Roger Borsa
Encyclopedia
Roger Borsa was the Norman Duke of Apulia and effective ruler of southern Italy from 1085 until his death. He was the son of Robert Guiscard
, the conqueror of southern Italy and Sicily; Roger was not as adept as his father, and most of his reign was spent in feudal anarchy.
, an imposing warrior Lombard noblewoman.
His ambitious mother arranged for Roger to succeed his father in place of Robert Guiscard's eldest son by another wife, Bohemund of Taranto. According to English historian John Julius Norwich:
In 1073, Sichelgaita had Roger proclaimed heir after Guiscard fell ill at Trani
. Roger's cousin Abelard
was the only baron to dissent from the election of Roger, claiming that he was the rightful heir to the duchy. Roger accompanied his father on a campaign to Greece in 1084. He was still in Greece when his father died on 17 July 1085 in Kefalonia
. While Bohemond
was supposed to inherit the Greek possessions and Roger the Italian ones, it was Bohemund who was in Italy (Salerno
) and Roger in Greece (Bundicia) at the time of the Guiscard's passing.
Roger rejoined his mother on Cephalonia, his absence causing panic and confusion with his army, according to Goffredo Malaterra
. The two quickly returned to the peninsula and with the support of Roger I of Sicily
, his uncle, was recognised as duke in September. His Lombard heritage also made him a more attractive candidate than his Norman half-brother, who had fled to Capua
. With the support of Jordan I of Capua
, he rebelled against his brother and took Oria
, Otranto
, and Taranto
. Roger, however, made peace in March 1086 and the brothers acted as effective co-rulers. In late Summer 1087, Bohemond renewed the war with the support of some of his brother's vassals. He surprised and defeated Roger at Fragneto
and retook Taranto. Though described as a powerful warrior (he took the cities of Benevento
, Canosa
, Capua
, and Lucera
by siege), Roger Borsa was never able to check Bohemund's power or bring him under his control. The war was finally resolved by the mediation of Pope Urban II
and the award of Taranto and other possessions to Bohemund. Roger also granted him Cosenza
and other holdings he desired allodially. In 1089 Roger Borsa was officially invested with the duchy of Apulia by Pope Urban II
.
Roger permitted the minting of baronial coinage in at least two instances (Fulco of Basacers
and Manso vicedux
). He planned to urbanise the Mezzogiorno
by granting charters to various towns and encouraging urban planning
. In 1090, he and Urban encouraged Bruno of Cologne
, founder of the Carthusian Order to accept election to the archbishopric of Reggio di Calabria.
In May 1098, at the request of his first cousin once removed, Prince Richard II of Capua
, Borsa and his uncle Count Roger I of Sicily
began the siege of Capua
, from which the prince had long ago been exiled as a minor. In exchange for his assistance, the duke received the homage of Richard, though he seems to have made no use of it, for Richard's successors paid no heed to Roger Borsa's overlordship. Capua
fell after forty days of notable besieging, for Pope Urban II
had come to meet Roger of Sicily and Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury
had come to meet the pope.
In October 1104, Roger besieged William, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo
, who was at that time independent and pledged to the Byzantines, and expelled him from the Gargano, abolishing the county.
In 1092, Roger Borsa married Adela
, the daughter of Robert I, Count of Flanders
, and widow of Canute IV of Denmark
. He was succeeded by their son William
. However William proved to be as weak a ruler as his father, and the domain was ultimately inherited by a cousin, Roger II of Sicily
.
One of the prime sources for Roger's reign is the work of William of Apulia
, who dedicated his chronicle to Guiscard and his son.
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
, the conqueror of southern Italy and Sicily; Roger was not as adept as his father, and most of his reign was spent in feudal anarchy.
Biography
Roger was the son of Robert Guiscard and SikelgaitaSikelgaita
Sikelgaita was a Lombard princess, the daughter of Guaimar IV, Prince of Salerno, and second wife of Robert Guiscard, Duke of Apulia....
, an imposing warrior Lombard noblewoman.
His ambitious mother arranged for Roger to succeed his father in place of Robert Guiscard's eldest son by another wife, Bohemund of Taranto. According to English historian John Julius Norwich:
In 1073, Sichelgaita had Roger proclaimed heir after Guiscard fell ill at Trani
Trani
Trani is a seaport of Apulia, southern Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, in the new Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani , and 40 km by railway West-Northwest of Bari.- History :...
