Guido I. da Montefeltro
Guido I. da Montefeltro , called "il Vecchio" (the old man) (* around 1220 in San Leo ; † September 29, 1298 in Ancona , buried in Urbino ) was one of the most famous condottieri of his time and one of the most important leaders of the party of loyal Ghibellines in Romagna. He was in constant struggle: be it with the rival regional dynasty of the Malatesta - especially with Malatesta da Verucchio (* 1212, † 1312) - or with regional supporters of the opposing party of the Guelphs loyal to the Pope - including his brother Taddeo da Montefeltro counted - or in the service of Italian interests of the last representatives of the Hohenstaufen dynasty : Emperor Frederick II († 1250), King Conrad IV († 1254), Manfred King of Sicily († 1266) and Konradin († 1268) who - ultimately in vain - tried to protect the territory of the Holy Roman Empire in Italy and their claims to the Kingdom of Sicily against papal and French desires.
Guido was from 1255 to 1266 - then expelled by his brother Taddeo - and again from 1282 to 1283 Count of Montefeltro and Count of Urbino and until 1268 deputy senator (governor) of the city of Rome . In 1282 he was lord of Cesena , Forli , Senigallia , Jesi and de facto lord of the Ghibelline Romagna. As a result of his fight for the Hohenstaufen against the papal interests, all ecclesiastical fiefs were withdrawn from him by the Pope in 1286. Towards the end of his life, however, he was reconciled with the Church and in 1294 submitted to Pope Celestine V (1294) and again his successor Pope Boniface VIII (1294-1303). Finally he joined the Franciscans in Ancona and died a pious friar .
His memory was preserved in a contradictory way: various contemporary chroniclers - probably with sympathy for the Ghibellines - saw him as an outstanding, tactically superior leading general of his time and compared him with Roland the paladin of Charlemagne or with the British hero Arthur . Another contemporary - the great poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) made him "immortal" by setting a monument to him in the Divine Comedy . This, however, not in purgatory, but in the 8th - and thus penultimate - circle of hell, where he has to burn as a "false advisor" in the form of an eternal flame.
Guido was the closer progenitor of the counts and from 1474 dukes of Urbino , who reached their climax with Federico da Montefeltro and with Guidobaldo I. da Montefeltro (1472, † 1508), in the male line, of which, however, in the female line - about over the Della Rovere family - not only in Italy, but also in Germany and Austria to this day, there are descendants who are connected through Guido to the fantastic world of Dante's Divine Comedy.
origin
Guido came from a branch of the Italian aristocratic family of the Counts of Carpegna, who can be traced back to Udalrico di Carpegna, lord of the castles Carpegna and Pietrarubbia (about 22 kilometers northwest of Urbino) in the 10th century , who on August 16, 962 by Kaiser Otto I. is said to have received a certificate of extensive land donations. an area that is located today. The family had extensive estates in the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marches and Romagna .
Older ancestors
Antonio I. di Carpegna († after 1184) Count of Montecopiolo , Lord of Monte Tassi and Monte Grimano (in the province of Pesaro) and Urbino in the Marche and the northern part of the county are among the ancestors about whom more details are known Carpegna . Like his descendants later, he was a loyal supporter of imperial interests in Italy, hence a "Ghibelline" and was enfeoffed by Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa around 1150 with the castle of San Leo , which the emperor claimed as part of imperial Italy . Since the castle rock has been called mons feretrius since ancient times , the associated lordship was named after the rock Montefeltro , which became the name of the family. In 1155 Antonio I was appointed Imperial Vicar of Urbino by the Kaiser . His son Montefeltrano I da Montefeltro (* around 1135, † San Leo 1202) followed as imperial vicar and was probably elevated to the rank of first count of Montefeltro.
Guido's grandfather
Guido's grandfather, Bonconte I da Montefeltro (* around 1165, † 1242), a son of Monfeltrano I, was Count of Montefeltro and Pietrarubbia. He took part as a loyal follower in the campaign of Emperor Frederick II to Sicily and was enfeoffed by him in 1226 in recognition of his services with the county of Urbino .
Guido's father
Monfeltrano II. Da Montefeltro († 1255), was knighted on May 8, 1213 as part of a festival in San Leo, in which the later canonized Francis of Assisi also took part. From 1242 to 1255 he was Count of Montefeltro and Pietrarubbia and also Count of Urbino, but had to renounce this title because of the resistance of the citizens of Urbino and take on that of Podestà . He served as a condottiere to the Roman-German King Philip of Swabia († 1206) in Sicily. The name of his wife - and thus that of Guido's mother - has not been passed down by name. A brother of Guido's father, Ugolino of Montefeltro, had been Bishop of San Leo (Montefeltro) since 1332 and at the same time one of the most important leaders of the Ghibellines in Romagna. Because of this he was excommunicated by the Pope in 1245, but reinstated as bishop in 1250 - after submission to Rome. However, he died as early as 1252.
Life
Guido, who was born around 1220, was sickly and weak as a child, but proved to be strong and resilient in old age. From an early age he had a special relationship with the later Saint Francis of Assisi (* 1181 or 1182 in Assisi , Italy ; † October 3, 1226), because he was carried by him as a toddler in his arms and later, he believed, would have The saint helped him out of numerous difficulties, so that Guido saw him as a personal patron saint and finally ended his life as a monk of the Franciscan order.
The siblings
Guido grew up with his younger brothers Taddeo, Orlando and Feltrano da Montefeltro in San Leo Castle in the province of Rimini near San Marino and near the Adriatic Sea in the Emilia-Romagna region .
From these, Count Taddeo da Montefeltro († May 1, 1282 in Forlí) received the county of Pietrarubbia (in the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marches ) as his paternal inheritance , but turned against the traditionally loyal to the emperor - Ghibelline - policy of his family by he turned to the opposing party of the Guelphs so much that he received letters of thanks from Pope Clement IV (ruled 1265–1268) for his commitment to the papal interests. He was also in the service of the papal vicar general and leader of the Guelphs Charles I of Anjou, King of Sicily (1278 to 1285). Possibly Taddeo undertook this change of sides in order to correct his fate as a second-born later with papal help, because in 1266 he turned directly against his brother Guido and usurped the county of Montefeltro. In 1261 and 1265 he was Guelfan Podestà of Rimini and Podestà of Lucca in 1270 and even governor of the Papal States in 1273. In addition, he commanded the papal troops, which burned down castles as reprisal against his brother Guidos. He died in Forli on May 1st, 1282 - in a fight against his brother Guido! As a result, Guido succeeded in regaining the county of Montefeltro, but left the county of Pietrarubbia to his nephew Corrado di Taddeo da Montefeltro in 1282, who however swore allegiance to the Pope in 1290, was Podesta of Forli, expelled from there in 1298 and from his subjects in Pietrarubbia, whom he had mistreated, was murdered on June 8, 1298.
Guido's next brother, Count Orlando da Montefeltro († 1282), became a clergyman, was provost of the chapter of the Cathedral of San Leo from August 27, 1258 and subsequently reigned from 1275 to 1282 as Bishop of San Leo (Montefeltro).
Nothing is known about his youngest brother Feltrano da Montefeltro, who received only a few castles in the county of Montefeltro when his father's inheritance was divided up on August 27, 1258.
Count of Ghiaggiolo
Through his marriage to Manentessa di Ghiaggiolo, who came from the Ghibelline family of the Counts of Ghiaggiolo, Guido came after the death of his brother Count Uberto di Ghiaggiolo 1263 into possession of this county, in the valley of the river Bidente Ronco in itself Apennines at the The border between Tuscany and Romagna extended and included the area of Cusercoli, Valdoppio and Particeto. An imperial deed from August 1267 confirms this possession and underlines the loyalty and dedication of Guido as Count of Montefeltro and Ghiaggiolo for the imperial interests.
For Guido, the acquisition of the county of Ghiaggiolo meant a considerable gain in power, not least because it brought him an increased influence on the Ghibelline city of Forli, whose citizenship he acquired. From the castle of Ghiaggiolo, which was mentioned in a document as early as 1021, only the remains of the bastions remain today.
However, this county did not remain in Guido's possession for long, since the hostile archbishop of Ravenna , Filippo da Pistoia, who saw the county as an ecclesiastical fief, in 1263 the declared opponent of Guidos, Malatesta da Verucchio (* 1212, † 1312) with this county enfeoffed. He passed them on to his second oldest son, Paolo Malatesta (* around 1246, † 1285). Guido opposed this enfeoffment in the name of imperial rights and the claims of his wife, as well as in the name of the heiress of Uberto di Chiaggiolo, his daughter, Orabile Beatrice di Ciaggiolo. The dispute dragged on until, on August 28, 1269, the relatives of the late Count Uberto von Chiaggiolo, his widow Beatrice and his daughter Orabilia Beatrice sold their rights to the county in the church of Santa Croce in Urbino for 6520 pounds to a follower of the Malatesta . In addition, the aforementioned Paolo Malatesta called "il Bello" (the beautiful) married Orabilia Beatrice di Ghiaggiolo in 1269, the last heiress of the Counts of Ghiaggiolo. Which clearly excluded Guido from the county's inheritance. This Paolo Malatesta became the progenitor of the line of the Malatesta of Ghiaggiolo, which only went out in 1757.
