BUONAFEDE, APPIANO. - His true name was Tito Benvenuto, born in Comacchio on 4 January 1716 into an ancient and noble family. At the age of 18, he entered the Celestine Order, taking the name Appiano. From 1740, he was a professor of Theology in Naples; subsequently, he served as secretary of a monastery in Apulia, then as abbot of the monasteries of S. Stefano (1755) and S. Giovanni Battista (1758) in Bologna, and later as procurator of the Order in Rome. In 1777, he was elected general and settled on the Morrone; in 1780, he returned to Rome and died on 17 December 1793.
A man of keen intellect and vast culture, he actively participated in the controversies of his time and wrote with witty and elegant style works of literary and philosophical criticism, as well as poetry (among which should be noted *Versi liberi*, Cesena 1766). One of his comedies in hendecasyllabic verse, *I filosofi fanciulli* (printed in 1754 under the Arcadian name Agatopisto Cromaziano), which mocks various philosophical systems with sparkling wit, was criticized by Baretti in *La Frusta*. From this arose the famous controversy between the two eminent critics: Buonafede launched against Baretti *Il Bue pedagogo*, which provoked Venetian government persecutions against his rival.
Notable among Buonafede’s works are: *Istoria critica e filosofica del suicidio*; the treatise *Delle conquiste celebri esaminate col naturale diritto delle genti*; and *Della Istoria e dell'indole di ogni filosofia* (7 vols., Lucca 1766–81), which represents the first extensive history of philosophy published in Italy; as well as *Della restaurazione d'ogni filosofia nei secc. XVI, XVII e XVIII*.
Buonafede’s *Ritratti poetici, storici, critici*, published under the pseudonym Appio Anneo De Faba Cromaziano—each accompanied by a sonnet with a note—were placed on the Index *donec corrigatur* (decree of 3 December 1754) for their vulgar style, excessive sarcasm, and erroneous philosophical ideas.