Encyclopedia of Southern Italy

Acrilla (or Acrillae): An ancient Sicilian town of uncertain location. It is known to have stood near Syracuse in E Sicily. Some scholars have identified it with modern Giarratana [RG]. The town was mentioned in the writings of the historian Stephanus of Byzantium and is thought to have been the site of Marcellus’s victory over Hippocrates in 214 BC.

Acron (Acrone, Acronis): (fl. 5th century BC). A famous Greek physician, he was the son of Xenon, and was a native of Akragus (mod. Agrigento) in Sicily. Many scholars consider him to be the founder of the school of empirical practice. He is known to have moved to Athens where he helped to found a medical and philosophical school. He is credited with stopping a terrible plague in Athens by inventing fumigation (i.e. lighting large smoky fires and purifying the air with perfumes). According to Suidas, he was the author of several medical works written in the Doric dialect.
acropolis
: (=high city). The citadel of an ancient Greek settlement, normally located on its highest elevation.
Acrotatus: (fl. late 4th Century BC). King of Sparta. In 314 BC, he responded to an appeal for help from Akragas, then being threatened by Agathocles, the tyrant of Syracuse. Acrotatus sailed to Sicily and took over the defense of Akragas. The harshness which he used to rule the city aroused the citizens to expel him. He returned home to Sparta and died soon after.

Acton: An English/Irish family, which arose in the 14th century at Aldenham Hall, Shropshire, England. Many of its members were to significantly affect the political and military affairs of the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Its first member of note was Edward Acton, created an English baron in 1643 as a reward for his loyalty to the Stuarts. A later namesake, who worked as a physician at Besançon, in France, was the father of John Francis Edward Acton, who inherited the title in 1791. The latter’s brother was Joseph Edward Acton (1737-1808), who founded the Neapolitan branch of the family.

Acton, Alfredo: (b. 1867, Castellammare di Stabia. d. 1934, Naples). Admiral. During his career he participated in several campaigns throughout the world: Mesewa (Ethiopia), Crete (1938), the Far East, and Libya. During World War I, he commanded a combined Italian-English naval force in the lower Adriatic, playing an important role in the naval battle at Otranto (May, 1917). After the war, he became head of the General Staff of the Admiralty.

Acton, Charles (Carlo): (b. Aug. 25, 1829, Naples. d. Feb. 2, 1909, Portici). Operatic composer and pianist. His principal work was Una cena in convitto.

Acton, Charles Januarius Edward: (b.1803, Naples. d. June 23, 1847, Naples). Ecclesiastic. Son of Sir John Francis Edward Acton (d.1736-1811) of Shropshire, England, he was educated in England (London and Cambridge) and at Rome (Academia Ecclesiastica), where he studied for the priesthood. In 1828, he served as papal attaché; to the Nuncio Lambruschini at Paris. After acting as vice-delegate (legate) at Bologna and as an assistant judge of the civil court at Rome, he became papal auditor (1837). In 1842, he became a cardinal under Pope Gregory XVI. After the restructuring of the Catholic hierarchy, he became procurator of the department of England in the eighth apostolic vicariate.
Acton, Ferdinando
: (b. 1832, Naples. d. 1891, Rome). Admiral. In 1860, he transferred with the grade of captain of frigate from the Bourbon Navy to the Italian navy. From 1881 to 1884 he served as Minister of the Navy; later becoming President of the Supreme Council and head of the General Staff of the Admiralty.
Acton, Guglielmo
: (b. 1825, Castellammare di Stabia. d. 1896, Naples). Naval officer and statesman. A Captain of frigate in the navy of the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, after the defeat of the Bourbons he transferred to the Italian navy as a ship’s captain. He served with distinction during the battle of Lissa. From 1870 to 1872 he was Minister of the Navy, becoming a Senator in 1871. In 1879 he was promoted to Vice-Admiral. He served a second term as Minister of the Navy from 1879 to 1881.
Acton, Lord John Emerich Dalberg- (1st Baron Acton of Aldenham)
: (b. Jan. 10, 1834, Naples. d. Jan. 19, 1902, Tegernsee, Bavaria). Historian. He was a grandson of Sir John Francis Edward Acton. After studying under Döllinger at Monaco, he became an important figure in the Liberal Democrat party in Great Britain. He served in the British parliament for 5 years. A close friend of Gladstone (who awarded him the title of baron), he earned a reputation as an historian and book collector. He was the planner for the Cambridge Modern History.