Less happy, however, was Paolo's tragic end, which - paradoxically - made him "immortal", as it was described by Dante Alighieri - who knew him personally - in the Divine Comedy in the Fifth Canto of Hell (verses 73 to 142): Because Paolo fell in love with Francesca da Polenta from Ravenna, known as Francesca da Rimini , the young wife of his considerably older and limping brother, Gianciotto Malatesta. However, he caught the lover in flagrante and stabbed the couple in frenzied jealousy. The drama of Paolo and Francesca became an icon - for Dante as well as for numerous later interpretations in literature, visual arts and music and was the subject of several operas in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Guido as condottiere
Guido's prominent role as condottiere showed in the fight against the personal rivals from the house of the Malatesta as well as against the regional supporters of the opposing party of the Guelphs. However, it was not limited to this, but was overshadowed by his contribution to the - far beyond - epic struggle of the Staufer dynasty to preserve the territories of the Holy Roman Empire in Italy and to secure their own claims to rule - especially in Sicily. These historical claims faced the sovereignty claims of the papacy, as well as the expansion efforts of France in Italy in the person of Charles I King of Naples (March 1227 - January 7, 1285) from the house of Anjou , a brother of King Louis IX. of France (later: “Louis the Saint”), who questioned these claims and - ultimately successfully - nullified them.
Regional conflicts
Battle for Ghiaggiolo County
Guido's bitter opponents were the Malatesta , lords of Rimini . This was initially for personal reasons, as Guido felt he had been betrayed by the Malatesta when his wife inherited the County of Giaggiolo. It came to war against Malatesta da Verucchio (* 1212 in Verucchio ; † 1312 in Rimini), in which Guido was defeated and therefore had to renounce his claims to the county of Ghiaggiolo in 1269. Another reason for opposition was that Guido was a leading representative of the Ghibellines and Malatesta da Verrucchio, Lord of Rimini, a leading representative of the opposing Guelfs.
Battle at Monteluro
The next confrontation with Malatesta da Verucchio took place on June 20, 1271, near the Monteluro fortress, which Guido was defending against Malatesta. Guido attacked the besiegers, drove them to flight and took 200 enemy fighters prisoner. He then called for an attack on Rimini, but his horse fell, whereby he was captured by his opponents. It is not known how Guido regained freedom. He himself attributed his liberation to the help of St. Francis of Assisi.
Battle of San Procolo
In 1275 there was a massive confrontation between the Guelphs and Ghibellines in Romagna, which led to the battle of San Procolo. The occasion was that Bologna, which was dominated by the Guelphs, attacked the Ghibelline city of Forli. This attempt failed, whereupon the Ghibellines under the command of Guido da Montefeltro, Maghinardo Pagani and Theobaldo Ordelaffi († 1292) - whose family ruled the city of Forli from the 13th to the 16th century - now attacked the troops in Bologna and these troops on the Senio River in the Tuscan-Romagna Apennines at the bridge of San Proclo, where the Via Emilia crosses the river, so completely defeated that the Bolognese even lost the symbol of the city: the " Carroccio " - that is, the four-wheeled triumphal chariot drawn by oxen , the one of was used by the medieval republics of Italy to gain support from the otherworldly by carrying an image of the patron saint of the city and the city's flag into battle - and also losing their flag. These were brought in triumph by Guido to Forli, where they were publicly exhibited as a sign of victory.
Conquest of Cervia
In the summer of the same year, Guido da Montefeltro succeeded in conquering Cervia - a Guelfi town on the Adriatic in the province of Ravenna - and thus depriving the allied city of Bologna of the supply of salt.
Conquest of Cesena
Soon after, Guido achieved an important victory against Malatesta da Verucchio, as he defeated him in September at Roversano (now part of the city of Cesena), and subsequently drove the Malatesta out of the city of Cesena. This success led to the fact that he was raised to the "Capitano del popolo" of Forli and Faenza and thus practically to the leader of the Ghibellines in the entire Romagna.
Guido in the service of the Hohenstaufen
Under Emperor Friedrich II.
Guido's great-uncle Count Taddeo von Montefeltro, Lord of Faggiuola and Casteldelci (* around 1180, † 1251) had been a declared supporter of Emperor Friedrich II von Hohenstaufen and had participated in his battles in Apulia in 1223 and in Capua in 1243 . Guido followed this example in his youth and fought in the army of Emperor Friedrich II as commander of the contingent of the city of Forli. First in 1240 during the siege of Faenza and later in fighting in Lombardy and in the Battle of Parma, in which Frederick's army suffered a decisive defeat on February 18, 1248. As a result, this led to a clear setback for the Staufer rule in Italy and for the Ghibelline party. According to the chronicler Cobelli, Guido received a medal of honor from Emperor Friedrich as thanks for his commitment, on which the imperial eagle on a golden field and the coat of arms of the city of Forli could be seen. Even after the death of Emperor Friedrich II in 1250, Guido remained unwaveringly loyal to the Hohenstaufen dynasty - even during the absence of Hohenstaufen rulers and pretenders in Italy, defending the rights of the empire against the claims of the Roman Curie. During this time, Guido carried out numerous military missions against armed groups of Guelphs in Romagna. Fights that resulted in heavy losses on both sides.
Under King Conrad IV.
Conrad IV (born April 25, 1228 in Andria, Apulia; † May 21, 1254 in the army camp near Lavello), the only legitimate son of Emperor Frederick II, was the Roman-German King and, among other things, King of Italy and King of Jerusalem. He that the fact in 1251 after Italy broke up to his legacy - the Kingdom of Sicily to take possession of the party gave the Ghibellines big boost, with the leading figures - including Guido da Montefeltro - hopefully in early November 1251 to Verona and Goito went to To pay homage to King Conrad IV and to ask him for support in securing imperial Italy. However, King Conrad was less interested in Imperial Italy and the fighting between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, but primarily in taking possession of the Kingdom of Sicily, inherited from his ancestors. He therefore set out for Apulia in April 1252 , conquered Naples, but did not succeed in subordinating Sicily to his control. He died, excommunicated in 1254 of malaria. The interregnum that began in Germany also affected Guido von Montefeltro and his Ghibelline comrades-in-arms, as there was no chance of a royal move to Rome and massive military support for the Ghibellines in Italy by a German army for years to come.
Under King Manfred
Manfred (* 1232 with Venosa ; † 1266 with Benevento ) a son of Emperor Friedrich II. From the relationship with Bianca Lancia , was from 1250 Prince of Taranto , administrator in Imperial Italy and in Sicily for his absent half-brother Conrad IV. And from 1254 for Konrad's underage son Konradin . However, he made himself King of Sicily in 1258 and ruled until 1266. The presence of this Staufer in Italy and his vicars Oberto Pallavicino († 1269) in Lombardy Giordano d 'Anglano in Tuscany and Percivalle Doria († 1264) since 1258 vicar in Romagna and in the Marches, inspired the party of the Ghibellines. Guido himself was the leader of the Ghibellines in Faenza (in the province of Ravenna) and In Forli, and since 1259 Podestà of Urbino to strengthen his position, he concluded a defense pact with Città di Castello .
Battle of Montaperti
After the Marshal of King Manfred, Giordano d`Anglano († 1267), as Vicar General of Tuscany, had been asked by Siena for help against Florence, the Ghibellines of Siena, Arezzo and Pisa as well as Guido da Montefeltro met with his contingent in Empoli for a consultation of the attack on Florence. Finally, on September 4, 1260, on a hill outside of Siena, the Battle of Montaperti took place , with the Ghibelline Alliance winning a clear victory, in which Guido played a significant part. Giordano d´Anglano subsequently conquered Florence. As a result, the Ghibellines dominated Tuscany for several years.
Royal Vicar in Marche
Guido was subsequently appointed royal vicar in the Marche and Podesta of Jesi by King Manfred and therefore took over the military and civil power there. In this role, Guido succeeded in consolidating the dominance of the Ghibellines in the large area between Urbino, Città di Castello and Fabriano and thus successfully counteracting the efforts of the papal legate to increase ecclesiastical influence there. Manfred von Hohenstaufen, regent of the Kingdom of Sicily, surprisingly took an unheard-of initiative in Palermo in 1258 when he was crowned King of Sicily and thus usurped the throne that belonged to his nephew Conradin.
