The family that holds the archbishop of Milan's office of viscount, hereditary in their male line since before 1070.
They are the archbishop's vassals at Massino on the heights above Lake Maggiore from the twelfth century, and documents of 1157 show them holding the captaincy (capitanato) of Marliano, now Mariano Comense, in the Brianza. They serve the commune as consuls of justice (Nazario in 1185, 1190 and 1192). Their lordship over Milan is more than half a century away.
Who he is
- Name
- Not pinned: several branches. Nazario Visconti was a consul of justice of Milan in 1185, 1190 and 1192; Rogelio and Arnoldo Visconti appear in 1184; Uberto, ancestor of the later lords of Milan and father of Archbishop Ottone (invested 1262), belongs to the generation active in the early thirteenth century
- Title
- Hereditary viscounts (vicecomites) of the archbishop of Milan; capitanei
- Since
- The office of viscount was theirs before 1070 and hereditary in the male line
- Confidence
- low
Wikipedia (it), Visconti.
Overlord
The archbishop of Milan.
What it holds
- The office of viscount of the archbishop
- The captaincy of Marliano (Mariano Comense), documented in 1157
- Massino above Lake Maggiore, as the archbishop's vassals (on the Novara side of the lake)
- Other fiefs of the archbishop (caput plebis) not pinned
How it was acquired
Office before 1070; fiefs from the archbishops (Landolfo's grants of caput plebis fiefs to their ancestors, per Wikipedia).
Allies and rivals
Archbishop's men within the commune's noble class (capitanei).
How things stand that morning
Several Visconti are active in the commune's offices; which member heads the family in 1200 is not pinned.
Wealth
Fiefs, tithes and the dues of the viscount's office.
Military
Knights of the capitanei class. No figures.
Threats
- The strife between nobles and people in Milan (1198, 1201)
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Dated offices in 1184-1192 and 1208-1209; no act of 1199-1200 found.
On the map: Two documented holdings only; the family's many lesser fiefs are not drawn.
Primary sources for Milan
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.
- 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 Lombard city annals of Piacenza, Milan, Cremona, Parma, Mantua and Verona (kept in the 12th and 13th centuries). The communes' own year lists. Read online
- The Registers of Pope Innocent III for 1199 to 1201, Innocent III and the papal chancery (22 February 1199 to 21 February 1201). The pope's outgoing letters for the year, in his chancery's own copy, touching nearly every realm in the atlas. Read online
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.