Poli

Who he is

Name

Oddone (Ottone) of Poli

Title

Lord of Poli and its castles on the edge of the Sabina and the Prenestine hills

Since

Not pinned (the family held Poli from 1157)

Born

Not pinned

Family

The Oddoni, lords of Poli since 1157 (it.wikipedia, Poli)

Confidence

medium

it.wikipedia (Poli): Poli passed to the abbey of San Paolo fuori le mura in 1081; the Oddoni held it from 1157; Guadagnolo was a possession of 'Oddone III'. Gregorovius and the DBI on Riccardo Conti: the lord of Poli, deep in debt, pledged his fiefs to Riccardo Conti early in 1203; he then tried to take them back, his kin roused the Romans, and the 'nine Poli castles' passed to the Conti. it.wikipedia dates the Conti takeover to 1200, the DBI to 1203.

Overlord

The pope.

What it holds

• Poli
• Guadagnolo
• Other castles of the lordship (Gregorovius counts nine Poli castles in 1203; names not pinned here)

How it was acquired

From 1157.

Allies and rivals

The Orsini later back him against Riccardo Conti; his kin rouse the Romans in 1203.

How things stand that morning

Holds Poli and its castles, in debt.

Wealth

Hill pastures and woods; the road from Tivoli to Palestrina.

Military

Castle knights; no numbers.

Threats

• Debt
• Riccardo Conti

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

1. Early 1203 (DBI; 1200 in it.wikipedia)Oddone pledges Poli and its castles to Riccardo Conti; his attempt to recover them leads to the Roman rising of 1203.Depends on: His debts. Stopped by: A rich ally paying his debts.

Places of note

• Poli: The family's castle
• Guadagnolo: Mountain castle of the lordship

Where the sources disagree

• it.wikipedia (Poli) dates the Conti takeover to 1200; the DBI on Riccardo Conti to early 1203, with investiture before October 1204.

Evidence: The holder's name comes from the 1203 affair; his lordship in 1200 is inferred from the family's tenure from 1157.

On the map: The nine castles are not named in the sources checked; the block is a rough guess around Poli and Guadagnolo.

Primary sources for Papal State

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
• Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
• Chronicle of Andres, William of Andres (about 1220 to 1234). The chronicle and cartulary of a small abbey between Guines and Ardres, near the border of Flanders and Boulogne. 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 Robert of Auxerre, Robert of Auxerre (Robert of Saint-Marien) (about 1190 to 1211; continued at Saint-Marien to 1227). A universal chronicle whose last twenty years are contemporary and well informed from Burgundy and the Auxerrois. 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

12 more in the sources library for Southern Italy and the Islands.