After this usurpation, the papal efforts intensified in the fight against the Hohenstaufen to forgive the kingdom of Sicily to reliable friends of the Church, whereby Charles I of Anjou (* 1227, † 1285); a younger brother of Louis IX. King of France from 1226 to 1270 (later: "St. Louis") in 1258 declared ready to accept the Pope's offer to support his interests in Italy. Charles I moved into Rome in 1363, was appointed senator (governor) of Rome and enfeoffed the Kingdom of Naples in 1265 and crowned in 1266. The French influence and, at the same time, the influence of the Guelfs increased further with the election of the French clergyman Jacques Pantaléon as Pope as Urban IV , who ruled from 1261 to 1264, and under his also French successor Clement IV (Gui Foucois), reigns 1265 - 1268.
The leaders of the Ghibellines, including Guido da Montefeltro, did not succeed in stopping the advance of King Charles I, as a result of which cities such as Pesaro , Fano or Roccacontrada fell under the Ghibellines.
Guido da Montefeltro felt the growing influence of the Pope directly when he was summoned to court on August 5, 1264 by Cardinal Simone Paltanieri († 1277), the papal legate in Umbria, Tuscany, Lombardy and Veneto was to answer together with other nobles such as Rinaldo da Brunforte, Ugolino and Federico della Massa Fermana etc. for his support of the Hohenstaufen Manfred. There was no severe conviction. Not very pleasant for Guido was the presence of his brother, Count Taddeo da Montefeltro, who appeared as a staunch Guelph at this hearing. Guido subsequently withdrew from the Ancona region to Urbino, which was threatened by the legate's troops. A siege was avoided because the city had turned to the Pope and promised him solidarity. The victory of Charles I of Anjou on February 26, 1266 in the battle of Benevento in southern Italy and the death of King Manfred in the battle signaled the end of the rule of the Hohenstaufen in Italy and made Charles I the undisputed lord of Sicily. For the Ghibellines and for Guido, this was a catastrophic setback, which, however, was celebrated as a great victory by the Guelphs and the church representatives.
Under Konradin
At the beginning of October 1266, Ludwig II the Strict, Duke of Bavaria - a maternal uncle of Conradin - called a meeting in Augsburg , to which representatives of the Ghibellines from Pisa, Verona, Pavia, Lucera and Palermo came to Germany to encourage Conradin, to redeem the land of his fathers from the tyranny of the house of Angevin.
Guido leader of the Ghibellines
Guido von Montefeltro took part in this meeting as the leading representative of the Italian Ghibellines. There it was decided that the 14-year-old heir to the Staufer Konradin, Duke of Swabia and King of Jerusalem, should quickly intervene in Italy. At around the same time, Friedrich (Fadrique) Infant of Castile (* 1223, † 1277), son of King Ferdinand III. von Castile , who was a relative of Manfred through his mother Beatrix von Hohenstaufen , undertook an incursion into Sicily. Guido was given the special task of reorganizing the Ghibelline party in Italy after the death of King Manfred (June 6, 1266).
Prosenator of Rome
Guido, who now played an important role for all of Italy, was given another important task after his return from Germany. At that time, Rome was not ruled by the Pope, who resided in Viterbo in exile , but by the then famous general Heinrich Infant of Castile (* 1230, † 1304), a younger son of Ferdinand III. , the saint, King of Castile , as Senator (Governor) of Rome. He had initially supported Charles I of Anjou, but later became a supporter of the Ghibellines. He appointed Guido da Montefeltro to the "Protosenator" (deputy senator) and thus to his deputy as governor of the city of Rome.
In this capacity Guido called on November 18, 1267 in Rome in the church of S. Maria in Campidoglio the ambassadors of the imperial cities of Tuscany to deliberate on the further procedure. On November 18, 1267 the Pope opened the first trial against Conradin and his in Viterbo Supporters: Already on June 4th 1267 the Pope had appointed Charles of Anjou as his vicar in Tuscany for three years, who now began to move troops to the defense of Conradin in Tuscany. Against these troops of Charles, under the command of Guido da Montefeltro, the most important Ghibelline cities of Siena and Pisa allied and concentrated their defense in Poggioponsi. The siege lasted all summer and ended with an honorable capitulation through the mediation of Cardinal Ottaviano degli Ubaldini. Before leaving for Italy, Konradin issued a diploma in Augsburg in August 1267, with which he enfeoffed him with the county of Chieti in Abruzzo in recognition of the loyalty and merits of Guido . at the same time he sent letters to Italy in which he called himself King of Sicily and announced his coming to take back the rights of his ancestors.
Pope Gregory IV
Pope Gregory IV, a staunch opponent of Conradin, whom he described as a “careless boy”, forbade the elector ever to elect Conradin as Roman king by a papal bull and on April 14th issued a summons to Conradin to hold him accountable . A letter he wrote to the Florentines on April 10, 1267 shows how Pope Gregory IV, who resided in Viterbo, felt about Conradin's move to Italy:
- “A poisonous basilisk has emerged from the trunk of the dragon, which already fills Tuscany with its breath of plague; sends a breed of snakes, men of perdition, our and the vacant empire as the illustrious King Charles traitors; the comrades of his plans, to cities and nobles; with fine art of lies he boasts in tinsel and tries to lure them away from the path of truth by asking those with gold. "
Battle of Poggibonsi
At the same time he caused Charles of Anjou to move troops to Florence, although Tuscany was an imperial country. When the French troops arrived, Siena and Pisa joined forces with Guido da Montefeltro, as “Prosenator of Rome”, organizing the joint defense of Poggibonsi with the help of Ghibellines from Rome and Tuscany so successfully that the besiegers had to withdraw after the summer. (P 54)
Conradin's advance
When Konradin reached Pisa, several cities and bases that Karl von Anjou had built to defend Konradin fell away from him while, at Guido’s instigation, Pisa, Arezzo, Cortona and Siena as well as Forli, Faenza, Imola and Cesena Urbino Fossombrone, Cagli and Citta fell away di Castello - unlike Bologna - sided with Konrad Konradin and his army arrived in Ghibelline Verona on October 21, 1267, where his father, King Conrad IV. had arrived 14 years earlier.
Conradin's alliance with Rome
In Rome, Heinrich of Castile, as Senator from Rome, decided - probably not without consulting his deputy Guido da Montefeltro - to silence the opposing Guelphs. He therefore invited their leading representatives, the Orsini , the Savelli , as well as the Annibaldi and the Malabranca, to a consultation in the Capitol in mid-November - and had them arrested there! Subsequently, the alliance of the city of Rome with Conradin was publicly announced on the Capitol, with Henry of Castile - at the same time a troubadur - wrote a price poem for Conradin in which he asked him to take possession of Sicily and seize the crown of the empire.
On November 18, 1267, under the presidency of Guido da Montefeltro as Prosenator from Rome, the representatives of the Ghibellines of Pisa and Siena and from Tuscany as well as the great and minor councils, consuls and priors of the guilds of Rome met in the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli and there reached the conclusion of a formal alliance. In return, the Pope pronounced the ban on Conradin, the cities of Pisa and Siena, and the Ghibellines of Tuscany. However, he avoided excommunicating the Senator of Rome or his deputy Guido da Montefeltro or interdicting the city of Rome,
Alliance of the Ghibellines
In the presence of Guido as deputy senator of Rome, a defensive alliance between the Ghibellines of Rome, Pisa, Siena and the Ghibellines of Tuscany was concluded on December 1, 1267 in the Palace of the Four Crowned, the residence of the Senator of Rome. In it, the rights of Conradin were expressly supported and the aim was expressly to destroy the power of King Charles I in Tuscany. This partly as a reaction to the fact that the Pope had chosen Charles I as "Prince of Peace" and the Guelphs of Tuscany as their lord (Signore) for 6 years. The alliance of the Ghibellines opposed him with the Infante Heinrich of Castile, the senator from Rome, who was also appointed captain-general of the alliance for five years and who was promised support in the payment of his troops. Konradin arrived in Pavia on January 20, 1268, but some of his unpaid troops left him there and stayed there until March 22. Charles of Anjou wanted to attack him there, but was induced by the Pope to take care of his kingdom of Sicily instead, which was increasingly controlled by insurgent Ghibellines. At the same time, in Viterbo, the Pope excommunicated Konradin, Ludwig of Bavaria, the Count of Tyrol and all the heads of the Ghibellines, especially the Senator from Rome and his deputy, Guido da Montefeltro, released the Romans from their oath of loyalty to them and occupied Pisa, Siena, Verona and Pavia with the interdict.
Conradin in Rome
On July 22nd, 1268, the army of Conradin passed the city of Viterbo - the Pope's residence - without threatening it, whereupon the Pope compared him to a “sacrificial lamb”. Konradin moved on to Rome, where he moved over the Angel's Bridge on July 24th and where the Senator of Rome and his deputy Guido da Montefeltro and the people of Rome gave him a brilliant reception and paid homage to him at the Capitol as future emperor, while earlier ones Opponents now on his side.
