Aleramici

Aleramici

Aleramici

Medieval Italian noble family

The Aleramici were a Northern Italian noble and royal dynasty of Frankish[1] origin which ruled various northwestern Italian territories in Piedmont and Liguria from the 10th to the 14th century, also reigning over the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Kingdom of Thessalonica during the 12th and 13th centuries.

The four imperial margraviates of northern Italy in the 10th century (Aleramici in green)
Coat of Arms of the Aleramici of Savona or del Vasto
Coat of arms of the extinct Aleramici of Monferrato

Their name derived from count Aleramo, proclaimed first Marquis of Central Liguria by emperor Otto the Great in 966. The Aleramici were divided in two main lines: the Marquises of Savona or Del Vasto, and the Marquises of Monferrato. In the 14th century the line of Monferrato ended in Irene of Montferrat, Empress of Constantinople, whilst the line of Savona carried on in multiple descending branches.

History

The oldest known member of the lineage was the Frankish count Willehmus, a Burgundian who is thought to have gone to the Carolingian Kingdom of Italy around 888 or 889, possibly to aid Guy III of Spoleto in his quest for the Iron Crown of Lombardy. His son Aleramo, received from King Hugh of Italy the first feudal domains in Central Liguria in the year 933, later confirmed by Holy Roman Emperor Otto the Great, who in addition granted him and his descendants the hereditary title of Marchio or Margrave of the Holy Roman Empire.

The Aleramici formed one of the four imperial margraviates in the northern Kingdom of Italy, soon becoming one of the most powerful dynasties of the Middle Ages. Due to their ancestral Salic tradition, they divided their original territory into multiple marquisates, grouped into two main lines founded by Aleramo's two surviving sons: the Marquises of Savona, or del Vasto, descendants of the eldest son Anselmo, and the Marquises of Monferrato, descendants of the youngest son Otto. Despite their constant territorial division between the multiple male descendants, the Aleramici managed to maintain control over an important part of the Piedmont and the Eastern flank of the Ligurian Bay, forming powerful alliances throughout the ruling houses of Europe, including the Capetians and the Hohenstaufens.

The cadet line of Monferrato gained notable influence and power through their involvement in the Crusades, becoming kings and queens of Jerusalem, first by marriage and then by succession in the 12th century. Recognized as a royal lineage, the Aleramici of both lines married into numerous of royal dynasties, most notably the three Byzantine Imperial dynasties of Comnenus, Angelus and Palaeologus, with whom they formed their most important alliance. As a result of the Fourth Crusade, the Aleramici founded the Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica, then replaced by the Empire of Thessalonica. During this period, two women of the Monferrato line held the title of "Empress Consort" of the Eastern Roman Empire (Empress Agnes and Empress Irene). By the 14th century the Marquisate of Monferrato passed to Theodore I Paleologus, son of Empress Irene, last of the Aleramici of Monferrato.

Despite the extinction of their cadet branch, the Aleramici survived the Middle Ages through the multiple descending branches of the Marquises of Savona, including the Marquises of Saluzzo (from 1135 to 1548), Finale (ruled by the Aleramici del Carreto from 1135 to 1602), Ceva, Busca, Clavesana, Loreto, Bosco, Belforte, Ussecio, Pareto, Varazze, Ponzone, amongst others, whose domains were mostly absorbed by the Republic of Genoa between the 12th and 14th centuries.[2] Only the Marquises of Finale and the Marquises of Saluzzo continued to rule over part of the original Aleramician domains until the 16th century.

Rulers of the Aleramic dynasty

Aleramic dynasty

Partitions of Liguria under Aleramic rule

Marquisate of Liguria
(924-991)
Marquisate of Western Liguria
(991-1125)		       
       Marquisate
of Occimiano
(991-1275)
Marquisate
of Rocchetta
(1084-1203)		 Marquisate of
Eastern Liguria
Evolved as:
Marquisate of
Montferrat
(991-1306)
       Marquisate
of Busca
(Lancia branch)
(1125-1281)		 Marquisate
of Ceva
(1125-1313)		 Marquisate
of Clavesana
(1125-1385)		 Marquisate
of Finale
(Del Carretto
branch)
(1125-1566)		       
Marquisate
of Incisa
(1125-1548)
Evolved as:
Marquisate
of Saluzzo
(Del Vasto branch)
(1125-1548)		       
Inherited by
Palaiologos dynasty
(1306-1536)
Acquired by the
House of Savoy
Divided between the
House of Savoy,
the Marquisate of Finale
and the Genoese Republic
       Marquisate
of Zuccarello
(Del Carretto
branch)
(1412-1631)
Inherited by the
House of Gonzaga
(from 1536)
Inherited by the
House of Gonzaga
Annexed to
France		 Annexed to
Spain
Annexed to the
Genoese Republic

Table of rulers

More information Ruler, Born ...

