Louis Anjou II and Yolanda of Aragon — my 17th great-grandparents Louis II (5 October 1377 – 29 April 1417) was King of Naples from 1389 until 1399, and Duke of Anjou from 1384 until 1417. He was a member of the House of Valois-Anjou. Born in Toulouse, Louis II was the son of Louis I of Anjou, Duke of Anjou and King of Naples,[1] and Marie of Blois. He came into his Angevin inheritance, which included Provence, in 1384, with his rival, Charles of Durazzo, of the senior Angevin line, in possession of Naples. Most towns in Provence revolted after the death of his father. His mother then raised an army and they traveled from town to town, to gain support. Louis was recognized as Count of Provence in 1387. He founded a university in Aix-en-Provence in 1409. In 1386, Charles of Durazzo’s son, the underage Ladislaus, was expelled from Naples soon after his father died. Louis II was crowned King of Naples by the Avignonese antipope Clement VII on 1 November 1389 and took possession of Naples the following year.[2] He was ousted in turn by his rival in 1399.[2] In 1409, Louis liberated Rome from Ladislaus’ occupation; in 1410, as an ally of the antipope John XXIII he attacked Ladislaus and defeated him at Roccasecca (1411).[3] Eventually Louis lost his Neapolitan support and had to retire. His claim to Naples passed to his son, Louis III.[3] He married his first cousin once removed Yolande of Aragon (1384–1443) in Arles in 1400,[2] giving him a possibility of inheriting the throne of Aragon through her right. Her father, King John I of Aragon had died in 1396, and her uncle king Martin I of Aragon died in 1410. His son, Louis, was initially betrothed to Catherine of Burgundy, a daughter of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy.[4] However, after the Duke of Burgundy instigated a mob attackon the Dauphin of France, Louis and his wife joined the Armagnac Faction.[4] The betrothal to Catherine was repudiated, which caused the enmity of the Duke of Burgundy.[4] He was not present at the Battle of Agincourt, because he had a bladder infection. After the battle, he fled from Paris to join his wife and children at Angers. Louis II died at his chateau of Angers, the county town of Anjou; he is buried there. Louis and Yolande had five surviving children: Louis III of Anjou, titular King of Naples and Duke of Anjou.[1] René of Anjou, King of Naples and Duke of Anjou.[1] Charles of Anjou (1414–1472), Count of Maine.[1] Marie of Anjou (1404–1463), married 1422 at Bourges, King Charles VII of France.[1] Yolande of Anjou (1412, Arles – 1440), married firstly Philip I, Duke of Brabant, and secondly in 1431, Francis I, Duke of Brittany. Yolanda of Aragon Click here to join our Facebook page Yolande of Aragon (11 August 1384 – 14 November 1442)[1] was a throne claimant and titular queen regnant of Aragon, titular queen consort of Naples, Duchess of Anjou, Countess of Provence, and regent of Provence during the minority of her son. She was a daughter of John I of Aragon and his wife Yolanda of Bar, (daughter of Robert I, Duke of Bar, and Marie of Valois). Yolande played a crucial role in the struggles between France and England, influencing events such as the financing of Joan of Arc‘s army in 1429 that helped tip the balance in favour of the French. She was also known as Yolanda de Aragón and Violant d’Aragó. Tradition holds that she commissioned the famous Rohan Hours. Yolande was born in Zaragoza, Aragon, on 11 August 1384, the eldest daughter of King John I of Aragon by his second wife, Yolande of Bar, the granddaughter of King John II of France. She had three brothers and two sisters, as well as five older half-siblings from her father’s first marriage to Martha of Armagnac. Yolande later played an important role in the politics of England, France, and Aragon during the first half of the 15th century. In 1389, Louis II was crowned King of Naples. His mother Marie of Blois opened negotiations for a marriage between her son and Yolande to prevent Aragon from obstructing his rule there. When Yolande was eleven, she signed a document to disavow any promises made by ambassadors about her marrying Louis II. In 1395, Richard II of England also opened negotiations for Yolande’s hand. To prevent this marriage, Charles VI of France offered his own daughter Isabella to King Richard. After the death of Yolande’s father, Marie of Blois convinced Yolande’s uncle Martin I of Aragon to have Yolande wed Louis II. Yolande signed a protest, but was forced to retract it later. The couple married in Arles on December 2, 1400. Despite Yolande’s earlier objections and the later illnesses of her husband, the marriage was a success. As the surviving daughter of King John I of Aragon, she claimed the throne of Aragon after the deaths of her elder sister Joanna, Countess of Foix, and her uncle, King Martin I. However, unclear though they were, the laws of succession for Aragon and Barcelona at that time were understood to favour all male relatives over the females (which is how Yolande’s uncle Martin of Aragon came to inherit the throne of Aragon). Martin died without surviving issue in 1410, and after two years without a king, the Estates of Aragon elected Ferdinand, the second son of Eleanor of Aragon and John I of Castile, as the next King of Aragon. The Anjou candidate for the throne of Aragon was Yolande’s eldest son Louis III of Anjou, Duke of Calabria, whose claim was forfeited in the Pact of Caspe. Yolande and her sons regarded themselves as the heirs with the stronger claim, and began to use the title of Kings of Aragon. As a result of this additional inheritance, Yolande was called the “Queen of Four Kingdoms” – the four apparently Sicily, Jerusalem, Cyprus and Aragon. Another interpretation specifies Naples separate from Sicily, plus Jerusalem and Aragon. The number could be raised to seven if the two component kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon (Majorca and Valencia) and Sardinia were included. However, the reality was that Yolande and her family controlled territories in the said kingdoms only at short intervals, if ever. Their true realm was the Anjou fiefdoms across France: they held uncontestably the provinces of Provence and Anjou, and also at times Bar, Maine, Touraine and Valois. Yolande’s son René I of Anjou became ruler of Lorraine through his marriage to Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine. In the emerging second phase of the Hundred Years’ War, Yolande chose to support the French (in particular the Armagnac party) against the English and the Burgundians. After John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, instigated a mob attack on the Dauphin of France in 1413, she and her husband repudiated the engagement of their son Louis to John’s daughter Catherine of Burgundy, which placed them decisively in the Armagnac camp. In the same year, Yolande met with Queen Isabeau of France to finalize a marriage contract between her daughter Marie and Isabeau’s third surviving son Charles. After his two older brothers died, she supported the claim of the Dauphin Charles who, relying upon Yolande’s resources and help, succeeded in becoming crowned Charles VII of France. As Charles’ own mother, Queen Isabeau, worked against his claims, it has been said that Yolande was the person who protected the adolescent Charles against all sorts of plots on his life and acted as a substitute mother. She removed Charles from his parents’ court and kept him in her own castles, usually those in the Loire Valley, where Charles received Joan of Arc. Yolande arranged the marriage of Charles to her daughter Mary of Anjou, thus becoming Charles’ mother-in-law. This led to Yolande’s personal, and crucial, involvement in the struggle for the survival of the House of Valois in France. Yolande’s marriage to Louis II of Anjou, at Arles in December 1400, was arranged as a part of long-standing efforts to resolve contested claims upon the kingdom of Sicily and Naples between the houses of Anjou and Aragon. Louis spent much of his life fighting in Italy for his claim to the Kingdom of Naples. In France, Yolande was the Duchess of Anjou and the Countess of Provence. She preferred to hold court in Angers and Saumur. She had six children, and through her second son René was the grandmother of Margaret of Anjou, the wife of King Henry VI of England. With the victory of the English over the French at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the Duchy of Anjou was threatened. The French king, Charles VI, was mentally ill and his realm was in a state of civil war between the Burgundians and the Orleanists (Armagnacs). The situation was made worse by an alliance among the Duke of Burgundy, John the Fearless, the English, and the French queen, Isabeau of Bavaria, who submitted to the Duke of Burgundy’s scheme to deny the crown of France to the children of Charles VI. Fearing the abusive power building behind the Duke of Burgundy, Louis II had Yolande move with her children and future son-in-law, Charles, to Provence in southern France.In the years 1415 and 1417, the two oldest surviving sons of Charles VI of France died in quick succession: first Louis, then Jean. Both brothers had been in the care of the Duke of Burgundy. Yolande was the protectress of her son-in-law, Charles, who became the new Dauphin. She refused Queen Isabeau’s orders to return Charles to the French Court, reportedly replying, “We have not nurtured and cherished this one