Departure for Apulia
On August 18, 1268, Conradine set out from Rome to begin the conquest of Apulia, with plans to unite with the Saracens of Lucera at Sulmona to attack Charles. Since the senator of the city of Rome, the Infant Frederick of Castile, accompanied Konradin with local troops, Guido stayed behind as the effective ruler of the city to keep Rome under control.
Battle of Tagliacozzo
On August 23, 1268 there was the battle of Tagliacozzo . With a successful advance of the troops under the battle-experienced Infante Frederick of Castile, the Senator of Rome, he succeeded first to break the line of the Provençals and then the line of the French, whereby King Charles I, recognizable by your magnificent armor, also fell in the battle . Thereupon the order of battle of the troops of Conradin broke up in a frenzy of joy. This was followed by a bad awakening, for it was not King Charles but his marshal, Henri de Coutances, who had worn the king's armor, whereupon King Charles, who had been watching the battle from a hill, made a surprise attack with his reserve against them and confused troops of Conradin to victory.
Konradin fled the battlefield with his companion, Margrave Friedrich von Baden-Austria , with 500 riders via Vicovaro to Rome, where he arrived on August 28th. Naturally, he expected that the current ruler of the city of Rome - Guido da Montefeltro - would welcome him with open arms and protect him in Rome.
In Rome, however, the news of the defeat of Conradin had already spread, which changed the mood: the Guelfs cheered and threatened the Ghibellines, who feared spread. Guido, who held the Capitol for Senator Frederick of Castile, refused to accept Konradin there without the consent of the absent Senator in view of the revolt of the Guelphs. However, Konradin found protection with other Ghibellines who had withdrawn into their towers and controlled the Colosseum or the fortified Tiber Island . On August 31, Konradin left Rome, which had become unsafe, and reached the sea near Astura with a small following, from where he hoped to reach his befriended Pisa by ship. However, the boat was intercepted by Johannes Frangipani , lord of the Torre Astura fort , as he knew from King Charles's order that the refugees were to be arrested. He delivered the prisoners to the men of King Charles, who locked Konradin in the Colonna castle in the town of Castel San Pietro Romano not far from Palestrina , where other prisoners such as Conrad of Antioch and many other Ghibellines were later brought. The Senator from Rome, Infant Frederick of Castile, was also later captured, first in the Canossa castle , then in the Castel del Monte , from where he was not released until 1291 and finally died in Castile in 1304. Conradin was beheaded on October 29, 1268 in Naples in the Piazza del Mercato, without Pope Clement IV, who himself died a month later, on November 29, had prevented this.
Guido's function as Prosenator of the City of Rome ended on September 15, 1268 with the invasion of Rome by King Charles I, who was appointed Senator for life there. He appointed Jacob Cantelmi as his vicar, to whom Guido therefore handed over the Capitol for 4,000 gold guilders and then left Rome. Guido, whom the Pope called "" inurbano vicario dell'Urbe "", returned to Urbino where he had to deal with Malatesta da Vrucchio about the County of Giaggiolo and ultimately lost these claims from his wife's inheritance. In the summer of 1270 Guido fought together with his cousin Galasso da Montefeltro as the leader of the Sienese exiles in southern Tuscany. On June 20, 1271 there was another fight with Malatesta da Verucchio, in which Guido was captured, from which he was freed by the intervention of St. Francis of Assisi.
Under King Rudolf I.
The election of Count Rudolf von Habsburg as Roman-German King in 1273 gave the Ghibellines new hope of a trip to Rome and thus of massive support for the Ghibellines in their struggle for the preservation of imperial Italy.
Guido Signore of Forli
This encouraged Bologna and Forli to rise up against the Pope. Guido was given the title Signore with the defense of Forli. He went to Faenza and drove out the Guelphs from there. Soon afterwards, on June 13, 1274 at San Proclo - between Faenza and Imola - there was a confrontation with the Guelphs, which Guido ended with an overwhelming victory through a superior strategy. Thereupon he was recognized by the Ghibellines of Romagna as "savio e sottile d'ingegno di guerra piu che niuno che fosse al suo tempo" (about: "wiser and more subtle in the ruse than anyone else of his time") as commander in chief. Soon afterwards, Guido seized the salt pans of Cervia and then the city of Cesena, which was defended by his old opponent Malatesta da Verucchio, and then released the hostages without asking for any compensation. This earned him the fame of a generous knight. As a result, Romagna was almost entirely in the hands of the Ghibellines, a situation that lasted for a few years and was exacerbated by the success at the Battle of Civitella di Romagna on November 14, 1277.
A new challenge for Guido was that in Ravenna , Guido da Polenta, a Guelfe, took power and there was a risk of an attack on Faenza. In order to prevent this, Guido da Montefeltro gathered his troops in May 1277 and began to besiege Bagnacavallo , which is about halfway between Faenza and Ravenna. As the siege dragged on, Guido had a fortified camp built, from which the city of Cotignola in the province of Ravenna later developed - which in 1411 came as a fief to Muzio Attendolo Sforza, the progenitor of the House of Sforza . A serious setback for the centuries-long struggle of the Ghibellines was on the one hand that between King Rudolf I and Pope Nicholas III. reached an agreement, according to which numerous disputed rights and imperial donations to the church by King Rudolf were put out of dispute and, on the other hand, that despite many efforts, Rudolf did not "travel to Rome", since this excluded the hope of military support from King Rudolf.
Quarrel with the Popes
Nevertheless, Guido tried to represent the previous imperial interests against those of the Pope, but the alliance of the Ghibellines increasingly crumbled, since King Rudolf I subsequently regarded the oaths of loyalty made by the cities of Romagna to his representatives in 1275 as invalid. As a result, Romagna quickly became a papal province.
Under Pope Nicholas III.
Pope Nicholas III (Giovanni Gaetano Orsini ) (ruled 1277 to 1280) renewed the efforts to strengthen the ecclesiastical authority in Romagna from his election, but he was an opponent of King Charles I of Sicily and deprived him of the function of senator and governor of Rome. At the same time he obtained the recognition of all imperial donations from the Roman-German king, Rudolf I von Habsburg. In view of the disintegration phenomena in the Ghibelline alliance, Guido himself was forced to swear allegiance to the Pope on September 1, 1278, whereupon he lifted Guido's excommunication on September 25. In the following years, 1279 and 1280, various peace agreements were reached, in which Guido faithfully took part in his promises and supported the Pope's conciliatory policy.
The death of Pope Nicholas III. on August 22nd, 1280, however, ended this positive development and the position of the papal governor of Romagna, the "Conte di Romagna" - the Pope's nephew, Bertoldo Orsini. This led to renewed unrest against the Guelphs, as the Ghibellines expelled the members of the Guelphs in numerous cities, while Guido da Montefeltro himself used the opportunity to seize the cities of Senigallia and Jesi, whereupon he returned to Forli.
Under Pope Martin IV.
The tide turned again with the election of Martin IV as Pope. In 1281 the French clergyman Simon de Brion was elected Pope Martin IV (ruled 1281 to 1285) in May 1281, who - unlike his predecessor - immediately renewed the alliance with King Charles I and reinstated him as Senator of Rome . At the same time he appointed Taddeo novello di Pietrarubbia da Montefeltro († 1299) - a nephew of Guidos and convinced Guelphs - as the commander of the troops that were supposed to take action against Guido.
Guido da Montefeltro was then again excommunicated on March 26, 1282 in order to push back the dominance of the Ghibellines in Romagna. Despite these successes against the Ghibellines, Pope Martin V was unable to assert himself in Rome, which is why he was forced to reside in Orvieto instead of Rome . After the Ghibellines had also lost Faenza to the Pope, they looked for ways of a compromise solution, which, however, with regard to the counterclaim; unconditional submission, was rejected.
First battle of Forli
A military confrontation thus emerged. A first meeting between the troops of the Ghibellines under Guido and the papal army took place at Cesena. However, Guido's success remained limited, as there was no hope that one of the pretenders for the imperial crown - Rudolf I of Habsburg or Alfonso VII of Castile would intervene in the war. After numerous - ultimately in vain - negotiations, the armies faced each other again on May 1, 1282 at Forli. In the bloody battle - according to Dante "un sanguinoso mucchio" (a bloody slaughter) between the French army, which had been organized by Pope Martin IV to subdue the city of Forli and the Ghibellines there, and the Ghibelline troops under the command of Guidos. The - arguably superior - army of the Guelphs under Jean de Pas, the papal count of Romagna, was finally defeated thanks to Guido's strategic ruse.