. Roger's cousin Abelard
Abelard of Hauteville
Abelard of Hauteville was the eldest son of Humphrey, count of Apulia and Calabria , and his Lombard wife, Gaitelgrima of Salerno, also known as Altrude...
was the only baron to dissent from the election of Roger, claiming that he was the rightful heir to the duchy. Roger accompanied his father on a campaign to Greece in 1084. He was still in Greece when his father died on 17 July 1085 in Kefalonia
Kefalonia
The island of Cephalonia, also known as Kefalonia, Cephallenia, Cephallonia, Kefallinia, or Kefallonia , is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece, with an area of . It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit...
. While Bohemond
Bohemund I of Antioch
Bohemond I , Prince of Taranto and Prince of Antioch, was one of the leaders of the First Crusade. The Crusade had no outright military leader, but instead was ruled by a committee of nobles...
was supposed to inherit the Greek possessions and Roger the Italian ones, it was Bohemund who was in Italy (Salerno
Salerno
Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
) and Roger in Greece (Bundicia) at the time of the Guiscard's passing.
Roger rejoined his mother on Cephalonia, his absence causing panic and confusion with his army, according to Goffredo Malaterra
Goffredo Malaterra
Gaufredo Malaterra was an eleventh century Benedictine monk and historian, possibly of Norman origin. He travelled to the southern Italian peninsula, passing some time in Apulia before entering the monastery of Sant'Agata at Catania, on the isle of Sicily...
. The two quickly returned to the peninsula and with the support of Roger I of Sicily
Roger I of Sicily
Roger I , called Bosso and the Great Count, was the Norman Count of Sicily from 1071 to 1101. He was the last great leader of the Norman conquest of southern Italy.-Conquest of Calabria and Sicily:...
, his uncle, was recognised as duke in September. His Lombard heritage also made him a more attractive candidate than his Norman half-brother, who had fled to Capua
Capua
Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
. With the support of Jordan I of Capua
Jordan I of Capua
Jordan I , count of Aversa and prince of Capua from 1078 to his death, was the eldest son and successor of Prince Richard I of Capua and Fressenda, a daughter of Tancred of Hauteville and his second wife, also named Fressenda, and the nephew of Robert Guiscard, duke of Apulia, Calabria, and Sicily...
, he rebelled against his brother and took Oria
Oria
-Places:Italy* Oria, Apulia, a town in the Apulia region, Province of Brindisi* Oria, Lombardy, a village in the municipality of Valsolda, in the Province of ComoSpain* Oria, Spain, a municipality in the Province of Almería, Andalusia...
, Otranto
Otranto
Otranto is a town and comune in the province of Lecce , in a fertile region once famous for its breed of horses.It is located on the east coast of the Salento peninsula. The Strait of Otranto, to which the city gives its name, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and Italy with Albania...
, and Taranto
Taranto
Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
. Roger, however, made peace in March 1086 and the brothers acted as effective co-rulers. In late Summer 1087, Bohemond renewed the war with the support of some of his brother's vassals. He surprised and defeated Roger at Fragneto
Fragneto
Fragneto may refer to 2 Italian municipalities of the Province of Benevento:*Fragneto l'Abate*Fragneto Monforte...
and retook Taranto. Though described as a powerful warrior (he took the cities of Benevento
Benevento
Benevento is a town and comune of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, 50 km northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill 130 m above sea-level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino and Sabato...
, Canosa
Canosa
Canosa di Puglia is a town and comune in Apulia in southern Italy, between Bari and Foggia, located in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, not far from the position on the Ofanto River where the Romans found refuge after the defeat of the Battle of Cannae...
, Capua
Capua
Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
, and Lucera
Lucera
Lucera is a town and comune in the Province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southern Italy.-Ancient era and early Middle Ages :Lucera is an ancient city founded in Daunia, the centre of Dauni territory . Archeological excavations show the presence of a bronze age village inside the city boundaries...
by siege), Roger Borsa was never able to check Bohemund's power or bring him under his control. The war was finally resolved by the mediation of Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II , born Otho de Lagery , was Pope from 12 March 1088 until his death on July 29 1099...
and the award of Taranto and other possessions to Bohemund. Roger also granted him Cosenza
Cosenza
Cosenza is a city in southern Italy, located at the confluence of two historic rivers: the Busento and the Crathis. The municipal population is of around 70,000; the urban area, however, counts over 260,000 inhabitants...
and other holdings he desired allodially. In 1089 Roger Borsa was officially invested with the duchy of Apulia by Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II , born Otho de Lagery , was Pope from 12 March 1088 until his death on July 29 1099...
.
Roger permitted the minting of baronial coinage in at least two instances (Fulco of Basacers
Fulco of Basacers
Fulco of Basacers was an Italo-Norman knight and landholder with considerable possessions in the Val di Crati in Calabria. The seat of his lordship was "Brahalla", a place or castle that no longer exists....
and Manso vicedux
Manso (viceduke)
Manso was a Lombard viceduke who ruled the Duchy of Amalfi during the reign of Roger Borsa, the Norman Duke of Apulia. He is known only from his coins: large, copper follari bearing the inscription MANSO VICEDUX on the reverse...
