Roger I "Bosso" of Hauteville, the great count of Sicily

-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_I_of_Sicily (multilingual snoop)

-http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/ruggero-i-conte-di-sicilia/ (short)

-http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/ruggero-i-conte-di-sicilia-e-ca...

-http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/SICILY.htm#Rogerdied1101A
16. ROGER de Hauteville ([1031]-Mileto 22 Jun 1101, bur Mileto, Abbey of the Holy Trinity). Malaterra names "septimus Rogerius minor" last among the sons of Tancred & his second wife[269]. The Annals of Romoald agree that he was the youngest son[270]. Amatus records that the brothers "Mauger, Geoffrey, William and Roger" arrived in Apulia from Normandy[271], dated from the context to [1054/57]. He was installed by his brother Robert "Guiscard" as ROGER Count of Sicily in 1071.
- see below, Part B. COUNTS of SICILY.

http://genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00080258&tree=LEO

Roger de Hauteville aka Ruggero I conde si Sicilia

had three wives and up to 18 children

List of children (from Italian wikipedia, with additions from Medieval Lands database)

(1) Judith (Giuditta) d'Evreux (1050 - 1076)

• Flandina, sposò: a) Ugone di Circea (o Jersey), I conte di Paternò (+ 1075), b) Enrico del Vasto, fratello di Adelaide del Vasto, e capostipite, secondo il Mugnos della famiglia Mazzarino
• Matilde (+ prima del 1094), si sposò due volte[8], prima con Roberto de Aceto (Comte d'Eu), capostipite dell'omonima famiglia e nel 1080 con Raimondo IV di Tolosa;
• Adelisa (+ prima del 1096), sposò nel 1083 Enrico, conte di Monte Sant'Angelo;
• Emma (1070c. - 1120), richiesta in sposa da Filippo I di Francia, sposò prima Guglielmo (+ 1136), conte di Alvernia ed in seconde nozze Rodolfo Maccabeo, conte di Montescaglioso.
• Daughter m. Hugh de Gercé (see below)
• Jordan of Sicily (see below)
• Godfrey (see below)

(2) Eremburga di Mortain (morta nel 1087)

• Malgerio (1080 c. - 1100 circa), conte di Troina
• Muriella, sposò Giosberto (Josbert) di Lucy
• Costanza (1082 - post 1135), sposò nel 1095 Corrado re d'Italia, figlio dell'imperatore Enrico IV
• Busilla (Felicia) (+ 1102), sposò Colomanno re d'Ungheria;
• Giuditta (Judith), sposò Roberto I di Bassavilla

(3) Adelaide del Vasto anche Adelasia (1074 - 1118), fu la terza ed ultima moglie di Ruggero che la sposò nel 1087;

• Simone (1093 - 1105), Conte di Sicilia;
• Matilde, sposò Rainulfo di Alife;
• Ruggero (1095 - 1154), futuro Re di Sicilia e successore del padre;
• Maximilla (+ post 1137), sposò Ildebrando Aldobrandeschi
• Sybil (see below)

(4) probably by a mistress

• Geoffrey (see below)

From Charles Cawley's Medieval Lands Database: http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/SICILY.htm#Rogerdied1101A

ROGER de Hauteville, son of TANCRED de Hauteville & his second wife Fressenda --- ([1031]-Mileto 22 Jun 1101, bur Mileto, Abbey of the Holy Trinity). Malaterra names "septimus Rogerius minor" last among the sons of Tancred & his second wife[385]. The Annals of Romoald agree that he was the youngest son[386]. Amatus records that the brothers "Mauger, Geoffrey, William and Roger" arrived in Apulia from Normandy[387], dated from the context to [1054/57]. He joined his brother Robert Guiscard in Calabria in autumn 1057, where he soon subdued much of the western part of the peninsula from his base at Cape Vaticano. He helped suppress a rebellion in Melfi, but quarrelled with his brother and left his service in early 1058. He joined his brother Guillaume Count of the Principate, and installed himself in the castle of Scalea from where he led a life of brigandage. He helped his brother Robert Guiscard to suppress the rebellions in Calabria triggered by the famine of 1058, in return for the promise of half the territory involved. He captured Messina in 1061, and crossed to Sicily. The Chronicon Breve Normannicum records "Rogerius comes" captured "Mandorium" in 1061[388]. Still not having received his reward for helping Robert Guiscard in 1058, Roger issued an ultimatum in 1062. Robert reacted by besieging Roger at Mileto, but was captured at Gerace. A compromise was reached, seemingly based on a scheme to divide each town and castle into two separate areas of influence[389]. Roger returned to Sicily in Aug 1062, basing himself at Troina. After being besieged there for four months, he defeated the Muslims at Cerami in 1063. Further progress in the conquest was slow, but marked by the victory at Misilmeri in 1068. He helped his brother capture Bari in 1071, the two of them returning immediately afterwards to Sicily where they took Palermo in 1072 after offering terms of surrender which were favourable to the Muslim population. Robert Guiscard claimed suzerainty over the island, having been invested as Duke by the Pope several years earlier, but installed his brother as ROGER I Count of Sicily. According to Houben, Roger never used the title "magnus comes" or "Great Count", which was attributed to him in documents after his death. Houben also points out that "magnus" may have been intended in the sense of "elder" in the later documentation, to distinguish him from his son[390]. Progress in conquering the island of Sicily was slow, and further delayed by calls from Robert "Guiscard" for Roger's military help in Apulia. However, Trapani was conquered in 1077, and Taormina in Aug 1079. In 1081, the Muslims recaptured Syracuse, but lost it again to Roger's son Jourdain. Roger's conquest of Sicily was completed by 1091, when he also captured Malta. Magnanimous in victory, he was able to lay the foundations for a highly successful, multi-cultural state in Sicily where Muslim, Greek and Norman elements all prospered. Roger I also established control in areas of peninsular Italy. His nephew Roger "Borsa" Duke of Apulia ceded him those parts of Sicily and Calabria which were still under the control of Apulia in return for military support against his half-brother Bohémond. Roger I also demanded the lordship of Naples in return for helping Richard II Prince of Capua establish himself in 1098. He founded the Benedictine Abbey at Mileto where he was buried. Lupus Protospatarius records the death in Jun 1101 of "Rogerius comes Siciliæ"[391]. The Annales Siculi record the death in Jul 1101 of "comes Rogerus pater regis Rogerii"[392]. The monk Conrad´s Brevis Chronica records the death in Jul 1101 "apud Miletum" of "Comes [Rogerius comes]" and his burial "in ecclesia quam ipse fundaverat"[393].

m firstly (San Martino d'Agri Nov 1061) JUDITH d'Evreux, daughter of GUILLAUME d'Evreux [Normandie] & his wife Hawise --- (-1076). Orderic Vitalis names “Judith” who later married “Rogerii comitis Siciliæ” as the child of “Willermo Rodberti archiepiscopo filio” and his wife[394]. Orderic Vitalis records that “duæ sorores uterinæ Rodberti abbatis [Robert de Grantmesnil, ex-abbot of Ouche] Judith et Emma” had been left “apud Uticum in capella sancti Ebrulfi...sub sacro velamine”, that when they learnt that “Rodbertum fratrem suum” was established in Apulia with “secular power” (“sæculari potentia”) they left for Italy where they both married, Judith marrying “Rogerius Siciliæ comes” and Emma marrying “aliusque comes, cujus nomen no recolo”, dated to [1061/63][395]. Malaterra records the marriage "apud Sanctum Martinum" of "abbatum Sanctæ Euphemiæ Robertum…Judicta sorore sua" and Count Roger[396]. Left at Troina in Aug 1062 while her husband left to campaign further in Sicily, the citizens of the town attempted to take her hostage. She and her returned husband were besieged for four months.

