Richard, Count of Acerra
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Richard, count of Acerra
(died 1196) was an Italo-Norman
nobleman, grandson of Robert of Medania, a Frenchman of Anjou
. Brother of Sibylla
, queen of Tancred of Sicily
, Richard was the chief peninsular supporter of his brother-in-law during his claim for the throne in 1189.
Richard was the co-commander of the army attached to Tancred's fleet in 1185. They captured Durazzo from the Byzantine Empire
without a struggle. The city had fully surrendered by June 24. Richard then led his army on a march across the Balkan peninsula and by August 6 he had begun his siege of Thessalonica. On August 24 Thessalonika fell to Richard's armies in its turn.
In 1190, Richard was charged with keeping the German supporters of Roger of Andria
out of Apulia
. Richard secured all Apulia and the Terra di Lavoro
. Richard then "raised a great army of Roma
ns and men from Campania
and the Regno
to attack the Capua
ns and Aversa
ns. He invaded the region of Monte Cassino
, but at that time the German marshal Henry Testa invaded Apulia and joined with Roger of Andria. Richard fortified Ariano against them. They had much success until the German troops left. Richard then invited Roger to a meeting and treacherously arrested and imprisoned him. He had him executed soon after. Richard finally turned to Capua at that junction and the city fearfully surrendered without a siege.
Later, when the Emperor Henry VI, the only remaining claimant against Tancred, invaded the Terra di Lavoro, Richard took refuge in Naples
. From May to August 1191, Henry invested the city with a siege. When Henry was forced by illness to retire north of the Alps
, Richard left Naples and pounced on Capua, where he massacred the Germans left there under Conrad Muscaincervello. Richard then besieged Roger of Molise in Venafro
, then San Germano (now renamed Cassino
), and finally the monastery of Monte Cassino itself. By then, Tancred's victory was secure.
When Tancred died in 1194, Henry quickly marched down the peninsula and had himself crowned in Palermo
. Richard "abandoned Campania and Burgentia, the fortresses which he was [still] holding," and tried to flee. He was betrayed (fittingly) by a monk and turned over to the Diepold von Schweinspeunt
, who threw him in prison. When, in 1196, Henry arrived in the south, Richard was turned over to him. As Richard of San Germano
writes:
Diepold was given the county of Acerra by Henry.
Acerra
Acerra is a town and comune of Campania, southern Italy, in the Province of Naples, about 20 km northeast of the provincial capital in Naples. It is part of the Agro Acerrano plain.-History:...
(died 1196) was an Italo-Norman
Italo-Norman
The Italo-Normans, or Siculo-Normans when referring to Sicily, were the Italian-born descendants of the first Norman conquerors to travel to the southern Italy in the first half of the eleventh century...
nobleman, grandson of Robert of Medania, a Frenchman of Anjou
Anjou
Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...
. Brother of Sibylla
Sibylla of Acerra
Sibylla of Acerra was the wife and queen consort of Tancred, Count of Lecce and King of Sicily . She was the regent in 1194 for her son William III of Sicily...
, queen of Tancred of Sicily
Tancred of Sicily
Tancred was King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194. He was an illegitimate son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia, the eldest son of King Roger II, and of Emma, daughter of Achard II, Count of Lecce...
, Richard was the chief peninsular supporter of his brother-in-law during his claim for the throne in 1189.
Richard was the co-commander of the army attached to Tancred's fleet in 1185. They captured Durazzo from the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
without a struggle. The city had fully surrendered by June 24. Richard then led his army on a march across the Balkan peninsula and by August 6 he had begun his siege of Thessalonica. On August 24 Thessalonika fell to Richard's armies in its turn.
In 1190, Richard was charged with keeping the German supporters of Roger of Andria
Roger of Andria
Roger, count of Andria and Great Chamberlain of Sicily, was a claimant for the Sicilian throne after the death of William II in 1189. He is claimed by some to have been a great-grandson of Drogo of Hauteville, but this cannot be proven....
out of Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
. Richard secured all Apulia and the Terra di Lavoro
Terra di Lavoro
Terra di Lavoro is the name of a historical region of southern Italy. It corresponds roughy to the modern southern Lazio and northern Campania regions of Italy....
. Richard then "raised a great army of Roma
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
ns and men from Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
and the Regno
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
to attack the 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...
ns and Aversa
Aversa
Aversa is a town and comune in the Province of Caserta in Campania southern Italy, about 15 kilometres north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the agro aversano, producing wine and cheese...
ns. He invaded the region of Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, Italy, c. to the west of the town of Cassino and altitude. St. Benedict of Nursia established his first monastery, the source of the Benedictine Order, here around 529. It was the site of Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944...
, but at that time the German marshal Henry Testa invaded Apulia and joined with Roger of Andria. Richard fortified Ariano against them. They had much success until the German troops left. Richard then invited Roger to a meeting and treacherously arrested and imprisoned him. He had him executed soon after. Richard finally turned to Capua at that junction and the city fearfully surrendered without a siege.
Later, when the Emperor Henry VI, the only remaining claimant against Tancred, invaded the Terra di Lavoro, Richard took refuge in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. From May to August 1191, Henry invested the city with a siege. When Henry was forced by illness to retire north of the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, Richard left Naples and pounced on Capua, where he massacred the Germans left there under Conrad Muscaincervello. Richard then besieged Roger of Molise in Venafro
Venafro
Venafro is a comune in the province of Isernia, region of Molise, Italy. It has a population of around 12,000, having expanded quickly in the post-war period.-Geography:...
, then San Germano (now renamed Cassino
Cassino
Cassino is a comune in the province of Frosinone, Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio.Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Rapido and Liri rivers...
), and finally the monastery of Monte Cassino itself. By then, Tancred's victory was secure.
When Tancred died in 1194, Henry quickly marched down the peninsula and had himself crowned in Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
. Richard "abandoned Campania and Burgentia, the fortresses which he was [still] holding," and tried to flee. He was betrayed (fittingly) by a monk and turned over to the Diepold von Schweinspeunt
Dipold, Count of Acerra
Dipold , known in German as Diepold or Dietpold von Schweinspeunt or Schweinspünt, was a ministerialis who was raised to the Duchy of Spoleto in 1209. Of Bavarian origin, he was a reputed younger son of Berthold II of Vohburg and Adelaide of Ballenstedt. He was originally a vassal of the count of...
, who threw him in prison. When, in 1196, Henry arrived in the south, Richard was turned over to him. As Richard of San Germano
Richard of San Germano
Richard of San Germano was a notary at the monastery of Cassino from February 1186 to March 1232. He wrote a chronicle of the Mezzogiorno from the death of William II of Sicily in 1189 to 1243...
writes:
Diepold was given the county of Acerra by Henry.
Sources
- Annales Casinenses. Translated by G. A. Loud.
- Norwich, John JuliusJohn Julius NorwichJohn Julius Cooper, 2nd Viscount Norwich CVO — known as John Julius Norwich — is an English historian, travel writer and television personality.-Early life:...
. The Kingdom in the Sun 1130-1194. Longman: LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, 1970. - Matthew, Donald. The Norman Kingdom of Sicily. Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
: 1992. - Ryccardi di Sancto Germano Notarii Chronicon. trans. G. A. Loud.