Boso, Margrave of Tuscany

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Boso (Italian : Bosone; died after 940?) was a Burgundian nobleman who spent much of his career in Italy, where he became Margrave of Tuscany about 932. He ruled semi-autonomously and was a benefactor of the churches of his region. He lost his office in 936 and probably returned to Burgundy.

Contents

Years in Provence

Boso was the second son of Count Theobald of Arles and Bertha, illegitimate daughter of King Lothair II. [1] His elder brother Hugh was born in 880/1. [1] His family belonged to the highest ranks of the aristocracy of the Carolingian Empire and were related by marriage to the Carolingian dynasty and the Bosonids, the ruling family of Provence. [1]

After Theobald's death (895), Boso's mother remarried to Adalbert the Rich, then margrave of Tuscany. [1] Boso and Hugh inherited their father's counties. After the Emperor Louis III was blinded by his foes in 905, Hugh assumed the regency in Provence and the county of Arles, while Boso took over the county of Avignon. [1] In 907, Hugh and Boso entered Italy with an army in support of their mother. [lower-alpha 1] In 926, after Hugh had become King of Italy, he appointed Boso regent of Provence. [1] In 931 he brought Boso to Italy at the same time as he made his son, Lothair, co-ruler in order to strengthen his position against the powerful margrave Lambert of Tuscany. [1] Lambert was the reputed son of Adalbert and Bertha and half-brother of Hugh and Boso. According to Liutprand of Cremona, the rumours of the time had it that Bertha, unable to conceive, in order to safeguard her second husband's succession, had feigned pregnancy and presented as her own two sons, Lambert and Guy, who were actually the children of others. [1] [lower-alpha 2]

Early years in Italy

In his earliest documented presence in Italy, Boso is found intervening on behalf of the Patriarchate of Aquileia on 17 October 931. [1] The first document recording his rank of "margrave" (marchio) dates to 1 July 932, when he persuaded the king to make a donation to the church of Saint Martin in Lucca. [1]

According to Liutprand of Cremona, when Hugh forbade Lambert of Tuscany to call himself a half-brother of the king, the margrave challenged Hugh to a judicial duel, which he won. In order to obtain the march of Tuscany for himself, Boso convinced Hugh to arrest Lambert; who was subsequently blinded in prison. [1] A more likely explanation than Liutprand's is that Lambert refused give up his quasi-independence and as a result Tuscany was taken from him. [1] [2]

Margrave of Tuscany

Few notices from Boso's rule in Tuscany have survived. Most deal with his interventions with the king on behalf of the churches of Lucca and Arezzo. [1] The last reference to Boso as margrave of Tuscany comes from 17 September 936, when he sent representatives to oversee an exchange of property by the diocese of Lucca. [1] Later that year, Hugh removed his brother from the march and placed his own illegitimate son, Hubert, there instead. [1] [2]

Liutprand claims that Boso was arrested on suspicion of plotting against the king at the instigation of his wife, Willa of Burgundy. [3] [lower-alpha 3] Another possible explanation is that he continued to act as autonomously as Lambert had and Hugh removed him in favour of a more pliant margrave. [1] [2] Boso had married his daughter Willa, named for her mother, to Berengar of Ivrea, one of the most powerful margraves in the kingdom. This aristocratic axis may have seemed like a threat to Hugh, precipitating Boso's downfall. [1] [4]

Later years

In 940 a certain "illustrious count Boso" (inclitus comes Boso) made a donation to the monastery of Saint-Barnard-de-Romans. This is probably the same person as the margrave of Tuscany, since the monastery is known to have been patronised by Hugh and there were family possessions in the region. [1] By his wife, Willa, perhaps a daughter of Rudolph I of Upper Burgundy, Boso left behind four daughters: Richilda, Gisla, Willa and Bertha. This last married first Boso, son of Duke Richard of Burgundy, and second Raymond, the duke of Aquitaine. [1] It was to her that Hugh bequeathed his huge personal wealth and his Provençal possessions. [1] [5]

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Adalbert II, called the Rich, son of Adalbert I, Margrave of Tuscany and Rothild of Spoleto. He was a grandson of Boniface II, and was concerned with the troubles of Lombardy, at a time when so many princes were contending for the wreckage of the Carolingian Empire. Before his father died in 884 or 886, he is accredited the title of "count". He inherited from his father the titles of Count and Duke of Lucca and Margrave of Tuscany.