m secondly ([1077]%29 EREMBURGE de Mortain, daughter of ROBERT Comte d'Eu [Normandie] & his first wife Béatrice --- (-[1087]). Malaterra records the death of "Eremburga filia Gulielmi comitis Mortonensis" wife of "comes Rogerius", dating the event to 1089[397].

m thirdly ([1087]%29 as her first husband, ADELAIDA del Vasto, daughter of MANFREDO del Vasto Marchese di Savona [Monferrato] & his wife --- ([1072]-Palermo 16 Apr 1118, bur Patti, Convent of San Salvatore). Her origin is confirmed by Malaterra who records the marriage of "comes Rogerus" and "Adelaydem…neptem Bonifacii…Italorum marchionis, filiam…fratris eius", dating the event to 1089[398]. According to Houben[399], she was "barely 15" on her first marriage, although the basis for this statement is not known and if it is correct her assumed birth year would be earlier or later than [1072] depending on the actual year of the marriage. She was regent of Sicily for her sons Count Simon and Count Roger II 1101-1112, jointly with Robert de Bourgogne, the husband of one of her step-daughters. She suppressed rebellions by her vassals with great severity. "Adalaidis comitissa Sicilie et Calabrie cum filio meo Rogerio" donated property to the church of St Bartholomew for the soul of "dmi mei comitis Rogerii" by charter dated [Mar 25/31 Aug] 1107[400]. "Adalasia comitissa Siciliæ et Calabriæ et…comes Rogerius filius eius" donated property to the bishopric of Squillace on the advice of "ipsorum baronum…Roberti Borelli et Gosberti de Licia et Willelmi de Altavilla" by charter dated [Mar 25/31 Aug] 1107[401]. She established the Sicilian capital at Palermo [Mar/Jun] 1112. She married secondly (Acre Sep 1113, repudiated 1117) as his third wife, Baudouin I King of Jerusalem. Fulcher of Chartres specifies that King Baudouin married the widow of Roger Count of Sicily and names her "Adelaidis" in a later passage[402]. Albert of Aix records the marriage at Acre of King Baudouin to the widow of "Rotgeri ducis Siciliæ, fratris Boemundi", describing in detail the magnificence of her suite, dated to [1113] from the context[403]. As a condition of her second marriage, she insisted that her son by her first marriage, Roger Count of Sicily, would become heir to Jerusalem if the second marriage produced no other heir[404]. Albert of Aix records that Arnoul Patriarch of Jerusalem ordered the king to repudiate his wife "propter adulterium" in relation to his "prima conjuge, de orta de principibus Armeniæ", implying that the former wife was still alive when the king remarried, but adds that the king was also accused of consanguinity with his wife who was "ortæ de sanguine Gallorum", whereupon his wife returned to Sicily[405]. Fulcher records her death in Sicily in April immediately after recording the death of King Baudouin[406]. The Annales Siculi record the death in 1118 of "Adelasia regina Ierosolimitana mater regis Rogerii"[407]. The monk Conrad´s Brevis Chronica records the death in 1118 of "Adelasia uxor comitis Rogerii, mater regis Rogerii"[408].

Count Roger I & his first wife had [five] children:

1. --- of Sicily . Malaterra records that "filia sua [Rogerii comitis Siciliæ]" (whom he does not name) married "Hugoni de Gircæa" who was granted Catania[409]. The monk Conrad´s Brevis Chronica records that in 1076 "Ugo de Guzzetta, capitaneus Cataniæ et gener comitis" was killed by the Saracens "in Mortelletto Cataniæ"[410]. m (before 1076) HUGUES de Gercé, son of --- (-killed Mortelletto, Catania 1076).

2. MATHILDE of Sicily (1062-before 1094). Malaterra records the marriage of "Raimundus comes Provinciarum" and "Matildem filiam suam [Rogerii Siculorum comitis]…de prima uxore" which he dates to 1080[411]. The primary source which confirms her first marriage has not yet been identified. According to Houben[412], Mathilde who married Robert Comte d'Eu was the daughter of Roger I Count of Sicily by his second wife, and a different person from Mathilde wife of Raymond Comte de Saint-Gilles. No source is quoted, but this seems unlikely from a chronological point of view as Roger's second marriage took place in [1077], and Robert Comte d'Eu died in [1089/93]. In addition, it seems unlikely that Roger, at the height of his power as count of Sicily in the late 1080s, would have agreed to his daughter's marriage to an obscure count in northern France while he was arranging royal marriages for his other daughters. m firstly (repudiated before [1080][413]%29 as his second wife, ROBERT Comte d'Eu, son of GUILLAUME Comte d'Hiémois et d'Eu [Normandie] & his wife Lesceline de Tourville (-8 Sep [1089/93], bur Le Tréport). m secondly (1080, divorced [1088]) as his third wife, RAYMOND de Toulouse, son of PONS Comte de Toulouse & his third wife Almodis de La Marche (-castle of Mount Pèlerin near Tripoli, Palestine 28 Feb 1105). He succeeded his brother in 1094 as RAYMOND IV Comte de Toulouse.

3. EMMA of Sicily ([1063]-after Aug 1119). Malaterra names "filiam eius…Emmam…de prima uxore Judicta" when recording that her father arranged her marriage to Philippe I King of France, in return for a generous dowry, not knowing that the king was still married to Bertha of Holland. She left for France, but when the king's marital status came to light, the dowry was sent back to Sicily and her marriage to the Comte de Clermont was arranged by her brother-in-law Raymond de Saint-Gilles[414]. Baluze is extremely sceptical about the reliability of these statements and suggests that the comte de Clermont in question may have been a member of the Clermont [Chiaramonte] family which is recorded from the early 12th century in southern Italy[415]. "Radulfus Machabeus…Montis Scaviosi dominus" donated property, for the souls of "domini patris mei Umfredi et fratris mei Gosfredi et…Iordanis cognati mei…dominæ matris meæ Beatricis…et domine Judettæ socrus meæ…coniugis meæ dominæ Emmæ…Adeliciæ sororis meæ", by charter dated May 1099[416]. "Emma comitissa…civitatis Severiane" donated property, for the souls of "viri mei domini Radulfi Machabei nostrorum filiorum", by charter dated Sep 1110, subscribed by "Rogerius civitatis Severiane dominus et filii Rodulfi Machabei Emme comitisse, Emma comitisse comitis Rogerii filiæ…"[417]. Pope Pascal II confirmed the possessions of the abbey of Notre-Dame de Josaphat in Sicily and Calabria by charter dated 3 Jan 1113, listing the donations including "Emme filie Rogerii comitis Sicilie et Calabrie…orto ante ecclesiam Sancte Perpetue"[418]. "Emma comitissa Rogerii comitis filia civitatis Severiane domina" donated property to "monasterio sancti Michaelis archangeli", for "me et viri mei Randulfi Machabei nostrorum filiorum", by charter dated 1115, subscribed by "domini Rogerii Machabei prescripte comitisse filii, domine Adelicze iamdicte comitisse filie…"[419]. "Emma comitissa Rogerii comitis filia civitatis Severiane domina…cum filio meo domino Rogerio Machabeo" donated property to "sancte Trinitatis…domus hospitalis" by charter dated Jul 1119[420]. "Emma comitissa Rogerii comitis filia civitatis Severiane domina…cum filio meo domino Rogerio Machabeo" donated property to "domus hospitalis Sancti Iohannis Iherosolomitani" by charter dated Aug 1119[421]. "Rogerius…Sicilie et Italie rex" confirmed donations "a beate memorie Emma sorore nostra quondam comitissa civitate Severiane et Appii domina" to the church of St Basilius in Appia by charter dated 21 Sep 1133[422]. "Rogerius…Sicilie et Italie rex…Rogerii primi comitis heres et filius" confirmed past donations to St Mary Josephat, Jerusalem by (among others) "dna Emma soror nostra uxor quondam Radulfi Machabei" by charter dated 11 Oct 1144[423]. [m firstly ([1086/87], repudiated?) GUILLAUME [VI] Comte d'Auvergne, son of ROBERT [II] Comte d'Auvergne & his second wife Judith de Melgueil (-25 Jan [1136]). This first marriage is not mentioned in Europäische Stammtafeln[424] but is consistent with the story concerning Emma's projected marriage with the king of France quoted above. According to another table in Europäische Stammtafeln[425], the wife of Comte Guillaume [VI] was Emma, daughter of Guillaume d'Evreux, who was the maternal aunt of Emma, daughter of Count Roger, but this appears impossible chronologically.] m [secondly] RODOLFO MACABEO Conte di Montescaglioso, son of UNFREDO Conte di Montescaglioso [Normandie] & his wife Beatrice --- (-[1115/19]).

