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Hauteville family

December 17, 2023

The Hauteville (Italian: Altavilla) was a Norman family originally of seigneurial rank from the Cotentin. The Hautevilles rose to prominence through their part in the Norman conquest of southern Italy. By 1130, one of their members, Roger II, was made the first King of Sicily. His male-line descendants ruled Sicily until 1194. Some Italian Hautevilles took part in the First Crusade and the founding of the Principality of Antioch (1098).

Hauteville
Altavilla
Noble house
Country
Founded11th century
FounderTancred of Hauteville
Current headNone; extinct
Final rulerConstance of Sicily
Titles
List
Motto
Dextera Domini fecit virtutem, Dextera Domini exaltavit me

(God's right-hand made wonders, God's right-hand exalted me)
Dissolution1198 (1198)

Origins edit

 
Department of Manche, location of Hauteville-la-Guichard

The traditional account of the family's origin traces them back to Hiallt, a 10th-century Norseman who settled in the Cotentin Peninsula and founded the estate of Hialtus villa, giving rise in corrupted form to the family toponymic Hauteville.[1][2] The name represents the Scandinavian Hjalti or Hialti[3]), but may instead have resulted from confusion with the Helt[us] found in Heltvilla, modern Héauville.[4] Alternatively, the eponymous Hiallt may be legendary: Hauteville (Altavilla) means simply "high estate".[4] Of several villages with the name "Hauteville", the one from which the family derived its name is hard to identify with certainty, though modern scholarship favours Hauteville-la-Guichard, but there is no proof that allows to connect the related knight Robert Guiscard with this village. Guiscard refers more probably to a Guichard de Montfort.[4]

The first well-known member of the family is Tancred of Hauteville, a minor baron of Normandy who died about 1041. He had twelve sons and at least two daughters by two wives, Muriel and Fressenda. His small patrimony was hardly enough to satisfy his sons' desire for land and glory, and so eight of the twelve went south to the Mezzogiorno to seek their fortunes there.

According to Goffredo Malaterra's chronicle, Aubrey or Alverardus, the fourth son by Tancred's second wife, Fressenda, remained behind in Normandy. About the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 a certain Alverardus or Aluericus Hautville (Halsvilla, Altavilla or Hauteville) is mentioned as having previously held lands in Compton Martin, Somerset, England. His kinsman Ralf de Hauville (also Halsvilla) is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as a tenant-in-chief in Burbage and Wolfhall in Wiltshire. Alverardus most probably founded the Somerset Hautevilles, and Ralf the Wiltshire/Berkshire Hauvilles.

Mezzogiorno edit

See also: Norman conquest of southern Italy

The eldest of Tancred of Hauteville's twelve sons, William and Drogo, were the first to arrive in the south sometime around 1035. They so distinguished themselves against the Greeks that William was inaugurated as count of Apulia and Calabria and lord of Ascoli, Drogo as lord of Venosa. In 1047, Drogo was confirmed by the Emperor Henry III as William's heir and a direct vassal of the imperial crown. Their next brother, Humphrey, succeeded Drogo and defeated Pope Leo IX at the Battle of Civitate in 1053, making the Hauteville power the highest in the region. He was in turn succeeded by a fourth brother, the first by Tancred's second wife, Robert Guiscard.

It was Robert who began the conquest of Sicily which was to yield a kingdom seventy years later, as he renewed the war against Byzantium with vigour. Along with the valiant warriorship displayed by his youngest brother, Roger Bosso, the two began to amass notoriety around the Mediterranean.[5] According to William of Apulia's The Deeds of Robert Guiscard, although his Norse roots would seem to suggest otherwise, until the invasion of Sicily, Guiscard had not participated in naval warfare.[6] It was during this conquest that Guiscard and his amphibious command pioneered the ability to transport over 200 troops in a mere 13 vessels, an advantage that would have an influence in the Norman invasion of England of 1066.[7] In 1059 he was created duke by the pope and invested with as yet unconquered Sicily, which he gave, in 1071, to his brother Roger with the title of count. The Guiscard's heirs, Bohemond and Roger Borsa, fought over the inheritance and Roger of Sicily began to outshine the Apulian branch of the family. Roger united the Greek, Lombard, Norman, and Saracen elements of Sicily under one rule and refused to allow religious differences to spoil his conquests.

Roger bequeathed a powerful state to his young sons, Simon and Roger. It was this Roger who, upon inheriting all from Simon in 1105, began the quest to unite into one all the Hauteville domains: Apulia and Calabria (then under Borsa's son William II) and Taranto (which had been given to Bohemond as a consolation for being deprived of Apulia) with his own Sicily.

