Principality of Taranto
Encyclopedia
The Principality of Taranto was a state in southern Italy created in 1088 for Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard
, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa
after a dispute over the succession to the Duchy of Apulia.
Taranto
became the capital of the principality, which covered almost all of the heel of Apulia. During its subsequent 377 years of history, it was sometimes a powerful and almost independent feudal fief of the Kingdom of Sicily
(and later of Naples
), sometimes only a title, often given to the heir to the crown or to the husband of a reigning queen. When the House of Anjou
was divided, Taranto fell to the house of Durazzo (1394–1463).
Ferdinand I of Naples
united the Principality of Taranto to the Kingdom of Naples at the death of his wife, Isabella of Taranto
. The principality came to an end, but the kings of Naples continued giving the title of Prince of Taranto to their sons, firstly to the future Alfonso II of Naples
, eldest son of Isabella.
Hauteville (Altavilla) dynasty
Hohenstaufen (Svevia) dynasty
Angevin (Angiò) dynasty
Baux (Del Balzo) dynasty
Orsini dynasty
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa
Roger Borsa
Roger Borsa was the Norman Duke of Apulia and effective ruler of southern Italy from 1085 until his death. He was the son of Robert Guiscard, the conqueror of southern Italy and Sicily; Roger was not as adept as his father, and most of his reign was spent in feudal anarchy.-Biography:Roger was the...
after a dispute over the succession to the Duchy of Apulia.
Taranto
Taranto
Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
became the capital of the principality, which covered almost all of the heel of Apulia. During its subsequent 377 years of history, it was sometimes a powerful and almost independent feudal fief of the Kingdom of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
(and later of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
), sometimes only a title, often given to the heir to the crown or to the husband of a reigning queen. When the House of Anjou
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
was divided, Taranto fell to the house of Durazzo (1394–1463).
Ferdinand I of Naples
Ferdinand I of Naples
Ferdinand I , also called Don Ferrante, was the King of Naples from 1458 to 1494. He was the natural son of Alfonso V of Aragon by Giraldona Carlino.-Biography:...
united the Principality of Taranto to the Kingdom of Naples at the death of his wife, Isabella of Taranto
Isabella of Taranto
Isabella of Taranto , born Isabella of Clermont, was a Princess of Taranto in her own right and first Queen consort of Ferdinand I of Naples.-Family:...
. The principality came to an end, but the kings of Naples continued giving the title of Prince of Taranto to their sons, firstly to the future Alfonso II of Naples
Alfonso II of Naples
Alfonso II of Naples , also called Alfonso II d'Aragon, was King of Naples from 25 January 1494 to 22 February 1495 with the title King of Naples and Jerusalem...
, eldest son of Isabella.
Counts
- GeoffreyGeoffrey of TarantoGeoffrey, Godfrey, or Goffredo , called Lofredus in Latin, was an Italo-Norman military leader and the first Count of Taranto. He was the second son of Peter I of Trani, though of his elder brother, Amicus, nothing is known...
(1063 – bef. 1072) - RichardRichard of AndriaRichard was Bishop of Andria, Italy. He was appointed to the see of Andria by felllow Englishman Pope Adrian IV. In 1179, Richard was one of the Bishops present at the Eleventh Ecumenical Council held by Pope Alexander III. He remained in his office until his death, a period of well over 40 years....
(bef. 1072–1080)- PeterPeter II of TraniPeter II was the third Italo-Norman count of Trani. He was the youngest of three sons of Peter I; his elder brothers were Amico and Geoffrey....
, as regent
- Peter
- Robert GuiscardRobert GuiscardRobert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
(1080–1085) - Bohemond (1085–1088)
Hauteville (Altavilla) dynastyHauteville familyThe family of the Hauteville was a petty baronial Norman family from the Cotentin which rose to prominence in Europe, Asia, and Africa through its conquests in the Mediterranean, especially Southern Italy and Sicily...
- 1088 - Bohemond I (1054–1111), later Bohemond I prince of the crusader state of AntiochAntiochAntioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
; - 1111 - Bohemond II (1108, 1130), also prince of Antioch;
- 1128 - King Roger IIRoger II of SicilyRoger II was King of Sicily, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, later became Duke of Apulia and Calabria , then King of Sicily...
