Torbeno or Turbino was briefly Judge of Cagliari after Constantine I

Constantine I of Cagliari

Constantine I was the giudice of Cagliari. He was the son of the giudice Orzocco Torchitorio and giudicessa Vera. In the eleventh century, the throne of Cagliari traditionally passed between the houses of Torchitorio de Ugunale and Salusio de Lacon. Constantine took the name Salusio II upon his...

 for an unknown period between 1090, when Constantine last appears in the sources, and 1108, when Constantine's son Torchitorio II

Torchitorio II of Cagliari

Torchitorio II , also known by his birth name as Marianus II and surnamed de Unali, was the Judge of Cagliari from circa 1102 to his death, but initially with opposition....

 first appears as judge.

Torbeno subscribed to a diploma in 1089 as the brother of the judge, then Constantine. Thus, he reigned between his brother and his nephew. At that time, the principle of hereditary succession was not established in Sardinia

Sardinia

Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...

. Rather, the monarchy was elective. It appears that Torbeno was elected, probably with the support of the Republic of Pisa

Republic of Pisa

The Republic of Pisa was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late tenth and eleventh centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and...

, over the pretensions of his young nephew. His reign saw great liberality with the treasury in granting lands and other gifts to Pisans, probably as the price of their alliance. He also funded the construction of a new duomo (cathedral) at Pisa

Pisa

Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...

.

In 1103, a donation was made by his nephew, then judge, to the church of San Lorenzo in Genoa

Genoa

Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

 recognising the assistance of six Genoese galleys under Ottone Fornari in recuperating Torchitorio's dominion. Probably the Genoese, inveterate enemies of Pisa, were only too happy to overthrow Torbeno. Torbeno's last donation was dated to 1103.

Nevertheless, Torbeno does appear in later acts of his nephews as a relative (consanguineus) of the judge. He was a leader, alongside Saltaro of Torres

Saltaro of Torres

Saltaro was the son of Constantine I of Logudoro. His mother is unknown, it may have been Marcusa. Whether or not he is the same person as the "Saltaro de Gunale" pretender to the throne of Logudoro in 1127 during the reign of Gonario II is unknown....

, of the Sardinian contingent of the Pisan expedition against the Almoravids

Almoravids

The Almoravids were a Berber dynasty of Morocco, who formed an empire in the 11th-century that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus. Their capital was Marrakesh, a city which they founded in 1062 C.E...

 of the Balearic Islands

Balearic Islands

The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...

 in 1113. On his return, he was compared to Nestor

Nestor (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Nestor of Gerenia was the son of Neleus and Chloris and the King of Pylos. He became king after Heracles killed Neleus and all of Nestor's siblings...

 of Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...

.

Sources

• Manno, Giuseppe. Storia di Sardegna. 2005.