ROME (CNN) Princess Rita Jenrette Boncompagni Ludovisi – formerly Rita Carpenter, the former wife of Republican US Rep. John Jenrette – has been evicted from the home she once shared with the late Prince Nicolo Boncompagni after an inheritance dispute with his children.
Princess Rita confirmed to CNN her eviction from the historic Casino dell’Aurora in central Rome on Wednesday. The house features an original ceiling painting by Caravaggio – the only known ceiling painting by the master – and a statue of Michelangelo recently unearthed in the garden.
Rita was escorted out of the house along with her dogs on Thursday. “I’ve been on my feet for 72 hours, being brutally evicted from a home [in] I have lovingly cared for for the past 20 years,” she tweeted early Thursday morning.
The eviction was ordered by Roman judge Miriam Iappelli and carried out by the Roman law enforcement agency, who also changed the locks in accordance with standard procedure for court-ordered evictions.
Princess Rita Boncompagni Ludovisi poses for a photo in front of Villa Aurora in Rome, Italy, November 16, 2021.
Italian courts have previously ruled that the house must be sold to resolve an inheritance dispute between the Texan and the prince’s children. Prince Nicolo Boncompagni died in 2018.
Princess Rita Boncompagni Ludovisi poses for a photograph in front of Villa Aurora in Rome, Italy, November 16, 2021. A general view shows a room with frescoed ceilings by Italian artists including Guercino and Domenichino at Villa Aurora. A look at the painting “Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto” by Carvaggio, the only ceiling painting by the Italian master, in the Villa Aurora.
The Casino dell’Aurora was auctioned four times by state authorities in 2022 – its estimated value plummeted as bidders proved elusive.
At the first auction on January 18, 2022, the value of the house was estimated at 471 million euros. A second auction on April 30 set the price at €376 million, a third auction reduced the price to €301 million on June 30, and a final auction on October 18 set the price at €180 million.
No one was bidding at any of the auctions, and Princess Rita told CNN she believes the Italian state auction house did not adequately advertise it.
A statue of Pan by Michelangelo can be seen outside the Villa Aurora.
Before becoming a princess, Rita Carpenter was married to John Jenrette, the former US lawmaker who was embroiled in the Abscam corruption scandal, resigned in 1980 and subsequently went to prison.
In 1981, she gave a widely acclaimed interview to Playboy magazine detailing having sex with Jenrette on the steps of the US Capitol. The episode led to a not-so-best-selling memoir, My Capitol Secrets, which was released that year.
According to her official bio, she has appeared in plays and films including Zombie Island Massacre.
Princess Rita told reporters at the Casino dell’Aurora as she left Thursday that she was writing a new book about her latest ordeal.