4. ADELISA of Sicily (-before 1096). Her parentage and marriage are confirmed by a charter dated Mar 1083 under which "Enricus comes filius…bone memorie Robberti…comitis et Adelisa filia Ruggeri comitis…vir et uxor de civitate Sancti Michaelis Archangeli monte Gargano" donated property for the soul of "[Adelisa%E2%80%A6]…Iudite matri mee"[426]. m ENRICO Conte di Lucera e del Gargano, son of ROBERTO di Lucera Conte di Gargano & his wife Gaitelgrima di Salerno (-[1101/Aug 1103]). Conte di Monte San Angelo.

5. JORDAN of Sicily (-Syracuse 12 Sep [1091/92], bur Santa Maria, Mili San Pietro). Malaterra names "duobus filiis suis [Rogerii comitis Siciliæ] Gaufredo et Jordano" when recording their betrothals[427]. Jordan is named as son of Count Roger's first marriage in Europäische Stammtafeln[428]. The source on which this is based is not known, but it would be consistent with his likely birth date given the known details of his career. According to Norwich and Houben[429], Jordan was the illegitimate son of Roger I Count of Sicily. The monk Conrad´s Brevis Chronica records that in 1076 "Jordanus filius comitis" escaped the Saracens who devastated Sicily and captured "Drepanum, Bicarum et Castrum Novum"[430]. He ended the siege of Trapani in 1077 and recaptured Syracuse from the Muslims in 1081[431]. Left in charge of Sicily during his father's absence helping Robert Guiscard in peninsular Italy, he rebelled against his father's authority, although he was later pardoned. "Radulfus Machabeus…Montis Scaviosi dominus" donated property, for the souls of "domini patris mei Umfredi et fratris mei Gosfredi et…Iordanis cognati mei…", by charter dated May 1099[432]. m (1087) --- del Vasto, daughter of MANFREDO del Vasto Marchese di Savona & his wife ---. Malaterra records the betrothal of "duosque sorores [Adelaydis]" and "duobus filiis suis [Rogerii comitis Siciliæ] Gaufredo et Jordano", dating the event to 1089[433]. Count Roger & his second wife had nine children:

6. [FELICIA] of Sicily ([1078]-[1102]). Malaterra records the marriage in 1097 of "Colomannus…rex Ungarorum" and "comitis Rogerii…filiam suam" but does not name her[434]. Given that she gave birth to four known children before her death, it is unlikely that she was born much later than [1078], in which case she would have been the oldest child by Count Roger's second marriage. The marriage was arranged, with the help of Pope Urban II, to seal King Kálmán's alliance with the Normans of Sicily against Byzantium. King Kálmán's wife is named Felicia in Europäische Stammtafeln[435], but the primary source on which this is based has not been identified. She is sometimes referred to as "Buzilla", but according to Kerbl this is simply a corruption of the French "pucelle"[436]. According to Houben, her name is unknown[437]. m (1097) as his first wife, KÁLMÁN "Könyves/the Bookman" King of Hungary, son of GÉZA I King of Hungary & his first wife Sophie van Looz (1065-3 Mar 1116).

7. GODEFROI "il Leproso" of Sicily (-[1096/1120]). Malaterra names "duobus filiis suis [Rogerii comitis Siciliæ] Gaufredo et Jordano" when recording their betrothals, states that Godefroi died before the marriage could take place and, in a later passage, that he suffered from "morbus elephantinus"[438]. Godefroi is named as son of Count Roger's second marriage in Europäische Stammtafeln[439]. According to Houben, he was the son of the count's first marriage[440]. A leper, he lived in isolation in a remote monastery[441]. m --- del Vasto, daughter of MANFREDO del Vasto Marchese di Savona & his wife ---. Malaterra records the betrothal of "duosque sorores [Adelaydis]" and "duobus filiis suis [Rogerii comitis Siciliæ] Gaufredo et Jordano", dating the event to 1089, but states that Godefroi died before the marriage could take place[442].

8. MAUGER of Sicily . Chalandon says that Roger´s son Mauger is named in several charters, which are mainly spurious[443]. His father granted him Troina[444].

9. CONSTANCE of Sicily (-after Jul 1101). The Chronicon of Bernold records the marriage in 1095 "in Tusciam Pisas" of "Chonradus rex" and "filiam Rogerii ducis de Sicilia, adhuc admodum parvulum cum inaudita pecunia" but does not name the bride[445]. Malaterra records the marriage in 1095 in Pisa of "Corradum…Henrici filium" and "filiam Siculorum Calabriensium comite" but also does not name her[446]. The primary source which confirms that her name was Constance has not yet been identified. Houben says "we think the bride was called Maximilla" but cites no source to support this[447]. She returned to southern Italy after her husband's death. m (1095) KONRAD King of Italy, son of Emperor HEINRICH IV & his first wife Berthe de Savoie (12 Feb 1074-27 Jul 1101). His father excluded him from the succession in 1098, and declared him deposed[448]. No issue.

10. MURIELLA of Sicily (-after 1119). The primary source which confirms her parentage and marriage has not yet been identified. m JOSBERT de Lucy, son of --- (-after 1110).

11. MATHILDE of Sicily (-after [1132]). The De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis of Alessandro Abbot of Telese names "comitissæ Mathildis sororis Regis Rogerii, conjugisque Ranulphi comitis"[449]. The De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis of Alessandro Abbot of Telese records that "comitissa Mathildis", hearing that "Rogerium regem fratrem suum" had gone from Alife to Salerno, rejoined her brother who restored her dowry "tota vallis Caudina", dated to [1130] from the context[450]. The Chronicle of Falco Beneventano records that Roger King of Sicily disinherited "principem Robertum et Rainulphum comitem" in 1132 and in the same year sent "Mathildi uxori suæ" (wife of "Rainulphum") to Sicily to escape her husband[451]. The De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis of Alessandro Abbot of Telese records that Roger King of Sicily sent "Mathildem sororem suam…cum filio suo Roberto" to Sicily to avoid her husband, dated to [1130] from the context[452]. The De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis of Alessandro Abbot of Telese records that "comiti Ranulpho" demanded the return of Avellino and Mercogliano, along with his wife and son, from Roger King of Sicily at Taranto, dated to [1130/32] from the context[453]. m (before 1127, separated [1130/32]) RAINULFO Conte di Alife e di Avellino, son of ROBERTO Conte di Airola, Alife e Caiazzo & his wife Gaitelgrima --- (-30 Apr 1139).