Kingdom of Sicily edit

On William's death in 1127, the union of the duchy and the county was affected and Roger's quest for a crown began. Believing kings to have ruled Palermo in antiquity, Roger threw his support behind the Antipope Anacletus II and was duly enthroned as king of Sicily on Christmas Day 1130.

Roger spent most of the decade beginning with his coronation and ending with his great Assizes of Ariano fending off one invader or other and quelling rebellions by his premier vassals: Grimoald of Bari, Robert of Capua, Ranulf of Alife, Sergius of Naples, et al. In 1139, by the Treaty of Mignano, Roger received the recognition of his kingship from the legitimate pope. It was through his admiral George of Antioch that Roger then proceeded to conquer the Mahdia in Africa, taking the unofficial title "king of Africa".

Roger's son and successor was William the Bad, though his nickname derives primarily from his lack of popularity with the chroniclers, who supported the baronial revolts William crushed. His reign ended in peace (1166), but his son, William the Good, was a minor. During the boy regency until 1172, the kingdom saw turmoil which almost brought the ruling family down, but eventually the realm settled down and the reign of the second William is remembered as two decades of almost continual peace and prosperity. For this more than anything, he is nicknamed "the Good". His death without heirs in 1189 threw the realm into chaos, as his designated and only legitimate heir, his aunt Constance, daughter of Roger II, had married Henry, son of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, and the Sicilian officials did not want a German ruler.

Tancred of Lecce, illegitimate cousin of William, seized the throne but had to contend with the revolt of his distant cousin Roger of Andria, a former contender, and the invasion of Henry, now Henry VI of Germany, on behalf of his wife. Tancred was able to kill Roger in 1190; in 1191 he repelled an invasion of Henry in 1191 and captured Constance, but was forced to release her under pressure of Pope Celestine III. After his death in 1194, Constance and Henry eventually prevailed and the kingdom fell to the Hohenstaufen. Through Constance, however, the Hauteville blood was passed to the great Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor.

Crusades edit

The aforementioned Bohemond received in 1088, as a consolation, the principality of Taranto district from the duchy of Apulia which fell as per their father's will to his brother Roger Borsa. Bohemond did not long remain to enjoy his new principality, for while besieging Amalfi with his uncle and brother, he joined a passing band of Crusaders on their way to Palestine. Among his army was a nephew of his, a young man named Tancred.

Bohemond was the natural leader of the crusading host but, through a trick, he took Antioch and did not continue on to Jerusalem with the rest of the army, instead remaining in the newly conquered city to carve out a principality for himself there. Tancred also left the main Crusade at Heraclea Cybistra to fight for territory in Cilicia. A great state like the one his cousins were forging in Europe, however, was impossible for Bohemond. He was defeated badly at the Battle of Harran in 1104 and forced later to sign the Treaty of Devol in 1108 with Byzantium. Nevertheless, his son Bohemond II inherited the Crusader state. He in turn gave it to his only daughter, Constance, who ruled it until 1163.

Tancred had great luck in carving out a principality around Galilee with the grants of Godfrey of Bouillon, but he relinquished this in 1101.

Genealogy edit

Unless otherwise noted, dates shown are regnal dates.

Relatives of unknown relationship include:

Family tree edit

 
Family tree of the brief but flamboyant Hauteville Family. From Tancred of Hauteville, a norman petty Lord, to the conquest of the italian peninsula by his sons, to its last representative : Constance of Sicily, his great-granddaughter.

References edit

  1. ^ Hill, James S. The place-names of Somerset. St. Stephen's printing works, 1914, Princeton University. Page 256
  2. ^ Revue de l'Avranchin et du pays de Granville, Volume 31, Issue 174, Parts 3-4. Société d'archéologie, de littérature, sciences et arts d'Avranches, Mortain, Granville. the University of Michigan.
  3. ^ Site of Nordic Names : origin of the name Hjalti
  4. ^ a b c Les Noms des communes et anciennes paroisses de la Manche, A. et J. Picard, préface Yves Nédélec, 1986, ISBN 2-7084-0299-4, oclc=15314425, p. 133 - 135"
  5. ^ Malaterra, Goffredo; Kenneth Baxter Wolf (2005). The Deeds of Count Roger of Calabria and Sicily and of His Brother Duke Robert Guiscard. USA: The University of Michigan Press. pp. 151. ISBN 0-472-11459-X.
  6. ^ G.A. Loud, William of Apulia (1963). M. Mathieu (ed.). Palermo: Guillaume de Pouille. {{cite book}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ^ Theotokis, Georgios (November 2010). "The Norman Invasion of Sicily, 1061-1072: Numbers and Military Tactics". War in History. 17 (4): 381–402. doi:10.1177/0968344510376463. S2CID 159817615.
  8. ^ The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume 4, C.1024-c.1198, Part II, ed. David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, (Cambridge University Press, 2004), 760.

