The International Commission
and Association on Nobility

Dr. Salvatore Caputo, Ph.D., Msc.D. President of “Caputo International, Ltd.” is an International Marketing Consultant, who has 40 years of experience in the introduction of several products in different markets in different continents. Part of his work consists in investigating what product is needed in some markets and what country of other continent has it. Then find proper persons or companies to undertake the projects or marketing the new products.

Dr. Caputo speaks and writes fluently Italian, English, Spanish, and Portuguese, read French. He worked in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Philippines and Guatemala, traveling worldwide for 12 years as International Director for Pepsi Cola making valuable contacts that later gave him the opportunity to introduce, under his company, new products in Europe, Asia, Africa, Canada and United States of America. 

The Company was founded in September 1985, Toronto, Canada, in December 1990 in U.S.A. and in Guatemala on March 1993. Mr. Caputo was educated in Italy, Canada and US holding several degrees including a Doctorate in Business Administration, Doctor of Metaphysical Science, Msc.D. Founder of his Non-Denomination Church “Universal Ministries” registered in the State of Delaware, U.S.A. on March 24, 1992.  Founder of “Caputo Foods” and “Caputo Publishing Co.”, both in Canada.  Founder of Caputo Children´s Fund registered in Guatemala. Since 1992 retired in Guatemala City.

For 25 years he searched his family story going back to year 1000 and wrote a book in Italian language. The book contains description of each grandfather up to the present member of the family. Conrad Caputo, Prince of Antioch, grandson to Emperor Frederick II Hohenstaufen, is the Head of the CAPUTO Dynasty.

The family holds two Coats of Arms, one from the Prince of Antioch, the other from the present head of the family, Dr. Salvatore Ferdinando Antonio CAPUTO.

CAPUTO DYNASTY

ORIGINATED FROM THE HOUSE OF HOHENSTAUFEN AND THE HOUSE OF ANTIOCH,

THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

It was my obsession to know the origins of our House that pushed me, for more than twenty five years, to search of this noble original family of Conrad Caputo Prince of Antioch of the House of Hohenstaufen, General Vicar of the Reign of Sicily, and grandson of the Emperor Frederick II. The Hohenstaufen House was a great German dynastic family of the Württemberg, in the Jurisdiction of Swabia, called also, particularly in Italy, “House of Swabia” and, in Germany “House of Staufen”.

The Caputo Lineage, ancient original Noble Family of Naples, enjoyed Nobility in the Seat of Porto, and also in the Seats of Nido, Montagna and Portanova. The Caputo family was enrolled also to the Seat of Noble “the First Public square” of Catanzaro, Cosenza and Tropea, to the seat of Port' Ercole, Imola, Narni, Foligno, Venosa, Eboli, Massalumbrese, Altamura and Venice. In XVI century was enrolled to the Seat of Venosa. Between the XVII and XVIII century in Saponara.  

The Caputo had the Lordship of 15 feudal, (Bagnoli, Belvedere, Calopezzati, Carovigno, Castle of Peter, Cuma, Foccia, Gifuni, Mattafellone, Roccaromana, Sacco, Sanfelice, Sansosti, Santomango and Tito) Count of Montefortino and Capizzi, Marquis of Cerveto and Petrella, the Duchy of Turano and the Principality of Calopezzati.

Therefore Corrado (Conrad) was of German origin and has far for his last name, before been Caputo, it was Hohenstaufen, and he was prince of Antioch. From the same Corrado the family took also origin of the family Antiochia (Antioch). One, therefore, called himself from the coat of arms, other from the nobiliary title.  Many are the branches of families derived from the sons of Corrado Caputo of Antioch.

We must remember that hundreds of years ago, the last names had orthography’s  variations since many times the notary publics, recorders, priests, etc., wrote the last names differently as they hear it vocally.. As an example, in the city of Guatemala, Central America, many friends write my last name “Capputto” or “Caputto”. So is possible to have direct relatives with the variations of Caputos, Caputi, Caputoe and Caputa.