12. FLANDRINA of Sicily. Chalandon records that her parentage and marriage are confirmed by Pirro[454]. m (before 1094) ENRICO del Vasto, son of MANFREDO del Vasto Marchese di Savona & his wife --- (-1137).

13. [SIBYLLE] of Sicily. Orderic Vitalis records that Adelaida, widow of Roger I Count of Sicily, arranged the marriage of "her daughter" (unnamed) to Robert de Bourgogne whom she appointed co-regent for her son[455]. Kerrebrouck says that Sibylle was the possible name of this daughter and that she was born from his third marriage[456], presumably reading the passage in Orderic Vitalis literally. It seems more likely chronologically that she was the daughter of Count Roger's second marriage. m (1102 or 1103) ROBERT de Bourgogne, son of ROBERT I "le Vieux" Duke of Burgundy & his [first/second wife] [H%C3%A9lie de Semur/Ermengarde [Blanche] d'Anjou] (-poisoned [1113]). He is named as son of Duke Robert by Orderic Vitalis[457]. Jean Richard suggests that Robert was the son of Duke Robert by his second marriage[458]. Given his active career in the early 12th century, a birth date in the 1050s is more likely than in the late 1030s/early 1040s, but there appear to be no surviving primary source which point either way. Orderic Vitalis records that he was declared heir to the duchy of Burgundy by his father, after the death of his older [half-]brother, but was dispossessed by his nephew Duke Hugues I[459]. He left Burgundy to take part in the expedition against the Moors in León with his nephew Duke Eudes 5 Aug 1087[460]. Orderic Vitalis records that he "made a friendly alliance" with Adelaida, widow of Roger I Count of Sicily, who arranged his marriage and appointed him co-regent for her son[461]. He was murdered by his mother-in-law with a poisoned draught after Count Roger II came of age[462]. His death date is estimated from Orderic Vitalis recording that "for ten years he defended the principality [Sicily] vigourously against all attacks"[463].

14. JUDITH of Sicily (-before 19 Oct 1136). "Jullita filia comitis Rogerii cum consensus fratris mei Rogerii regis Sicilie ducatus Apulie et principatus Capue" founded a Cluniac abbey at Sciacca by charter, dated 1103 although this date appears incorrect in view of the title attributed to her brother which he only acquired in 1130[464]. The primary source which confirms her marriage has not yet been identified, although it is suggested by Ioannes Kinnamos who names "Bassavilla Rogerii Siciliæ tyranni ex sorore nepos"[465]. It also suggested by the Chronicle of Romualdo Guarna which records that "Robertus de Basavilla comes de Conversano consobrinus frater eiusdem regis" was present at the coronation of Guillaume I King of Sicily (in 1154)[466]. "Robert de Bassonville comte de Conversano" donated the church of San Martino di Molfetta to Cava by charter dated 19 Oct 1136 which names "feue Judith femme du comte et Robert leur fils"[467]. m (1110) ROBERT [I] de Basonville "Chaperon", son of --- (-before Sep 1142). Roger II King of Sicily created him Conte di Conversano in 1136. Count Roger & his third wife had three children:

15. SIMON of Sicily (1093-28 Sep 1105). The Annals of Romoald name "filius eius [=Rogerius Sicilius comes] Symon" when recording that he succeeded his father, specifying that "paucis transactis annis mortuus est"[468]. He succeeded his father in 1101 as SIMON Count of Sicily, under the joint regency of his mother and his brother-in-law Robert de Bourgogne. The De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis of Alessandro Abbot of Telese records that "frater primogenitus…Simon" succeeded his father, but died and was succeeded by his brother Roger[469]. "Comes Rogerius" confirmed the donation of property to the church of Bagnara by "frater meus Simon et mater mea Adelasia" by charter dated Oct 1116[470].

16. ROGER of Sicily ([22 Dec 1095]-Palermo 26 Feb 1154, bur Palermo Cathedral). The Annals of Romoald name "frater eius [=Symonis] Rogerus comes" when recording that he succeeded his brother[471]. He succeeded his brother in 1105 as ROGER II Count of Sicily. - see below, Part C. KINGS of SICILY.

17. MAXIMILLA of Sicily. She and her husband are named by Houben but the primary source on which this is based has not been identified[472]. m ILDEBRANDO [VI] Aldobrandeschi, son of --- (-1137). Count Roger had one illegitimate child by an unknown mistress:

By a mistress: 18. GEOFFROY (-after 1120). It is not possible that this Geoffroy was the same person as Comte Roger´s son, Geoffroy/Godefroi, who is recorded as having been a leper. It is also chronologically impossible that he was the son of Roger II Count of Sicily, given the latter´s birth in 1095. It is assumed therefore that this second son named Geoffroy was an illegitimate son of Count Roger I. His father granted him Ragusa[473]. "Tancredus de Siracusa et Goffredus de Ragusia et Robert Avenelles et Radulfus de Belvaco" are named as present in a charter dated [Mar 25/31 Aug] 1107 under which "Adalasia comitissa Siciliæ et Calabriæ et…comes Rogerius filius eius" donated property to the bishopric of Squillace on the advice of "ipsorum baronum…Roberti Borelli et Gosberti de Licia et Willelmi de Altavilla"[474]. "Geoffroi de Raguse, fils du comte Roger" is named with his three sons in a charter dated 1120[475]. See CONTI di MARSICO.

Sources:

• [385] Malaterra, I.4, p. 9.
• [386] Romoaldi Annales 1057, MGH SS XIX, p. 405.
• [387] Amatus III.43, p. 101.
• [388] Chronicon Breve Nortmannicum, RIS V, p. 278.
• [389] Norwich (1992), p. 151.
• [390] Houben (2002), p. 23.
• [391] Lupus Protospatarius 1101, MGH SS V, p. 61.
• [392] Annales Siculi, Malaterra, p. 116.
• [393] Epistola fratres Conradi…Panormitana ad episcopum Cathanensem, sive Brevis Chronica 1027-1083, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, Tome I, Part 2, p. 278.
• [394] Orderic Vitalis (Prévost), Vol. II, Liber III, p. 30.
• [395] Orderic Vitalis (Prévost), Vol. II, Liber III, V, p. 91.
• [396] Malaterra, II.19, p. 35.
• [397] Malaterra, IV.14, p. 93.
• [398] Malaterra, IV.14, p. 93.
• [399] Houben (2002), p. 24.
• [400] Brühl, C. R. (ed.) (1987) Codex Diplomaticus Regni Siciliæ, Series I, Tomus II/1. Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina (Köln, Wien) ("Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina"), I, p. 3.
• [401] Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina, 2, p. 4.
• [402] RHC, Historiens occidentaux, III (1866) Fulcherio Carnotensi Historia Hierosolymitana, Gesta Francorum Iherusalem Peregrinantium (Paris) ("Fulcher") II.LI and LIX, pp. 428 and 433.
• [403] Albert of Aix (RHC), Liber XII, Cap. XIII, p. 696.
• [404] WT XI.XXI, p. 488.
• [405] Albert of Aix (RHC), Liber XII, Cap. XXIV, p. 704.
• [406] Fulcher II.LXIV, p. 436.
• [407] Annales Siculi, Malaterra, p. 116.
• [408] Epistola fratres Conradi…Panormitana ad episcopum Cathanensem, sive Brevis Chronica 1027-1083, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, Tome I, Part 2, p. 278.
• [409] Malaterra, III.10, p. 61.
• [410] Epistola fratres Conradi…Panormitana ad episcopum Cathanensem, sive Brevis Chronica 1027-1083, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, Tome I, Part 2, p. 277.
• [411] Malaterra, III.22, p. 70.
• [412] Houben (2002), p. xxv, Table 2.
• [413] The date of Mathilde's second marriage.
• [414] Malaterra IV.8, p. 90.
• [415] Baluze, S. (1708) Histoire généalogique de la maison d´Auvergne (Paris) ("Baluze (1708) Auvergne"), Tome I, p. 55.
• [416] Spinelli, A. (ed.) (1861) Regii Neapolitani archivi Monumenta edita ac illustrata (Naples) ("Regii Neapolitani Monumenta"), Vol. VI, Appendix, XII, p. 168.
• [417] Regii Neapolitani Monumenta, Vol. VI, Appendix, XX, p. 184.
• [418] Delaborde, H. F. (ed.) (1880) Chartes de Terre Sainte provenant de l'abbaye de Notre-Dame de Josaphat (Paris) ("Josaphat") III, p. 24.
• [419] Regii Neapolitani Monumenta, Vol. VI, Appendix, XXI, p. 187.
• [420] Regii Neapolitani Monumenta, Vol. VI, Appendix, XXII, p. 189.
• [421] Regii Neapolitani Monumenta, Vol. VI, Appendix, XXIV, p. 193.
• [422] Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina, 27, p. 76.
• [423] Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina, 63, p. 179.
• [424] ES II 206.
• [425] ES III 732.
• [426] Stasser (2008), p. 407, quoting Archives of Cava, Cava dei Tirreni, Abbazia di S. Trinità, Armarium B 27, and Petrucci, A. ´Nota di diplomatica normanna. II Enrico conte di Montesanangelo ed I suoi documenti´, Bulletino dell´istituto storico italiano per il medioevo e archivo Muratoriano 72 (1960), app. I, pp. 170-3.
• [427] Malaterra, IV.14 and IV.18, pp. 93 and 97.
• [428] ES II 206.
• [429] Norwich (1992), p. 252, and Houben (2002), p. 22.
• [430] Epistola fratres Conradi…Panormitana ad episcopum Cathanensem, sive Brevis Chronica 1027-1083, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, Tome I, Part 2, p. 277.
• [431] Norwich (1992), pp. 252 and 254.
• [432] Regii Neapolitani Monumenta, Vol. VI, Appendix, XII, p. 168.
• [433] Malaterra, IV.14, p. 93.
• [434] Malaterra, IV.23, p. 101.
• [435] ES II 154.
• [436] Kerbl, R. (1979) Byzantinische Prinzessinnen in Ungarn zwischen 1050-1200 und ihr Einfluß auf das Arpadenkönigreich (VWGÖ, Vienna), p. 21.
• [437] Houben (2002), p. 23.
• [438] Malaterra, IV.14 and IV.18, pp. 93 and 97.
• [439] ES II 206.
• [440] Houben (2002), page xxv Table 2.
• [441] Norwich (1992), p. 281.
• [442] Malaterra, IV.14, p. 93.
• [443] Chalandon (1907), Tome I, pp. 353-4, citing Parisio (1889) Due documenti inediti della Certosa di San Stefano del Bosco (Naples), p. 6, Longo, N. (1899) Ricerche su I diploma normanni della chiesa di Troina (Catania), p. 46, Pirro, R. (1733) Sicilia sacra, 3rd edn. (Palermo), Tome I, p. 384 which reproduces a partial copy of a charter from the Archives of Cava, and Chalandon (1907), Tome I, p. 304 footnote 2 (continuing to p. 307) which discusses the charters in question in detail.
• [444] Houben (2002), p. 22.
• [445] Bernoldi Chronicon 1095, MGH SS V, p. 463.
• [446] Malaterra, IV.23, p. 101.
• [447] Houben (2002), p. 23.
• [448] Fuhrmann, H., trans. Reuter, T. (1995) Germany in the high middle ages c.1050-1200 (Cambridge University Press), p. 85.
• [449] Alexandri Telesini Cœnobii Abbatis de Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis ("Alessandro of Telese´s De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis)", Re, G. del (ed.) (1845) Cronisti e scrittori sincroni Napoletani, Vol. 1 (Napoli), Preface, p. 88.
• [450] Alessandro of Telese´s De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis, II.XIV, p. 106.
• [451] Falco Beneventano, p. 207.
• [452] Alessandro of Telese´s De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis, II.XVI, p. 107.
• [453] Alessandro of Telese´s De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis, II.XXV, p. 110.
• [454] Chalandon (1907), Tome I, p. 352, citing Pirro, Tome I, p. 621 and Tome II, p. 933.
• [455] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 429.
• [456] Kerrebrouck, P. Van (2000) Les Capétiens 987-1328 (Villeneuve d'Asq), p. 555.
• [457] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 431.
• [458] Richard, A. (1903, republished Princi Negue, 2003) Histoire des Comtes de Poitou, Tome I, p. 14.
• [459] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 431.
• [460] Bouchard, C. B. (1987) Sword, Miter, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy 980-1198 (Cornell University Press), p. 257.
• [461] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 429, the editor in footnote 6 highlighting the absence of corroboration in Italian chronicles for this statement.
• [462] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 433.
• [463] Orderic Vitalis, Vol. VI, Book XIII, p. 433.
• [464] Houben (2002), p. 86.
• [465] Meineke, A. (ed.) (1836) Ioannes Cinnamus, Nicephorus Bryennius, Corpus Scriptorum Historiæ Byzantinæ (Bonn) ("Ioannes Kinnamos") Liber IV, 2, p. 136.
• [466] Romualdo Guarna, p. 19.
• [467] Chalandon (1907), Tome II, p. 182, citing Archives de Cava, G.
• [468] Romoaldi Annales 1101, MGH SS XIX, p. 413.
• [469] Alessandro of Telese´s De Rebus Gestis Rogerii Siciliæ Regis, I.II and I.III, p. 90.
• [470] Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina, 4, p. 9.
• [471] Romoaldi Annales 1101, MGH SS XIX, p. 413.
• [472] Houben (2002), p. xxv Table 2. She is not shown n ES II 206.
• [473] Houben (2002), p. 22.
• [474] Rogerius II. Regis Diplomata Latina, 2, p. 4.
• [475] Chalandon (1907), Tome I, p. 352, citing Pirro, Tome I, p. 525.

----------------------------------

Roger I of Sicily

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Roger I (1031[1] – June 22, 1101), 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

Roger was the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his second wife Fredisenda.

...

Roger died on June 22, 1101, in his seventieth year and was buried in S. Trinità of Mileto.

[edit] Family

Roger's eldest son was a bastard named Jordan, who predeceased him. His second son, Geoffrey, may have been a bastard, but may also have been a son of his first or second wife. Whatever the case, he was a leper with no chance of inheriting.

Roger's first marriage took place in 1061, to Judith, daughter of William, Count of Évreux and Hawisa of Échauffour. She died in 1076, leaving all daughters:

A daughter, married Hugh of Gircea (died 1075/6), the first count of Paternò

Matilda (1062 – before 1094) married firstly (repudiated before 1080) as his second wife, Robert, Count of Eu married secondly (1080, divorced 1088) as his second wife, Raymond IV of Toulouse

Adelisa (died 1096), married in 1083 to Henry, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo

Emma (died 1120), briefly engaged to Philip I of France; married firstly William VI of Auvergne and secondly Rudolf, Count of Montescaglioso.