for you to make him die like his brothers or to go mad like his father, or to become English like you. I keep him for my own. Come and take him away, if you dare.” (according to Jehan de Bourdigné) On 29 April 1417, Louis II of Anjou died of illness, leaving Yolande, at age 33, in control of the House of Anjou. She acted as regent for her son because of his youth. She also had the fate of the French royal house of Valois in her hands. Her young son-in-law, the Dauphin Charles, was exceptionally vulnerable to the designs of the English King, Henry V, and to his older cousin, John the Fearless, the Duke of Burgundy. Charles’ nearest older relatives, the Dukes of Orléans and of Bourbon, had been made prisoners at the Battle of Agincourt and were held captive by the English. With his mother, Queen Isabeau, and the Duke of Burgundy allied with the English, Charles had no resources to support him other than those of the House of Anjou and the smaller House of Armagnac. Following the assassination of John the Fearless at Montereau in 1419, his son Philip the Good succeeded him as Duke of Burgundy. With Henry V of England, he forced the Treaty of Troyes (21 May 1420) on the mentally-ill King Charles VI. The treaty designated Henry as “Regent of France” and heir to the French throne. Following this, the Dauphin Charles was declared disinherited in 1421. When both Henry V of England and Charles VI of France died in 1422 (on 31 August and 21 October, respectively), the Dauphin Charles, at age 19, legitimately became Charles VII of France. Charles’ title was challenged by the English and their Burgundian allies, who supported the candidacy of Henry VI of England, the infant son of Henry V and Catherine of Valois, Charles’ own sister, as king of France. This set the stage for the last phase of the Hundred Years’ War: the “War of Charles VII”. In this struggle, Yolande played a prominent role in surrounding the young Valois king with advisers and servants associated with the House of Anjou. She manoeuvred John VI, Duke of Brittany, into breaking an alliance with the English, and was responsible for a soldier from the Breton ducal family, Arthur de Richemont, becoming Constable of France in 1425. Yolande’s early and strong support of Joan of Arc, when others had doubts, suggests her possible larger role in orchestrating Joan’s appearance on the scene. Yolande unquestionably practised realistic politics. Using the Constable de Richemont, Yolande was behind the forceful removal of several of Charles VII’s advisers. Thus, La Trémoille was attacked and forced from the court in 1433. Yolande was not averse to recruiting beautiful women and coaching them to become the mistresses of influential men who would spy on them on her behalf. She had a network of such women in the courts of Lorraine, Burgundy, Brittany, and her son-in-law. The contemporary chronicler Jean Juvenal des Ursins (1433–44), Bishop of Beauvais, described Yolande as “the prettiest woman in the kingdom.” Bourdigné, chronicler of the house of Anjou, says of her: “She who was said to be the wisest and most beautiful princess in Christendom.” Later, King Louis XI of France recalled that his grandmother had “a man’s heart in a woman’s body.” A twentieth-century French author, Jehanne d’Orliac, wrote one of the few works specifically on Yolande, and noted that the duchess remains unappreciated for her genius and influence in the reign of Charles VII. “She is mentioned in passing because she is the pivot of all important events for forty-two years in France”, while “Joan [of Arc] was in the public eye only eleven months.” Yolande retired to Angers and then to Saumur. She continued to play a role in politics. When the bishopric in Angers fell vacant, she threatened Charles VII’s candidate with beheading if he showed up in the city. The king backed down and the post went to her secretary. At least from 1439 onwards, her granddaughter Margaret of Anjou came to live with her. Yolande taught her not only etiquette and literature, but also how to check account books. Her last act before her death was to prepare Margaret for a possible marriage with Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor. She received his ambassadors in Samur and presented her granddaughter to them. She died at the Château de Tuce-de-Saumur on 14 December 1443. She was betrothed in 1390 to Louis, the heir of Anjou (who had one year earlier succeeded in conquering Naples and become King Ludovico II of Naples), and married him on 2 December 1400 at Montpellier. Their children were: Louis III of Anjou (25 September 1403 – 12 November 1434), Duke of Anjou, Titular King of Naples. He was adopted by Queen Joanna II of Naples. Married Margaret of Savoy. Died childless; Marie of Anjou (14 October 1404 – 29 November 1463). Married in 1422 King Charles VII of France. Had issue including King Louis XI of France; René I of Naples (16 January 1409 – 10 July 1480), Duke of Anjou and Bar, Duke Consort of Lorraine, Titular King of Sicily and Naples. Married Duchess Isabella of Lorraine. They were the parents of Margaret of Anjou, Queen-Consort of England. Yolande of Anjou (13 August 1412 – 17 July 1440). Married in 1431 Francis, Count of Montfort l’Amaury, who succeeded his father in 1442 as Duke of Brittany. Charles of Anjou (14 October 1414 – 10 April 1472), Count of Maine (who never was Duke of Anjou, but his namesake son was). Married firstly Cobella Ruffo and secondly Isabelle de St.Pol, Countess of Guise. Had issue by both marriages.Courtesy of Wikipedia

Caracciolo Rossi D’Avalos Prince Marino Caracciolo III Knight of the Golden Fleece Me Prince MarinoThe feudal rights to Avellino were purchased in 1581 by Don Marino I Caracciolo, duke of Atripalda, of a patrician family of Naples, who was made Prince of Avellino in 1589. Avellino became the main seat of the Caracciolo. Don Marino’s son and grandson were consecutively Grand Chancellor of the Kingdom of Naples and chevaliers of the Order of the Golden Fleece. The grandson, Don Marino II (1587–1630), was the patron of Giambattista Basile, author of the Pentamerone. Don Marino II(* Atripalda 9-6-1587 + Naples 4-11-1630), 3rd Prince of Avellino, 4th Duke of Atripalda (the family status included the feuds of: Avellino, Atripalda, Torella, Sanseverino, Lancusi, Bella, Santa Sofia, Paltano, Galdone, Baraggiano and Parete) and Grand Chancellor of the Kingdom of Naples from 1617 and Patrizio Neapolitan, Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece since 1622, 1st Marchese di Sanseverino from 17-12-1618, 1st Count of Serino from 20-9-1635 (feud bought in about 1625), buy Capriglia on 28-8-1618 (feudal sold by his son on 7-5 / 29-12-1634), General of catafratti from 3-11-1630. Marriages 1612 Donna Lucrezia Aldobrandini, daughter of Gianfrancesco 1st Prince of Rossano and Olimpia Aldobrandini (+ about 1617) =1618 Donna Francesca d’Avalos d’Aquino of Aragon, daughter of Don Inigo 4th Prince of Francavilla and Donna Isabella d’Avalos d’Aquino d’Aragona of the Princes of Francavilla (+ 6-11-1676) (see / see) Order of the Golden Fleece

Saint Michael of Chernigov[1] or Mikhail Vsevolodovich[2] (c. 1185 – Saray, 20 September 1246) was a Rus’ prince (a member of the Rurik dynasty).[3] He was grand prince of Kiev (1236–1240, 1240, 1241–1243); and he was also prince of Pereyaslavl (1206), of Novgorod-Seversk (1219–1226), of Chernigov (1223–1235, 1242–1246), of Novgorod (1225–1226, 1229–1230), and of Halych (1235–1236).[2] Realtionship Chart to Prince Mikhail Relationship Chart Archaeological evidence reveals that Chernihiv towns enjoyed an unprecedented degree of prosperity during his period which suggests that promoting trade was a priority for him.[2]Commercial interests, in part, also motivated him to seize control of Halych and Kiev because they were channels through which goods from the Rhine valley and Hungary passed to Chernihiv (Ukraine).[2] He also negotiated commercial treaties and political alliances with the Poles and the Hungarians.[2] He alleviated the tax burden of the Novgorodians and granted their boyars greater political freedom from the prince.[2] He was the last autonomous senior prince of Kiev, where he was deposed not by a more powerful prince but by the invincible Mongols.[2] On the eve of Mongol invasion, he was one of the most powerful princes in Rus’.[2] He has been accused of ineffective leadership because he failed to unite the princes of Rus’ against the invaders; in his defense it must be pointed out that this was an impossible task.[2] Mikhail was the first prince of the Olgovichi (the dynasty of Chernigov) to become a martyr according to the commonly understood meaning of the word: he underwent the penalty of death for persistence in his Christian faith.[2] He and his boyar Fedor (Theodore) were tortured and beheaded by the Tatars.[1] They later became known as “The Passion-Sufferers of Chernigov” and “The Miracle-Workers of Chernigov”.[2]Archaeological evidence reveals that Chernihiv towns enjoyed an unprecedented degree of prosperity during his period which suggests that promoting trade was a priority for him.[2]Commercial interests, in part, also motivated him to seize control of Halych and Kiev because they were channels through which goods from the Rhine valley and Hungary passed to Chernihiv (Ukraine).[2] He also negotiated commercial treaties and political alliances with the Poles and the Hungarians.