San Severino is a commune of the Potenza valley that rose above the ruins of Roman Septempeda, with its walled castle on Monte Nero.
A commune since about 1170 and imperial in sympathy, it is buying and taking the castles round it. According to the Italian Wikipedia history of Matelica it joined the league that destroyed Matelica in 1199 [thin]. On 1 January 1200 it is a self-governing town under papal overlordship.
Who holds it
- Title
- The commune of San Severino
- Since
- about 1170 (commune)
- Confidence
- low
Italian Wikipedia: a free commune about 1170, consistently Ghibelline; it grew to its full extent in the thirteenth century by war and by buying castles. No officer is named for 1200.
Lord in 1200
The commune (the Smeducci lordship is fourteenth-century).
Overlord
The pope.
Allies and rivals
League of 1199 with Camerino and others [thin]; rival Matelica (later its ally).
How things stand that morning
Self-governing under papal overlordship.
Wealth
The Potenza valley.
Military
Walls and the castle.
Communities
Not documented.
Militia
Citizen militia.
Walls and castle
The castle (Castello) on Monte Nero above the valley town.
Trade and crafts
The Potenza valley road between the coast and Camerino.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Italian Wikipedia only.
On the map: A guessed near 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.