FERRERO (Ferrerius), Bonifacio. – Cardinal, of the great F. family of Bicila, from the branch of the marquises of Romagnano, b. in 1476, d. in Rome in January 1543. He held various abbacies, including that of S. Benigno di Fruttuaria, where he secured the right of drying. He was twice bishop of Ivrea, a see which he resigned in favour of that of Vercelli (1509 and 1536), in favour of his brothers Giovanni Stefano and Agostino. Created cardinal on 1 July 1517, he also held other bishoprics and the legation of Bologna (1541).
Several members of this family governed the dioceses of Ivrea and Vercelli for more than a century: Giovanni Stefano (b. in 1473, d. on 3 March 1520), brother of Bonifacio, was bishop of Vercelli in 1499 and of Bologna in 1502, the year in which he was made cardinal. He then moved to the see of Ivrea in 1509. Filtchetto, nephew of the above (b. in 1500, d. in Rome on 13 August 1549), obtained the see of Ivrea at the age of only 18. He was twice nuncio to the king of France (1537 and 1540), and legate to Piacenza and Avignon. Cardinal in 1549. His brother Pierfrancesco (b. in 1509, d. in 1566) governed the diocese of Vercelli from 1536 to 1561, the year in which he was created cardinal, after having been legate with Carlo Casale in Flanders, and then nuncio to Venice (1560–1561). He took part in the Council of Trent. He resigned the see of Vercelli in favour of his nephew Guido (b. in 1537, d. in 1585), son of Maddalena Borromeo, aunt of Carlo. He was nuncio to Venice and legate to Romagna. Cardinal in 1565. He left behind an unpublished biography of Gregory XIII (cf. Pastor, IX, pp. 892–94). His vicar in Vercelli was his nephew Cesare Candillo (b. on 13 May 1537, d. on 21 February 1610). He was bishop of Ivrea from 1581, where he held several synods whose acts were published. The last of this family was Giovanni Stefano II (b. in 1568, d. in 1611), nuncio to Prague from 1604 to 1607, who was bishop of Vercelli from 1599 to 1610.
FERRERO della MARMORA, Carlo Vittorio, also known as Teresio Maria. – Cardinal, of the same family as the above, but from the branch of the marquises della M., b. in Turin on 15 October 1757, d. in the abbey of S. Benigno di Fruttuaria on 31 December 1831. On 27 June 1796 he was elected by Pius VI bishop of Casal Monferrato. During the French occupation he welcomed Pius VI as a prisoner and accompanied him as far as Turin. On 1 February 1805 Pius VII transferred him to the united dioceses of Saluzzo and Pinerolo, where F. sought to alleviate the harsh conditions of Cardinal Parea and other Roman prelates imprisoned in the fortress of Fenestrelle. After the restoration of the old government in 1814, he was appointed grand almoner to the king. On 27 September 1824 he was created cardinal by Leo XII. Highly learned, a member of the College of Philosophy from 1786, he particularly cultivated historical studies and took an interest in