[2] He alleviated the tax burden of the Novgorodians and granted their boyars greater political freedom from the prince.[2] He was the last autonomous senior prince of Kiev, where he was deposed not by a more powerful prince but by the invincible Mongols.[2] On the eve of Mongol invasion, he was one of the most powerful princes in Rus’.[2] He has been accused of ineffective leadership because he failed to unite the princes of Rus’ against the invaders; in his defense it must be pointed out that this was an impossible task.[2] Mikhail was the first prince of the Olgovichi (the dynasty of Chernigov) to become a martyr according to the commonly understood meaning of the word: he underwent the penalty of death for persistence in his Christian faith.[2] He and his boyar Fedor (Theodore) were tortured and beheaded by the Tatars.[1] They later became known as “The Passion-Sufferers of Chernigov” and “The Miracle-Workers of Chernigov”.[2] He was the only known son of prince Vsevolod Svyatoslavich (who later became grand prince Vsevolod IV the Red of Kiev), by Anastasia,[2] the daughter of grand duke Casimir II of Poland.[3] The patrimonial domain of his father was located in the northwestern part of the Vyatichi lands where he undoubtedly spent his childhood.[2] Saint Nikita Stylites When Mikhail was a child, he suffered from a paralyzing illness.[2] His grandfather, grand prince Svyatoslav III Vsevolodovich of Kiev gave much wealth to churches in unsuccessful attempts to obtain a cure.[2] Finally, he heard of the miracle-worker Nikita living in the Monastery of St. Nicetas at Pereyaslavl-Zalessky in Suzdalia.[2] The prince, accompanied by boyars, rode to the town and arrived at the monk‘s pillar.[2] The stylite gave his staff to one of his boyars to take to the prince; Mikhail took hold of it, was cured, and walked to the miracle-worker’s pillar for his blessing.[2]Following his cure, he gave a generous benefaction to the monastery and ordered a stone cross to be erected, according to one source on 16 May 1186, on the spot where he was cured.[2]Although the event is reported only in late sources and embellished with pious details, the account has a ring of truth.[2] In the summer of 1206, his father seized Kiev, sent his posadniki to all the Kievan towns, and forced grand prince Rurik Rostislavich to withdraw to Vruchiy (today Ovruch in Ukraine).[2] Vsevolod Svyatoslavich also evicted Yaroslav Vsevolodovich (son of grand prince Vsevolod Yuryevich of Vladimir) from Pereyaslavl, and gave the town to Mikhail.[2] However, Rurik Rostislavich was determined to regain control of Kiev, and expelled Vsevolod Svyatoslavich with relative ease.[2] Rurik Rostislavich also ordered Mikhail, who had only a small retinue at his disposal, to vacate Pereyaslavl, and thus he withdrew to his father in Chernihiv.[2] Some time in the summer of 1207, his father occupied again Kiev, but in October, Rurik Rostislavich rode to Kiev, drove out Vsevolod Svyatoslavich for the second time and occupied the town; Mikhail accompanied his father from Kiev.[2] No sources report Mikhail’s marriage, but evidence suggests that he married Elena Romanovna (or Maria Romanovna),[3] a daughter of prince Roman Mstislavich of Halych in 1210 or 1211.[2] In June 1212, prince Mstislav Romanovich of Smolensk, prince Mstislav Mstislavich the Bold of Novgorod and prince Ingvar Yaroslavich of Lutsk launched a major offensive against Vsevolod Svyatoslavich who confronted the attackers at Vyshgorod.[2] However, the Rostislavichi occupied Kiev.[2] Vsevolod Svyatoslavich fled from Kiev, probably accompanied by Mikhail, for the third time and sought safety in Chernihiv where he died sometime in August 1212.[2] Mikhail probably inherited Bryn, Serensk, and Mosalsk from his father.[2] When his uncle Gleb Svyatoslavich died between 1215 and 1220, and Mstislav II Svyatoslavich moved to Chernihiv, Mikhail, because of his status as the second in seniority, probably occupied Novgorod-Seversk.[2] The movements of Genghis Khan and his generals In the spring of 1223,[2] a strong Mongol cavalry corps under the command of Jebe and Subutai which had been sent by Genghis Khan to reconnoiter the “western lands” entered the land of the Cumans.[4] Unable to withstand the onslaught, the Cumans fled to Rus’ warning the princes that if they refused to send aid the same fate would befall them.[2] At the war council of the Rus’ princes it was decided not to wait for the coming of the Tatars but to attack them deep in the Cuman steppes.[4] Mikhail also attended the meeting.[2] The united forces of the princes went down the river Dnieper, and the first skirmish took place on the banks of the river.[4] In this vanguard battle Mstislav Mstislavich the Bold succeeded in defeating a detachment of Mongol troops.[4] Crossing the Dnieper, their armies marched through the steppes for 8 days before they met the main Mongol force at the banks of the Kalka River.[4] There was no unity of command in the Russian army.[4] The results were disastrous: a number of princes (including Mstislav II Svyatoslavich of Chernigov) had perished during the fight.[4]   The Holy Saviour Cathedral of Chernihiv (1030s) Mikhail was probably among the first survivors who returned to Chernihiv.[2] The chronicles do not tell us that Mikhail replaced Mstislav II Svyatoslavich as prince of Chernigov, but later evidence reveals that after his uncle’s demise he sat on the throne of his father and grandfather in the Holy Saviour Cathedral.[2] The ceremony probably took place around 16 June.[2]Because princes of his generation predeceased him and had no heirs, Mikhail, in his capacity as senior prince, assumed control over a number of their domains.[2] This accumulation of territories made him the largest landowner in the land.[2] Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod At that time, the Novgorodians acknowledged grand prince Yuri II Vsevolodovich of Vladimir as their overlord, but they frequently challenged his appointment of princes.[2] In 1224, his son, Vsevolod Yuryevich had to flee from Novgorod.[2] It appears that Mikhail was already in Vladimir on the Klyazma when Yuri Vsevolodovich learnt of his son’s flight.[2] Yuri Vsevolodovich threatened the Novgorodians to attack; in response, they confirmed their loyalty to him but made a pact to die in the defense of the Cathedral of St. Sofia.[2] Yuri Vsevolodovich, therefore, proposed that they accept Mikhail as prince.[2] The Novgorodians agreed and, in March 1225, Mikhail occupied Novgorod.[2] Nevertheless, Yuri Vsevolodovich demanded the sum of 7,000 novuyu as a fine from the citizens and confiscated their goods.[2] Mikhail went to Novgorod, where he acted as Yuri Vsevolodovich’s appointee and not as an autonomous ruler, with the intention of returning to Chernihiv.[2] One of his most important tasks was to recover the Novgorodians’ wares that Yuri Vsevolodovich had confiscated at Torzhok and in his own domain.[2] Before departing from Novgorod, Mikhail invited the townsmen to send merchants to Chernihiv and declared that their lands and his would be as one.[2] After he departed from Novgorod, the veche sent its request for a prince to Yuri Vsevolodovich’s brother, prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich of Pereyaslavl Zalesskiy.[2] About a year after Mikhail returned to Chernihiv, it appears he became involved in a dynastic dispute: Oleg Svyatoslavich of Kursk prepared to wage war on him.[2] The available evidence suggests that the bone of contention was Novhorod-Siverskyi.[2] It is noteworthy that the chroniclers accuse neither Mikhail nor Oleg of wrongdoing which suggests that each had a just cause.[2] During the winter of 1227, Yuri Vsevolodovich, and his nephews (prince Vasilko Konstantinovich of Rostov and prince Vsevolod Konstantinovich of Pereyaslavl) came to help Mikhail against Oleg Svyatoslavich; in addition to them, Metropolitan Kirill I of Kiev also helped to reconcile Mikhail with Oleg who evidently became the prince of Novgorod Seversk.[2] In 1228, grand prince Vladimir III Rurikovich of Kiev summoned Mikhail and attacked the latter’s brother-in-law, prince Daniil Romanovich of Volodymyr-Volynskyi, who had seized the towns of Lutsk and Chertoryysk, in Kamenets.[2] However, they failed to take Kamenets whose ability to withstand the siege is all the more impressive because Vladimir III Rurikovich allegedly attacked with all his allies.[2] In December 1228, the common people of Novgorod rose up in arms against tysyatskiy Vyacheslav and appointed Boris Negochevich in his place, and invited Yaroslav Vsevolodovich to return according to a new agreement.[2]They insisted that he abide by all their terms and by all the laws of Yaroslav the Wise; he also had to cancel the zaboshnitse (a special tax levied on churches which also served as warehouses), and to stop appointing his judgesin the Novgorodian lands.[2] On 20 February 1229, therefore, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich’s sons (Fedor Yaroslavich and Aleksandr Yaroslavich) fled to their father.[2] The Novgorodians got word to Mikhail, and he set out for Novgorod upon receiving the invitation; he arrived in Novgorod around the beginning of May.[2] Mikhail and the townsmen introduced measures to waken Yaroslav Vsevolodovich’s power: the veche appointed Vnezd Vodovik as the new posadnik and also removed his other administrators.[2] After levying heavy fines on Yaroslav Vsevolodovich’s supporters, the Novgorodians used the money for the benefit of the entire community by paying for the construction of a new bridge.