Saba Malaspina

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Saba Malaspina (died 1297 or 1298) was an Italian historian, writer, and clergyman.[1] Born around the mid-13th century in southern Italy,[2] he was from a "Roman family with a strong tradition of support for the papal cause" and was the deacon (later bishop) of the diocese of Mileto.[3] Little is known about his early years and education.[4] His honorific of magister indicates that he studied at a university.[5] In 1275, he collected tithes for crusading on Pope Gregory X's behalf.[2] Around 1283, while serving as the amanuensis of Pope Martin IV,[6] Malaspina began writing the Liber gestorum regum Sicilie;[2][a] he finished writing his history of Sicily on 29 March 1285,[9] by which time he had already obtained Roman citizenship.[2]

Drawing upon records from both the Angevin and papal archives, the Liber begins with the birth of Manfred in 1232 and ends with the death of Charles of Anjou in 1285,[2] with a focus on the events after the death of Frederick II (Manfred's father) in 1250.[10] In writing the Liber, Malaspina was particularly influenced by the Aeneid by Virgil.[11] He dedicated the ten-volume work to the members of the Roman Curia.[4]

Étienne Baluze published the first edition in 1713, although only of the years down to 1276. The first complete edition was published by Giuseppe Del Re [it] posthumously in 1868.[5] The latest edition, titled Die Chronik des Saba Malaspina by its editors, came out in 1999.[12]

On 12 July 1286, Pope Honorius IV ordained Malaspina as bishop of Mileto.[4] In 1288 or 1289, Malaspina was captured by the forces of Roger of Lauria when they occupied Mileto.[5] He successfully escaped and fled to Larino, where he became the local parish administrator.[4][5] In 1295, Pope Boniface VIII formally named him as the "spiritual and temporal administrator of Larino".[4] Saba Malaspina died in late 1297 or early 1298.[4][12][13]

Although traditionally seen as an apologist and propagandist for the papacy, Clifford R. Backman argues that Malaspina was a "reluctantly charmed, enamored-yet-critical admirer of Charles of Anjou".[2] On the other hand, Michael Lower suggests that he was "disillusioned" with Charles' rule.[14] Marc Laureys describes him as "the only important Roman historiographer from the 13th century",[15] while Backman writes that Malaspina was both a "professional scribe of such high standing" and a "literary artist of considerable ability".[2] The Encyclopedia of the Medieval Chronicle regards Malaspina's Sicilian chronicle as "one of the most important sources for the history of Southern Italy".[4]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Translated into English as the Book of the Deeds of the Kings of Sicily[7] or Book of the Events of the Kingdom of Sicily.[8]

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ Dunbabin 2001, p. 115.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Backman 2002, p. 594.
  3. ^ Lower 2018, pp. 144–145.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Lamboglia 2010, p. 1061.
  5. ^ a b c d Pio 2006.
  6. ^ Gregorovius 2010, p. 624.
  7. ^ Symes 2007, p. 263.
  8. ^ Stanton 2019, p. 5.
  9. ^ Abulafia 2000, p. 100.
  10. ^ Clarke 2005, p. 140.
  11. ^ Clarke 2005, p. 141.
  12. ^ a b Backman 2002, p. 595.
  13. ^ Lledó-Guillem 2018, p. 31.
  14. ^ Lower 2018, p. 145.
  15. ^ Laureys 2006, p. 40.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Abulafia, David (2000). "Charles of Anjou reassessed". Journal of Medieval History. 26 (1): 93–114. doi:10.1016/S0304-4181(99)00012-3. S2CID 159990935.
  • Backman, Clifford R. (2002). "Review: Die Chronik des Saba Malaspina". Speculum. 77 (2): 593–595. doi:10.2307/3301403. JSTOR 3301403.
  • Clarke, Peter D. (2005). "Review: Die Chronik des Saba Malaspina". The Journal of Ecclesiastical History. 56 (1): 140–141. doi:10.1017/S0022046904472182. S2CID 162304832.
  • Dunbabin, Jean (2001). "Charles I of Anjou and the Development of Medieval Political Ideas". Nottingham Medieval Studies. 45: 110–126. doi:10.1484/J.NMS.3.323.
  • Gregorovius, Ferdinand (2010). History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781108015066.
  • Lamboglia, Rosanna (2010). "Malaspina, Saba". In Graeme Dunphy; Cristian Bratu (eds.). Encyclopedia of the Medieval Chronicle. ISBN 9789004184640.
  • Laureys, Marc (2006). "Antiquarianism and Politics in 14th-century Avignon: The Humanism of Giovanni Cavallini". In Jan Papy; Karl A. E.. Enenkel (eds.). Petrarch and His Readers in the Renaissance. Brill. ISBN 9789047408505.
  • Lledó-Guillem, Vicente (2018). The Making of Catalan Linguistic Identity in Medieval and Early Modern Times. Springer International Publishing. ISBN 9783319720807.
  • Lower, Michael (2018). The Tunis Crusade of 1270: A Mediterranean History. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198744320.
  • Pio, Berardo (2006). "Malaspina, Saba". Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Volume 67: Macchi–Malaspina (in Italian). Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. ISBN 978-8-81200032-6.
  • Stanton, Charles D. (2019). Roger of Lauria (c.1250-1305): "Admiral of Admirals". Boydell Press. ISBN 9781787445901.
  • Symes, Carol (2007). A Common Stage: Theater and Public Life in Medieval Arras. Cornell University Press. ISBN 9781501726613.
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