Ghibelline

American  

[gib-uh-lin, -leen] / ˈgɪb ə lɪn, -ˌlin /

noun

1. a member of the aristocratic party in medieval Italy and Germany that supported the claims of the German emperors against the papacy: politically opposed to the Guelphs.

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adjective

1. of or relating to the Ghibellines.

Ghibelline British  

/ -ˌliːn, ˈɡɪbɪˌlaɪn /

noun

1. a member of the political faction in medieval Italy originally based on support for the German emperor

2. (modifier) of or relating to the Ghibellines Compare Guelph 1

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Other Word Forms

• Ghibellinism noun

Etymology

Origin of Ghibelline

1565–75; < Italian Ghibellino < Middle High German *wībeling- ( German Waiblingen ) a Hohenstaufen estate in Germany

Example Sentences

But the trend had been beaten down through the centuries when the peninsula served as the cockpit of Guelph and Ghibelline, despot and noble, rival Spaniard, Frenchman and German.

From Time Magazine Archive

Guelph comes from hwelp or whelp, meaning a wolf's pup, and Ghibelline is an Italian attempt to pronounce the name of the counts of Waiblingen.

From Time Magazine Archive

Moved by the reasons stated above, I believe, the Venetians encouraged the Guelf and Ghibelline sects in their subject cities.

From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli

No time had been lost in enforcing unity of belief in the territories redeemed from Ghibelline control.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles

Some show of favor in return for such services would not have been amiss; would perhaps, indeed, have been wise, as it might have won over the powerful Ghibelline chief.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles