County of Apulia and Calabria

County of Apulia and Calabria Comitatus Apuliae et Calabriae(Latin)
1043–1130
Motto:Servire Nescit(Latin)
The Duchy (in green) in the political context of Italy and the Balkans in 1084.
Status	Vassal stateof thePapacy
Capital	Melfi(1043–1077) Salerno(1077–1130)
Common languages	Old Norman Italian Latin Greek
Religion	Roman Catholicism Greek Orthodoxy
Demonym(s)	Normans(generally), Lombards,Apulians,Calabrians
Government	Feudalmonarchy
Count/Duke
• 1043–1046	William I
• 1059–1085	Robert I
• 1085–1111	Roger Borsa
• 1111–1127	William II
Historical era	Middle Ages
•LombardlordselectWilliam of Hautevilleas Count	1043
•Emperor Henry IIIrecognizes the County	1047
•Battle of Civitate;Pope Leo IXrecognizes the County	1053
•Treaty of Melfi;the County becomes a Duchy	1059
•Norman conquest of Salerno	1076
• Death of the childlessWilliam II	1127
•Coronation of Roger;Duchy annexed toSicily	1130
Currency	Follis(common)
Preceded by Succeeded by Catepanate of Italy Principality of Salerno Duchy of Benevento Emirate of Sicily Kingdom of Sicily Principality of Taranto
Today part of	Italy

TheCounty of Apulia and Calabria(Latin:Comitatus Apuliae et Calabriae), later theDuchy of Apulia and Calabria(Latin:Ducatus Apuliae et Calabriae), was aNormanstate founded byWilliam of Hautevillein 1043, composed of the territories ofGargano,Capitanata,Apulia,Vulture,and most ofCampania.It became a duchy whenRobert Guiscardwas raised to the rank of duke byPope Nicholas IIin 1059.

The duchy was disestablished in 1130, when the last duke of Apulia and Calabria,Roger II,becameKing of Sicily.The title of duke was thereafter used intermittently as a title for the heir apparent to theKingdom of Sicily.

Creation

William I of Hauteville returned toMelfiin September 1042 and was recognized by all the Normans as supreme leader. He turned toGuaimar IV,Prince of Salerno,andRainulf Drengot,Count of Aversa,and offered both an alliance. With the unification of the Norman families of Altavilla and Drengot, Guaimar gave official recognition to the Norman conquests. At the end of the year and extending into 1043, William and Rainulf met in an assembly at Melfi with the Norman barons and the Lombards.

In the meeting, Guaimar IV of Salerno ensured the Hauteville dominance over Melfi. William of Hauteville formed the second core of his possessions and differentiated himself from Rainulf I of Aversa, head of the territories of Campania. All the barons present offered a tribute as a vassal to Guaimar, which recognized William I of Hauteville as the first to receive the title ofCount of Apulia.To tie it to himself, he offered to marry Guaimar's niece Guide, daughter ofGuy, Duke of Sorrento.Guaimar reconfirmed the title of count to Rainulf as well, which created the County of Puglia.

In 1047,Drogo of Hautevillewas made "count" of Apulia and Calabria by EmperorHenry III,with territories lost byGuaimar IVof thePrincipality of Salerno.

Duchy of Apulia and Calabria

The Duchy of Apulia and Calabria within Southern Italy in 1112

In 1043, the prince of Salerno, Guiamar V, had been acclaimedDuke of Apulia and Calabriaalthough the legitimacy of this title (as it was not officially recognized by anyuniversal power) could be considered juridically doubtful; in fact, in 1047, the emperor Henry III intervened to claim the ducal title.

However, after 1059, the county was officially namedDucato di Puglia e Calabria( "Duchy of Apulia and Calabria" ), becauseRobert Guiscardwas named a "duke"byPope Nicholas II.

Salerno was conquered in 1077 by the Normans, and these territories were added to the Duchy of Apulia and Calabria and with this conquest, the Normans controlled all of continental southern Italy, with the exception of the smallDuchy of Naples.The next year, the capital was moved from Melfi to Salerno, and the Normans began to focus on completing the conquest ofSicily.They gradually created, until 1091, the precursor of theKingdom of Sicily,the first unified state in southern Italy that was founded in 1130.

Salerno remained the capital of this southern Italian political entity for half a century (from 1078 to 1130), the city flourished with theSchola Medica Salernitana,the first medical school in Europe.

List of counts and dukes

Azzo of Spoleto (Duke of Calabria)

Name	Portrait	Birth	Reign		Marriage	Notes
			Start	End
Azzo of Spoleto (circa 969–983)
Azzo of Spoleto		?	969	circa983	?	OfLangobardorigins, he was named Duke byOtto the Great.He disappeared under dubious circumstances, at the time in which Byzantines recaptured Calabria.

Melus of Bari (Duke of Apulia)

Name	Portrait	Birth	Reign		Marriage	Notes
			Start	End
Melus of Bari(1015–1020)
Melus of Bari		circa970	1015	1020	Maralda 1 son	OfLangobardorigins, but of Greek culture, he rebelled against the byzantines.Emperor Henry IIgave him the title of Duke.

Guaimar of Salerno (Duke of Apulia and Calabria)

Name	Portrait	Birth	Reign		Marriage	Notes
			Start	End
Guaimar(1043–1047)
Guaimar		1013 circa	1043	1047	Gemma of Capua 1 son, 3 daughters	He was the first son ofGuaimar III of Salernoand Gaitelgrima of Benevento. In 1042-43 atMelfi,by approving the election ofWilliam of Hautevilleas Count of Apulia, he obtained the Duchy of Apulia and Calabria.

William is usually considered the first count of Apulia and Calabria, but he was never recognized as such by the emperor. In 1047, Holy RomanEmperor Henry IIItook away Guaimar's ducal title. He christened William's successor (and brother) DrogoDux et Magister Italiae comesque Normannorum totius Apuliae et Calabriaeand made him a direct vassal of the empire.

Counts

• William I Iron Arm1043–46
• Drogo1046–51
• Humphrey1051–57
• Robert Guiscard1057–59

Dukes

• Robert Guiscard1059–85
• Roger I Borsa1085–1111
• William II1111–27

In 1127 the duchy passed to thecount of Sicily.It was thereafter used intermittently as a title for the heir apparent.

• Roger II1127–34, alsoking of Sicily(1130–54)
• Roger III1134–48, son of previous, opposed by...
  • Ranulf1137–39, candidate ofPope Innocent IIandLothair II, Holy Roman Emperor
• William III1148–54, also king of Sicily (1154–66)
• Roger IV1154–61, son of previous

The title was left vacant after the death of Roger IV. It may have been revived for a short-lived son ofWilliam II:

• Bohemond1181

It was revived byKing Tancredfor his eldest son in 1189:

• Roger V1189–93

See also

• Province of Apulia and Calabria

References

• Chalandon, Ferdinand.Histoire de la domination normande en Italie et en Sicile.Paris: 1907.
• Houben, Hubert (translated by Graham A. Loud and Diane Milburn).Roger II of Sicily: Ruler between East and West.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
• Matthew, Donald.The Norman Kingdom of Sicily.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
• Norwich, John Julius.The Normans in the South 1016–1130.London: Longman, 1967.
• Norwich, John Julius.The Kingdom in the Sun 1130–1194.London: Longman, 1970.
• Takayama, Hiroshi.The Administration of the Norman Kingdom of Sicily.BRILL, 1993.

External links

• History of the Norman World