). He planned to urbanise the Mezzogiorno
Mezzogiorno
The Midday is a wide definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the southern half of the Italian state, encompassing the southern section of the continental Italian Peninsula and the two major islands of Sicily and Sardinia, in addition to a large number of minor islands...
by granting charters to various towns and encouraging urban planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
. In 1090, he and Urban encouraged Bruno of Cologne
Bruno of Cologne
Saint Bruno of Cologne , the founder of the Carthusian Order, personally founded the order's first two communities...
, founder of the Carthusian Order to accept election to the archbishopric of Reggio di Calabria.
In May 1098, at the request of his first cousin once removed, Prince Richard II of Capua
Richard II of Capua
Richard II , called the Bald, was the count of Aversa and the prince of Capua from 1090 or 1091.The eldest son and successor of Jordan I of Capua and Gaitelgrima, daughter of Prince Guaimar IV of Salerno, he was named after his grandfather, Richard I of Capua...
, Borsa and his uncle Count Roger I of Sicily
Roger I of Sicily
Roger I , called Bosso and the Great Count, was the Norman Count of Sicily from 1071 to 1101. He was the last great leader of the Norman conquest of southern Italy.-Conquest of Calabria and Sicily:...
began the siege of Capua
Siege of Capua
The Siege of Capua was a military operation involving the states of medieval southern Italy, beginning in May 1098 and lasting forty days. It was an interesting siege historically for the assemblage of great persons it saw and militarily for the cooperation of Norman and Saracen forces which it...
, from which the prince had long ago been exiled as a minor. In exchange for his assistance, the duke received the homage of Richard, though he seems to have made no use of it, for Richard's successors paid no heed to Roger Borsa's overlordship. Capua
Capua
Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
fell after forty days of notable besieging, for Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II , born Otho de Lagery , was Pope from 12 March 1088 until his death on July 29 1099...
had come to meet Roger of Sicily and Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury
Anselm of Canterbury
Anselm of Canterbury , also called of Aosta for his birthplace, and of Bec for his home monastery, was a Benedictine monk, a philosopher, and a prelate of the church who held the office of Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109...
had come to meet the pope.
In October 1104, Roger besieged William, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo
William, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo
William was the Count of Monte Sant'Angelo from 1102 to 1104. He succeeded his brother Henry on his death.According to the Chronica Montasterii Casinensis of Leo of Ostia, William , whom Leo calls comes civitatis montis Sancti Michahelis archangeli , made a donation to Montecassino in April 1100...
, who was at that time independent and pledged to the Byzantines, and expelled him from the Gargano, abolishing the county.
In 1092, Roger Borsa married Adela
Adela of Flanders
Adela of Flanders , also known as Ailanda, was a mediaeval Danish Queen and Italian Duchess and regent, Queen Consort of King Canute IV of Denmark, and Duchess consort of Duke Roger Borsa of Apulia, and then minor regent of Apulia in 1111–1115 as mother and guardian of William II of Apulia...
, the daughter of Robert I, Count of Flanders
Robert I, Count of Flanders
thumb|Robert I of FlandersRobert I of Flanders , known as Robert the Frisian, was count of Flanders from 1071 to 1092.-History:...
, and widow of Canute IV of Denmark
Canute IV of Denmark
Canute IV, later known as Canute the Holy or Canute the Saint , was King of Denmark from 1080 until 1086. Canute was an ambitious king who sought to strengthen the Danish monarchy, devotedly supported the Roman Catholic Church, and had designs on the English throne. Slain by rebels in 1086, he was...
. He was succeeded by their son William
William II, Duke of Apulia
William II was the duke of Apulia and Calabria from 1111 to 1127. He was the son and successor of Roger Borsa. His mother, Adela of Flanders, had previously been queen of Denmark, and he was a half-brother of Charles the Good....
. However William proved to be as weak a ruler as his father, and the domain was ultimately inherited by a cousin, Roger II of Sicily
Roger II of Sicily
Roger II was King of Sicily, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, later became Duke of Apulia and Calabria , then King of Sicily...
.
One of the prime sources for Roger's reign is the work of William of Apulia
William of Apulia
William of Apulia was a chronicler of the Normans, writing in the 1090s. His Latin epic, Gesta Roberti Wiscardi , written in hexameters, is one of the principal contemporary sources for the Norman conquest of southern Italy, especially the career of Robert Guiscard, Duke of Apulia . It was composed...
, who dedicated his chronicle to Guiscard and his son.