Barisone II of Arborea
Encyclopedia
Giudicati
The giudicati were the indigenous kingdoms of Sardinia from about 900 until 1410, when the last fell to the Aragonese. The rulers of the giudicati were giudici , from the Latin iudice , often translates as "judge". The Latin for giudicato was iudicatus The giudicati (singular giudicato) were the...
(judge or ruler) of Arborea, a kingdom of Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, from 1146 to 1186. He was the son of Comita II
Comita II of Arborea
Comita II was the giudice of the Giudicato of Arborea, from 1131 until his death. He was the son of Gonario, first ruler of Arborea of the Lacon dynasty. Married Elena de Orrubu, mother of Barison II of Arborea. The dating and chronology of his reign are obscure.Comita succeeded his elder...
and Elena de Orrubu. His reign was groundbreaking in Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
n history. It saw the birth of Catalan
Principality of Catalonia
The Principality of Catalonia , is a historic territory in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula, mostly in Spain and with an adjoining portion in southern France....
influence there, the escalation of the Genoese-Pisan conflict, and the first royal investiture over the entire island when Barisone was briefly recognised as King of Sardinia by the Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
from 1164 to 1165.
Barisone was born sometime early in the twelfth century. He may have been associated in the giudicato with his father from an unknown date. He succeeded immediately on his father's death. In his early years, he was on good terms with Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
and at peace with the church. He attended the consecration ceremony of Santa Maria di Bonarcado with most of the Arborean clergy and Villano, Archbishop of Pisa, his overlord. He donated land from his demesne to the church.
His reign became interesting when, in 1157, he repudiated his first wife, Pellegrina de Lacon, of an old and noble island family, and married Agalbursa de Cervera, daughter of Ponce and Almodis, sister of Raymond Berengar IV, Count of Barcelona. By this second marriage, he entered into alliance with the count of Barcelona, which represents the first Catalan influence in Sardinia. His correspondence with the count indicates the mutual nature of the alliance. Barisone warred against the Balearic
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...
Almoravids
Almoravids
The Almoravids were a Berber dynasty of Morocco, who formed an empire in the 11th-century that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus. Their capital was Marrakesh, a city which they founded in 1062 C.E...
on behalf of Barcelona and Raymond Berengar supported his attempts to unite the various giudicati under his rule.
Firstly, as a direct descendant of Constantine II of Cagliari
Constantine II of Cagliari
Constantine II was the giudice of Cagliari . He was called de Pluminus after his capital city....
he claimed that giudicato from Peter, who was ruling jure uxoris through Constantine's daughter. Barisone invaded Cagliari
Cagliari
Cagliari is the capital of the island of Sardinia, a region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name Casteddu literally means castle. It has about 156,000 inhabitants, or about 480,000 including the outlying townships : Elmas, Assemini, Capoterra, Selargius, Sestu, Monserrato, Quartucciu, Quartu...
and forced Peter to flee to his brother Barisone II
Barisone II of Torres
Barison II or Barisone II was the giudice of Logudoro from 1153 to 1186. He was the son and successor of Gonario II, who retired to the monastery of Clairvaux to live out his days....
's court at Torres
Porto Torres
Porto Torres is a comune and city in northern Sardinia, in the Province of Sassari.It is situated on the north coast about 25 km east of the Gorditanian promontory , and on the spacious bay of the Gulf of Asinara.-History:...
. In Spring 1164, the giudicati of Torres and Cagliari, united with the Pisans of the island, retook Cagliari and invaded Arborea. Barisone took refuge in the castle of Cabras
Cabras
There are geographical features that begin with Cabras:*Cabras, Italy*Ilha das Cabras - an island chain in the municipality of Ilhabela, São Paulo, Brazil...
. From there, remembering his father's anti-Pisan policy, he contacted the Republic of Genoa
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
, through which was enlisted the support of the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. In August, the emperor proclaimed Barisone "King of Sardinia" in a ceremony in San Siro in Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
. In exchange, Barisone agreed to annual payments of four thousand silver marks and to recognise imperial sovereignty over the island. In September, Barisone signed a treaty with Genoa. For military aid he granted them rights to set up markets in his territory and gave them the port of Oristano
Oristano
Oristano is a town and comune, capital of the Province of Oristano, on the island of Sardinia, Italy. It has approximately 32,500 inhabitants.Its economy is mainly based on fishing, agriculture and, to a certain extent, tourism.-History:...
with the castles of Arculentu and Marmilla
Marmilla
Marmilla is a natural region of southern-central Sardinia, Italy.It is delimited from east and south by the Campidano, from north-west by Monte Arci, from north by the Giara di Gesturi and the Giara di Serri, and from east by the Flumini Mannu....
as surety against his payment of a large sum.
Early in 1165, Barisone was in Genoa with the consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
Pizzamiglio. He was not allowed to return to Arborea because he could not raise the required sum. On 12 April, in an about-face, the emperor renounced his royal grant to Barisone and proclaimed the archdiocese of Pisa lord over the entire island. In 1168, Barisone returned to Arborea with the Genoese diplomat Nuvolone Alberici
Nuvolone Alberici
Nuvolone Alberici was a diplomat and statesman of the early Republic of Genoa during some of its formative years. He was a brother of Ottobuono Alberici....
. The ongoing war there ended that year and Barisone tried raising the necessary payment for the Genoese. His wife and Ponc de Bas, his brother-in-law, were sent back to Genoa as hostages until, in 1171, the payment was made and Barisone and his family were freed.
In 1170s, at the latest, he gave his daughter Ispella in marriage to Hug, the eldest brother of his new wife Agalbursa.
In 1180, Barisone made war on Cagliari. He had initial successes, but was captured and forced to come to terms. In 1182, he donated the church of San Nicolas di Gurgo to the Abbey of Montecassino. He founded a hospital and a monastery in Oristano. He struggled for the cultural and religious advancement of his realm in his final years. He died in 1186 and was succeeded by his eldest son Peter I
Peter I of Arborea
Peter I , of the Serra family, was the eldest son and successor of Barisone II of Arborea, reigning from 1186 to his death. His mother was Barisone's first wife, Pellegrina de Lacon...
, born from his first wife; the second son, also from the first marriage, Barisone, died by 1189. From his second marriage, Barisone had daughter, Susanna.
Sources
- Ghisalbert, Alberto M. (ed). Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani: VI Baratteri – Bartolozzi. Rome, 1964.
- Scano, D. "Serie cronol. dei giudici sardi." Arch. stor. sardo. 1939.
- Besta, E. and Somi, A. I condaghi di San Nicolas di Trullas e di Santa Maria di Bonarcado. Milan, 1937.