Sources edit

December 17, 2023
hauteville, family, hauteville, italian, altavilla, norman, family, originally, seigneurial, rank, from, cotentin, hautevilles, rose, prominence, through, their, part, norman, conquest, southern, italy, 1130, their, members, roger, made, first, king, sicily, m. The Hauteville Italian Altavilla was a Norman family originally of seigneurial rank from the Cotentin The Hautevilles rose to prominence through their part in the Norman conquest of southern Italy By 1130 one of their members Roger II was made the first King of Sicily His male line descendants ruled Sicily until 1194 Some Italian Hautevilles took part in the First Crusade and the founding of the Principality of Antioch 1098 HautevilleAltavillaNoble houseCountryCounty Duchy of ApuliaCounty of SicilyKingdom of Sicily and AfricaPrincipality of AntiochFounded11th centuryFounderTancred of HautevilleCurrent headNone extinctFinal rulerConstance of SicilyTitlesList Count of Apulia 1042 1059 Duke of Apulia 1059 1130 King of Sicily 1130 1198 Prince of Antioch 1098 1163 MottoDextera Domini fecit virtutem Dextera Domini exaltavit me God s right hand made wonders God s right hand exalted me Dissolution1198 1198 Contents 1 Origins 2 Mezzogiorno 3 Kingdom of Sicily 4 Crusades 5 Genealogy 6 Family tree 7 References 8 SourcesOrigins edit nbsp Department of Manche location of Hauteville la GuichardThe traditional account of the family s origin traces them back to Hiallt a 10th century Norseman who settled in the Cotentin Peninsula and founded the estate of Hialtus villa giving rise in corrupted form to the family toponymic Hauteville 1 2 The name represents the Scandinavian Hjalti or Hialti 3 but may instead have resulted from confusion with the Helt us found in Heltvilla modern Heauville 4 Alternatively the eponymous Hiallt may be legendary Hauteville Altavilla means simply high estate 4 Of several villages with the name Hauteville the one from which the family derived its name is hard to identify with certainty though modern scholarship favours Hauteville la Guichard but there is no proof that allows to connect the related knight Robert Guiscard with this village Guiscard refers more probably to a Guichard de Montfort 4 The first well known member of the family is Tancred of Hauteville a minor baron of Normandy who died about 1041 He had twelve sons and at least two daughters by two wives Muriel and Fressenda His small patrimony was hardly enough to satisfy his sons desire for land and glory and so eight of the twelve went south to the Mezzogiorno to seek their fortunes there According to Goffredo Malaterra s chronicle Aubrey or Alverardus the fourth son by Tancred s second wife Fressenda remained behind in Normandy About the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 a certain Alverardus or Aluericus Hautville Halsvilla Altavilla or Hauteville is mentioned as having previously held lands in Compton Martin Somerset England His kinsman Ralf de Hauville also Halsvilla is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as a tenant in chief in Burbage and Wolfhall in Wiltshire Alverardus most probably founded the Somerset Hautevilles and Ralf the Wiltshire Berkshire Hauvilles Mezzogiorno editSee also Norman conquest of southern Italy The eldest of Tancred of Hauteville s twelve sons William and Drogo were the first to arrive in the south sometime around 1035 They so distinguished themselves against the Greeks that William was inaugurated as count of Apulia and Calabria and lord of Ascoli Drogo as lord of Venosa In 1047 Drogo was confirmed by the Emperor Henry III as William s heir and a direct vassal of the imperial crown Their next brother Humphrey succeeded Drogo and defeated Pope Leo IX at the Battle of Civitate in 1053 making the Hauteville power the highest in the region He was in turn succeeded by a fourth brother the first by Tancred s second wife Robert Guiscard It was Robert who began the conquest of Sicily which was to yield a kingdom seventy years later as he renewed the war against Byzantium with vigour Along with the valiant warriorship displayed by his youngest brother Roger Bosso the two began to amass notoriety around the Mediterranean 5 According to William of Apulia s The Deeds of Robert Guiscard although his Norse roots would seem to suggest otherwise until the invasion of Sicily Guiscard had not participated in naval warfare 6 It was during this conquest that Guiscard and his amphibious command pioneered the ability to transport over 200 troops in a mere 13 vessels an advantage that would have an influence in the Norman invasion of England of 1066 7 In 1059 he was