After the city had resisted the siege by the papal troops for a long time under the command of Guido, one day Guido declared himself defeated and let the French move into the city. While the papal troops enthusiastically indulged in the plunder, Guido and his troops who had remained hidden attacked the surprised opponents and killed the majority of the opponents, with numerous French officers and also Guido's “guelfish” brother, Taddeo da Montefeltro, falling. This victory is also mentioned by Dante in the Divine Comedy: “The place that once stood up for so long and piled the French corpses bloody is still subject to the green paws” (Inferno, XXVII, 43-44). Forli therefore remained in the possession of the Ghibelline Ordelaffi family, who had the green lion in the golden field as their coat of arms
Hope for strategic alliances
This success gave Guido hope for a lasting success in the struggle of the Ghibellines against the claims of ownership of the papacy, which is why he tried to expand the conflict by including friendly powers. However, he failed in the implementation of his plan because he did not succeed in convincing one of the designated Roman kings, Rudolf I of Habsburg and Alfonso X of Castile († l 1284) of the usefulness of military intervention in Italy.
Guido therefore tried his own armed forces with those of Peter III. King of Aragon (from 1276 to 1285) (son-in-law of King Manfred of Sicily from the House of Hohenstaufen), who had conquered Sicily from Charles I in 1282 after the " Sicilian Vespers ". However, Guido's strategic attempt also failed, whereupon King Peter III. was banned from Aragon on November 18, 1282. Guido himself had already been excommunicated by the Pope on March 26, 1282.
Second battle of Forli
In the following year 1283 there was a decisive setback for Guido: Because an army of allies of the Pope under the command of Guy de Montfort (* 1244, † 1291/92) (a son of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester and of his wife Eleanor of England , a daughter of King John of England ) was able to achieve a resounding success against the army of the Ghibellines under Guido and forced Guido's surrender in the city of Forli. Since the winners stipulated that Guido should leave Forli, he retired in May 1283 to the castle he owned in Meldola , which is well protected about 10.5 km south of Forli on a rock spur above the municipality of the same name in the Forlì-Cesena Province rises.
submission
After the conquest of Forli by papal troops, practically all of Romagna submitted to papal authority. Also Guido, who had been excommunicated by the Pope again after the conquest of Forli - had to submit to the Pope, whereby Pope Honorius IV from the House of Savelli sentenced him to several years of exile, first in Chioggia and later in Asti . As a result, Guido lost the city of Cervia in 1283 and was again banned by the Pope in 1283. The loss of his important Ghibelline allies, the cities of Forli and Cesena, forced him to retreat to Urbino and Montefeltro, bringing Romagna and the Marches under the control of the Pope's legates. Guido then tried to reconcile with the Pope. However, this attempt was in vain - due to Guido's lack of complete submission.
Siege of Urbino
Therefore, in 1284, Urbino was besieged by papal troops. While Guido defended the city for months, a considerable part of the county of Montefeltro - including the capital San Leo - fell to the party of the Guelphs. Guido therefore had to surrender in 1285, whereupon Urbino lost its status as an independent imperial county. Guido was captured and was then imprisoned first in Chioggia and later in Piedmont , after he had given two of his sons to the new Pope Honorius IV.
Under Pope Honorius IV.
With Pope Honorius IV (Giacomo Savelli) reigned from 1285 to 1287) an Italian came to the papal throne again, but he continued the policy of his predecessor: supporting the House of Anjou and was increasingly involved in the succession to the throne in Sicily. Guido was out of the game at the time due to his internment.
Under Pope Nicholas IV.
Nicholas IV (Girolamo Masci d'Ascoli) ruled from 1288 to 1292 and, like his predecessor, was primarily interested in European issues - particularly in securing the Pope's rule over Sicily. At the regional level, this gave the Ghibellines more freedom of movement
Lord of Pisa
After several years of exile without a command or government function, after the death of Pope Honorius VI. on April 5, 1287 a turning point for Guido. On the one hand, because the Ghibelline Archbishop of Pisa, Ruggieri degli Ubaldini, had largely gambled away his reputation by hitting the previous governor of the city - Count Ugolino della Gherardesca (* approx. 1220 in Pisa ; † there March 1289), Count of Donoratico in an inhuman way by locking him up with 2 children and 2 grandchildren in a tower and brutally starving him to death. Subsequently Ugolino - like Guido - was made immortal by Dante in the "Divine Comedy" , since he made him immortal in XXXII and XXXIII. Let the song of hell appear among the traitors of the fatherland by gnawing the skull of Archbishop Ruggieri. On the other hand, Pisa was threatened by the centers of the Guelfs, the cities of Florence and Lucca , which is why Pisa urgently needed an outstanding general. Archbishop Ruggieri therefore turned to Guido in March 1289, who, according to a contemporary comment, was "famous for his armed acts, his wise advice and his powerful leadership" and offered him to take over the secular and military control of the Republic of Pisa. Guido seized this opportunity, left immediately (on March 12, 1289 for Pisa and took over the leadership of the Republic of Pisa on March 24, 1289 as elected Capitano del Populo, Capitano delle masnade (captain of the urban militias) and as Podestà. Around twice To break up the military threat, Guido developed the plan to attack the main power of Florence in isolation and to attack from two sides at the same time: both from Pisa and from Arezzo.
Conquest of Arezzo
In Pisa, he equipped 3,000 crossbowmen with new weapons, had them drilled and secured the city with palisades, which his later successor as Podesta of Pisa, Uguccione della Faggiola († 1318), admired 25 years later. In Arezzo he succeeded in June 1287 with the help of his son Bonconte da Montefeltro, the families of the Ubertini and the family of the Pazzi and the Ghibellines, who had been driven out of Florence, to free the city from the Guelphs by a night raid. Subsequently, the imperial vicar, Percivalle Fieschi Count of Lavagna , came to Arezzo, recruited mercenaries there and undertook military operations against the Guelfi allies of the governments in Florence and Siena . The allies Florence and Siena then counterattacked in June 1288 and besieged Arezzo together, but had to break off the siege unsuccessfully due to a lack of siege engines.
Toppo equestrian tournament
A decisive blow came from Guido's son Bonconte da Montefeltro, who as commander of the troops of Arezzo, together with Guglielmo dei Pazzi, succeeded in defeating the troops of Siena and Massa, who had come home alone after the siege, by an ambush he had prepared on June 26, 1288 despite numerical inferiority with 300 riders and 2000 infantrymen in a battle, the so-called "Giostre del Toppo" (the equestrian tournament of Toppo) at Pieve al Toppo to decimate.
Battle of Campaldino
Guido's strategic plan consisted of attacking Florence by a coordinated simultaneous attack by all Ghibelline forces, particularly from Arezzo and Pisa, and was thwarted twice. On the one hand, the strategic plan of Bishop Guglielmo of Arezzo was betrayed to the Florentines. On the other hand, the Podesta of Arezzo took the initiative of Guido Novello instead of proceeding in a coordinated manner. So the troops of Arezzo, under the command of Bonconte da Montefeltro, advanced prematurely towards Florence and finally reached Florentine territory, where they were surprisingly faced with a Florentine army under the command of Guillaume Bertrand de Durfort of 1,600 knights and 10,000 infantrymen while they were only about half of the knights and around 8000.
On June 11, 1289, the battle broke out in which the Aretines under Buonconte advanced successfully, but were stopped by a side attack by the men of Pistoia under Corso Donati, whereupon some of the fighters from Arezzo were cursed and the attack collapsed came, which ended in a slaughter in which numerous representatives of well-known noble families and Bonconte da Montefeltro fell. In addition to the defeat of the Ghibellines, this battle had far-reaching consequences, as from now on Florence was clearly the dominant city of Tuscany. Here, too, Dante Alighieri comes into play: on the one hand, because he participated in this battle himself at the age of 24 - as a Florentine and convinced Guelfe - and on the other hand, because in the Divine Comedy he described Bonconte's death in the fifth cant of Purgatorio (purgatory) Verses 85 through 129 describes. Guido, who prepared his advance against Florence from Pisa, was surprised and badly hit by the defeat - and by the death of his son Bonconte. As a result, the Guelph troops turned against Guido and individual possessions of Ghibelline allies of the Republic of Pisa and conquered some castles, including Caprona. Dante Alighieri also recently took part in these campaigns.
Defense of Pisa
A subsequent attack by the Guelphs on Arezzo was unsuccessful. The 1291 campaign of Florence under the Podesta Guido da Poenta against the Republic of Pisa - where Guido da Montefeltro had entrenched himself - could be successfully repulsed by Guido, but led to the complete destruction of the port of Pisa, the "Porto Pisano" as well of the port of Livorno as well as the loss of the island of Elba and thus massive economic damage to the foundations of the importance of the city - namely the important overseas trade. For his part, immediately after the withdrawal of the enemy troops, Guido began to retake the castles occupied by the Florentines. Another attack by the Guelphs on the Republic of Pisa took place in June 1292. It was directed first against Piombino , then against Pisa itself, although the attack was again repulsed under Guido's command. At the end of his term as Podesta he was followed by his cousin, Count Galasso da Montefeltro. .
