Italian. Farnando's father was killed during a French invasion of Naples, while the boy was still a babe in arms. At the age of six the boy was betrothed to
Vittoria Colonna, daughter of the general
Fabrizio Colonna, and the marriage was celebrated in 1509 on the island of
Ischia. His position as a noble of the Aragonese party in Naples made it incumbent on him to support
Ferdinand the Catholic in his Italian wars. In 1512, he commanded a body of light cavalry at the
battle of Ravenna, where he was wounded and taken prisoner by the French. Thanks to the intervention of one of the foremost French generals, the Italian
G. G. Trivulzio, who was his connection by marriage, he was allowed to ransom himself for 6,000
ducats. He commanded the Spanish infantry at the
Battle of La Motta, or Vicenza, on 7 October 1513. It was on this occasion that he called his men before the charge to take care to step on him before the enemy did if he fell. From the battle of Vicenza in 1513, down to the
Battle of Bicocca on 29 April 1522, he continued to serve in command of the Spaniards and as the colleague rather than the subordinate of
Prospero Colonna. After the battle of Bicocca
Charles V appointed Colonna commander-in-chief. D'Ávalos, who considered himself aggrieved, made a journey to
Valladolid in Spain, where the emperor then was, to state his own claims. Charles V, with whom he had long and confidential interviews, persuaded him to submit for the time to the superiority of Colonna. But in these meetings, he gained the confidence of Charles V. His Spanish descent and sympathies marked him out as a safer commander of the imperial troops in Italy than a "full" Italian could have been. When
Francis I invaded Italy in 1524 d'Ávalos was appointed as lieutenant of the emperor to repel the invasion. The difficulties of his position were very great, for there was much discontent in the army, which was very ill-paid. The tenacity, patience and tact of d'Ávalos triumphed over all obstacles. His influence over the veteran Spanish troops and the
German mercenaries kept them loyal during the long
siege of Pavia. On 24 February 1525, he defeated and took prisoner Francis I by a brilliant attack. D'Ávalos' plan was remarkable for its audacity and for the skill he showed in destroying the superior
French heavy
cavalry by assailing them in the flank with a mixed force of
harquebusiers and light horse. It was believed that he was dissatisfied with the treatment he had received from the emperor, and
Girolamo Morone, secretary to
Francesco II Sforza, duke of
Milan, approached him with a scheme for expelling French, Spaniards and Germans alike from Italy, and for gaining a throne for himself. D'Ávalos may have listened to the tempter, but in the act he was loyal. He reported the offer to Charles V and put Morone into prison. His health, however, had begun to give way under the strain of wounds and exposure, during late November, and he died at Milan on 3 December 1525. ==Family==