The Molise region has been talked about since the time of the Normans, namely the period spanning the two centuries from the year 1000 to 1200. In particular, we focus on the De Moulins family, as its members left marks of their presence, becoming an integral part of the historical memory and identity of the people of Molise. If we are called Molisans, it is thanks to them: we, 'THOSE OF THE DE MOULINS,' or rather, 'THOSE WHO INHABIT THE LANDS OF THE DE MOULINS.'
The following is a brief overview of the historical and political situation in Southern Italy during these two centuries, a time when Southern Italy developed its own authentic state identity, dare I say national identity, thanks to the actions of a class of warriors, not many in number, who, as our grandmothers would say, 'FROM SQUIRES BECAME LORDS' and excellent rulers. These were the Normans.
In the first decades of the eleventh century, when the Normans made their appearance, Southern Italy was not politically homogeneous. (See Fig. 1 historical map). If we look at the geographical map of that time, we see that the territory was fragmented into multiple political entities: most of it was in the hands of the descendants of the Lombards who, in 568, almost conquered all of Italy. However, by the year 1000, their territory did not constitute a state. After the death of Sicard (which occurred in 839), the last prince of Benevento recognized by all as the First Authority, in the former Duchy of Benevento, there were at least three autonomous political entities: the Principality of Benevento, that of Capua, and that of Salerno.
The remaining territory was part of the Byzantine Empire, which controlled Apulia, Calabria, and part of Basilicata, along with the semi-independent principality of Amalfi. Sicily was completely in Muslim hands and constituted an autonomous Caliphate.
It's easy to imagine what could happen in such a fragmented scenario: Lombards and Byzantines constantly fighting for control of territories, Lombard potentates in continuous mutual contention for power, and papal ambitions and claims on southern territories due to a legacy from Charlemagne that recognized primacy over southern Italy.
In short, the South was a contested space, in the midst of a situation of warlike instability that immediately attracted the noble cadets of the Norman military aristocracy. They had settled in the Normandy region of northern France about a century earlier after coming from raiders to Paris, where they were granted a vast region: Normandy. Here, they had become permanently settled and acculturated, becoming an integral part of the Frankish kingdom.
The cadets of noble families did not inherit titles or lands; they had to earn their position through their own efforts, namely military skill and political cunning. In a true natural selection, only the best succeeded. The best were those with more initiative, whose enterprising spirit led them to attempt adventures even in distant lands.
But how did they come to Italy?
The explanation is simple: the Normans, being a warrior people, had Saint Michael as their patron saint, and each knight had taken the vow to make a devotional pilgrimage to the main Michaelic sanctuary, Mount Gargano.
Thus, taking note of the situation we have described and the need for good fighters, vital for any Lombard potentate, they offered to fight in their service against any opponent. Among the first significant military episodes in which the Normans made a mark was the anti-Byzantine revolt that erupted in Bari in 1009, led by the noble Melo, who legend has it was the first Lombard to encounter and hire Norman knights for the fight against the Byzantines in Apulia.
It didn't take long for many other Norman knights to realize the great career and wealth opportunities available to them in coming to Italy. Southern Italy was rich, experiencing economic and demographic growth (new cultivation techniques and the introduction of the iron plow), and there were many lands to conquer with the approval of local princes.
One of the first and most important knights to make his way was Rainolfo DRANGOT, who, for his military merits, already obtained the County of Aversa from the Duke of Naples in 1029. It was small but strategically important and played a key role in the Norman triumph.
Later came the sons of Tancredi d'Altavilla, who had 12 sons. More than half of them descended to Italy, including Guglielmo Braccio di Ferro, Roberto il Guiscardo, Umfredo, and Ruggero, to name only those whose names had greater resonance.
The Altavillas were extremely active and their "CLAN" was strong and powerful. So powerful that they faced the armies of the Eastern Empire in open battle, always emerging victorious. After the battles of 1041-42, they took control of many territories from the Byzantines. In 1043, the prince of Salerno recognized them as lords of those territories, constituting the County of Apulia, with its capital in Melfi, granting the title of Count to Guglielmo d'Altavilla, known as Braccio di Ferro (the older brother of Roberto and the head of the Clan).
Melfi thus became the main stronghold of their conquest and the capital of the County of Apulia (a territory with scattered possessions extending to Gargano). During those years, the alliance with the Drengots and the Altavillas consolidated, with the former settling in Campania and the latter straddling Basilicata, Irpinia, and the northern part of Apulia.
If the Drengots, fewer in number and probably satisfied with what they had achieved, were less inclined to expand their fiefs, especially those close to the possessions of the Altavillas in both Apulia and Calabria, the Altavillas showed a different will and initiative, partly because they were more numerous (at least 7 brothers) and led by Roberto, certainly the most politically capable, nicknamed the Guiscardo, meaning the 'FOX,' so well known was his cunning.
Enclosed to the south and east by the Byzantines, who remained a tough opponent, the Altavillas mainly looked north of the duchy, to the high Sannio and Abruzzo, where it was easier to expand at the expense of the worn-out Lombards, even threatening the papal possessions that extended to the Garigliano.
