Antonio Bruni (merchant)

Antonio Bruni
Bornc. 1550
Died1598 (aged 4748)
Trieste
NationalityAlbanian
CitizenshipVenetian
EducationJesuit
Occupation(s)Commander and spy
Years active15701591
EmployerVenice
Known forBeing the first Albanian author of Lazaro Soranzos L'Ottomanno (1598)
SpouseMaria Bruni
FatherGasparo Bruni, the first knight of Malta
RelativesBartolomeo Bruti, Benedetto Bruti and Jacomo Bruti
FamilyBruni family

Antonio Bruni (born c. 1550 died 1598) was an Albanian commander and spy from Ulcinj, part of the Albanian Bruni family, in the 16th century. He was the uncle of Bartolomeo Bruti. Members of the family worked for the Venetians, the Papacy and the Ottomans. Ottoman conquest of the city forced Bruni eventually to flee to Venice where he was educated by the Jesuits in May 1572 in Rome and he was a doctorate in Avignon. He also worked for one of his cousins in Moldavia. Bruni's father was Gasparo Bruni, the first knight of Malta and the commander of the Papacys fleet during the Battle of Lepanto. In August 1591, Bruni returned to Koper and was elected as the overseer of the grain store.