Fucecchio Peace Treaty
Pope Nicholas IV had tried to pacify Tuscany, and Guido was also actively trying to find a balance. Guido continued these efforts to find a compromise with Florence after the death of the Pope on April 2, 1292 during the long interregnum. As a result, after lengthy negotiations on July 12, 1293 in Fucecchio , a comprehensive peace treaty between Pisa and the Guelfan alliance consisting of Florence, Lucca , Siena and other allies came about . For Guido, who had played a key role in the negotiations, however, there was a serious setback, as Florence insisted that Guido had to leave the city of Pisa within a month, and with him all the mercenaries and all non-native Ghibellines who were involved in the fighting had involved. At the same time it was planned that neither he nor anyone else from his family would ever again be allowed to exercise the office of Capitano del Populo or that of Podesta in Pisa. . This clause hit Guido hard, even if it was not strictly adhered to afterwards, since Guido left the city after his three-year term in office, but left the Republic of Pisa in 1294 to succeed him as Capitano del Populo and Podesta, Galeotto, known as Galasso da Montefeltro († 1300) - a cousin of Guidos - chose.
Return to Urbino
Guido therefore gathered his supporters and the troops loyal to him and prepared himself to return to his native Urbino.
Conquest of Cagli
The troops went via Città di Castello to Cagli , where they managed to occupy the city with a surprise coup. Through his former comrades in arms, Guido had followers in many cities, both among the nobility, such as the families of the Ubaldini, the Mastinelli in Cagli or the Chiavelli in Fabriano, and among the bourgeoisie.
Cast of Urbino
After the occupation of Cagli, it was not difficult to return to Urbino, as solidarity with their ancestral ruler prevailed in the population compared to the now ruling Malatesta.
Conquest of Pesaro
The attack of Malatestino Malatesta, Podesta von Cesena, on Urbino on June 18, 1294 was therefore not only unsuccessful, but led to a counter-attack by Guido, who conquered the city of Pesaro with his troops on August 6, and thus suffered a heavy defeat for the Malatesta added.
Reconciliation with the Church
Under Pope Celestine V
Guido was in Urbino when the news reached him that, after a long vacancy, on July 5, 1294 Pietro da Morrone (* around 1209/19, † 1296), a worldly remote, humble hermit and founder of the Cölestine order , who was considered a living saint , with the name Celestine V had been elected Pope. A choice that corresponded to a spirit of optimism in the church, as it aroused the hope that the theology of the history of the three ages developed by the abbot and monastery founder Joachim von Fiore (* around 1130/35, † 1202) - that of God the Father ( that of the Old Testament) - that of Jesus Christ , (that of the New Testament) - and that of the Holy Spirit would be fulfilled through the choice of these saints and the third age of spirituality would begin. The positive expectations were widespread after this election and also met Guido da Montefeltro, who was old and depressed by his acts of violence against the Church, was now repentant, was looking for reconciliation and absolution and therefore went to Aquila degli Abruzzi , the capital of the Abruzzo region and the province L'Aquila hurried to where the coronation of the - reluctant - new Pope, Celestine V, took place on August 29, 1294. Guido did this to throw himself at the Pope's feet and to ask for absolution for his sins committed in the war against the Guelphs loyal to the Pope. He was put off for the time being.
Back in Urbino, he decided to underline his willingness to repent again and, with the consent of King Charles II of Naples , accompanied by five knights to the Pope's court at Castel Nuovo in Naples . There he received - against an assurance of loyalty to the church and the return of the appropriated church property - actually absolution and the repeal of all excommunications and condemnations issued against him.
This forgiveness had its price, because in return the Pope sent his chaplain, Riccardo da Ferrentino, as vicar to Urbino, in order to obtain from Guido the surrender of the cities, the castles and fortresses in Romagna, in Urbino, Pesaro and Cagli Guido had taken possession of them, but they belonged to the church in order to return them to the administration of the church.
Quite unexpectedly, however, Pope Celestine declared his resignation as Pope on December 13, 1294.
Under Pope Boniface VIII.
Just a few days later, the energetic and ambitious Cardinal Benedetto Caetani was elected on December 24, 1294, with the name Boniface VIII. To succeed Pope Celestine V.
Nothing changed for Guido under the new Pope. The restitution of the church property was continued, with Guido only keeping the property and the feudal property. The intention to withdraw from worldly life, Guido put on hold for the time being in order to support his Ghibelline friends against the ongoing attacks of the Malatesta or those of the Lambertazzi, as for example the family of the Parcitad, who were among the leading Ghibellines in Rimini, as well as around to contribute to the reconciliation of the opposing factions.
Entry to the Franciscan monastery
The opportunity to carry out his intention to enter a spiritual order arose through the invitation of Pope Boniface VIII to Guido to come to Rome to discuss issues of the politics and administration of the Romagna province. Guido therefore went to Rome on January 26th, 1296, was received there in a friendly manner and according to his rank and had several conversations with the Pope, who offered him to join one of the religious orders of his choice. Count Guido then decided in favor of the Franciscan order, whereupon the Pope wrote a letter of recommendation from Agnani on July 23, 1296 to the Provincial of the order in the Mark Ancona and also made dispositions on the question of which parts of his movable and immovable property to the Family Guidos or should fall to the church. At the same time he wrote to the rector of the Mark Ancona, Guglielmo Durand, Bishop of Mende, that he should release a follower of Guido who had been held captive by him. Guido therefore decided to finally withdraw from worldly affairs and leave these, like the leadership of his old family, to the oldest representative of the house, his cousin Galeotto (called Galasso) da Montefeltro († 1300). On November 17, 1296, "Guido conte di Montefeltro capitano di guerra" made solemn vows and entered the Franciscan order in Ancona. He then went on a pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi and the tomb of the Apostles in Rome, where he was received with honor by the Pope.
Guido's advice to the Pope
In connection with this visit and his talks with the Pope - probably against the background of the current confrontation between the Pope and cardinals from the House of Colonna - rumors circulated that Guido had served the Pope as a bad advisor and recommended him as a tactic, “indeed much to promise, but little to keep ”. This advice from Guido da Montefeltro appears to Dante as one of the most serious crimes, as he - despite express reconciliation with the Church and Pope, despite an exemplary retirement as a Franciscan - in the Divine Comedy in the eighth circle of the inferno (hell) he is the wrong adviser and banished to existence as a living flame. Which is perhaps due to the personal enmity of the Guelf Dante towards the famous leader of the Ghibellines Guido da Montefeltro, against whom Dante fought personally with weapon in hand. In Ancona, Guido lived his last years withdrawn and in great humility as a brother in the local Franciscan monastery and, according to contemporary reports, went from house to house to collect alms for the order and to detach himself completely from the earthly splendor and glory of the past.
Death and burial
Guido da Montefeltro died as a Franciscan in his monastery in Ancona (according to other sources in Assisi) on September 29, 1298, on the feast day of the Archangel Michael , who, according to contemporary knightly legends, came to him to receive the soul of the generous paladin and pious Franciscan to take. He was first buried in Ancona, then transferred to Urbino and buried in the Franciscan church there and finally in 1443 in the mausoleum of the Montefeltro family, in the Sacellum of San Donato near the current church of San Bernardino.
Possessions
In 1253 Guido's father, Monfeltrano II. Da Montefeltro, died, which led to a division of the family estates, with Guido receiving the county of Montefeltro and the territories around the castles of Monte Cerignone and Montecopiolo and at the same time assuming responsibility for the preservation of the family's property . In this capacity, he succeeded in establishing an alliance of the towns and parishes of the Massa Trabaria region in 1256 against the attack of the condottiere and apostolic legate Uguccione della Faggiola, which the city of Arezzo also joined.
The death of his father Monfeltrano II in 1253, and that of his uncle Ugolino da Montefeltro, the bishop of Montefeltro 1232-1250, who was deposed in 1250 and reinstated as bishop in 1252 and was the recognized head of the Ghibellines of Romagna, but in the year When Guido died in 1252, he took care of his family's inheritance. When the goods were shared with his brothers, Guido received the county of Montefeltro and his younger brother Taddeo the county of Pietrarubbia. Through his marriage he was from 1263 lord of the county of Ghiaggiolo. His possessions, however, proved to be extremely changeable because of his active policies directed for the emperor and against the pope. He lost Ghiaggiolo in the same year 1263, he lost the county of Montefeltro in 1266 to his younger brother Taddeo da Montefeltro, who appropriated them. He received Montefeltro back in 1282, but was driven out by the people in 1283, who submitted to the Pope. In 1282 he was lord of Cesena , Forli , Senigallia , Jesi and parts of the Ghibelline Romagna, but lost them again in 1283. He was Count of Urbino, but was completely expropriated by the Pope in 1286. After a long exile, he was appointed regent of the Republic of Pisa in 1289, but deposed in 1293 by the Treaty of Fucecchio. Finally, he obtained papal absolution in 1295 and thus the restoration of the counties of Montefeltro and Urbino, but in 1296 he entered the Franciscan order.