By the mid-century, the expansive policy of the Altavillas became evident, and their offensive capability was so clear that it raised strong alarm among all other entities in the territory: the Lombard potentates, as natural, but mainly the Pope, who exercised soft control over southern Lombardy and saw not only his political primacy threatened but even the possession of territories belonging to the Papal States.
The clash became inevitable and, from a political conflict, quickly turned into a military confrontation.
To open hostilities was the Pope himself: LEO IX, a German from a noble family, formally accused Robert Guiscard of threatening the power of the Church. He began weaving an alliance among those who had reason to fear the Normans: the Italo-Lombards, especially the Beneventans and Spoletans, the Eastern Roman Empire, and others he could gather from all over Italy. He even tried to involve the Emperor of the West, traveling personally to Germany.
He did not gain the emperor's support, but he returned to Italy with seven hundred skilled and well-armed Swabian knights, who would form the core of his army. Finally, he excommunicated the Normans and declared a Holy War against them.
This led to the historic Battle of Civitate in June 1053, near Fortore, where the Normans encountered the papal army from Molise. Despite facing the battle in considerable numerical inferiority against a body of strong and well-armed Germanic warriors, they emerged victorious thanks to their tactic focused on the strength and mobility of the cavalry.
The hero of the day was, unsurprisingly, Robert Guiscard. After winning the battle, he demonstrated the political acumen of his thinking. The Pope, witnessing the clash from the walls of the city of Civitate, surrendered to the victors. Unexpectedly, they did not inflict any harm on their bitter enemy. Instead, they knelt at his feet, asking for forgiveness for their arrogance, making vows of obedience, and accompanied him to Benevento, a city now fallen into their hands, where he involuntarily stayed for about two years.
The Lombard princes were defeated and stripped of their titles; what remained of southern Lombardy was now entirely in the hands of the Normans. With the Germanic emperor's support gone, the Byzantines in retreat, and the Lombards becoming insignificant, the Pope had to completely reconsider his position and policy.
During the two years in Benevento, the Pope adapted to the new situation, presenting the Church with new and unexpected scenarios for political and religious growth. He realized that the former Norman enemies, seeking papal recognition for their new status as rulers of the south, offering themselves as vassals and defenders of the Church, could become strong allies. They could play a role in Rome's conquest of the still Byzantine provinces of Puglia and Calabria and, in perspective, the entire Sicily, which was completely under Arab domination and essentially Muslim at that time. The Normans gifted the Pope the city of Benevento, which remained part of the Papal States until the unification of Italy, and he lifted the excommunication.
Negotiations continued with the new Pope Nicholas II until 1059 when the Melfi Concordat was signed. This concordat, perhaps the first in Italy's history, declared Robert Guiscard, who had succeeded his brother in leading the clan, a vassal of the Pope. He was appointed Duke of Puglia and Calabria, even though these regions were still largely under the Byzantine Empire, and Count of Sicily, which was still in Arab hands.
The Drengot family became the lords of the Campanian territories, excluding Naples. This papal act officially transferred power over the southern Italian territories from the Lombards to the Normans, even though a unified state or form of power was not yet established.
With this crucial achievement, the Normans had only to complete their plan to conquer the territories still part of the Eastern Empire and Sicily.
The conquest of Calabria, which had already begun in 1047, proved challenging for Guiscard due to the tenacious resistance they encountered. Robert completed the conquest only in 1065, with substantial assistance from his younger brother Ruggero, who was appointed Duke of Calabria.
Most of Apulia had already been conquered by the Altavilla; only the southern part, including Bari, remained. Its capture, after a long siege in 1071, marked the definitive expulsion of the Byzantines from Southern Italy. This pleased the Pope, who, after the schism, could extend Catholic worship to these regions previously under the Eastern Church.
In 1077, the last surviving Lombard prince, the Prince of Salerno, was deposed, and his daughter married Guiscard.
During this continental expansion phase, the Normans expanded northwards, conquering the high Sannio and territories in Abruzzo, at the expense of the Lombard Duchy of Spoleto.
In conclusion, in the 30 years following the Battle of Civitate, the Normans, or more precisely, the Altavilla clan and the Norman knights close to them, such as Rodolfo de Moulins, conquered Puglia, Calabria, high Sannio, and Campanian territories.
Simultaneously, the conquest of Sicily had begun. This task fell to Tancredi d'Altavilla's last son, Ruggero, who, along with Guiscard, had taken Calabria.
Ruggero started the conquest in 1061, landing in Messina with a significant deployment of knights. The Normans' military supremacy was immediately evident, as was Sicily's political instability, with lords divided and often rivals. This made the conquerors' task easier. Catania was taken in 1071, and Palermo the following year, but the total conquest of the island took another 20 years of war, as some areas fiercely resisted the Norman advance. Syracuse, for example, was only taken in 1086, and Noto in 1091. Along with Sicily, the Maltese archipelago, a strategically important outpost for controlling both military and commercial maritime routes, was also conquered.
In this relatively short period, the Altavilla did not miss an attempt to conquer overseas territories. In 1081, they landed on the other side of the Adriatic, aiming to conquer Epirus, but the project was too ambitious and unsuccessful.
