The Barony of Budaq.

Titled: Nicholas de Piro, 9th Baron.

Heir: (This title can be nominated) His sons, though we assumed that Clement is the Baroninco and the elder son Cosimo is the Marchesino de Piro.

Created 6 February 1736 by Grandmaster Ramon Despuig.

The fief of Budaq (originally Budacco) had been granted or sold numerous times in its interesting history as a fief.

The Barba family were granted this fief in 1397, following the Gatto family in 1398, Aulesa also in 1398, following the Inguanez in 1408, the Cilia family in 1644, the Fiteni’s in 1646, following the Passalaqua in 1646.

The Barony fief of Budaq (Budacco) was passed within the families of Barba, Gatto, Alesa and Inguanez. They intermarried passing the fiefdom as a marriage legacy.

Francesco Cilia had purchased the fief of Budaq from Baron Antonio Inguanez on 16th May 1590. For some reason neither father or son ever paid homage to the Grand Master as an acknowledgement of Fealty and were consequently never styled Baron. Niccolo was in danger of having his fief confiscated by the order. However he successfully petitioned the Grand Master to be formally recognised as the Baron di Budaq. Cilia died in 1646, leaving no successor, where upon the fief devolved to the Order to be regranted a few months later.

The first Protomedico to be ennobled was Niccolo Cilia, who in 1633 had been appointed to this office. He probably also awarded the 'Croce d'Oro' on his appointment. Cilia, however had been aware that he possessed the fief of Budach. His father , Francesco, had bought the lands from Baron Antonio Inguanez for the sum of 2280 onze. The sale had been made on the 16 May 1590, and was registered in the acts of Notary Enrico Zarb. When the Protomedico realised that he held feudal territory he wanted to be invested in order to acquire the title and hold a legitimate claim for his fief. Grand Master Lascaris acceded to Cilia's request and concluded a transaction with his protomedico, but only over a part of the fief. On the 18 February 1644, the council of the Order had given the Grand Master permission of the said transaction. After eight days, Cilia was created Baron di Budaq, only two years before his death in 1646. There is no evidence that Cilia had been ennobled because of service to the Order, but his appointment as Protomedico probably had considerable influence in his investiture as Baron, since Lascaris could have claimed this fief in virtue of Cilia's omission to pay homage.

This time the fief, went to Cesare Passalacqua , to his daughter and her husband Silvestro Fiteni.

Silvestro Fiteni was Capitano della Verga 1644-52, and created a Knight of the Order of St John in 1656.

Fiteni left no legitimate heir and so the title became extinct with his death.

The Barony was regranted to Gio Pio de Piro and his wife Anna Gourgion by the Grand Master Perollos on 23rd of April 1716, with the required tribute of two muskets on St. Barbara.

The Barony de Budaq was given to the de Piro's and his legitimate heirs, males and females, procreatis vel procreandis.

The Baron de Piro could not attend his first Investiture since he was in Sicily and his father paid homage instead. Only three years after de Piro was ennobled he neglected to present his two muskets-to grave concern of his father. Not only Gio Pio's successors was ever invested, but their rights to the Barony was never queried. It may be argued that when a nobleman did not pay homage and present tribute he was in breach of the original oath, which was similar to that taken, in 1644, by the feudatory of Budach, who declared:

" I Niccolo Cilia swear and promise fidelity, reverence and observance to your Highness and to Your Holy Religion, recognising you as the true and rightful Lords of the fief of Budach which you and your Holy Convent have honoured me with and to present every year at Easter of the Resurrection a bunch of Roses as rightful recognition in the said fief "

(Reference: John Monalto., "The Nobles of Malta 1530-1800" Midsea Books Ltd, Malta 1979.,pp35)

The de Piro family hold this fief to this day.

Note of Interest -

The remainder of the Barony to the de Piro family, stated “ His descendants in perpetuity , each holder of the title having the right to nominate a successor, in default of nomination to the first born male descendant and in absence of male issue, to the first born female descendant. Members of the clergy are precluded from succession by primogeniture”.

Wealth therefore becomes an influencing factor in the choice of a prospective 'Secreto'. The fourteen thousand scudi which Baron Gio Pio de Piro paid out during 1720-21 in his official capacity as Zondadari's administration was less than the private income for the same period of the de Piro-Gourgion family.

The only two sons of Marquis Vincenzo de Piro to marry, disregarded the wish of their parents and married partners of their own choosing. The eldest Antonio, married Teresa de Re, a person of his own 'nationality but not of equal rank', from whom-it was rumoured, had an illegitimate child. This enraged his father who not only disinherited him, but also his innocent descendants. Five years later, in 1795 Antonio left with his family to live in Rome. The second son, Giuseppe, was nominated , within the space of three years, the future heir to the lucrative Gourgion and the de Piro entails. Rather surprisingly he was not disinherited in spite of the fact that he married Generosa Borg, below his rank.

The title passed from father to son, until the 4th holder, where it was succeeded by his sister, who died in 1877, and nominated her cousin Msgr. Don Salvatore Grech-Delicata to succeed her. But the Court of Appeal overruled this decision in favour of Guiseppe de Piro-Gourgion, the holder of the Primogeniture.
Though , the senior branch of the de Piro’s were excluded from succession due to Vincenzo de Piro being born outside of wedlock to the 3rd Baron and his wife Teresa della Re.

On 5th December 1807, in a lengthy judgment, the Courts of Malta upheld the primogenital and fede-commessary right due to Vincenzo and his descendants as members of the de Piro family.

Today, the Junior branch still carried the titles of Baron di Budaq and Marquis de Piro (Maltese recognised title), with Nicholas de Piro D’Amico-Inguanez, as the 8th Marquis de Piro, and 9th Baron di Budaq, (See de Piro for history).