Family tree

Aleramici

Aleramo (958–991) I Marquis of Central Liguria
married 1. Adelaide 2. Gerberga of Ivrea (daughter of Berengar II of Italy cBerengar II, king of Lombardy)

See also

Notes

  1. [1]
    Arturo Segre, Aleramici, Enciclopedia Italiana (1929), Treccani
  2. [2]
    "Giornale Linguistico. Società Ligure di Storia Patria" (PDF).
  3. [3]
    Moriondus, J. B. (1790) Monumenta Aquensia (Turin), Pars II, col. 291.
  4. [4]
    The couple was already married in 1030, according to Monumenta Aquensia, Pars II, col. 299, quoting Ex libro miraculorum S. Bononii Abbatis Lucediensis, Acta Sanctorum, 30 Aug, Tome VI, p. 623, n. 20.
  5. [5]
    According to D H II 305, p. 379, he was at least documented in 1014.
  6. [6]
    Despite some sources referring a marriage to Alice of Savoy, a daughter of Peter II of Savoy, the marriage makes sense given the claimantship of the March of Turin (to which the Aleramics opposed the Savoyards). However, the degree of proximity between bride and groom was too close to be permitted.
  7. [7]
    According to C. Du Cange, Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, Graz, 1954, III, p. 82, Bonifacio's first bride was initially a bride of his brother Anselmo.
  8. [8]
    According to Cluny, Tome V, 3996, p. 348, they were already married in 1127.
  9. [9]
    He was alive in 1126, according to Monumenta Aquensia, Pars II, col. 320. It's possible that he lived at least until 1135
  10. [10]
    Despite being documented only until 1190, it's possible that she died in 1203, when her younger sons inherited her marquisate.
  11. [11]
    According to Hamilton (2000), p.XXI, they were already married on 28 March of that year.
  12. [12]
    According to Casale Monferrato, Vol. I, XVI, p. 25, they were already married in 1147.
  13. [13]
    Despite their names not being known, they were referenced as Enrico's children in 1203
  14. [14]
    Vergano, Ludovico; Gardino, Stefano (1969–70). "La donazione dei marchesi di Occimiano ad Alessandria nel 1198" [The donation of the marquises of Occimiano to Alessandria in 1198] (PDF). Rivista di Storia, Arte e Archeologia per le Province di Alessandria e Asti (in Italian): 610–21. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  15. [15]
    Referenced in 1178. See Vergano & Gardino (1969-70).
  16. [16]
    No references of his after 1202.
  17. [17]
    He was already dead in 1231
  18. [18]
    According to Monumenta Aquensia, Pars I, col. 114., he was living in 1198. According to Vergano & Gardino, he still lived in 1202.
  19. [19]
    According to Vergano & Gardino, he was still alive in 1202.
  20. [20]
    Nielen, M.-A. (ed.) (2003) Lignages d'Outremer (Paris), Le Vaticanus Latinus 7806, El parentado de Beimonte principe 9, p. 172.
  21. [21]
    He was already dead in 1269.
  22. [22]
    Kinkade 2004, p. 165.
  23. [23]
    According to Casale Monferrato, Vol. II, CCCXV, p. 118, their last reference dated 1269.
  24. [24]
    Olivero, Giovanni (1858). Presso Garrone Teonesto (ed.). Memorie storiche della città e marchesato di Ceva (in Italian).
  25. [25]
    Nicol (1994), pp. 52-3.
  26. [26]
    Federico was still a minor by the time of his accession, according to Gioffredo (1839), Vol. III, pp. 44-5, citing “Chiesa Cronaca di Saluzzo ms”.
  27. [27]
    This child, Giovanni of Saluzzo, was known as Marquis of Clavesana, according to Liber iurium reipublicæ Genvensis, Tome II, CCLXX, col. 952.
  28. [28]
    These two children, Emmanuele and Aleramo del Carretto, were Marquises of Clavesana, according to Liber iurium reipublicæ Genvensis, Tome II, CXCII, col. 550.

Works cited

  • Kinkade, Richard P. (2004). "Beatrice "Contesson" of Savoy (c. 1250–1290): The Mother of Juan Manuel". La corónica: A Journal of Medieval Hispanic Languages, Literatures, and Cultures. 2, Number 3, Summer (3): 163–225. doi:10.1353/cor.2004.0017. S2CID 163041548.
  • Marek, Miroslav. "Aleramici". genealogy.euweb.cz. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
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