Great Company (German)

Last updated

The Great Company was a group of mercenaries, chiefly of German origin but operating in the Italian peninsula, who flourished in the mid-14th century. At its height, the company numbered approximately 10,000-12,000 men, chiefly armored cavalry. The Great Company's power set the pattern for later condottieri who came to dominate Renaissance Italian warfare.[ citation needed ]

Contents

History

1340s

The company was founded in 1342 by Werner von Urslingen, whose reputed motto was "Enemy of God, Enemy of Piety, Enemy of Pity", with some writers even reporting the phrase inscribed on his breastplate. [1] Urslingen was inspired by Lodrisio Visconti's Compagnia di San Giorgio, under which he had fought in the battle of Parabiago. Commanders included his brother Reinhardt, Ettore da Panigo, Konrad von Landau and Francesco degli Ordelaffi. The strength of the company at this point was recorded as 3,000 men-at-arms. In autumn 1342, the company was dissolved and Urslingen and many of his German followers returned home. [2]

In 1347 Urslingen was hired by King Louis I of Hungary in his war with Queen Joanna of Naples. Here he was reunited with his old comrade Konrad von Landau and served for the first time with the Provençal knight, Montreal d'Albarno, known as Fra' Moriale. The Company won a major victory at the Battle of Meleto in 1349. The company then split again, with Urslingen and Landau operating in central Italy while Fra Moriale stayed in Naples. [3]

1350s

In 1351 Urslingen retired to Germany and Landau and Fra' Moriale reunited, the latter taking command of the company, which now added Italians, Provençals and Hungarians to the previous mainly German majority of mercenaries. The major area of operation was once more central Italy. In 1353–54, the company's strength was estimated at 10,000 fighting men and 20,000 camp followers. In 1354, Fra' Moriale was arrested and executed in Rome and Konrad von Landau became commander-in-chief. The company signed on with the Venetian League in 1358 and the following year with Siena, during which time it suffered not only an ambush in the mountains at Le Scalelle on the way to Siena but a serious setback at the hands of Florence when they had to ransom their commander.

In 1359 the company had again reached a substantial strength, amounting to some 20,000 men; it subsequently fought in battles against Rimini, Fabriano, Camerino, the Papal States and Florence. In June 1359 it was crushed by the Florentine army under Pandolfo II Malatesta at the Battle of Campo delle Mosche. [4]

1360s

In 1363, hired by the Visconti of Milan, it fought against Albert Sterz's White Company, which the Great Company had defeated the previous year and which had been hired by the Marquis of Montferrat. In April, after three months of clashes, the Great Company was decisively defeated at the Battle of Canturino and Konrad von Landau himself was killed. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Condottiero</span> Mercenary soldier leader in medieval Italy

Condottieri were Italian captains in command of mercenary companies during the Middle Ages and of multinational armies during the early modern period. They notably served popes and other European monarchs during the Italian Wars of the Renaissance and the European Wars of Religion. Notable condottieri include Prospero Colonna, Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, Cesare Borgia, the Marquis of Pescara, Andrea Doria, and the Duke of Parma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hessian (soldier)</span> German soldiers contracted by the British in the American Revolutionary War

Hessians were German soldiers who served as auxiliaries to the British Army during the American Revolutionary War. The term is an American synecdoche for all Germans who fought on the British side, since 65% came from the German states of Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau. Known for their discipline and martial prowess, around 30,000 Germans fought for the British during the war, around 25% of British land forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Hawkwood</span> 14th-century English soldier and condottiero

Sir John Hawkwood was an English soldier who served as a mercenary leader or condottiero in Italy. As his name was difficult to pronounce for non-English-speaking contemporaries, there are many variations of it in the historical record. He often referred to himself as Haukevvod and in Italy he was known as Giovanni Acuto, literally meaning "John Sharp" in reference to his "cleverness or cunning". His name was Latinised as Johannes Acutus. Other recorded forms are Aucgunctur, Haughd, Hauvod, Hankelvode, Augudh, Auchevud, Haukwode and Haucod. His exploits made him a man shrouded in myth in both England and Italy. Much of his enduring fame results from the surviving large and prominent fresco portrait of him in the Duomo, Florence, made in 1436 by Paolo Uccello, seen every year by 4½ million tourists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Werner von Urslingen</span>