Guy was the son of Adalbert II of Tuscany with Bertha, daughter of Lothair II of Lotharingia.

Lambert was the second son of Adalbert II of Tuscany and Bertha, daughter of Lothair II of Lotharingia. He succeeded his elder brother, Guy, as count and duke of Lucca and margrave of Tuscany on his death in 938 or 939 without heirs.

Hubert was the illegitimate son of King Hugh of Italy and his concubine Wandelmoda. He became Margrave of Tuscany in 936 and Duke of Spoleto and Margrave of Camerino in 943.

Adalbert I was the margrave of Ivrea, the second of the Anscarid dynasty, from the late 890s until his death. In the intermittent civil war which affected Italy from 888 into the 930s, Adalbert initially strove to remain neutral, but from 901 on he sided sequentially with every claimant to the Italian throne.

Bertha was countess of Arles by marriage to Theobald of Arles, and margravine of Tuscany by marriage to Adalbert II of Tuscany. She served as regent of Lucca and Tuscany from 915 until 916 during the minority of her son Guy of Tuscany. She was described as beautiful, spirited, and courageous, and her influence over her spouse was, coupled with ambition, attributed to have involved her husbands in many wars.

The Bosonids were a dynasty of Carolingian era dukes, counts, bishops and knights descended from Boso the Elder. Eventually they married into the Carolingian dynasty and produced kings and an emperor of the Frankish Empire.

Willa, known as Willa of Tuscany (911/912–970), was a medieval noblewoman. By birth, she was a member of the Bosonid noble dynasty. By marriage to Berengar II of Italy she was Countess of Ivrea from 930 to 963, and queen consort of Italy from 950 to 963.

Anscar was a magnate in the Kingdom of Italy who served as Count of Pavia, Margrave of Ivrea (929–36) and Duke of Spoleto (936–40). He is sometimes numbered "Anscar II" to distinguish him from his grandfather, Anscar I of Ivrea. Described by Liutprand of Cremona as courageous and impulsive, he died in the battle of Spoleto.

Waldrada was the mistress, and later the wife, of Lothair II of Lotharingia.

Ermengarde of Tuscany was a medieval Italian noblewoman. She was the daughter of Bertha of Lotharingia and Adalbert II, Margrave of Tuscany. She was countess of Ivrea through marriage to Adalbert I of Ivrea. Alongside her half-brother Hugh of Italy Ermengarde was an important opponent of Rudolf II of Burgundy’s rule in Italy.

Willa of Burgundy was a member of the Elder House of Welf. By birth she was a daughter of Rudolph I of Burgundy, king of Upper Burgundy. Through marriage Boso Willa became countess of Avignon and Arles, and then margravine of Tuscany.

Willa of Spoleto was the daughter of Boniface I, duke of Spoleto. Through marriage to Hubert, Duke of Spoleto Willa became duchess of Spoleto and margravine of Tuscany.

References

Notes
  1. ↑ This campaign has been dated to as late as between 917 and 923.
  2. ↑ Hugh does not seem to have questioned the legitimacy of Guy's birth when he married Guy's widow, Marozia.
  3. ↑ Liutprand adds that Willa was exiled to Burgundy as a punishment.
Citations
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Keller 1971.
  2. 1 2 3 Wickham 1981, p. 178.
  3. ↑ Bouchard 1988, p. 419, accepts Liutprand's account..
  4. ↑ Bouchard 1988, p. 419, suggests that "ill feeling between the brothers was doubtless linked" to this marital alliance..
  5. ↑ Previté-Orton 1917, p. 347.
Sources
Preceded by Margrave of Tuscany
931–936		Succeeded by
Preceded by
 Count of Arles
934–936		Succeeded by
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