[2] Mikhail’s pro-Novgorod legislation included granting the town officials some of the prince’s power: he permitted the boyars to appoint their own judges.[2] He also abrogated the zabozhnitse, placed a moratorium on the payment of tribute for five years on those peasants who had fled to other lands and agreed to return to their Novgorodian homes, and lessened the tax burden of the common people.[2] After spending some three months in Novgorod, Mikhail returned home.[2] When he departed from Novgorod, he designated his son Rostislav Mikhailovich to remain as his lieutenant, and on returning to Chernihiv he took with him prominent Novgorodians.[2] In May 1230 he returned to Novgorod where he installed his son on the throne.[2] Before departing, he promised the Novgorodians to return with troops by 14 September.[2] On 8 December the Novgorodians forced Rostislav Mikhailovich to flee to his father on just the feeble pretext that Mikhail had promised to bring troops by 14 September, but it was already December and he had not come.[2] In this way Yaroslav Vsevolodovich’s supporters evicted the Olgovichi from Novgorod, as it turned out, for the last time.[2] They summoned Yaroslav Vsevolodovich and he came on December 30.[2] Meanwhile, a core of dissenters found refuge with Mikhail; to secure his hegemony over Novgorod, therefore, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich had to stop Mikhail from giving them support.[2]   The Kievan Rus’ in 1237 In the summer or autumn of 1231, Mikhail waged war against grand prince Vladimir III Rurikovich of Kiev who sent an appeal for help to Daniil Romanovich (Mikhail’s brother-in-law).[2] We are told that Daniil Romanovich came and pacified the two princes.[2] In the autumn of 1231, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich attacked the northwest district of the Vyatichi lands.[2] He set fire to Serensk (which was most likely the administrative center of Mikhail’s patrimony), but when he besieged Mosalsk, he failed to take it.[2] Yaroslav, however, refused to conclude peace which signaled to Mikhail that he was prepared to pursue his objective until Mikhail expelled the Novgorodian fugitives from his lands.[2] Towards the end of 1231 Vnezd Vodovik died in Chernihiv; Mikhail had been bound to support Vodovik owing to their mutual oaths, and Vodovik’s deaths released him from that obligation.[2] Therefore, tysyatskiy Boris Negochevich and his band left Chernihiv before Easter of 1232.[2] In 1232, troops sent by Vladimir III Rurikovich pursued and captured the princes of Bolokhoveni who had invaded Daniil Romanovich’s lands and handed them over to the latter.[2] Mikhail and prince Iziaslav Vladimirovich of Putyvl threatened to attack Daniil Romanovich if he refused to release them.[2] Although Vladimir Rurikovich renewed his pact with Daniil Romanovich, Mikhail and Iziaslav Vladimirovich continued waging war against them.[2] In January 1235, Vladimir Rurikovich and Daniil Romanovich attacked Chernihiv, plundered the environs and set fire to the outer town hoping to make Mikhail submit.[2] He, however, promised Daniil Romanovich many gifts if he would desert Vladimir III Rurikovich.[2] Daniil Romanovich agreed and attempted to persuade Vladimir to lift the siege; but Mikhail sallied out of Chernihiv at night, caught Daniil Romanovich’s troops by surprise, and killed many of them.[2] His brother-in-law barely escaped and was forced to withdraw to the Kievan land.[2] Mikhail waited until Iziaslav Vladimirovich brought the Cumans and then rode in pursuit.[2] The two sides clashed near Torchesk where Vladimir Rurikovich and Daniil Romanovich were defeated, and the former and many boyars were also taken captive.[2] Meanwhile, Mikhail’s allies took Kiev where he evidently made the German merchants, who had come to Kiev via Novgorod, pay redemption-fees for their goods, and then appointed his puppet, Izyaslav Mstislavich (one of the Rostislavichi) to the throne.[2] Halych-Volhynia in the 13th-14th century At an undisclosed date after Daniil Romanovich returned to Halych from his defeat at Torchesk, its boyars rebelled and forced him to flee to Hungary.[2] Towards the end of September, Mikhail occupied Halych, while his comrade-in-arms, Izyaslav Vladimirovich seized Kamenets.[2] In the spring of 1236, Mikhail attacked Daniil Romanovich in Volhynia.[2] In addition to his own retinue, he was probably accompanied by Galician boyars, the princes of Bolokhoveni, and troops from the Kievan land.[2] He also sent Izyaslav Vladimirovich to bring the Cumans; and finally, he summoned duke Konrad I of Masovia (his maternal uncle) who had broken off friendly ties with Daniil Romanovich.[2] The size of his attacking force suggests that he intended to capture his brother-in-law’s capital of Volodymyr-Volynskyi.[2] However, the Cumans plundered the Galician lands forcing Mikhail to abandon his campaign.[2] Meanwhile, king Béla IV of Hungary renewed his father‘s pact with Mikhail, and seemingly relinquished his claim to Halych and also agreed to give Mikhail military aid.[2] At the beginning of the summer of 1236, Daniil Romanovich and his brother Vasilko Romanovich rallied their troops to march against Mikhail.[2] However, he barricaded himself in Halych with his retinue, the local militia, and a contingent of Hungarians.[2] Dissuaded from taking Halych, they sought to assuage their frustration by seizing its northern outpost of Zvenigorod, but its citizens repelled the attack.[2] After the Hungarian troops had departed, Daniil Romanovich tried again; Mikhail attempted to placate his brother-in-law by giving him Przemyśl whose inhabitants had supported him in the past.[2] Meanwhile, grand prince Yuri II Vsevolodovich of Vladimir and Daniil Romanovich formed a pact, forced Vladimir Ryurikovich, who had replaced Izyaslav Mstislavich, to vacate Kiev, and appointed Yury Vsevolodovich’s brother Yaroslav Vsevolodovich to the town.[2] The latter arrived in Kiev around March 1236; but he failed to consolidate his rule and returned to Suzdalia.[2]After appointing his son to rule Halych, Mikhail came to Kiev where he entered uncontested.[2] Soon after occupying Kiev, he and his son attacked Przemyśl and took it back from Daniil Romanovich.[2] The people of Halych, however, summoned Daniil Romanovich around 1237, and installed him as prince; Mikhail’s son fled to king Béla IV and all the boyars of Halych submitted to Mikhail’s brother-in-law.[2]   In the winter of 1237, Batu Khan came to the frontiers of Ryazan; it is possible that Prince Yury Ingvarevich (Prince of Ryazan)|Yury Ingvarevich of Ryazan sent his brother, Ingvar II Ingvarevich (Prince of Ryazan)|Ingvar Ingvarevich to Chernihiv to seek help from Mikhail, but he sent no troops to the beleaguered princes.[2] On 21 December the Mongols took Ryazan, and they plundered the treasures of the inhabitants including the wealth of their relatives from Kiev and Chernihiv.[2] Sacking of Suzdal by Batu Khan in February 1238 In March 1238 the Mongols, who had routed Yuri II Vsevolodovich’s troops and killed him, continued their march, and in the Vyatichi lands they came upon the town of Kozelsk, and they struggled 7 weeks to crush it.[2] Archaeological evidence reveals that Mikhail’s domains of Mosalsk and Serensk suffered the same fate.[2] The second phase of the Mongol invasion began early in 1239; on March 3 one contingent took Pereyaslavl and set fire to it.[2] Not long after Pereyaslavl fell, it would appear, Mikhail went to Kamenets, and organized a general evacuation of his retinue from Kiev.[2] However, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich in Suzdalia got word of his destination; he besieged Kamenets, captured Mikhail’s wife, and seized much booty, but Mikhail escaped and returned to Kiev.[2] When Daniil Romanovich learnt that his sister (Mikhail’s wife) was being held captive, he asked Yaroslav Vsevolodovich to send her to him.[2] In the autumn of 1239, the Mongols, who had occupied Chernihiv on October 18, sent messengers to Kiev proposing peace, but Mikhail refused to submit.[2] During the first half of 1240, we are told, Batu Khan sent Möngke to reconnoiter Kiev; when his messengers came to Mikhail for the second time seeking to coax him into submitting, he defied the khan by putting his envoys to deaths.[2] The forces in Rus’ on whom Mikhail could still rely were his own druzhina and the Kievan militia, and therefore he fled to Hungary.[2] In the chaos that preceded the invasion of the west bank of the river Dnieper, minor princelings and boyars took advantage of the opportunities that presented themselves to seize power: Rostislav Mstislavich seized Kiev, but he was evicted by Daniil Romanovich.[2] Meanwhile, Mikhail had arrived in Hungary where he attempted to arrange a marriage for his son Rostislav Mikhailovich with the king’s daughter.[2] In the light of Mikhail’s plight, Béla IV saw no advantage to forming such an alliance and evicted Mikhail and his son from Hungary.[2] In Mazovia, Mikhail received a warm welcome from his uncle, but he decided that the expedient course of action was to seek reconciliation and sent envoys to his brother-in-law.[2] Mikhail pledged never again to antagonize Daniil Romanovich and forswore making any future attempts on Halych.[2] Daniil Romanovich invited him to Volhynia, returned his wife, and relinquished control of Kiev.