Rating
The different descriptions of Guido by his contemporaries shows that Guido has contradicting facets. This not least because he was active as an outstanding general and governor under changing external conditions due to his origins, through his political commitment as Ghibelline, whereby he created not only admirers but also bitter opponents.
As a member of the ancient Romagna feudal nobility, he was part of the traditional local rivalries between neighboring dynasties - especially with his arch enemy, Malatesta da Verrucchio.
On the level of regional politics, Guido was exposed as a traditional member of the Ghibelline party in the Italian society of his time, which was divided into Ghibellines and Guelphs, as he was involved as a cunning leader and condottiere in countless civil war-like conflicts and confrontations in which both parties were involved to contest control of cities and entire regions, even when imperial Italy was little more than a memory.
At the international level, Guido was part of the epic ring between the emperor and the pope for power in imperial Italy as a feudal man of the Roman-German kings. He supported the last representatives of the Hohenstaufen until their extinction and continued the fight with the Pope in the following interregnum in the hope of a return of powerful "Roman kings" who would be ready and able to restore the old order . Ultimately, his efforts failed because of the attitude of King Rudolf I from the House of Habsburg, who renounced the fight in favor of the - ultimately in vain - desired imperial coronation.
On the religious level he was a lifelong follower of St. Francis of Assisi, who revolutionized the poverty of the Church and was probably also one of the followers of the teachings of Joachim von Fiore of the three ages and shared the common hope of his time that through the Election of Pope Clement V in the church a fundamental turn towards spirituality - the age of the Holy Spirit - could occur. With the resignation of the Pope this hope vanished, but Guido questioned his own life and considered a personal turn to spirituality - which he later accomplished by joining the Franciscan order.
He became “immortal” on the meta-level of Dante Alighieri's poetry. In Dante's view, Guido was a merciless opponent of the Guelfs and the Church, who opposed the restoration of territorial control of the Church against imperial claims. He saw him as a political - and military - opponent and banished him - despite his exemplary end as a mendicant monk - to the penultimate circle of hell because he advised the Pope to promise more than to keep.
The life of Guido da Montefeltro shows, like that of a few other contemporaries, the full breadth of the many overlapping ideals, hopes and setbacks of his time. Above the usual feudal power struggles, he was under the spell of the confrontation between imperial and papal claims to power, but was also shaped by the intellectual controversy of church visionaries like Joachim von Fiore and church reformers like Francis of Assisi, which, however - despite repentance and retreating into one spiritual life - could not save that Dante - in anger - assigned him a cruel punishment in the Divine Comedy.
Marriage and offspring
marriage
Guido was with Manentessa di Ghiaggiolo, a daughter of Guido Count von Chiaggiolo, (today part of the municipality of Civitella di Romagna in the valley of the Bidente, in the county of Forli in the Emilia-Romagna region ), lord of Cusercoli (in Civitella di Romagna) , Valpondi, Meldola, Seguno, Sambuceto, Montevecchio, Montepuzzoli, Valdarche, Ustigano, Mustiola and Laiola. Mantenessa was a sister of Uberto di Chiaggiolo († 1263) - the last male representative of his family - and an aunt of Orabile Beatrice di Ghiaggiolo, the heiress of the family who lived with Paolo "il Bello" (the beautiful) Malatesta (* in Verucchio around 1246, † Gradara 1285), who formed a tragic pair of lovers with Francesca da Rimini , who found their way not only in Dante's Divine Comedy, but also in numerous later depictions.
progeny
From his marriage to Manentessa di Ghiaggiolo Guido had four children: where he gave two, Federico and Corrado, “Staufer” names.
- Count Federico I da Montefeltro († April 25, 1322) 4th Count of Urbino, Count of Montefeltro, Lord of Serrungarina and Monte Campanaro, briefly Lord of Fano , Pesaro and Senigallia etc. He was married to a woman of unknown name.
- Count Sighinolfo, called Nolfo da Montefeltro (* around 1290, † 1364) He was the eldest son of his father and became lord of Urbino in July 1323, was count of Montefeltro from 1338 and lord of San Marino from 1340 to 1355. In 1359 Cardinal Albornoz deprived him of all possessions. He was married to a Gabrielli who was a daughter of Cantuccio Gabrielli, (* Giubbio), the Guelfe, 1315 Podesta of Orvieto, 1331 Capitano di Guerra of Florence, and Lord of Gubbio and as the son of Petruccio di Gabriello from one of the most powerful families in Gubbio.
- Guido Novello, known as Tigna da Montefeltro, served as captain of the armed forces of Florence in 1341
- Ugolino da Montefeltro (1260-1321), clergyman, provost of the chapter of the Cathedral of San Leo, was deposed by the papal curie in 1283 and imprisoned for a long time with his younger brother Corrado.
- Corrado da Montefeltro († 1318), monk of the Augustinian hermits, later bishop of Urbino 1309 - 1318,
- Bonconte II da Montefeltro (* around 1250, † 1289), was knighted by King Rudolf I , was commander of the troops of Arezzo in 1288, fell in the battle of Campaldino on June 11, 1289. He is by Dante Alighieri in V. Song of the purgatory (purgatory) mentioned.
Later descendants
Count Sighinolfo was the closer progenitor of the House of Montefeltro, as its most famous representative Federico da Montefeltro (* 1422 in Gubbio , † 1482 in Ferrara ), Duke of Urbino (1444–1482), who went down in history with Federico's son Guidobaldo I. since Montefeltro (1472, † 1508), in the male line went out. In the female line, Federico's daughter, Giovanna da Montefeltro (* 1463 in Urbino, † there on November 25, 1513), married to Giovanni della Rovere , duca (Duke) di Sora e Arce († 1501), has offspring not only in Italy and France, but via the d`Avalos and the Gonzaga von Novellara also in Germany (about the descendants of Franz Wilhelm I Graf von Hohenems († 1662)) and in Austria (about the descendants of Otto Friedrich Reichsgraf von Harrach († 1648 ), who was married to Lavinia Maria Thekla Gonzaga Countess of Novellara).
Afterlife
In Dante's Divine Comedy
That Guido da Montefeltro did not fall into oblivion like other of his contemporaries; he owes it primarily to his contemporary, the greatest Italian poet of his time: Dante Alighieri (* May or June 1265 in Florence , † September 14, 1321 in Ravenna ).
As a famous general who, after long struggles and acts of violence, repentantly submitted to two popes and obtained absolution from them and who ended his days as a humble Franciscan, one could expect a place in purgatory for Guido in Dante's Divine Comedy. This was not the case, however, because as a Florentine and staunch Guelph, Dante was a staunch opponent of Guido, against whom he had even fought with gun in hand. The portrayal of Dante's encounter with Guido da Montefeltro in the Divine Comedy in the 27th Canto of the Inferno in verses 1 to 136 in the Guido in the 8th (penultimate) circle of hell - the one reserved for deceitful advisers - is accordingly gloomy burning, blazing flame is described. From the 98th verse he lets Guido himself describe his offense, namely as a conversation with Pope Benedict VIII - whom Dante describes in verse 85 as "Prince of the new Pharisees" - in which Guido reluctantly gives the Pope a promising tactic to regain the sacred Landes' advises "to promise a lot but keep little":
- He asked for my advice; but I was silent
- for I regard his words as drunk.
- Then he says: Do not be afraid in your heart
- I release you in advance, but teach
- Me as I subdue Palestine.
- So I can loosen the sky as bind it
- As you know, that's why two are the keys
- Which my predecessor didn't appreciate. -
- I was sure of the weighty reasons
- Who, as the worst part, kept me silent
- And said: Father, since you are from sin,
- Into which I should fall, so wash myself clean,
- Will promise a lot and keep little
- In the high seat give you triumph.
Also noteworthy is the following description of the struggle for the soul of Guidos after his death, in which the patron saint Guidos - Francis of Assisi - fails because of the sophistic "logic" of the devil, since the impunity promised in advance by the Pope does not come into effect an absolution before repentance cannot be effective .:
- Then when I was dead, came for my sake
- Saint Franz; but a black cherub
- Exclaimed: Leave him alone, do me no wrong!
- He must come down to my servants.
- Because he gave the deceitful advice
- Since which my hand has been holding on to his forehead.
- One can only absolve those who repent
- And sin and repent don't go together
- Because of the contradiction that does not allow it.
- Oh woe to me poor, how terrified I am
- When he grabbed me and called: You thought
- Probably not that I understand logic?
... Verses 124-126:
- Of the; he says, come to the predatory fire! -
- That's why I'm lost where you see me
- And walk miserably in such clothes.
