Anagni, on its ridge above the Sacco valley, is the pope's favourite summer residence and the political heart of his home province: the Conti's lands lie between it and Segni.
A commune of knights with wide autonomy, it is where the Campagna's barons come to do homage (Giovanni da Ceccano swears there in 1200 or 1201).
Who holds it
- Name
- Not pinned (consuls for 1200 not found)
- Title
- The commune of Anagni
- Since
- Twelfth century
- Confidence
- low
Enciclopedia Italiana: the commune arose in the twelfth century through the city's aristocracy and the popes soon gave it wide autonomy; in the thirteenth century it was torn between the knights (milites) of town and country and the foot (pedites). The peace between Alexander III and Barbarossa's envoys was agreed there (the preliminary treaty of Anagni, 1176; the encyclopedia gives 1177). A frequent papal residence; Innocent III's birthplace in one tradition.
Lord in 1200
The commune under papal lordship; the bishop of Anagni (a Church map record).
Overlord
The pope.
Allies and rivals
The Conti; the Ceccano; neighbours Ferentino and Segni.
How things stand that morning
Self-governing and loyal.
Wealth
Grain and wine of the Sacco valley; the curia's visits.
Military
Walls; knights.
Threats
- Factions of knights and foot
Charter
Wide autonomy granted by the twelfth-century popes (Enciclopedia Italiana).
Council
Consuls (not pinned).
Militia
The knights of the town and its countryside.
Walls and castle
Walls on the ridge; the cathedral of S. Maria rebuilt at the end of the eleventh century.
Trade and crafts
The Via Latina; the papal household's spending.
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.
- 1200 or 1201Giovanni da Ceccano swears fealty to the pope (at Anagni, per it.wikipedia).Depends on: The pope's presence. Stopped by: Ceccano refusal.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: General statements only for the twelfth-century commune.
On the map: The modern commune stands for the city's land.
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.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.