(1093–1154), duke of Apulia, king of Sicily, unifier of Southern Italy; - 1132 - TancredTancred, Prince of BariTancred of Hauteville , one of many of that name, was the Prince of Bari and Taranto from 1132 to 1138.He was the second son of Roger II of Sicily and his first wife Elvira of Castile...
, son of Roger II, prince of BariBariBari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
, received the principality from his father; - 1138 - William IWilliam I of SicilyWilliam I , called the Bad or the Wicked, was the second king of Sicily, ruling from his father's death in 1154 to his own...
, later king of Sicily, son of Roger II, became prince of Taranto at the death of his brother Tancred; - 1144 - SimonSimon, Prince of TarantoSimon, bastard son of Roger II of Sicily, was created by his father Prince of Taranto in 1144, on the death of Roger III, Duke of Apulia, the eldest legitimate son of Roger II....
, son of Roger II, became prince of Taranto when his brother William became prince of CapuaCapuaCapua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
and Duke of Apulia; - 1157 - William IIWilliam II of SicilyWilliam II , called the Good, was king of Sicily from 1166 to 1189. William's character is very indistinct. Lacking in military enterprise, secluded and pleasure-loving, he seldom emerged from his palace life at Palermo. Yet his reign is marked by an ambitious foreign policy and a vigorous diplomacy...
, later king of Sicily; - 1189 - King Tancred of SicilyTancred of SicilyTancred was King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194. He was an illegitimate son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia, the eldest son of King Roger II, and of Emma, daughter of Achard II, Count of Lecce...
- 1194 - William IIIWilliam III of SicilyWilliam III was briefly king of Sicily for 10 months in 1194.He was the second son of King Tancred of Sicily and Sibylla of Acerra. At the age of four, shortly after the death of first his older brother Roger V, Duke of Apulia, and then a few weeks later of his father the king , William was...
, king of Sicily (deposed), Count of Lecce;
Hohenstaufen (Svevia) dynastyHohenstaufenThe House of Hohenstaufen was a dynasty of German kings in the High Middle Ages, lasting from 1138 to 1254. Three of these kings were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194 the Hohenstaufens also became Kings of Sicily...
- 1194 - King HenryHenry VI, Holy Roman EmperorHenry VI was King of Germany from 1190 to 1197, Holy Roman Emperor from 1191 to 1197 and King of Sicily from 1194 to 1197.-Early years:Born in Nijmegen,...
, Holy Roman Emperor and king of Sicily;- 1198 - Robert;
- 1200 - Guy Walter III of BrienneWalter III of BrienneWalter III of Brienne was the Count of Brienne 1191–1205, Prince of Taranto, Duke of Apulia, and Count of Lecce, and titular King of Sicily 1201–1205....
, husband of (Albinia, Elvira) Mary of Lecce of Altavilla, daughter of King Tancred of SicilyTancred of SicilyTancred was King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194. He was an illegitimate son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia, the eldest son of King Roger II, and of Emma, daughter of Achard II, Count of Lecce...
(Tancred of Hauteville, Count of Lecce). Title confiscated at the death of Walter;
- 1205 - King FrederickFrederick II, Holy Roman EmperorFrederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...
; - 1250 - Manfred of SicilyManfred of SicilyManfred was the King of Sicily from 1258 to 1266. He was a natural son of the emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen but his mother, Bianca Lancia , is reported by Matthew of Paris to have been married to the emperor while on her deathbed.-Background:Manfred was born in Venosa...
, son of Frederick II, later also king;
Angevin (Angiò) dynastyCapetian House of AnjouThe Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
- 1266 - King Charles ICharles I of SicilyCharles I , known also as Charles of Anjou, was the King of Sicily by conquest from 1266, though he had received it as a papal grant in 1262 and was expelled from the island in the aftermath of the Sicilian Vespers of 1282...
(1227–1285), defeated Manfred and was created King of Sicily by the pope; - 1285 - King Charles IICharles II of NaplesCharles II, known as "the Lame" was King of Naples, King of Albania, Prince of Salerno, Prince of Achaea and Count of Anjou.-Biography:...
(1248–1309), son of Charles I, king of Naples; - 1294 - Philip IPhilip I of TarantoPhilip I of Taranto : of the Angevin house, was titular Emperor of Constantinople , despot of Epirus, King of Albania, Prince of Achaea and Taranto, and Lord of Durazzo....
(1278–1332), son of Charles II, and titular Latin Emperor; - 1332 - Robert of TarantoRobert of TarantoRobert II of Taranto , of the Angevin family, Prince of Taranto , King of Albania , Prince of Achaea , Titular Emperor of Constantinople ....
