Rieti, on the Via Salaria where the road from Rome climbs toward the Adriatic, is the first papal city north of the kingdom's frontier.
Destroyed by the Normans in 1151 and rebuilt as a commune, it took the pope's side and in 1198 received Innocent III himself. Its plain, drained by the Velino, is rich grain land.
Who holds it
- Name
- Not pinned (consuls or podestà for 1200 not found)
- Title
- The commune of Rieti
- Since
- Free commune from 1171 under papal protection (it.wikipedia)
- Confidence
- medium
it.wikipedia: besieged, starved and destroyed by Roger II of Sicily in 1151; a free commune from 1171, siding with the papacy; on 23 August 1185 Constance of Sicily was handed over at Rieti, 'the first city beyond the kingdom of Sicily's borders', on her way to marry Henry VI; Innocent III resided there in 1198. Gregorovius: Rieti submitted to the pope in summer 1198 with Spoleto, Assisi and the Umbrian towns.
Lord in 1200
The commune, under the pope since summer 1198; the bishop of Rieti (a Church map record).
Overlord
The pope. Rieti is papal, not the kingdom's: the kingdom begins east of the city at the Velino gorge and the Cicolano.
Allies and rivals
The kingdom's barons of the Cicolano and Antrodoco across the frontier (abr); the papal Sabina to the south-west; the duchy towns (Terni, Spoleto) to the north (pat).
How things stand that morning
Papal and self-governing; a frontier city facing the kingdom. No fighting on this frontier is recorded that winter.
Wealth
The Salaria tolls; grain; the Velino mills.
Military
Walls and the city host.
Threats
- The kingdom's barons and German captains across the frontier
Charter
Commune from 1171 (it.wikipedia); papal oath 1198.
Council
Consuls (names not pinned).
Militia
City host; no numbers.
Walls and castle
Walls rebuilt after 1151 (date not pinned); the cathedral under construction from 1109 to 1225.
Trade and crafts
The Via Salaria traffic between Rome and the Adriatic; the grain and flax of the Rieti plain; sheep moving between the Abruzzi mountains and the Roman Campagna.
Places of note
- Rieti: City on the Via Salaria
Where the sources disagree
- The assignment asks whether Rieti is papal or the kingdom's that winter: papal (submitted 1198); the kingdom's border lies just east.
Evidence: Its submission in 1198 and the 1151 destruction are well attested; its officers are not.
On the map: The city's modern commune stands for its near countryside.
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.