Ruggero I's son, Ruggero II of Sicily, aimed to unify all the Norman-occupied territories in Southern Italy. In July 1127, Guglielmo, Guiscard's successor, Duke of Puglia, died without heirs, and Ruggero claimed all the Altavilla possessions, including the Lordship of Capua. He landed on the mainland and easily conquered Amalfi and Salerno. In 1128, he was crowned Duke of Puglia and Calabria, and in September 1129, he was publicly recognized as Duke by Naples, Bari, Capua, and other cities.
On Christmas night of 1130, he was proclaimed King of Sicily in the cathedral of Palermo by Pope Honorius II.
The Western Schism A month after the Pope died, two popes were elected (the papacy was a Roman affair): Innocent II and Anacletus II. Innocent was supported by major states in Europe, including Germany; Anacletus was supported only by the Italian Normans. Innocent excommunicated Anacletus and the Normans, his protectors. He sought help from the King of Germany and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire: LOUIS II, whom he had crowned Emperor in 1133
The Western Schism
One month after the Pope's death, two popes were elected (the papacy was a Roman affair): Innocent II and Anacletus II.
Innocent was supported by major European states, including Germany; Anacletus by the Italian Normans alone.
Innocent excommunicated Anacletus and the Normans, his protectors, seeking help from the King of Germany and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire: LOUIS II, whom he had himself crowned Emperor in 1133.
He descended to Italy with a strong army, swiftly conquering almost the entire southern peninsula. In 1137, he returned to Germany.
Ruggero II quickly reconquered the territories.
In that same year, both Louis and Pope Anacletus died, ending the schism within the church.
In 1139, Pope Innocent III, with a strong army, moved against Ruggero II. However, once again, the Normans proved superior, and near Cassino, they captured the pope. Like his predecessor, Pope Leo IX, almost a century earlier, he reached an agreement, acknowledged Ruggero's title as king, and returned to Rome.
Ruggero II was a great sovereign, educated and highly skilled in governance.
In 1140, he promulgated "The Assizes of Ariano," a legal corpus that constituted the Constitution of the Kingdom. According to many historians, it was the best and most modern among the great states of Europe.
The Kingdom of Sicily emerged as a prosperous and powerful state, with significant territorial expansion both in Italy, at the expense of the Lombard territories to the North (Abruzzi), and outside Italy.
By 1146, Malta, Corfu, Tunis, Tripoli, and Tripolitania were already annexed to the Kingdom. In 1180, further conquests in Africa were completed, and the so-called fourth shore became a reality.
Ruggero II died in 1154, succeeded by his son Guglielmo I.
The following year, in 1155, another war broke out.
Once again, the Pope, allied this time with the Eastern Emperor, moved against the Southern Kingdom.
Still, after some military successes, they were definitively defeated in a single battle and forced to withdraw.
Guglielmo died in 1166, and his 12-year-old son Guglielmo II succeeded him. In 1177, Guglielmo II married Joanna of England, daughter of Richard the Lionheart. The Kingdom opened up to international alliances. In 1186, another significant marriage was celebrated, between Constance d'Altavilla, Guglielmo's aunt, and Henry, son of Frederick Barbarossa.
In 1189, unfortunately, Guglielmo died without an heir, initiating a period of crisis due to the succession dispute. This led the German Emperor to march south again.
Tancredi, Lord of Lecce, the last of the Altavilla, succeeded Guglielmo, supported by the nobility and the pope's approval, who crowned him in the same year.
In 1191, Frederick Barbarossa died, and his son married to Constance declared himself the legitimate heir to the Sicilian throne.
Allied with Genoa and Pisa, he immediately attacked Sicily by sea.
The naval clash between the Sicilian and Pisan fleets was won by the Sicilians, causing significant losses to Henry's army.
Hostilities stopped but without a peace treaty.
Tancredi died three years later, in 1194, and was succeeded by his 9-year-old son, Guglielmo.
Guglielmo III was the last of the Italian Altavilla, and his young age deprived the state of a capable leader to face the imminent conflict with the empire.
Henry VI did not miss the opportunity; he descended again into Sicily, conquered and devastated Messina, easily seizing the rest of the Norman Kingdom. He gained appreciation for the severity with which he executed the conquest.
The young Guglielmo was deported to Germany, where he died four years later at the age of thirteen.
With him disappeared the last of the Altavilla Italian lineage, but not their memory.
It is interesting to note that the flag of the Neapolitan state, which Gioacchino Murat held from 1808 to 1815, was conceived by restoring the colors of the Altavilla House, namely the azure background and the white and red checkered band.
On Christmas of 1194, Henry was crowned King of Sicily with the name Henry I, and the day after, his wife, who had to stop in Jesi, gave birth to Frederick, whom the world would know as the "Wonder of the World."
In 1197, Henry died, perhaps poisoned by his wife.
In 1198, Federico succeeded him at only 4 years old, placed under the guardianship of the pope. Educated in the best possible way and prepared for the role he would have to play, Federico was elected King of Germany in 1212 and crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 1220 at St. Peter's by Pope Honorius III.