In 1077, Roger married a second time, to Eremburga of Mortain, daughter of "William, Count of Mortain" (probably William Warlenc). Their children were:

Mauger, Count of Troina

Matilda, married Guigues III, Count of Albon

Muriel (died 1119), married Josbert de Lucy

Constancia, married Conrad of Italy

Felicia, married King Coloman of Hungary

Violante, married Robert of Burgundy, son of Robert I of Burgundy

Flandina, married Henry del Vasto

Judith (died 1136), married Robert I of Bassunvilla

Roger's third and last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, niece of Boniface, Lord of Savona. They married in 1087. Their children were:

Simon, Count of Sicily

Matilda, married Ranulf II, Count of Alife

Roger II, Count, later King, of Sicily

Maximilla, married Hildebrand VI (of the Aldobrandeschi family)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_I_of_Sicily

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruggero_I_di_Sicilia

------------------------------------

http://www.answers.com/topic/roger-i-of-sicily

Roger I of Sicily

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Roger I (1031 – June 22, 1101), 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.

Roger was the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his second wife Fredisenda. He arrived in Southern Italy soon after 1055.

Malaterra, who compares Robert Guiscard and his brother to "Joseph and Benjamin of old," says of Roger: "He was a youth of the greatest beauty, of lofty stature, of graceful shape, most eloquent in speech and cool in counsel. He was far-seeing in arranging all his actions, pleasant and merry all with men; strong and brave, and furious in battle." Roger shared the conquest of Calabria with Robert, and in a treaty of 1062 the brothers in dividing the conquest apparently made a kind of "condominium" by which either was to have half of every castle and town in Calabria.

Robert now resolved to employ Roger's genius in reducing Sicily, which contained, besides the Muslims, numerous Greek Christians subject to Arab princes who had become all but independent of the sultan of Tunis. In May 1061 the brothers crossed from Reggio and captured Messina. After Palermo had been taken in January 1072, Robert Guiscard, as suzerain, invested Roger as Count of Sicily, but he retained Palermo, half of Messina, and the north-east portion (the Val Demone). Not till 1085, however, was Roger able to undertake a systematic crusade.

In March 1086 Syracuse surrendered, and when in February 1091 Noto yielded, the conquest was complete. Much of Robert's success had been due to Roger's support. Similarly, when the leadership of the Hautevilles passed to Roger, he supported his nephew Duke Roger against Bohemund, Capua, and other rebels. In return for his aid against Bohemund and the rebels, the duke surrendered his share in the castles of Calabria to his uncle in 1085, and in 1091 his inheritance in Palermo. Roger's rule in Sicily was more absolute than Robert Guiscard's in Italy. At the enfeoffments of 1072 and 1092 no great undivided fiefs were created, so the mixed Norman, French and Italian vassals all owed their benefices to the count. No feudal revolt of importance therefore troubled Roger.

Politically supreme, the count also became master of the insular church. The Papacy, favouring a prince who had recovered Sicily from Greeks and Muslims, in 1098 granted Roger and his heirs the Apostolic Legateship of the island. Roger created new Latin bishoprics at Syracuse, Girgenti, and elsewhere, nominating the bishops personally, while he turned the archbishopric of Palermo into a Catholic see. Roger practised general toleration towards Arabs and Greeks, allowing to each race the expansion of its own civilization. In the cities, the Muslims, who had generally secured such rights in their terms of surrender, retained their mosques, their kadis, and freedom of trade; in the country, however, they became serfs. Roger drew the mass of his infantry from the Muslims. Saint Anselm, visiting him at the siege of Capua, 1098, found "the brown tents of the Arabs innumerable". Nevertheless, the Latin element began to prevail, as Lombards and other Italians flocked to the island in the wake of the conquest, and the conquest of Sicily proved decisive in the steady decline of Muslim power in the western Mediterranean from this time.

Roger, the "Great Count of Sicily," died on June 22, 1101, in his seventieth year and was buried in S. Trinità of Mileto.

Family

Roger's eldest son was a bastard named Jordan, who predeceased him. His second son, Geoffrey, may have been a bastard, but may also have been a son of his first or second wife. Whatever the case, he was a leper with no chance of inheriting.

Roger's first marriage took place in 1061, to Judith, daughter of William, Count of Évreux and Hawisa of Échauffour. She died in 1076, leaving all daughters:

A daughter, married Hugh of Gircea (or Gercé)

Matilda, married Raymond IV of Toulouse

Adelisa, married Henry, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo

Emma (d.1120), briefly engaged to Philip I of France; married firstly the count of Clermont and secondly Rudolf, Count of Montescaglioso

In 1077, Roger married a second time, to Eremburga of Mortain, daughter of "William, Count of Mortain" (probably William Warlenc). Their children were:

Mauger, Count of Troina

Matilda, married Guigues III, Count of Albon

Muriel, married Josbert de Lucy

Constancia, married Conrad of Italy

Felicia, married King Coloman of Hungary

Violante, married Robert of Burgundy, son of Robert I of Burgundy

Flandina, married Henry del Vasto

Judith, married Robert I of Bassunvilla

Roger's third and last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, niece of Boniface, Lord of Savona. They married in 1087. Their children were:

Simon, Count of Sicily

Matilda, married Ranulf II, Count of Alife

Roger II, Count, later King, of Sicily

Maximilla, married Hildebrand VI (of the Aldobrandeschi family)

Roger I in media

Roger I appears in the game Crusader Kings in the court of Robert Guiscard,Duke of Apulia. He also appears in the game Medieval II: Total War as the King of Sicily.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Sources

Geoffrey Malaterra

Norwich, John Julius. The Normans in the South 1016-1130. Longmans: London, 1967.

Houben, Hubert (translated by Graham A. Loud and Diane Milburn). Roger II of Sicily: Ruler between East and West. Cambridge University Press, 2002.

Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_I_of_Sicily

Roger I of Sicily

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to:navigation, search

Roger I of Sicily at the battle of Cerami (1061), in which he was victorious against 35,000 Saracens.

Roger I (1031[1] – June 22, 1101), 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.

Contents

[show]

   * 1 Conquest of Calabria and Sicily

* 2 Rule of Sicily
* 3 Family
* 4 Notes
* 5 Bibliography
[edit] Conquest of Calabria and Sicily

Roger was the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his second wife Fredisenda. He arrived in Southern Italy soon after 1055. Geoffrey Malaterra, who compares Robert Guiscard and his brother to "Joseph and Benjamin of old," says of Roger: "He was a youth of the greatest beauty, of lofty stature, of graceful shape, most eloquent in speech and cool in counsel. He was far-seeing in arranging all his actions, pleasant and merry all with men; strong and brave, and furious in battle." Roger shared the conquest of Calabria with Robert, and in a treaty of 1062 the brothers in dividing the conquest apparently made a kind of "condominium" by which either was to have half of every castle and town in Calabria.

Robert now resolved to employ Roger's genius in reducing Sicily, which contained, besides the Muslims, numerous Greek Christians subject to Arab princes who had become all but independent of the sultan of Tunis. In May 1061 the brothers crossed from Reggio and captured Messina. After Palermo had been taken in January 1072, Robert Guiscard, as suzerain, invested Roger as Count of Sicily, but he retained Palermo, half of Messina, and the north-east portion (the Val Demone). Not till 1085, however, was Roger able to undertake a systematic conquest.

In March 1086 Syracuse surrendered, and when in February 1091 Noto yielded, the conquest was complete. Much of Robert's success had been due to Roger's support. Similarly, when the leadership of the Hautevilles passed to Roger, he supported his nephew Duke Roger against Bohemund, Capua, and other rebels. In return for his aid against Bohemund and the rebels, the duke surrendered his share in the castles of Calabria to his uncle in 1085, and in 1091 his inheritance in Palermo. Roger's rule in Sicily was more absolute than Robert Guiscard's in Italy. At the enfeoffments of 1072 and 1092 no great undivided fiefs were created, so the mixed Norman, French and Italian vassals all owed their benefices to the count. No feudal revolt of importance therefore troubled Roger.