Werner von Urslingen was a mercenary of German-speaking origins in the Holy Roman Empire. He is also known as Werner of Urslingen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Wars of 1499–1504</span> Second phase of the Italian Wars (1499–1504)

The Italian Wars of 1499-1504 are divided into two connected, but distinct phases: the Second Italian War (1499–1501), sometimes known as Louis XII's Italian War, and the Third Italian War (1502-1504) or War over Naples. The first phase was fought for control of the Duchy of Milan by an alliance of Louis XII of France and the Republic of Venice against Ludovico Sforza, the second between Louis and Ferdinand II of Aragon for possession of the Kingdom of Naples.

Malatesta II Malatesta, best known as Guastafamiglia was an Italian condottiero and lord of Rimini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Parabiago</span> 1339 battle in Italy

The Battle of Parabiago was fought in February 1339 near Parabiago, in Lombardy, northern Italy, between the Milanese army and the St. George's Mercenaries of Lodrisio Visconti. A renowned condottiero, the latter was an exiled member of the Visconti family then in power in Milan with a kind of triumvirate formed by Azzone and his uncles, Luchino and Archbishop Giovanni Visconti. Aiming to return victoriously to his city, he hired some 2,500 knights, mainly from Germany, and 1,000 Swiss infantry which had fought in the unsuccessful war of Mastino II della Scala for the hegemony in northern Italy. These units were led by Werner von Urslingen and Konrad von Landau.

Lodrisio Visconti was an Italian condottiero.

Galeotto I Malatesta (1299–1385) was an Italian condottiero, who was lord of Rimini, Fano, Ascoli Piceno, Cesena and Fossombrone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neapolitan campaigns of Louis the Great</span>

The Neapolitan campaigns of Louis the Great, also called the Neapolitan Adventure, was a war between the Kingdom of Hungary, led by Louis the Great, and the Kingdom of Naples. It was fought from 1347 until 1352.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Free company</span> Late medieval army of independent mercenaries

A free company was an army of mercenaries between the 12th and 14th centuries recruited by private employers during wars. They acted independently of any government, and were thus "free". They regularly made a living by plunder when they were not employed; in France they were called routiers and écorcheurs and operated outside the highly structured law of arms. The term "free company" is most often applied to those companies of soldiers which formed after the Peace of Brétigny during the Hundred Years' War and were active mainly in France, but it has been applied to other companies, such as the Catalan Company and companies that operated elsewhere, such as in Italy and the Holy Roman Empire.

The Battle of Canturino was a clash of two condottiere companies, the long-established Great Company under Konrad von Landau and the newer White Company under Albert Sterz and John Hawkwood near Novara, north-west of Milan.

Montréal de Albarno, also known as Fra Moriale was a Provençal mercenary and condottiero.

The Compagnia di San Giorgio was the name of several companies of mercenaries in Italy during the 14th century.

Konrad Wirtinger von Landau, known in Italy as Conte Lando, was a German military adventurer and condottiero who was active in north and central Italy.

Albert Sterz was a German noble who was a leader of mercenary Free companies, primarily operating in Italy.

The Battle of Campo delle Mosche took place on 23 July 1359 in the district of Pontedera in the state of Pisa, Italy between the forces of Florence and those of the mercenary Great Company. It resulted in a victory for the Florentine forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paolo Savelli</span>

Paolo Savelli was an Italian condottiero who served under Alberico da Barbiano in the Papal States and the Kingdom of Naples, before entering the service of the Duchy of Milan in its wars with Florence. He finally served the Republic of Venice as its commander-in-chief during the War of Padua, dying of the plague during the final siege of Padua.

Rinaldo Giver, better known as Malerba, died 1345, was a German condottiero.

References

  1. For example, see Nolan, Cathal J (2006). The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650, Volume 1: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 166. ISBN   9780313330452.
  2. Mallet, Michael: Mercenaries and their Masters, Bodley Head, London, 1974 ISBN   0370105028 pp31-2
  3. Mallett (1974), pp32-33
  4. Mallett (1974), pp33-6
  5. Caferro, William (2006). John Hawkwood: An English Mercenary in Fourteenth Century Italy. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press. pp. 59–60. ISBN   0-8018-8323-7.

Further reading