[2] In the face of the Mongol attack, however, Mikhail did not return to Kiev but allowed his brother-in-law’s men to remain there.[2] Towards the end of 1240, Batu Khan encircled Kiev with his troops, and the town fell on December 6.[2] On learning Kiev’s fate, Mikhail withdrew from Volhynia and for the second time imposed himself on his maternal uncle’s good graces.[2] When, however, the Mongols also threatened Mazovia, he traveled west to Wrocław in Silesia.[2] As his caravan pressed northwest, it came to Środa, where the local inhabitants attacked Mikhail’s train; they plundered his goods and killed a number of his people including his granddaughter.[2] The Mongols invaded Silesia, and after the invaders had passed through Volhynia and the Polish lands, Mikhail returned to Mazovia.[2]   Some time in the spring of 1241, he considered it safe to go home.[2] He stopped at the devastated town of Volodymyr-Volynskyi, rode northeast to Pinsk, and then traveled down the river Pripyat to Kiev.[2] Unable to return to his court on the citadel because Batu Khan’s official had presumably occupied it, he took up residence on an island near the Podil (Old Kyiv was razed).[2] Significantly, Batu Khan’s man did not challenge his arrival thereby indicating that the Mongols were willing to let refugee princes return to their ravaged towns without obstruction.[2] On learning that Béla IV had given his daughter in marriage to his son, Rostislav Mikhailovich (who had fled to the Hungarians) in 1242, Mikhail believed that his efforts to form an alliance with the Árpád dynasty had finally been realized.[2] He therefore rode to Hungary expecting to negotiate the agreements that normally accompanied such an alliance.[2] However, his hopes were dashed: the king and his son rebuffed him when he came to the king’s court.[2] Mikhail, greatly angered by his son, returned empty-handed to Chernihiv.[2] Meanwhile, Batu Khan commanded all the princes to visit Sarai and pay him homage.[2] Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich of Suzdal was the first to respond to the summons: at the beginning of 1243, he traveled to Sarai, where Batu Khan appointed him senior prince in Rus’.[2] After returning to Suzdal, he sent his commander to rule Kiev.[2] Accordingly, some time during the second part of that year, Mikhail abandoned his court on the island below Kiev and returned to Chernihiv.[2] But even there his authority was insecure: like all the other princes of Rus’, he had to obtain Batu Khan’s patent (yarlik) to rule his patrimony.[2]   Michael of Chernigov at the camp of Batu Khan (1883), painting by Vasiliy Smirnov. By the end of 1245, only Mikhail from among the three senior princes had not yet kowtowed to the conqueror.[2] In the end, Mikhail went in time to pre-empt a Mongol punitive strike against his domain; his grandson, Boris Vasilkovich of Rostov accompanied him.[2] When they arrived at Saray, Batu Khan sent messengers to Mikhail’s camp instructing him to worship according to the laws of the Mongols by bowing to the fires and idols.[2] Mikhail agreed to bow to the khan, but he insulted the Mongol by refusing to obey his command to worship idols.[2] Enraged by the prince’s retort, Batu Khan ordered that he be put to death.[2] He was slaughtered by Doman of Putivls, and Fedor his boyar was killed after him.[2] The Novgorod First Chronicle, the oldest chronicle reporting his death narrates that their bodies were thrown to the dogs; but as a sign of divine favor, their bodies remained unmolested and pillars of fire hovered over them.[2]   The chronicle narrative accounts show that the people of Rus’ acknowledged Mikhail and Fedor as martyrs immediately after their deaths.[1] Accordingly, their bodies were later brought to Chernihiv and entombed in a side-chapeldedicated to them (The Miracle-Workers of Chernigov) in the Holy Saviour Cathedral.[1] His wife survived him and promoted his cult.[2] His daughter Maria and her sons, Boris and Gleb Vasilkovich, inaugurated the Feast of the Miracle-Workers of Chernigov, on September 20, and built a church in their honor.[2] Her sister, Feodula who had become the nun Evfrosinia also advanced his cult to judge from a 17th-century account which reports the existence of a wooden chapel in Suzdal dedicated to them.[2] The cult was approved in 1547.[1] When Chernihiv was occupied by the Poles in 1578, Ivan IV the Terrible had the relics of the two saints taken to Moscow, where they were placed in the cathedral of Saint Michael the Archangel.[1] In times of oppressions particularly, these martyrs have been regarded by the Russians as their special representatives before God.[1]   #1210/1211: Elena Romanovna (or Maria Romanovna),[3] a daughter of prince Roman Mstislavich of Halych and his wife, Predslava Rurikovna of Kiev[2] Feodula Mikhailovna (1212–1250); she became nun and adopted the religious name of Evfrosinia;[2] Duke Rostislav Mikhailovich of Macsó (after 1210 / c. 1225[3] – 1262);[2] Maria Mikhailovna (? – December 7/9, 1271),[3] wife of Prince Vasilko Konstantinovich of Rostov;[2] Prince Roman Mikhailovich of Chernigov and Bryansk (c. 1218 – after 1288 / after 1305[3]);[2] Prince Mstislav Mikhailovich of Karachev and Zvenigorod[2] (1220–1280);[3] Prince Simeon Mikhailovich of Glukhov and Novosil;[2] Prince Yury Mikhailovich of Torusa and Bryansk.[2] NB: The existence of the last four sons is disputed (see His descendants below).   showAncestors of Michael of Chernigov   In the second half of the 19th century, many family branches stemming from Mikhail flourished: the Boryatinskie, the Gorchakovy, the Dolgorukie, the Eletskie, the Zvenigorodskie, the Koltsovy-Mosalskie, the Obolenskie, the Odoevskie, and the Shcherbatovy.[2] Nicolas Baumgarten in his Généalogies et mariages occidentaux des Rurikides russes du Xe au XIIIe siècle (Orientalia christiana 9, no. 35 (1927)) includes the following important appendix with regard to Mikhail’s alleged descendants. Essentially, the four princes—Roman, Simeon, Mstislav, and Iurii (Yury)—claimed in most published genealogies past and present (Dolgorukov, Vlas’ev, Ikonnikov, Ferrand, Dumin & Grebel’skii, etc.) as his sons and as the progenitors of numerous Russian princely families are apparently not to be found in any original historical document, appearing for the first time in the genealogies composed—or more likely contrived—in the 16th century, which witnessed a spate of fanciful genealogical aspirations among European royal and noble families (the Habsburgs claimed descent from Julius Caesar’s cousin Sextus (among others); the Bagratids of Georgia, from the biblical King David; the Lévis-Mirepoix, from cousins of the Virgin Mary; and the Muscovite tsars, from Augustus Caesar, to name but a few):

Muzio Attendolo Sforza (28 May 1369 – 4 January 1424), was an Italian condottiero. Founder of the Sforza dynasty, he led a Bolognese-Florentine army at the Battle of Casalecchio. He was the father of Francesco Sforza, who ruled Milan for 16 years. He was born as Giacomo or Jacopo Attendolo in Cotignola (Romagna) to a rich family of rural nobility, son of Giovanni Attendolo (d. 1385/86) and Elisa, perhaps daughter of Ugolino Petraccini. Muzzo or Muzio was the short form of the nickname of Giacomuzzo, who was the name of his paternal grandfather.[1] He had eight known siblings: Bosio (d. 1411), Margherita (by her first mariage de’ Ravignani and by her second Countess of Morcone), Francesco (d. 1412), Bartolo (d. 1412), Giorgio, Matteo (killed in 1388), Tonduzzo (killed with his brother in 1388) and Maria (d. 1412; by marriage Marchioness Pallavicino).[1] According to tradition, young Giacomo was plowing a field when a platoon of mercenaries led by Boldrino da Panicale passed nearby in search of recruits. He then stole one of his father’s horses and followed the soldiers to follow the same career. Muzio Attendolo in a 15th-century miniature. Later, together with his brothers Bosio, Francesco and Bartolo[1] and two cousins, he joined the company of Alberico da Barbiano, who nicknamed him “Sforza” (“Strong”) for his staunchness and his abilities to suddenly reverse the fortunes of battles. In 1398 he was at the service of Perugia against the Milanese troops of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, to whom Muzio soon switched his loyalty following the typical behavior of mercenary chieftains of the time. Later he fought for Florence against Visconti but in 1402, at the battle of Casalecchio, was defeated by his former master Alberico da Barbiano. In 1406 he captured Pisa and was subsequently hired by Niccolò III d’Este of Ferrara, who was being menaced by Ottobono Terzi of Parma. King Ladislaus of Naples named him Gran Connestabile of his kingdom. Sforza’s military qualities were mostly needed against Florence and the Pope. He remained for the rest of his life in the Kingdom of Naples, after the King’s death (1414), at the service of queen Joan II. However, he attracted the jealousy of Joan’s favorite, Pandolfello Alopo, who had him arrested and imprisoned. However, when Sforza’s troops intervened, Alopo freed him and Joan gave him the fiefdoms of Benevento and Manfredonia. On this occasion Sforza married Caterina Alopo, Pandolfello’s sister. A few months later Sforza was again arrested after a quarrel with James of Bourbon. He was freed only in 1416, after James’ fall from power, and Joan gave him back the title of Conestabile. In 1417 Sforza was sent by Joan to help the pope against Braccio da Montone, together