(1299–1364), son of Philip I; - 1346 - Louis of TarantoLouis of TarantoLouis I of Naples , of the House of Anjou, was the Prince of Taranto from 1346 and King of Naples from 1352. He was a son of Philip I of Taranto and Catherine II of Valois, Princess of Achaea. His paternal grandparents were Charles II of Naples and Maria of Hungary...
(1308–1362), son of Philip I, simultaneously king-consort of Naples; - 1364 - Philip IIPhilip II of TarantoPhilip II of Taranto of the Angevin house, was Prince of Achaea and Taranto, and titular Emperor of Constantinople from 1364 to his death in 1374....
(1329–1374), son of Philip I, and titular Latin Emperor;- 1356 - Philip III, son of Philip II, died in his youth, the title returned to his father;
Baux (Del Balzo) dynastyLords of BauxThis is a list of the Lords, Barons and Marquisses of Baux.-Lords of Baux of the House of Baux:*Pons , father of*Hugh 1 , father of*William I Hugh , father of*Raymond I , father of*Hugh II...
- 1374 - James of BauxJames of BauxJames of Baux , Duke of Andria, was the last titular Latin Emperor of Constantinople from 1374 to 1383 and Prince of Achaea from 1382 to 1383....
, nephew of Philip II, and titular Latin Emperor;
Welf or Brunswick (Este del Guelfo) dynasty
- 1383 - Otto (1320–1398), widower of Joan I of NaplesJoan I of NaplesJoan I , born Joanna of Anjou, was Queen of Naples from 1343 until her death. She was also Countess of Provence and Forcalquier, Queen consort of Majorca and titular Queen of Jerusalem and Sicily 1343–82, and Princess of Achaea 1373/5–81....
;
Orsini dynastyOrsini familyOrsini: the origin of learning.We love Mrs. Orsini forever! ~8F Social Studies 2011The Orsini family is an Italian noble family; it was one of the most influential princely families in medieval Italy and renaissance Rome...
- 1393 - Raimondo del Balzo OrsiniRaimondo del Balzo OrsiniRaimondo Del Balzo Orsini , also known as Raimondello was a nobleman of the Kingdom of Naples. He was Count of Soleto , Duke of Benevento , Prince of Taranto , Count of Lecce , Duke of Bari, Grand Constable of the Kingdom of Naples, Gonfalonier of the Holy Roman Church Raimondo Del Balzo Orsini...
, also known as Raimondello, husband of Mary of EnghienMary of EnghienMary of Enghien, also Maria d'Enghien, was Countess of Lecce from 1384 to 1446, and, by her second marriage, Queen of Naples and titular Queen of Sicily, Jerusalem, and Hungary .- Family :...
, the Brienne heiress; - 1406 - Ladislaus of Durazzo, king of Naples, second husband of Mary of EnghienMary of EnghienMary of Enghien, also Maria d'Enghien, was Countess of Lecce from 1384 to 1446, and, by her second marriage, Queen of Naples and titular Queen of Sicily, Jerusalem, and Hungary .- Family :...
; - 1414 - James I of Bourbon-La Marche, husband of Joan II of NaplesJoan II of NaplesJoan II was Queen of Naples from 1414 to her death, upon which the senior Angevin line of Naples became extinct. As a mere formality, she used the title of Queen of Jerusalem, Sicily, and Hungary....
and briefly king-consort - 1420 - Giovanni Antonio del Balzo OrsiniGiovanni Antonio del Balzo OrsiniGiovanni Antonio Del Balzo Orsini was Prince of Taranto, Duke of Bari, Count of Lecce, Acerra, Soleto and Conversano, as well as Count of Matera and of Ugento ....
, son of Mary and Raimondello; - 1463 - Isabella of ClermontIsabella of TarantoIsabella of Taranto , born Isabella of Clermont, was a Princess of Taranto in her own right and first Queen consort of Ferdinand I of Naples.-Family:...
, niece of Giovanni Antonio
See also
- History of TarantoHistory of TarantoThe history of Taranto dates back to the 8th century BC when it was founded as a Greek colony, known as Taras.-Foundation and splendour:Taranto was founded in 706 BC by Dorian immigrants as the only Spartan colony, and its origin is peculiar: the founders were Partheniae, sons of unmarried Spartan...