Senigallia (Roman Sena Gallica) is a small port and bishop's city at the mouth of the Misa, between Fano and Ancona.
In the 1190s its count, Gotebaldo, served Henry VI as marquis of the March (1191-1194) before Markward. In 1198 the city joined Ancona's league against Markward. On 1 January 1200 it is a commune in the pope's camp and Ancona's ally, quarrelsome with its neighbours Fano and Jesi but with no war recorded that winter.
Who holds it
- Title
- The commune of Senigallia (consuls not named)
- Since
- not pinned
- Confidence
- low
The Enciclopedia Italiana (Ancona) names Gotebaldo, count of Senigallia, as marquis of the March for the emperor in 1191-1194. Whether he or an heir still holds comital rights at Senigallia in 1200 is not pinned; the city acted as a commune in the league of 1198.
Lord in 1200
The commune; the counts of Senigallia (Gotebaldo's house) are not pinned for 1200.
Overlord
The pope, as lord of the March since 1198.
Allies and rivals
Allies: Ancona and the league of 1198. Rivals: Fano, Jesi (undated quarrels).
How things stand that morning
A league member under papal overlordship.
Wealth
The port and the river valleys.
Military
Walls and the citizen host.
Threats
- Fano and Jesi pressing on its contado
Communities
Not documented.
Fairs and markets
The Maddalena fair belongs to the thirteenth century; not pinned for 1200.
Militia
Citizen militia; coasting ships.
Walls and castle
Walled town at the river mouth (Manfred's troops will pull down its walls in the 1260s).
Trade and crafts
A small river port; the grain of the Misa and Cesano valleys.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: League membership from the Federiciana (Ancona); Gotebaldo from the Enciclopedia Italiana (Ancona); nothing else specific to 1199-1200.
On the map: A guessed small contado on the lower Misa; Ostra (Montalboddo) and Corinaldo may have been independent castles in 1200.
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
- Ancona, Enciclopedia Federiciana (A. Meriggi, 2005)
- Ancona, Enciclopedia Italiana (1929)
- Senigallia (it.wikipedia)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.