with his son Francesco. Later he returned briefly to Naples, but here he was opposed by Giovanni (Sergianni) Caracciolo, Joan’s new lover. In the following, confused, events that led to the arrival of Louis III of Anjou in Naples in opposition to Alfonso V of Aragon, Sforza helped Joan and Sergianni to flee to Aversa. In 1423, the city of L’Aquila rebelled against Braccio da Montone and he was sent to support it. In an attempt to save one of his pages during the fording of the Pescara River, Sforza drowned and his body was swept away by the waters. King Ladislaus of Naples named him Gran Connestabile of his kingdom. Sforza’s military qualities were mostly needed against Florence and the Pope. He remained for the rest of his life in the Kingdom of Naples, after the King’s death (1414), at the service of queen Joan II. However, he attracted the jealousy of Joan’s favorite, Pandolfello Alopo, who had him arrested and imprisoned. However, when Sforza’s troops intervened, Alopo freed him and Joan gave him the fiefdoms of Benevento and Manfredonia. On this occasion Sforza married Caterina Alopo, Pandolfello’s sister. A few months later Sforza was again arrested after a quarrel with James of Bourbon. He was freed only in 1416, after James’ fall from power, and Joan gave him back the title of Conestabile. Muzio Attendolo. In 1417 Sforza was sent by Joan to help the pope against Braccio da Montone, together with his son Francesco. Later he returned briefly to Naples, but here he was opposed by Giovanni (Sergianni) Caracciolo, Joan’s new lover. In the following, confused, events that led to the arrival of Louis III of Anjou in Naples in opposition to Alfonso V of Aragon, Sforza helped Joan and Sergianni to flee to Aversa. In 1423, the city of L’Aquila rebelled against Braccio da Montone and he was sent to support it. In an attempt to save one of his pages during the fording of the Pescara River, Sforza drowned and his body was swept away by the waters. Sforza had sixteen known children born from three marriages and two mistresses: In 1409, Sforza married firstly with Antonia (d. 1411), widow of Francesco Casali, Lord of Cortona and daughter of Francesco Salimbeni, Patrician of Siena and Lord of Chiusi, Radicofani, Bagno Vignoni, Carsoli and Sarteano. They had one son: Bosio (1410 – 1476), Count of Cotignola (1424), Lord of Castell’Arquato and Sovereign Count of Santa Fiora by virtue of his marriage (1439) with Cecilia Aldobrandeschi, Countess of Santa Fiora and Pitigliano.[2] On 16 June 1413, Sforza married secondly with Caterina (also named Catella; d. 1418 in childbirth), a sister of Pandolfello Piscopo “Alopo“, Grand Chamberlain of the Kingdom of Naples and lover of Queen Joanna II. They had three children: Leonardo (1415 – 1438). Pietro (1417 – 1442), Bishop of Ascoli Piceno since 1438. Giovanna (born and died 1418). In 1421, Sforza married thirdly with Maria (d. 1440), daughter of Giacomo da Marzano, 1st Duke of Sessa, and Sovereign Countess of Celano after inherited from her first husband Nicola de Berardi. They had two children: Bartolomeo (1420 – 1435), Count of Celano (1430). Carlo (15 June 1423 – 12 September 1457), later renamed Gabriele in his ordination, Archbishop of Milan since 1445. With his mistress Tamira di Cagli, Sforza had two children: Mansueto (ca. 1400 – 1467), Abbot of San Lorenzo of Cremona (1425). Onestina (1402 – 1422), a Benedictine nun. With his mistress Lucia Terzani da Marsciano (or Lucia da Torsano according to other sources; d. 1461), Sforza had eight children:My 13th Great Grandmother Francesco (23 July 1401 – 8 March 1466), Duke of Milan in 1450. Elisa (1402 – 1476), married in 1417 to Leonello of Sanseverino, Count of Cajazzo. Alberico (1403 – 1423). Antonia (16 January 1404 – 1471), married firstly in 1417 to Ardizzone da Carrara, Lord of Feltre, and secondly in 1442 to Manfredo da Barbiano. Leone (May 1406 – September 1440), condottiero; married in 1435 to Marsobilia Trinci di Foligno (d. 1485). No issue. Giovanni (1407 – December 1451), condottiero; married in 1419 to Lavinia Lavello di Toscanella. No issue. Gregorio (29 October 1409 – April 1473), changed his name to Alessandro in honour to Pope Alexander V; Lord of Pesaro (1445). Orsola (1411 – 1460), a Clarisse nun. Son and grandsons of Muzio Attendolo Sforza Son: Francesco I Sforza Duke of Milan Grandson: Galeazzo Maria Sforza 5th Duke of Milan Grandson: Ludovico Sforza 7th Duke of Milan

Beatrice Frederick Relationship of Frederick I to Robert Sorrentino   Frederick I Frederick was the son of Frederick II, duke of Swabia, and Judith, daughter of Henry IX, duke of Bavaria, of the rival dynastyof the Welfs. After succeeding his father as duke of Swabia, Frederick was elected German king on March 4, 1152, in Frankfurt, succeeding his uncle, Emperor Conrad III. Frederick’s contemporaries believed that, because he united in himself the blood of the Welfs and the Hohenstaufen, he would solve the internal problems of the kingdom. The announcement of his election, which he sent to Pope Eugenius III, made it plain that Frederick I was not ready to recognize the preeminence over the emperors that the popeshad won during the quarrel over the right of investiture of bishops and abbots. Frederick, moreover, filled several vacant episcopal sees, thereby violating the Concordat of Wormsof 1122. Nevertheless, he was to learn that he could not prevail against the papacyas easily as the earlier emperors, Otto Iand Henry III, had done because the political balance of the West had changed. Under the powerful emperor Manuel I Comnenus, the Byzantine Empirehad grown to be a political factor in the Mediterranean and in Italy. Southern Italy and Sicilywere united in the Normankingdom of Roger II. The cities of the Lombards, which had been little more than a nuisance to the earlier emperors, had now become more powerful. Frederick started his struggle for the old goal of the predominance of the Empire over the European monarchies with great political skill. By not recognizing the treaty of alliance between his predecessor, Conrad III, and Manuel I Comnenus of Byzantium against Roger II of Sicily, Frederick forced Pope Eugenius III to sign the Treaty of Constance(1153) with him because the Pope was more exposed to pressure from the Norman kingdom to the south as well as from Arnold of Bresciain Rome. Frederick promised not to make peace with the Roman commune, headed by Arnold (whom he hanged) or with the Normans without the agreement of the Pope. He also promised not to concede any Italian land to the ByzantineEmperor and, finally, to maintain the position of the papacy (honor papatus). Eugenius III, on his part, promised that Frederick would receive the imperial crown and that the rights of the empire would be maintained. When Manuel of Byzantium offered Frederick a Byzantine princess as wife and attempted to induce him to fight against the Norman kingdom, Frederick refused. The successor of Eugenius III, Pope Adrian IV, honoured the Treaty of Constance and crowned Frederick emperor on June 18, 1155, in Rome. The German princes refused to give Frederick the support necessary to attack the Sicilian kingdom, which, under Roger’s son William I(reigned 1154–66), was passing through a crisis. Although Manuel now formed an allegiancewith the rebellious Norman barons, the city of Genoa, and the Pope, Adrian still would not accept the Byzantine offer of help against William I of Sicily. After William had brought his crisis to an end, he was able to force the Pope to sign the Concordat of Beneventoin 1156 by which Adrian gave William Sicily and the Norman principalities on the mainland as far north as Naples and Capua and granted him special rights for the Sicilian church. This new treaty was in violation of the Treaty of Constance. Cardinal Roland (later Pope Alexander III) was supposed to explain the Pope’s new policy to the princes and to the Emperor at the imperial Diet of Besançon1157. A letter from the Pope, which was translated in an inflammatory manner by the imperial chancellor Rainald of Dassel, caused a critical argument between the papal delegation and the German princes over whether or not the empire was dependent upon the papacy. Adrian explained later that he meant the word beneficium,which had caused all the trouble, to mean benefit and not fief. Attempt to regain imperial rights. In 1158, after Frederick had solved several decisive domestic problems (see below), he began his second campaign in Italy, seeking the complete restoration of the imperial rights. After laying siege to and conquering Milan, which had attempted to oppose him, Frederick opened the Diet of Roncaglia. The goal of this Diet was to define and guarantee the rights of the emperor, which would bring the empire an estimated 30,000 pounds of silver per year. Frederick attempted, beginning in 1158 and especially after 1162, not only to achieve the granting of these rights but also to put a systematic financial administration into effect. His goal was to reduce imperial Italy to a system of well-controlled castles, palaces, and cities, with the self-government of the cities controlled by imperial officials. What the Emperor saw as a restoration of the imperial rights, however, was considered by the cities as a curtailment of their freedom. A tax called the fodrumwas levied on all the inhabitants of imperial Italy; in return the Italian nobles and communes were excused from service in Frederick’s armies