The north-eastern kingdom of Sardinia, from the granite of the Gallura and the Coghinas to the Posada, the Orosei gulf and the Bitti uplands, ruled from Civita, the port that later became Terranova and is now Olbia, closest of all Sardinian harbours to Pisa.
Its judge Barisone II reigned from about 1170. Before he died he commended his kingdom and his daughter to the pope. When he died the girl Elena, about ten years old, was the heir, and William of Massa seized her and her mother and pledged her to the marquis William Malaspina, his brother-in-law, who was to marry her when she came of age and meanwhile governed Gallura.
The date of Barisone's death is the open question: the DBI places all this before Innocent III's letter of early 1200, so in 1199; the standard lists put it in 1202 or 1203.
Who rules
- Name
- Not pinned. By the DBI's chronology, Barisone II (de Lacon-Gunale) is dead and the heir is his only daughter Elena, a child of about ten, held with her widowed mother by William of Massa, who has promised her to his brother-in-law William Malaspina; by the common lists Barisone II lives on until 1202 or 1203
- Title
- Judge (giudice) of Gallura
- Since
- Barisone II: about 1170-1173. Elena: on her father's death (1199 by the DBI's chronology; 1203 by the lists).
- Born
- Elena about 1190 at Civita (Olbia)
- Family
- The Lacon-Gunale judges of Gallura; Barisone II was son of Judge Constantine III
- Confidence
- low
DBI life of William of Massa puts Barisone's death and William's seizure of the widow and the girl before Innocent III's letter of early 1200; English and Italian Wikipedia give 1202 or 1203 without discussion.
Overlord
The pope, by Barisone's commendation and the general papal claim to Sardinia; the archbishop of Pisa as primate of its sees.
What the realm holds
- About ten to thirteen districts (curatorie) by later lists: Civita or Fundimonte, Taras, Montangia, Unali, Balariana, Canahim, Gemini (Tempio), Orfili, Posada, Bitti and Orosei-Galtellì
- Civita (Olbia), the capital and port, with the judges' palace and San Simplicio
- The castles of Balaiana and Baldu near Luogosanto (Balaiana disputed in 1130)
- The islands of the Maddalena archipelago and Tavolara
Allies and rivals
The pope (protector of Elena); William of Massa and William Malaspina (her captor and her intended husband); later suitors from Genoa, Rome and Pisa.
The realm that morning
Not pinned. Ruling suggested for the campaign: follow the DBI, which dates the matter by Innocent III's letter: Barisone II died in 1199; on 1 January 1200 his widow and his daughter Elena are William of Massa's prisoners, Elena is pledged to William Malaspina, and Malaspina governs Gallura from Civita for William. Alternative: keep Barisone II alive until 1202 or 1203, as the standard lists do, in which case Gallura is an independent kingdom at peace that morning.
Either way the ground is Gallura's.
Wealth
Livestock, cork-oak and wood, hides, the port trade of Civita with Pisa.
Military
Not recorded for the 1190s.
Threats
- William of Massa's control of the heir
- A forced marriage for Elena
- Genoese and Pisan suitors
Consort
Barisone's wife (Elena's mother) is named Odolina de Lacon (it.wikipedia, and in English Wikipedia's text) or Elena de Lacon (English Wikipedia's tables). She is a widow on 1 January 1200 if the DBI is right.
Heirs and children
Elena, about ten, the only heir. English Wikipedia's table also lists a son Barisone, not described; not followed.
Officers and household
The crown council and the curators of about ten to thirteen districts; the bishops of Civita and Galtellì (Church map records, suffragans of Pisa since 1138). Under the DBI's chronology, William Malaspina administers the kingdom for William of Massa (removed in summer 1203).
Castles and towns
Civita; the bishop's seat of Galtellì; Posada and Orosei; the castles of Balaiana and Baldu. The castles of Pedres (Olbia) and the Fava (Posada) are not pinned for 1200.
Islands
The Maddalena archipelago (La Maddalena, Caprera, Santo Stefano, Spargi, Budelli, Razzoli, Santa Maria) facing Bonifacio across the strait, and Tavolara and Molara off Civita: Gallura's, with little or no settled population in 1200 [inference].
Ports
Civita (Olbia), rebuilt as a harbour from the later twelfth century; Orosei; Posada; the coves of the Maddalena strait.
Mints salt tolls
No mint; port dues at Civita.
Treaties in force
- Barisone II's commendation of his kingdom and daughter to the pope (English Wikipedia; undated)
- The bishops' subjection to Pisa (1138)
Wars and feuds
No fighting recorded; if the DBI is right, the kingdom is under William of Massa's control through the captive heir.
Side
Pisan by tradition (its sees are Pisa's suffragans); in William of Massa's hands under the DBI's chronology; the pope claims to protect it.
Coinage
Pisan pennies [fair].
Host and fleet
District levies; no fleet recorded.
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.
- Early 1200Innocent III's letter to William of Massa condemns the seizure of the Gallurese heir (DBI).Depends on: The DBI chronology (Barisone dead by then). Stopped by: If Barisone is alive, nothing happens in Gallura this year.
- Beyond 1200: 1203William takes the administration of Gallura from William Malaspina (letter of 15 September 1203); the pope puts Elena under his protection and charges Archbishop Biagio of Torres with her marriage.
- Beyond 1200: 1206-1207The pope offers Elena his cousin Trasimondo (May 1206); she marries instead the Pisan Lamberto Visconti, who becomes judge of Gallura (1207); both are excommunicated.
Where the sources disagree
- Barisone II's death: before Innocent III's letter of early 1200 (DBI life of William of Massa) against 1202 or 1203 (English and Italian Wikipedia). This changes who rules Gallura on 1 January 1200.
- Elena's mother: Odolina or Elena de Lacon.
- English Wikipedia (Judicate of Gallura) gives Elena's reign as 1200-1225 in its table and 1203 in its text.
Evidence: The succession is known from Innocent III's letters of 1203-1206 and one letter of early 1200 whose date the DBI infers; Gallura's own records for these years are lost.
On the map: District lines from later lists; Bitti, Orune and Dorgali are placed with Gallura on that authority.
Primary sources for this realm
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 Genoa, by Caffaro and his continuators, with Ogerio Pane for 1197 to 1219, Ogerio Pane and the other official annalists of Genoa (year by year under the commune's authority; the 1197 to 1219 section by Ogerio Pane). The official record of the commune. Read online
- Annals of Pisa, by Bernardo Maragone, with continuation, Bernardo Maragone (1160s to 1175, continued to 1192). Pisa's official annals stop in 1175 and their continuation in 1192, so there is no Pisan narrative for 1200 itself. Read online
- The register of San Pietro di Silki (11th to 13th centuries). A monastic register of lands, serfs, gifts and lawsuits in the giudicato of Torres (Logudoro), written in the vernacular.
Sources and studies
- Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani: GUGLIELMO di Massa (Salusio IV), giudice di Cagliari
- Elena of Gallura (en.wikipedia)
- Barisone II of Gallura (en.wikipedia)
- Giudicato di Gallura (it.wikipedia)
- Elena di Gallura (it.wikipedia)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.