created duke by the pope and invested with as yet unconquered Sicily which he gave in 1071 to his brother Roger with the title of count The Guiscard s heirs Bohemond and Roger Borsa fought over the inheritance and Roger of Sicily began to outshine the Apulian branch of the family Roger united the Greek Lombard Norman and Saracen elements of Sicily under one rule and refused to allow religious differences to spoil his conquests Roger bequeathed a powerful state to his young sons Simon and Roger It was this Roger who upon inheriting all from Simon in 1105 began the quest to unite into one all the Hauteville domains Apulia and Calabria then under Borsa s son William II and Taranto which had been given to Bohemond as a consolation for being deprived of Apulia with his own Sicily Kingdom of Sicily editOn William s death in 1127 the union of the duchy and the county was affected and Roger s quest for a crown began Believing kings to have ruled Palermo in antiquity Roger threw his support behind the Antipope Anacletus II and was duly enthroned as king of Sicily on Christmas Day 1130 Roger spent most of the decade beginning with his coronation and ending with his great Assizes of Ariano fending off one invader or other and quelling rebellions by his premier vassals Grimoald of Bari Robert of Capua Ranulf of Alife Sergius of Naples et al In 1139 by the Treaty of Mignano Roger received the recognition of his kingship from the legitimate pope It was through his admiral George of Antioch that Roger then proceeded to conquer the Mahdia in Africa taking the unofficial title king of Africa Roger s son and successor was William the Bad though his nickname derives primarily from his lack of popularity with the chroniclers who supported the baronial revolts William crushed His reign ended in peace 1166 but his son William the Good was a minor During the boy regency until 1172 the kingdom saw turmoil which almost brought the ruling family down but eventually the realm settled down and the reign of the second William is remembered as two decades of almost continual peace and prosperity For this more than anything he is nicknamed the Good His death without heirs in 1189 threw the realm into chaos as his designated and only legitimate heir his aunt Constance daughter of Roger II had married Henry son of Frederick I Holy Roman Emperor and the Sicilian officials did not want a German ruler Tancred of Lecce illegitimate cousin of William seized the throne but had to contend with the revolt of his distant cousin Roger of Andria a former contender and the invasion of Henry now Henry VI of Germany on behalf of his wife Tancred was able to kill Roger in 1190 in 1191 he repelled an invasion of Henry in 1191 and captured Constance but was forced to release her under pressure of Pope Celestine III After his death in 1194 Constance and Henry eventually prevailed and the kingdom fell to the Hohenstaufen Through Constance however the Hauteville blood was passed to the great Frederick II Holy Roman Emperor Crusades editThe aforementioned Bohemond received in 1088 as a consolation the principality of Taranto district from the duchy of Apulia which fell as per their father s will to his brother Roger Borsa Bohemond did not long remain to enjoy his new principality for while besieging Amalfi with his uncle and brother he joined a passing band of Crusaders on their way to Palestine Among his army was a nephew of his a young man named Tancred Bohemond was the natural leader of the crusading host but through a trick he took Antioch and did not continue on to Jerusalem with the rest of the army instead remaining in the newly conquered city to carve out a principality for himself there Tancred also left the main Crusade at Heraclea Cybistra to fight for territory in Cilicia A great state like the one his cousins were forging in Europe however was impossible for Bohemond He was defeated badly at the Battle of Harran in 1104 and forced later to sign the Treaty of Devol in 1108 with Byzantium Nevertheless his son Bohemond II inherited the Crusader state He in turn gave it to his only daughter Constance who ruled it until 1163 Tancred had great luck in carving out a principality around Galilee with the grants of Godfrey of Bouillon but he relinquished this in 1101 Genealogy editUnless otherwise noted dates shown are regnal dates Tancred and his first wife Muriel or Muriella had the following issue William Iron Arm count of Apulia 1042 1046 Drogo count of Apulia 1046 1051 Humphrey count of Apulia 1051 1057 Abelard d 1081 Herman count of Cannae 1081 1097 Geoffrey count of the Capitanate d 1071 Robert I count of