and were guaranteed his protection. A portion of the Italian money went to the German princes; this enabled Frederick to win their support without making too many political concessionsto them in Germany. The ecclesiasticalprinces of the empire, however, still had to render full service for Italy; the archbishopric of Mainzsuffered severe financial losses because Archbishop Christian was active for a long time in Italy as imperial legate. The Italian taxes allowed Frederick to enlist mercenaries (Brabantini) in order to free himself militarily, to a certain extent, from the fief holders. The money of Italy was not, however, the only motive of Frederick’s Italian policy. The Pope, as well as the cities, felt threatened by a tightly organized imperial state in Italy. In 1159 Cardinal Octavian was elected Pope Victor IV with the support of Frederick, and Cardinal Roland was elected Pope Alexander III in a tumultuousand disputed voting session. Alexander, supported by many cardinals, was also immediately recognized by William of Sicily as the true pope. At the council of 1160 in Pavia, convenedby the Emperor, only Victor IVwas present and was declared the rightful pope, thereby earning for Frederick Alexander’s hostility. Relations with Pope Alexander III. Alexander III, one of the greatest lawyers of the church, wanted to found a papacy that would be independent of the Emperor; he excommunicated Frederick in 1160. France, England, Spain, Hungary, the Lombards, and even Emperor Manuel joined Alexander’s party; under imperial pressure, Alexander retired to France in 1161, where he remained until 1165. John of Salisburyasked at that time: “Who made the Germans judges of the nations?” Barbarossa’s attempt to persuade King Louis VIIof France to try to heal the schism when they met at Saint-Jean-de-Losne on the Saône was of no avail. Alexander attempted to bring Frederick back into the church but with no success. At Alexander’s urging, the Byzantine emperor Manuel Comnenus now prepared to form an alliance with France and was ready to recognize the Pope. In 1162 Milan was destroyed by Frederick. When Victor IV died in 1164, Paschal III(reigned 1164–68) was quickly elected as the new imperial pope on the urging of Rainald of Dassel, perhaps against the will of the Emperor. Because of friction between Louis VII and Henry IIof England and because the latter was embroiled in an argument with Thomas Becket, Barbarossa decided to form an alliance with Henry II. At the Diet of 1165 in Würzburg, Frederick swore not to recognize Alexander III. The promises made by the English delegates that Frederick’s political wishes would be recognized were denied by Henry II, who preferred to keep Alexander under pressure, thus making things more difficult for Becket. Following the death of William I of Sicily in 1166, Frederick felt that the time had come to strike a decisive blow against Alexander III, who had returned to Rome, and against Sicily. The Lombard Leaguewas formed to defend against the Emperor’s fourth expedition to Italy. Frederick’s expedition ended in disaster, however, when malariabroke out in his army. Rainald of Dassel died in Rome at this time, causing a change in the imperial strategy. When Frederick negotiated peace between Louis VII and Henry II and then sent the Bishop of Bambergin 1170 to Alexander III and envoys to Byzantium, a détente resulted that even Alexander could not escape. In his fifth Italian campaign (1174) Frederick did not defeat the Lombards militarily, but they were forced to subject themselves to him in the Armistice of Montebello. Because Duke Henry theLion of Saxony refused to come to his aid, however, Frederick lost the Battle of Legnano against the Lombards. He was now ready to deal with the Pope, and in 1176 they signed the Treaty of Anagni. In the Peace of Venice(1177) Barbarossa acknowledged Alexander III as the true pope. In front of the Church of St. Mark’s, Barbarossa received the kiss of peace from the Pope. At Venice the imperial delegates had been able to improve the Emperor’s position. Above all was the fact that, although a truce had been negotiated with the Lombards, they were not included in the peace treaty. A treaty with the Lombards was finally confirmed in the year 1183 Barbarossa meanwhile had also initiated sweeping changes in his empire, where Duke Henry the Lion of Saxony was the strongest prince next to him. When Barbarossa took office, Henry had laid claim to Bavaria, the domain of the margrave Henry II Jasomirgottof Austria. Barbarossa bestowed Bavaria on Henry the Lion, and as compensation he elevated the margravate of Austria to a dukedom, with special rights. The Emperor also left the dukedom of Saxony and Mecklenburg under Henry the Lion’s control, and in 1154 the Duke received the privilege of investing bishops in the colonial land east of the Elbe. The year 1158 was of great importance for the empire; Barbarossa founded the imperial territory of Pleissnerland (south of Leipzig), elevated Duke Vladislav II of Bohemia to king, and granted the Archbishop of Bremen important privileges, restoring the Bishop’s lost political power. Also in 1158 Frederick promised to enfeoff Waldemar I the Great of Denmark—that is, make him his vassal with certain rights. Meanwhile, Henry the Lion founded the cities of Munich and Lübeck(1158). The founding of Lübeck brought German merchants to the Baltic Sea. The Duke closed a contract between the Germans and the inhabitants of Gotland and sent envoys to Scandinavia and Russia. A trade agreementwas closed in 1189 with Novgorod. About 1180 German merchants reached Riga; their advance was protected by Henry’s conquest of Mecklenburg (1177). By 1148 Henry had the county and the town of Stade, the most important harbour on the Elbe, in his control.   Deposition of Henry the Lion. At the same time German colonists had settled in Brandenburg under the margrave Albert Ithe Bear and in Silesia. Barbarossa had restored the dependence of the Polish dukes during two expeditions to Poland in 1157 and 1172. Henry the Lion, the most powerful prince in northern Germany, made Brunswick his residence. He had repeatedly challenged other princes in feuds, but Archbishop Wichmann of Magdeburg, Albrecht of Brandenburg, Landgrave Louis IIIof Thuringia, and Archbishop Rainald of Cologne offered repeated resistance. It is not completely certain that Duke Henry’s refusal of aid to Frederick in 1176 was the sole cause of his downfall. Apparently his manifold breach of the peaceof the land caused the Emperor to accuse him, to conquer Lübeck, and, in 1180, through a council of the princes in Gelnhausen, to depose him. Henry lost his dukedom; Westphalia was given to the Archbishop of Cologne, and Bavaria was granted to Otto of Wittelsbach. Henry, who was married to Mathilde of England, went in exile to King Henry II of England. As a result of Henry the Lion’s trial, the feudalsystem was made a still stronger basis of the imperial constitution. Thereafter, only those princes who had received their land directly from the Emperor were admitted to the exclusivecircle of imperial princes (Reichsfürsten). Barbarossa elevated the princes of Pomerania to dukes, and the counts of Andechs became the dukes of Merania (in the neighbourhood of Trieste). Steiermark became a dukedom. Another important measure of Barbarossa was the elevation of the Bishop of Würzburg to duke of Franconia in 1168. Barbarossa had attempted to hold the increasing power of the princes in check. By 1152 he had found a solution for the area of Burgundy, which also belonged to the empire. He made Duke Berthold IV of Zähringen his representative for the dukedom of Burgundy as far as the Mediterranean and married Béatrix, the daughter of Count Rainald of Burgundy (1156). Barbarossa attempted to build his own imperial territory between the areas controlled by the princes. This territory was composed of castles, cities, landholdings, ministerial seats, and single rights that were more or less thickly scattered from Swabia to Thuringia. This large territory was ruled by imperial ministerials (ministerialesimperii). These men had great power because many of them belonged to the Emperor’s circle. The most famous of them was Kuno of Münzenberg, whose castle is preserved in the Wetterau north of Frankfurt and who founded the town of Friedberg. The territorial “peace laws” belong to his efforts to keep the Emperor in power. Chivalrygave Barbarossa’s time a special stamp. He expressed his enthusiasm for knighthood as the ideal way of life at the festival of Pentecost at Mainz in 1184, where he dubbed his sons knights. This festival was surpassed by the “Diet of Jesus Christ” in 1188, when the margravate of Namur was transformed into an imperial principality. More important was Barbarossa’s call to the Third Crusadein the spring of 1189 to free Jerusalemfrom Saladin’sarmy, which had captured it in 1187. Before his departure he returned the former possessions of the Countess Mathilde of Tuscany, a part of the papal state, to the Pope. In 1190 the Emperor drowned while trying to cross the Saleph River.   