[edit] Rule of Sicily

In 1091 Roger, in order to avoid an attack from North Africa, set sail with a fleet to conquer Malta. His ship reached the island before the rest. On landing, the few defenders the Normans encountered retreated and the following day Roger marched to Mdina. Terms were discussed with the Maltese qadi. It was agreed that the islands would become tributaries of the count himself and that the qadi should continue to administer the islands. With the treaty many Greek and other Christian prisoners were released, who chanted to Roger the Kyrie eleison (Mulej Ħniena). He left the islands with many who wished to join him and so many were on his ship that it nearly sunk, according to Geoffrey Malaterra. Roger repatriated Malta to Christian Europe.

Politically supreme, the count also became master of the insular church. The Papacy, favouring a prince who had recovered Sicily from Greeks and Muslims, in 1098 granted Roger and his heirs the Apostolic Legateship of the island. Roger created new Latin bishoprics at Syracuse, Girgenti and elsewhere, nominating the bishops personally, while he turned the archbishopric of Palermo into a Catholic see. Roger practised general toleration towards Arabs and Greeks, allowing to each race the expansion of its own civilization. In the cities, the Muslims, who had generally secured such rights in their terms of surrender, retained their mosques, their kadis, and freedom of trade; in the country, however, they became serfs. Roger drew the mass of his infantry from the Muslims. Saint Anselm, visiting him at the siege of Capua, 1098, found "the brown tents of the Arabs innumerable". Nevertheless, the Latin element began to prevail, as Lombards and other Italians flocked to the island in the wake of the conquest, and the conquest of Sicily proved decisive in the steady decline of Muslim power in the western Mediterranean from this time.

Roger died on June 22, 1101, in his seventieth year and was buried in S. Trinità of Mileto.

[edit] Family

Roger's eldest son was a bastard named Jordan, who predeceased him. His second son, Geoffrey, may have been a bastard, but may also have been a son of his first or second wife. Whatever the case, he was a leper with no chance of inheriting.

Roger's first marriage took place in 1061, to Judith, daughter of William, Count of Évreux and Hawisa of Échauffour. She died in 1076, leaving all daughters:

   * A daughter, married Hugh of Gircea (died 1075/6), the first count of Paternò

* Matilda (1062 – before 1094) married firstly (repudiated before 1080) as his second wife, Robert, Count of Eu married secondly (1080, divorced 1088) as his second wife, Raymond IV of Toulouse
* Adelisa (died 1096), married in 1083 to Henry, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo
* Emma (died 1120), briefly engaged to Philip I of France; married firstly William VI of Auvergne and secondly Rudolf, Count of Montescaglioso.
In 1077, Roger married a second time, to Eremburga of Mortain, daughter of "William, Count of Mortain" (probably William Warlenc). Their children were:

   * Mauger, Count of Troina

* Matilda, married Guigues III, Count of Albon
* Muriel (died 1119), married Josbert de Lucy
* Constancia, married Conrad of Italy
* Felicia, married King Coloman of Hungary
* Violante, married Robert of Burgundy, son of Robert I of Burgundy
* Flandina, married Henry del Vasto
* Judith (died 1136), married Robert I of Bassunvilla
Roger's third and last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, niece of Boniface, Lord of Savona. They married in 1087. Their children were:

   * Simon, Count of Sicily

* Matilda, married Ranulf II, Count of Alife
* Roger II, Count, later King, of Sicily
* Maximilla, married Hildebrand VI (of the Aldobrandeschi family)
[edit] Notes

  1. ^ The exact date of his birth is unknown. According to Hubert Houben, he was probably born later, around 1040 (Roger II of Sicily…)

[edit] Bibliography

   * Norwich, John Julius. The Normans in the South 1016-1130. London: Longmans, 1967.

* Aubé, Pierre. Roger II de Sicile. Un Normand en Méditerranée. Payot, 2001.
* Houben, Hubert (translated by Graham A. Loud and Diane Milburn). Roger II of Sicily: Ruler between East and West. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
Preceded by

New creation Count of Sicily

1071–1101 Succeeded by

Simon

Roger I (1031 – June 22, 1101), 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.

Roger was the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his second wife Fredisenda. He arrived in Southern Italy soon after 1055.

Malaterra, who compares Robert Guiscard and his brother to "Joseph and Benjamin of old," says of Roger: "He was a youth of the greatest beauty, of lofty stature, of graceful shape, most eloquent in speech and cool in counsel. He was far-seeing in arranging all his actions, pleasant and merry all with men; strong and brave, and furious in battle." Roger shared the conquest of Calabria with Robert, and in a treaty of 1062 the brothers in dividing the conquest apparently made a kind of "condominium" by which either was to have half of every castle and town in Calabria.

Robert now resolved to employ Roger's genius in reducing Sicily, which contained, besides the Muslims, numerous Greek Christians subject to Arab princes who had become all but independent of the sultan of Tunis. In May 1061 the brothers crossed from Reggio and captured Messina. After Palermo had been taken in January 1072, Robert Guiscard, as suzerain, invested Roger as Count of Sicily, but he retained Palermo, half of Messina, and the north-east portion (the Val Demone). Not till 1085, however, was Roger able to undertake a systematic crusade.

In March 1086 Syracuse surrendered, and when in February 1091 Noto yielded, the conquest was complete. Much of Robert's success had been due to Roger's support. Similarly, when the leadership of the Hautevilles passed to Roger, he supported his nephew Duke Roger against Bohemund, Capua, and other rebels. In return for his aid against Bohemund and the rebels, the duke surrendered his share in the castles of Calabria to his uncle in 1085, and in 1091 his inheritance in Palermo. Roger's rule in Sicily was more absolute than Robert Guiscard's in Italy. At the enfeoffments of 1072 and 1092 no great undivided fiefs were created, so the mixed Norman, French and Italian vassals all owed their benefices to the count. No feudal revolt of importance therefore troubled Roger.

In 1091 Roger, in order to avoid an attack from North Africa, set sail with a fleet to conquer Malta. His ship reached the island before the rest. On landing, the few defenders the Normans encountered retreated and the following day Roger marched to Mdina. Terms were discussed with the Maltese qadi. It was agreed that the islands would become tributaries of the count himself and that the qadi should continue to administer the islands. With the treaty many Greek and other Christian prisoners were released, who chanted to Roger the Kyrie eleison (Mulej Hniena). He left the islands with many who wished to join him and so many were on his ship that it nearly sunk, according to Goffredo Malaterra. Roger repatriated Malta to Christian Europe.

Politically supreme, the count also became master of the insular church. The Papacy, favouring a prince who had recovered Sicily from Greeks and Muslims, in 1098 granted Roger and his heirs the Apostolic Legateship of the island. Roger created new Latin bishoprics at Syracuse, Girgenti, and elsewhere, nominating the bishops personally, while he turned the archbishopric of Palermo into a Catholic see. Roger practised general toleration towards Arabs and Greeks, allowing to each race the expansion of its own civilization. In the cities, the Muslims, who had generally secured such rights in their terms of surrender, retained their mosques, their kadis, and freedom of trade; in the country, however, they became serfs. Roger drew the mass of his infantry from the Muslims. Saint Anselm, visiting him at the siege of Capua, 1098, found "the brown tents of the Arabs innumerable". Nevertheless, the Latin element began to prevail, as Lombards and other Italians flocked to the island in the wake of the conquest, and the conquest of Sicily proved decisive in the steady decline of Muslim power in the western Mediterranean from this time.