Caputo last name derives from a nickname that was attributed to the original bearer. In this case, the Caputo last name derives from the Latin “Capo” from the Italian word “capo”, that means “head”. The people of the community gave this nickname to him, which the head of the family adopted for his last name. The use of the last names started during the Middle Ages for means of distinction between persons who carried the same personal name.

After the dead of the Emperor Frederick II, grandfather of the first Caputo, December 13, 1250, Pope Innocence IV  left marks to destroy the “Svevi” (Swabian): “Never leave  this man and his poisonous family  the scepter with which dominated the people of Christ!” and, other terrible sentence: “Extirpate name, body, seed of the heirs of the Babylonian”. Innocence died in 1254. Under his successor Urban IV and Clemente IV, more rigid and obstinate, brought the destruction to them.

Frederick of Antioch (father of Conrad Caputo of Antioch) King of Tuscany supported the brother King Manfred and his nephew Corrado (Conrad) in Puglia in the defense of the Reign. But after the dead of the Emperor, his father, incapable to stand as General Captain in Tuscany, he died in 1256, not even thirty years old, fighting in Foggia that was occupied by the papal troops.

Urban IV had already tried to offer the Sicilian crown to one of the sons of King Luis IX of France, Richard of Cornwall, Edmund of Lancaster who refused it. Then Urban IV started negotiations with Carlo (Charles) of Anjou, younger brother of King Luis, with which the successive Pontific, Clement IV, reached effectively to an agreement: Charles of France, count of Anjou to accept the offer to the crown. The grant to Edmund was cancelled and a new grant to Charles made by a bull of Feb. 26, 1265. Charles was crowned in Rome on Jan 6, 1266 and defeated Manfred in 1266 at Benevento and Conradin in 1268 at Tagliacozzo. With Conradin's execution in 1268 the Hohenstaufen dynasty ended. Charles moved the capital to Naples. Charles gave homage to the pope "for the kingdom of Sicily and all the lands this side of the Faro up to the boundaries of the Church's states, which lands, except the city of Benevento.

But Conradin's sister, Constanza, had married Pedro III of Aragon, whose claims were supported by the Sicilians after their revolt against the French (the Sicilian Vespers of 1282). Pedro succeeded in invading Sicily, and this marked the first and longest split between the kingdom of Naples and the kingdom of Sicily (1282-1443). Heraldically speaking, Pedro, by quartering the eagle displayed sable on argent of the Hohenstaufen with the four pallets gules on or of Aragon, created the arms of Sicily. On the other side of the Faro, Charles of Anjou was ceded the rights to Jerusalem by Marie of Antioch in 1277, and his arms (France ancient a label gules) impaling Jerusalem became the arms of the kingdom of Naples.

The fall of Conradin of Swabia (grandson of Frederick II and cousins of Conrad of Antioch), in the battle of Tagliacozzo the 23 of August of 1268, marked the end of male legitimate succession: but it does not mean that all the offspring had been exterminated. From the sons of Fredrick of Antioch the offspring’ branches have arrived until our days and: from our Grandfather Conrad of Antioch (Born in 1240) develops the “Caputo Branch”. Conrad Caputo of Antioch escaped from the massacres ordered by Charles of Anjou because his mother, Margarita Poli and his wife Beatrice Lancia, had in their castle of Saracinesco, in hostage since 1267, some Nobles of Guelph part, the Lords Napoleone and Matteo Orsini, and had saved the life for interchanging with the powerful Cardinal Giovanni Gaetano Orsini (brother of the prisoners), future Pope Nicoló III 26 December 1277), then made them to swear fidelity to the Church. Conradin of Swabia was host in the Conrad Caputo’s Castle of Saracinesco (near Rome) the eve of the battle.

For many years I believed that the Castle of Saracinesco was a castle constructed by the Saracens and not a place, a country or a city, town. Just in the February of 1995, while I was to Rome for business, the last day in the city ready to leave Italy, I learned that the Castle of Saracinesco was in a town just 55 kilometers from Rome. Naturally I rushed to the place and it was a great emotion for me to be able to walk in the center of the Castle streets. The characteristic of the Castle with narrow lanes don’t allow the access to vehicles, I had to park my car outside the boundaries.