Legacy Frederick Barbarossa had attempted to continue the imperial policy of the rulers of the Saxon and Salian lines. His state was still founded upon the noble, the high noble, and above all the newly founded rank of the imperial servants. The imperial cities in Germany were governed by royal officials (advocatis sculteti), and the citizens had their part in the government. The cities played no role in politics. Frederick had to recognize that the church, after the quarrel of investiture, had become a firmly controlled institution, with its powers strictly defined by law. The church had joined itself to the struggle for freedom of the economically powerful states in upper Italy. Pope Alexander III was able to force the kings of Europe (especially Louis VII of France) not to enter into a political agreement with Barbarossa. Only Philip IIAugustus of France signed a treaty with Barbarossa in order to free himself from the pressures created by the Anglo-Norman occupation on the mainland. There was no chance that a continuation and increase of the imperial policy in the territories controlled by the empire would have broken the power of the princes. Germany developed into a system of territorial states after Barbarossa’s death, while France developed during the time of Philip II Augustus into a centralized monarchial state. Barbarossa had a strong feeling for law and imperial prestige. His steadfast opposition to the popes and to Henry the Lion made him the symbol of German unity in the romanticglorification of the 19th century. People since the 14th century believed he was sleeping in the imperial castle of Kyffhäuser and hoped for his return. A monument to him was erected there during the years 1890–96. Hans Patze iffredl001p1 Beatrice of Burgundy(1143 – 15 November 1184) was a Sovereign Countess of Burgundy from 1148 until her death, and a Holy Roman Empress by marriage to Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor. She was crowned Holy Roman Empress by Antipope Paschal IIIin Romeon 1 August 1167, and as Queen of Burgundy at Viennein August 1178. was the only surviving child of Renaud III, Count of Burgundyand Agatha of Lorraine. As the only child of her father, she was the heir of the County of Burgundy. At the death of her father in 1148, she inherited the vast County of Burgundyand became ruling Countess Palatine as a five year old orphan. As such, she was one of the most desired brides in France, and a marriage was suggested to Emperor Frederick I. Frederick I likely suggested the marriage because the County of Burgundy would give him an alternative to the Brenner Pass and a strategically valuable position against Milan, and because of the additional troops of Burgundian knights available for his war.[1] The wedding between Beatrice and Frederick took on 9 June 1156 at Würzburg.[2]After the wedding, the Bishop of Trier anointed Beatrice queen. The poem Carmen de gestis Frederici I imperatoris in Lombardia, written about 1162, describes Beatrice upon her wedding day: “Venusdid not have this virgin’s beauty, Minervadid not have her brilliant mind And Junodid not have her wealth. There never was another except God’s mother Mary And Beatrice is so happy she excels her. After their marriage, Frederick took control of the County of Burgundy by the right of his wife and became her co-ruler. Although formally co-rulers, Beatrice’s name was seldom included in the charters managing the affairs of Burgundy before the year of 1166, after which more charters were issued in the name of both Beatrice and Frederick as joint rulers of Burgundy.[1]Her actual involvement in the rule of Burgundy is unknown. Her younger son Conrad was named the heir to Burgundy, rather than her elder son.[1] The relationship between Beatrice and Frederick is traditionally described as happy, and there is nothing to indicate that he was ever unfaithful to her.[1]The English chronicler Ralph of Dicetonoted about their relationship, that “Although Frederick was always most constant in adversity, he was nevertheless reputed by many to be uxurious… and seeking how to please her in all things.”[1]There is no information about her dower or economy, but it is noted that the recipients of Imperial favors and all individuals who were restored to favor were required to give not only Frederick himself but also Beatrice personal gifts, many of which are recorded, as well as shares of gifts in gold and silver given to the emperor.[1] In 1162, Acerbus Moreasaid of Beatrice that she was: “of medium height, with shining golden hair, a most beautiful face, and white, well shaped teeth; her posture was upright, her mouth small, her countenance modest, her eyes sparkled; she was bashful when charming and flattering words was addressed to her; she had most beautiful hands and a slender figure; she was completely submissive to her husband, feared him as her lord and loved him in every way as her husband; she was literate and devoted to God; and just as she was named Beatrix, so she was in fact happy [‘Beata’]”.[1] Beatrice has traditionally been attributed a role as a patron of literary works and chivalric ideals. It is true that the poet Gautier d’Arrasinitially dedicated his epic romance Ille et Galeronto her in the 1160s, but this is all evidence of culture patronage known, and as she left Burgundy at the age of 12, she may not have had much memory of the Burgundian chivalric ideals.[1] Though Beatrice was rumored to be greatly loved by Frederick and thereby attributed influence over him in the sense that he had great affection for her, there is nothing to indicate that she acted as his political adviser and she is confirmed to be directly involved in a major political affair only once. During the disputed Cambrai episcopal election of 1168, Beatrice supported the election of bishop Peter of Cambraiand at his request successfully blocked the attempt of the archbishop Philip to transfer the bishopric of Cambrai from the metropolitan province of Riems to Cologne, supported by archbishop Christian of Mainzand Henry the Lion: this was reputedly the only case Beatrice took decisive action in a major political affair.[1] Beatrice accompanied Frederick on his travels and campaigns across his empire, and at least once played a role in warfare: during the Siege of Cremain July 1159, she was able to provide the emperor with badly needed reinforcements from her own county of Burgundy, and arrived to Crema on 20 July of that year in the company of Henry the Lion, archbishop Conrad of Augsburgand 1,200 knights, providing him with the reinforcements he needed.[1] was crowned Holy Roman Empress by Antipope Paschal IIIin Romeon 1 August 1167. After the Peace of Veniceof 1177, she was no longer referred to as Imperatrix(’empress’) in the chancery productions, as her coronation as such had been made by an anti-pope and was thus declared nullified.[1] On 30 July 1178, Frederick was crowned king of Burgundy in Arles in Provence. Beatrice was present, but she was not crowned with him. On 15 August 1178, however, Beatrice was crowned queen of Burgundy in Vienne.[1]The reason as to why Beatrice was crowned in Vienne is unknown: it is speculated that this was made as a compensation because the Peace of Venicehad formally nullified her coronation as empress, as it had been performed by an anti-pope, but it could also have been to signal her new role as that of resident ruling Palatine Countess of Burgundy, as she seems to have stayed to govern Burgundy from this year forward rather than continue to follow Frederick.[1] The event signified a change in the life of Beatrice. Frederick left Burgundy later that year, but there is no indication that Beatrice accompanied him back to Germany, or continued to follow him around the Empire. She is confirmed to have visited Germany on only three occasions after this: at feast of St Peter and Paul in 1179, and at the Pentecost courts of 1182 and 1184.[1]Instead, Beatrice seems to have stayed in Burgundy, for the first time governing the county by herself: there are extant charters of her own before 1181, but nine between that year and her death, all of them concerning Burgundian affairs.[1]Many of her Burgundian charters were witnessed by her younger son Conrad, who was her designated heir to her own title, Count Palatine of Burgundy, and his teacher, who was evidently there with her.[1]This was in fact an effective separation from Frederick, a reason for the discord hinted in the fact that Beatrice, in contrast to her spouse, continued to refer to herself as empress in her charters.[1] In 1184, Beatrice fell ill with an unknown illness at Jouheand quickly died, aged about 40. She was buried in Speyer Cathedral, but her heart was buried in Jouhe‘s old Benedictine abbey. She had the following children: Beatrice (b. 1162 – d. 1174). She was betrothed to King William II of Sicily but died of tuberculosisbefore they could be married. Frederick V, Duke of Swabia(b. Pavia, 16 July 1164 – d. 28 November 1170). Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor(b. Nijmegen, November 1165 – d. Messina, 28 September 1197).[2] Conrad (b. Modigliana, February 1167 – d. Acre, 20 January 1191), later renamed Frederick VI, Duke of Swabiaafter the death of his older brother.[2] Daughter (Gisela?) (b. October/November 1168 – d. 1184), died young. Otto I, Count of Burgundy(b. June/July 1170 – killed, Besançon, 13 January 1200).[2] Conrad II, Duke of Swabiaand Rothenburg (b. February/Marc 1172 – killed, Durlach, 15 August 1196).[2] Renaud (b. October/November 1173 – d. in infancy). William (b. June/July 1176 – d. in infancy). Philip of Swabia(b. August 1177 – killed, Bamberg, 21 June 1208) King of Germany in 1198.[3][2] Agnes (b. 1181 – d. 8 October 1184). She was betrothed to King Emeric of Hungary but died before they could be married.