Roger, the "Great Count of Sicily," died on June 22, 1101, in his seventieth year and was buried in S. Trinità of Mileto.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_I_of_Sicily

Roger was the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his second wife Fredisenda. He arrived in Southern Italy soon after 1055. Geoffrey Malaterra, who compares Robert Guiscard and his brother to "Joseph and Benjamin of old," says of Roger: "He was a youth of the greatest beauty, of lofty stature, of graceful shape, most eloquent in speech and cool in counsel. He was far-seeing in arranging all his actions, pleasant and merry all with men; strong and brave, and furious in battle." Roger shared the conquest of Calabria with Robert, and in a treaty of 1062 the brothers in dividing the conquest apparently made a kind of "condominium" by which either was to have half of every castle and town in Calabria.

Robert now resolved to employ Roger's genius in reducing Sicily, which contained, besides the Muslims, numerous Greek Christians subject to Arab princes who had become all but independent of the sultan of Tunis. In May 1061 the brothers crossed from Reggio and captured Messina. After Palermo had been taken in January 1072, Robert Guiscard, as suzerain, invested Roger as Count of Sicily, but he retained Palermo, half of Messina, and the north-east portion (the Val Demone). Not till 1085, however, was Roger able to undertake a systematic conquest.

In March 1086 Syracuse surrendered, and when in February 1091 Noto yielded, the conquest was complete. Much of Robert's success had been due to Roger's support. Similarly, when the leadership of the Hautevilles passed to Roger, he supported his nephew Duke Roger against Bohemund, Capua, and other rebels. In return for his aid against Bohemund and the rebels, the duke surrendered his share in the castles of Calabria to his uncle in 1085, and in 1091 his inheritance in Palermo. Roger's rule in Sicily was more absolute than Robert Guiscard's in Italy. At the enfeoffments of 1072 and 1092 no great undivided fiefs were created, so the mixed Norman, French and Italian vassals all owed their benefices to the count. No feudal revolt of importance therefore troubled Roger.

]Rule of Sicily

In 1091 Roger, in order to avoid an attack from North Africa, set sail with a fleet to conquer Malta. His ship reached the island before the rest. On landing, the few defenders the Normans encountered retreated and the following day Roger marched to Mdina. Terms were discussed with the Maltese qadi. It was agreed that the islands would become tributaries of the count himself and that the qadi should continue to administer the islands. With the treaty many Greek and other Christian prisoners were released, who chanted to Roger the Kyrie eleison (Mulej Ħniena). He left the islands with many who wished to join him and so many were on his ship that it nearly sunk, according to Geoffrey Malaterra. Roger repatriated Malta to Christian Europe.

Politically supreme, the count also became master of the insular church. The Papacy, favouring a prince who had recovered Sicily from Greeks and Muslims, in 1098 granted Roger and his heirs the Apostolic Legateship of the island. Roger created new Latin bishoprics at Syracuse, Girgenti and elsewhere, nominating the bishops personally, while he turned the archbishopric of Palermo into a Catholic see. Roger practised general toleration towards Arabs and Greeks, allowing to each race the expansion of its own civilization. In the cities, the Muslims, who had generally secured such rights in their terms of surrender, retained their mosques, their kadis, and freedom of trade; in the country, however, they became serfs. Roger drew the mass of his infantry from the Muslims. Saint Anselm, visiting him at the siege of Capua, 1098, found "the brown tents of the Arabs innumerable". Nevertheless, the Latin element began to prevail, as Lombards and other Italians flocked to the island in the wake of the conquest, and the conquest of Sicily proved decisive in the steady decline of Muslim power in the western Mediterranean from this time.

Roger died on June 22, 1101, in his seventieth year and was buried in S. Trinità of Mileto.

Family

Roger's eldest son was a bastard named Jordan, who predeceased him. His second son, Geoffrey, may have been a bastard, but may also have been a son of his first or second wife. Whatever the case, he was a leper with no chance of inheriting.

Roger's first marriage took place in 1061, to Judith, daughter of William, Count of Évreux and Hawisa of Échauffour. She died in 1076, leaving all daughters:

A daughter, married Hugh of Gircea (died 1075/6), the first count of Paternò

Matilda (1062 – before 1094) married firstly (repudiated before 1080) as his second wife, Robert, Count of Eu married secondly (1080, divorced 1088) as his second wife, Raymond IV of Toulouse

Adelisa (died 1096), married in 1083 to Henry, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo

Emma (died 1120), briefly engaged to Philip I of France; married firstly William VI of Auvergne and secondly Rudolf, Count of Montescaglioso.

In 1077, Roger married a second time, to Eremburga of Mortain, daughter of "William, Count of Mortain" (probably William Warlenc). Their children were:

Mauger, Count of Troina

Matilda, married Guigues III, Count of Albon

Muriel (died 1119), married Josbert de Lucy

Constancia, married Conrad of Italy

Felicia, married King Coloman of Hungary

Violante, married Robert of Burgundy, son of Robert I of Burgundy

Flandina, married Henry del Vasto

Judith (died 1136), married Robert I of Bassunvilla

Roger's third and last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, niece of Boniface, Lord of Savona. They married in 1087. Their children were:

Simon, Count of Sicily

Matilda, married Ranulf II, Count of Alife

Roger II, Count, later King, of Sicily

Maximilla, married Hildebrand VI (of the Aldobrandeschi family)

Family

Roger's eldest son was a bastard named Jordan, who predeceased him. His second son, Geoffrey, may have been a bastard, but may also have been a son of his first or second wife. Whatever the case, he was a leper with no chance of inheriting.

Roger's first marriage took place in 1061, to Judith, daughter of William, Count of Évreux and Hawisa of Échauffour. She died in 1076, leaving all daughters:

   * A daughter, married Hugh of Gircea (died 1075/6), the first count of Paternò

* Matilda (1062 – before 1094) married firstly (repudiated before 1080) as his second wife, Robert, Count of Eu married secondly (1080, divorced 1088) as his second wife, Raymond IV of Toulouse
* Adelisa (died 1096), married in 1083 to Henry, Count of Monte Sant'Angelo
* Emma (died 1120), briefly engaged to Philip I of France; married firstly William VI of Auvergne and secondly Rudolf, Count of Montescaglioso.
In 1077, Roger married a second time, to Eremburga of Mortain, daughter of "William, Count of Mortain" (probably William Warlenc). Their children were:

   * Mauger, Count of Troina

* Matilda, married Guigues III, Count of Albon
* Muriel (died 1119), married Josbert de Lucy
* Constancia, married Conrad of Italy
* Felicia, married King Coloman of Hungary
* Violante, married Robert of Burgundy, son of Robert I of Burgundy
* Flandina, married Henry del Vasto
* Judith (died 1136), married Robert I of Bassunvilla
Roger's third and last wife was Adelaide del Vasto, niece of Boniface, Lord of Savona. They married in 1087. Their children were:

   * Simon, Count of Sicily

* Matilda, married Ranulf II, Count of Alife
* Roger II, Count, later King, of Sicily
* Maximilla, married Hildebrand VI (of the Aldobrandeschi family)
[edit] Notes

  1. ^ The exact date of his birth is unknown. According to Hubert Houben, he was probably born later, around 1040 (Roger II of Sicily…)

Bibliography

   * Norwich, John Julius. The Normans in the South 1016-1130. London: Longmans, 1967.

* Aubé, Pierre. Roger II de Sicile. Un Normand en Méditerranée. Payot, 2001.
* Houben, Hubert (translated by Graham A. Loud and Diane Milburn). Roger II of Sicily: Ruler between East and West. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.