Once inside the Castle there was a tourist office, without thinking twice, I entered to ask for information of the Castle and its history. Surprise after surprise, the employees informed me that a book about Conrad Caputo of Antioch was written by the Prof. Mark Orsola, President of the Association For Native place of Saracinesco, but unfortunately he was in that moment in Rome.

Re-entered to Rome I put myself in telephone communication with the Prof. Orsola who explained to me that Saracinesco was founded by the Saracens that escaped from Pope Giovanni X in year 916. The Ghibellin Conrad of Antioch was the Lord of Saracinesco of which from XVII century most of the Castle was destroyed.

Returning to the searches of the Caputo Lineage, mine, I found another obstacle in order to find my direct descendant as a result of the exile of 1393, the family divided in different branches. Several of the branches were scattered in the provinces of the Reign of Naples and spread with individuals pertaining to other Neapolitan noble families. These members of the family were announced publicly and banned from the Reign by King Charles of Anjou II because of the continuing disputes with other Noble families that often put hand on their swords. The first Caputo of which we have memory outside of Naples is that Barnaba Caputo that in the 1400 we find in Tropea, Calabria, with his family. We know that the Caputo of Cosenza and the Caputo of Tropea are members of one same family: the one of Naples.

In order to be able to trace the directed descendant, I had to ask the aid of the Heraldic Institute “Heraldic Coccia” in Florence and “Ancestor Ltd.” of England, the Heraldic Institute of Milan and finally the Center Heraldic Studies of Varese, where it was cleared that the searches would have to be begun from the town of Teverola in province of Caserta, since it was there were my father Michele and the grandfather Salvatore were born. Grandfather Salvatore had two brothers, Andrea and Michele that divided even more the lineage. Of the two brothers we do not know anything about them.

From the grandfather Salvatore, the family divided in two, the one of our father Michele and the one of his brother Antonio, the only males that survived from the great family that once was. Then from our father Michele, the family divided in two again: mine and the one of my brother Gino which divided in two branches since we each  have a son male: Gianni and Michael (Michele).

Caputo name is very numerous one and is impossible to trace them all, so I dedicated to the searches of my direct descendant. We know that in the province of Ontario, Canada, there are 232 families that carry this last name (Halbert’s “The Amazing Book Of The Caputo’s In Canada” of Sharon Taylor, 1986). Other Caputo families can be found in all Italy, Brazil, Argentine, North America and other countries of the world.

In order to end, I want to make precision in regard of our coat of arms. Conrad of Antioch carried the coat of arms of the House of Hohenstaufen, a black Eagle and the Coat of arms of the father Federico (Fredrick), Prince of Antioch, natural son of Frederick II Hohenstaufen. The Caputo, then and for distinguishing  their family, used the coats of arms: “Arm red the head of lion in majestic crowed Or (gold)” (Naples - although sometimes some added three small heads of black Moors to the lion riposted); “Arm red to the head of leopard  (head of lion silver forehead) in majestic and crowed Or (Naples); “Cut Arm: in the first one  blue to 3 mounts of gold with two lions of the same one it faces and linguati red, supporting one head crowned to the natural one; in the second of green with four bands silver big waves (Tropea, Calabria).

The heraldic shield was used on the battlefield and tournaments yields necessary to distinguish the head of a family from their sons and relatives; they had also to be distinguished from every other. Generally it was accepted that the members could, without alterations, use the heraldic shield to indicate the head of the family. Therefore the members of every other member were loaded with concessions, mark, and blazon (called in France “brisure”). This became a generally accepted custom in Europe, and these principles were interested to some of the high Nobility. Heraldically must be considered that the leopard is equivalent to the lion, the leopard has the same meaning of the lion, the king of the animals.

The examination of the Caputo House is concluded. Examination that concurred to throw an ideal bridge between us and our most ancient predecessors, now rest on ours grandchildren  to follow the genealogical order to which I have dedicated many years of hopes, joys, anxiety, studied dozen of historical books and, spend many,  many hours in the National library of Naples. I left these collections to my family as a testament of our glorious Dynasty.

Salvatore Ferdinando Antonio Caputo

Personal e-mail if you wish to contact me: salcaputo@email.it