Avellino is the chief town of the upper Sabato valley, on the road from Naples and Salerno into the Irpinia and Apulia, with a castle where Henry VI once stayed.
In 1199, on his way to Apulia, Markward besieged it and came to terms with its people, then withdrew (Richard of San Germano). On 1 January 1200 the town is not in German hands; who held the county is not pinned. Montevergine's barony of Mercogliano lies just above it.
Who he is
- Name
- Not pinned for the winter of 1199-1200
- Title
- Count of Avellino
- Since
- Not pinned
- Born
- Not pinned
- Family
- The county passed from the dell'Aquila (Count Roger of Aquila fled in 1161) to the Parisio and later to the Sanseverino (it.wikipedia). Pagano di Parisio styles himself 'count of Butera and Avellino' in January 1208; he had married Margaret, daughter of Bartholomew de Lucy, by March 1195 (MedLands). Whether he was count in 1200 is not pinned. The DBI says one of Diepold's daughters married a Count James (Giacomo) of Avellino, at a date not given.
- Confidence
- low
MedLands; it.wikipedia on Avellino; Richard of San Germano for 1199.
Overlord
The king.
What it holds
- Avellino, town and castle
- The villages of the upper Sabato valley [not pinned]
Allies and rivals
Montevergine above it (the abbot is baron of Mercogliano since 1195); Diepold's Nusco to the east; Benevento to the north.
How things stand that morning
Held by its count or its people, not by the Germans, after the 1199 agreement with Markward [the holder not pinned].
Wealth
The road junction of the Irpinia; the Sabato valley's grain, chestnuts and wine.
Military
The castle of Avellino, which Markward could not take by force in 1199.
Threats
- Diepold's party at Nusco and Salerno
- the German army's road between Campania and Apulia
Places of note
- Castle of Avellino: Town castle
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Only the 1199 siege is dated; the count that winter is not named in the sources seen.
On the map: The county's extent in 1200 is not documented; the near country of the town is drawn.
Primary sources for Sicily
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Annals of Montecassino; Annals of Ceccano (Fossanova) (12th and early 13th centuries; Ceccano to 1217). Two sets of annals from either side of the papal and Sicilian frontier. Read online
- Chronicle of Richard of San Germano, Richard of San Germano (first version about 1216, enlarged to 1243). The fullest southern narrative of the Hohenstaufen kingdom, written by a notary on the border of the Terra di Lavoro. Read online
- Annals of Genoa, by Caffaro and his continuators, with Ogerio Pane for 1197 to 1219, Ogerio Pane and the other official annalists of Genoa (year by year under the commune's authority; the 1197 to 1219 section by Ogerio Pane). The official record of the commune. Read online
- Chronicle of Burchard of Ursberg, Burchard of Ursberg (about 1229 to 1230, reworked by Conrad of Lichtenau). Written a generation later by a fierce partisan of the Staufen and a critic of Innocent III. Read online
- Chronicle of Otto of St Blasien, Otto of St Blasien (about 1209 to 1210). A Swabian continuation of Otto of Freising written from the Staufen side. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle of Sicard, bishop of Cremona, Sicard of Cremona (about 1210 to 1213). A universal chronicle whose last part is a well-placed eyewitness account by a Lombard bishop who served emperors and popes. Read online
- The Deeds of Innocent III, Anonymous (a curial official, perhaps Peter of Benevento) (about 1208 to 1209). The curia's own account of the pontificate's first decade, with letters copied in. Read online
7 more in the sources library for Southern Italy and the Islands.
Sources and studies
- Richard of San Germano, Chronicle, trans. G.A. Loud (University of Leeds, PDF; covers to 1199)
- Medieval Lands: Neapolitan nobility (fmg.ac)
- Avellino (it.wikipedia)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.