Willa of Tuscany | |
---|---|
Countess of Ivrea | |
Tenure | 930–963 |
Queen consort of Italy | |
Tenure | 950–963 |
Born | 911 or 912 Arles |
Died | 970 Bamberg |
Spouses | Berengar II of Italy |
Issue |
|
House | Boso |
Father | Boso, Margrave of Tuscany |
Mother | Willa of Burgundy |
Religion | Catholic Church |
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.
Willa was the daughter of Boso, Margrave of Tuscany and his wife Willa of Burgundy. [1] Boso was a grandson of Lothair II, King of Lotharingia via his mother, Bertha, and his elder brother Hugh was King of Italy. [2] Willa of Burgundy was the daughter of Rudolph I of Burgundy and sister of Rudolph II of Burgundy. [3]
Around 930 Willa married Berengar II of Italy. [4] The marriage was arranged by Willa's paternal uncle Hugh of Italy. [5] About 940, however, Berengar led an unsuccessful revolt of Italian nobles against Hugh. Afterwards, he fled to the court of King Otto I of Germany. Although she was heavily pregnant, Willa left Italy, too, travelling through the Alps in the winter to rejoin her husband in Germany. [6]
In 950 when Berengar was crowned king of Italy, Willa became his queen consort. [7] Berengar held Willa in high regard and designated her his consors regni (partner in rule). [8]
The contemporary chronicler Liutprand of Cremona, raised at the court at Pavia, wrote about both Berengar and Willa in negative terms. He included several particularly vivid accounts of Willa's character in his Antapodosis, including that she supposedly committed adultery with her chaplain Dominic, "a small priest, puny in height, soot-coloured, rustic, hairy, intractable, rough, shaggy, wild, uncouth, crazy; rebellious, iniquitous, with a tail-like appendage". [9] In order to avoid discovery, Willa apparently cast spells upon her husband. [10] When Berengar held Adelaide of Italy captive in 951 Willa supposedly mistreated her.
When Berengar was fighting against Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor in the early 960s, Willa and her sons, Adalbert of Italy and Guy of Ivrea were frequently by his side. [11] After Otto deposed Berengar, Willa and Berengar were taken as prisoners to Bavaria. [12] After Berengar's death in 966 Willa retired to a nunnery in Bamberg, where she remained for the rest of her life. [13] The date of her death is not known exactly.
With Berengar, Willa had several children, including:
Liutprand, also Liudprand, Liuprand, Lioutio, Liucius, Liuzo, and Lioutsios, was a historian, diplomat, and Bishop of Cremona born in northern Italy, whose works are an important source for the politics of the 10th century Byzantine court.
Arnulf II was Count of Flanders from 965 until his death.
Louis the Blind was the king of Provence from 11 January 887, King of Italy from 12 October 900, and briefly Holy Roman Emperor, as Louis III, between 901 and 905. His father was a Bosonid and his mother was a Carolingian. He was blinded after a failed invasion of Italy in 905.
Henry I, called the Great, was Duke of Burgundy from 965 to his death and Count of Nevers through his first marriage. He is sometimes known as Odo-Henry or Otto-Henry, since his birth name was "Odo" and he only adopted "Henry" on being elected duke of Burgundy.
Hugh, known as Hugh of Arles or Hugh of Provence, was the king of Italy from 926 until his death. He belonged to the Bosonid family. During his reign, he empowered his relatives at the expense of the aristocracy and tried to establish a relationship with the Byzantine Empire. He had success in defending the realm from external enemies, but his domestic habits and policies created many internal foes and he was removed from power before his death.
Berengar I was the king of Italy from 887. He was Holy Roman Emperor between 915 and his death in 924. He is usually known as Berengar of Friuli, since he ruled the March of Friuli from 874 until at least 890, but he had lost control of the region by 896.
Berengar II was the King of Italy from 950 until his deposition in 961. He was a scion of the Anscarid and Unruoching dynasties, and was named after his maternal grandfather, Berengar I. He succeeded his father as Margrave of Ivrea around 923, and after 940 led the aristocratic opposition to kings Hugh and Lothair II. In 950 he succeeded the latter and had his son, Adalbert crowned as his co-ruler. In 952 he recognised the suzerainty of Otto I of Germany, but he later joined a revolt against him. In 960 he invaded the Papal States, and the next year his kingdom was conquered by Otto. Berengar remained at large until his surrender in 964. He died imprisoned in Germany two years later.
Adalbert was the king of Italy from 950 until 961, ruling jointly with his father, Berengar II. After their deposition, Adalbert continued to claim the Italian kingdom until his defeat in battle by the forces of Otto I in 965. Since he was the second Adalbert in his family, the Anscarids, he is sometimes numbered Adalbert II. His name is occasionally, especially in older works, shortened to Albert.
Boso 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.
The March of Ivrea was a large frontier county (march) in the northwest of the medieval Italian kingdom from the late 9th to the early 11th century. Its capital was Ivrea in present-day Piedmont, and it was held by a Burgundian family of margraves called the Anscarids. The march was the primary frontier between Italy and Upper Burgundy and served as a defense against any interference from that state.
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.
Rozala of Italy was countess consort of Flanders by marriage to Arnulf II of Flanders, and queen of the Franks by marriage to Robert II of France. She was regent of Flanders in 987–988 during the minority of her son Baldwin IV of Flanders.
Bertila of Spoleto was the wife of Berengar I of Italy, and by marriage Queen consort of Italy and Holy Roman Empress.
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.
The Battle of Püchen was fought in the summer of 919, between a Hungarian raiding army and the newly elected East Francian/German king Henry the Fowler, and ended with a Hungarian victory. This battle was a part of a long range Magyar raiding campaign, which lasted between the summer of 919 and the late winter or early spring of 920, and took part in countries like East Francia, West Francia, Burgundy and the Kingdom of Italy, resulting in victorious battles against the German king Henry the Fowler and the Burgundian king Rudolf II, while the West Francian and Lotharingian king Charles the Simple had no courage to face them.
Lambert was the archbishop of Milan from his ordination on 5 October 921 until his death. He was related to two prior archbishops: Andrea da Canziano and Garimpert, his father and predecessor, who involved him in the administration of the diocese before 921.
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.
Gisela of Friuli was a medieval Italian noblewoman. She was the daughter of Berengar I of Italy and Bertila of Spoleto. Through her marriage to Adalbert I of Ivrea, Gisela was countess of Ivrea, and mother of Berengar II of 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.