Loritello 1061 1107 Robert II count of Loritello 1107 1137 William count of Loritello 1137 d Sarlo or Serlo I heir to estates in Normandy Sarlo II d 1072 married the daughter of Roger de Moulins Count of Boiano Sarlo III descending from which the Marquis Sarlo of Calabria Tancred and his second wife Fressenda or Fedesenda had the following issue 8 Robert Guiscard count 1057 1059 and duke of Apulia 1059 1085 Bohemond I prince of Taranto 1088 1111 and Antioch 1098 1111 Bohemond II prince of Taranto 1111 1128 and Antioch 1111 1131 Constance Princess of Antioch 1131 1163 Roger Borsa duke of Apulia 1085 1111 William II duke of Apulia 1111 1127 Guy duke of Amalfi and Sorrento d 1107 Robert Scalio d 1110 Emma of Apulia Tancred Prince of Galilee 1072 1112 William Mauger count of the Capitanate 1056 1059 William count of the Principate 1056 1080 Richard of Salerno regent of the County of Edessa 1104 1108 d 1114 Roger of Salerno regent of the Principality of Antioch 1112 1119 Aubrey also Alberic Alberad Alvered Alvred or Alfred stayed in Normandy Hubert also Humbert stayed in Normandy Tancred stayed in Normandy Roger Bosso count of Sicily 1071 1101 Jordan count of Syracuse 1091 1092 Geoffrey count of Ragusa Mauger count of Troina Simon count of Sicily 1101 1105 Roger II count 1105 1130 and king of Sicily 1130 1154 Roger duke of Apulia 1134 1148 Tancred count of Lecce and king of Sicily 1189 1194 Roger III king of Sicily 1193 1194 William III king of Sicily 1194 Tancred prince of Bari 1132 1138 Alfonso prince of Capua 1135 1144 William I the Bad king of Sicily 1154 1166 Roger duke of Apulia 1154 1161 Robert William II the Good king of Sicily 1166 1189 Bohemond duke of Apulia 1181 Henry prince of Capua 1166 1172 Henry Simon Prince of Taranto 1128 1154 Constance Queen of Sicily 1194 1198 Frederick II of Sicily King of Sicily 1198 1250 Fressenda who married Richard I dead in 1078 count of Aversa and prince of Capua Jordan I of Capua Prince of Capua 1078 1091 Richard II of Capua Prince of Capua 1091 1106 Robert I of Capua Prince of Capua 1106 1120 Richard III of Capua Prince of Capua 1120 Jordan II of Capua Prince of Capua 1120 1127 Robert II of Capua Prince of Capua 1127 1156 Relatives of unknown relationship include Tancred count of Syracuse fl 1104 Simon count of Syracuse fl 1162 possibly a son of Roger II or nephew of Roger I Family tree edit nbsp Family tree of the brief but flamboyant Hauteville Family From Tancred of Hauteville a norman petty Lord to the conquest of the italian peninsula by his sons to its last representative Constance of Sicily his great granddaughter References edit Hill James S The place names of Somerset St Stephen s printing works 1914 Princeton University Page 256 Revue de l Avranchin et du pays de Granville Volume 31 Issue 174 Parts 3 4 Societe d archeologie de litterature sciences et arts d Avranches Mortain Granville the University of Michigan Site of Nordic Names origin of the name Hjalti a b c Les Noms des communes et anciennes paroisses de la Manche A et J Picard preface Yves Nedelec 1986 ISBN 2 7084 0299 4 oclc 15314425 p 133 135 Malaterra Goffredo Kenneth Baxter Wolf 2005 The Deeds of Count Roger of Calabria and Sicily and of His Brother Duke Robert Guiscard USA The University of Michigan Press pp 151 ISBN 0 472 11459 X G A Loud William of Apulia 1963 M Mathieu ed Palermo Guillaume de Pouille a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a Missing or empty title help Theotokis Georgios November 2010 The Norman Invasion of Sicily 1061 1072 Numbers and Military Tactics War in History 17 4 381 402 doi 10 1177 0968344510376463 S2CID 159817615 The New Cambridge Medieval History Volume 4 C 1024 c 1198 Part II ed David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley Smith Cambridge University Press 2004 760 Sources editEuropean Commission presentation of The Normans Norman Heritage 10th 12th century Norwich John Julius The Normans in the South 1016 1130 Longmans London 1967 Norwich John Julius The Kingdom in the Sun 1130 1194 Longman London 1970 Pierre Aube Roger II de Sicile 2001 Matthew Donald The Norman Kingdom of Sicily Cambridge University Press 1992 Houben Hubert Roger II of Sicily A Ruler between East and West Trans G A Loud and Diane Milbourne Cambridge University Press 2002 Medieval Sourcebook Alexiad complete text translated Elizabeth A Dawes Ralph of Caen Gesta Tancredi trans Bernard S and David S Bachrach Ashgate Publishing 2005 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hauteville family amp oldid 1183326679, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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