With this, Dante succeeds in simultaneously expressing his aversion to the opposing Ghibelline Guido da Montefeltro and also to Pope Bendikt VIII, by subtly making the Pope responsible for Guido 's damnation through the absolution that is hurried ahead. The "banishment" of the representation of Guido da Montefeltro in the 8th circle of hell - between Odysseus , the cunning hero of Greek mythology and Mohammed (+ 632), the prophet of Islam , who, according to Dante, "sowed discord and division" ( 28th Song of Hell) shows - far reaching - further aversions of Dante: both against ancient and thus pre-Christian hero figures and against Islam, which is seen as a threat - in 1291 with the fall of Acre after 200 years the kingdom of Jerusalem ended - and thus illustrates the religiously determined medieval way of thinking of his time. In the fantastic universe of the Divine Comedy you can also find a number of people from Guido's circle - both his supporters and his opponents - and in particular his youngest son, Bonconte da Montefeltro († 1289) and his niece in law in the fifth song of the Inferno Francesca da Rimini (da Polenta) (* 1259/60; + Castello di Gradara 1295) who was murdered with her lover Paolo Malatesta by her husband, Gianciotto Malatesta.
With Giovanni Villani
Giovanni Villani (* around 1280 in Florence; † there in 1348 at the plague) was an important Italian historian, merchant and politician who, as a Florentine, was a supporter of the opposing Guelphs, but nevertheless found words of appreciation for Guido da Montefeltro: «Guido conte di Montefeltro, savio e sottile d'ingegno di guerra più che niuno che fosse al suo tempo »(For example:" Guido Count of Montefeltro, was more than anyone of his time wise and inventive in the art of war ").
At Benvenuto da Imola
In Benvenuto da Imola (Imola, 1330 - Ferrara, 1388), an Italian writer who was one of the first to comment on Dante's Divine Comedy, Guido of Montefeltro is even placed above the early Roman kings sung about by Virgil.
In family history representations
The self-image of the House of Montefeltro - and with it the later portrayals of the family history - are essentially based on the figure of Guido, who is given wide space there as "Guidi il vecchio" as a warrior and man of the church, as well as on the figure of his son Buonconte and on the most famous representative of the house, Federico da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino.
With Filippo Ugolini
«Il primo guerriero italiano del suo secolo» (1859, I, p. 62): (About: The best Italian general of his century):
With Ferdinand Gregorovius
Even Ferdinand Gregorovius (born January 19, 1821 in Nidzica , Masuria , † May 1, 1891 in Munich ) probably the most important German historians of Italian history, found in his monumental work "The History of Rome in the Middle Ages" words of appreciation for Guido da Montefeltro as Deputy Senator from Rome: "Guido da Montefeltro, Lord of Urbino, like his ancestors the zealous Ghibelline, a man who soon filled Italy with his name and was praised as the greatest general of his time."
literature
- Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri; Guido da Montefeltro; In Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Volume 76 (2012) in: Enciclopedia Treccani: [ http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/guido-da-montefeltro ]
- Giorgio Cerboni Baiardi et al. (Ed.): Federico di Montefeltro. Lo stato, le arti, la cultura. 3 volumes. Bulzoni, Rome 1986.
- Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy, translated by Karl Witte, 2005, Anaconda-Verlag, Cologne, ISBN 3-938484 -11-X
- Gno Franceschini, I Montefeltro; dall 'Oglio, editore, 1970 CL 1-0015-3
- Ferdinand Gregorovius, History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume II, Seventh to Twelfth Book, Second Edition 1988, Verlag CH Beck, ISBN 3.406-07107 4.
- Pompeo Litta, Famiglie celebri d'Italia. Conti di Montefeltro, Duchi di Urbino, Torino, 1835.
- Franco Quartieri, Benvenuto da Imola. Un moderno antico commentatore di Dante, Longo editore, Ravenna 2001, ISBN 88-8063-310-4
- Franz Karl Wissgrill, scene of the rural Lower Austrian nobility from the lords and knighthood from the XI. Century on, up to the present time, fourth B, (1800); Page 164; [2]
Individual evidence
- ↑ Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 76 (2012) in: Enciclopedia Treccani: Guido da Montefeltro ( online )
- ↑ Davide Shama Genealogie delle famiglie nobili Italiane da Montefeltro (file currently not accessible)
- ↑ Davide Shama Sardimpex ( http://www.sardimpex.com/files/Montefeltro around 1184) was Graf.htm (restricted access)
- ↑ Sardimpex Montefeltro p. 2 of 17 Montefeltro .htm
- ↑ Sardimpex. Montefeltro p. 11 of 17 ( online )
- ↑ Sardimpex Montefeltro p. 12 of 17 ( online )
- ↑ a b c Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, page 74; dall 'Oglio, editore; 1970; CL 1-0015-3
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, dall'Oglio, editore 1970, p. 76
- ↑ Genealogy delle Famiglie Nobili Italiani [Sardimpex.com] (restricted access)
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, page 48; dall 'Oglio, editore; 1970; CL 1-0015-3
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, page 51; dall 'Oglio, editore; 1970; CL 1-0015-3
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, page 52, dall 'Oglio, editore; 1970; CL 1-0015-3
- ↑ a b c Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, page 53
- ^ Ferdinand Gregorovius , History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume II, Tenth Book, p. 469
- ↑ a b c d Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 54
- ↑ Treccani, Guido di Montefeltro http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/guido-di-montefeltro_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
- ^ Gregorovius, History of the City of Rome, Volume II., Tenth book, third chapter, page 470
- ^ Gregorovius, History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages, op. Cit. P. 473
- ^ Gregorovius p. 473
- ↑ Gregorovius op. Cit. P. 474
- ↑ Gregorovius op. Cit. P. 476
- ↑ Gregorovius S478
- ^ Gregorovius p. 480
- ↑ A son of Hermann VI. , the titular Margrave of Verona and Baden , who was a contender for Austria through his wife, Gertrud of Austria , daughter of Henry the Cruel of Austria .
- ↑ Gregorovius op. Cit. P. 482
- ↑ Treccani
- ^ Villani, Nuova Chronica VIII. 44, edition 1990/91
- ↑ Enciclopedia Treccani; Guido da Montefeltro
- ↑ Enciclopedia Treccani: Guido di Montefeltro; http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/guido-di-montefeltro_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
- ^ Dante, Divine Comedy Inferno XXVII. Singing verses 43/44
- ^ Karl Witte, translator by Dante Alighieri, Die Götliche Komödie, note on verse 43 of the 27th Canticle of the Inferno, p. 462, Anaconda Verlag, 2005, ISBN 3-938484-11-X
- ^ Treccani Guido di Montefeltro
- ↑ Encyclopedia Treccani, Guido di Montefeltro http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/guido-di-montefeltro_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
- ^ Enciclopedia Treccani
- ↑ a b Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 125
- ↑ a b Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 127
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 129
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 130
- ↑ a b Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 131
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 133
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 1341
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 137
- ↑ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, pp. 138/139
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 145
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 150
- ↑ L. Wadding, Annales Minorum, tvp349
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 155
- ↑ a b Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 156
- ^ Gino Franceschini, I Montefeltro, p. 74
- ↑ Sardimpex Montefeltro p. 2 of 17 MONTEFELTRO.htm
- ^ Treccani Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Gabrielli; http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/bino-gabrielli_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
- ^ Franz Karl Wissgrill, scene of the rural Lower Austrian nobility from the lords and knights of the XI. Century on, up to the present time, fourth B, (1800); Page 164; [1]
- ^ Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy, translated by Karl Witte, page 114 115; 2005, Anaconda-Verlag, Cologne ISBN 3-938484 -11-X
- ↑ Nuova cronica, ed. 1990-91, VIII, 44.
- ^ Franco Quartieri, Benvenuto da Imola. Un moderno antico commentatore di Dante, Longo editore, Ravenna 2001, pp. 221, ISBN 88-8063-310-4 .
- ^ Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri - Guido da Montefeltro - in Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 76 (2012)
- ^ Ferdinand Gregorovius, "History of the City of Rome"; Volume II, tenth book, third chapter, page 471, edited by Walter Kampf, Verlag CH Beck, Munich, 1978, ISBN 3-406-07107-4
Web links
- Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 76 (2012) in: Enciclopedia Treccani: Guido da Montefeltro ( online )
- Charles Cawley Medieval Lands Northern Italy; Montefeltro ( online )
- Charles Cawley Medieval Lands Northern Italy; Conti di Carpegna ( online )
- Charles Cawley Medieval Lands Northern Italy; Malatesta ( online )
- Sardimpex ( online )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Montefeltro, Guido da |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Montefeltro il Vecchio, Guido |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Condottiere in the service of the Hohenstaufen |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1220 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | San Leo |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 29, 1298 |
| Place of death | Ancona |