The Malaspina marquises

Who rules

Name

Alberto Malaspina (Alberto Moro, the troubadour), acting with his nephews Guglielmo (son of Moroello) and Corrado (son of Obizzo the younger, called Obizzone)

Title

Marquis (marchio) Malaspina: the senior of an undivided house holding its fiefs in common

Since

the death of his brother Obizzone in 1193 left Alberto and Moroello at the head of the house; from 1197 Alberto acts with his nephews, so Moroello was probably dead by then [not pinned]

Born

about 1160-1165

Family

Malaspina, a line of the Obertenghi marquises; son of Obizzo Malaspina the Great (died 1185 or 1186)

Confidence

medium

The DBI life of Alberto Malaspina dates Obizzone's death to 1193, the imperial ban of 1194 on Alberto and Moroello, and the joint acts of Alberto and his nephews in 1197, 1199, 1200 and 1202. The Italian Wikipedia gives Corrado's birth as about 1180 and says his uncles managed his affairs until he was 18. Alberto's death falls between 1206 and 1212.

Overlord

The emperor: Frederick I confirmed the family's fiefs and made Obizzo an imperial vassal in 1164; the house also holds fiefs of the bishop of Tortona (half of Mongiardino since 1197), of the abbey of Bobbio (Carana, 1187), of Piacenza (Grondola, 1195), and is the vassal of Genoa (renewed 1199).

What the realm holds

• The Staffora valley and the hills above Voghera: Oramala (the family castle, where the peace with Piacenza was ratified in 1189), Varzi, Godiasco, Pregola, Santa Margherita [individual castles not pinned for 1200]
• The upper Trebbia valley: Ottone, Gorreto, Fontanigorda, Rovegno, Montebruno, Zerba, Cerignale [held with or of the county of Bobbio; not pinned castle by castle]
• The Val Borbera: Cabella, Carrega, Rocchetta, Cantalupo, Albera; half of Mongiardino held of the bishop of Tortona since 1197; tolls on the Borbera road (a share ceded to a Doria in 1202)
• The Aveto valley: Santo Stefano d'Aveto and Rezzoaglio [not pinned for 1200]
• The Lunigiana: the middle Magra valley with Mulazzo, Villafranca, Filattiera, Bagnone, Malgrate, Lusuolo, Tresana, Podenzana, Olivola, Licciana and Comano [castle by castle not pinned]; the lands acquired from the Este in the Lunigiana, claimed in part by the bishop of Luni
• Fiefs held of others: the castle of Carana in the Trebbia (of the abbey of Bobbio, 1187); the hill of Grondola (sold to Piacenza and held back as Piacenza's fief, 1195)
• Claims lost or yielded: the Taro and Ena valley lands (ceded to Piacenza 1194), half of Mongiardino (to Tortona 1197), Lerici (to Genoa 1174), the Riviera di Levante and Levanto (Genoa and the Fieschi), Voltaggio (given up in the wars with Genoa late in the 12th century)

How it was acquired

The Malaspina descend from the Obertenghi, marquises of eastern Liguria and the Apennines in the 10th and 11th centuries; Alberto (died 1140) was the first to call himself Malaspina. Frederick I confirmed Obizzo the Great's fiefs in 1164 (parts of Liguria, the Lunigiana, the Garfagnana, the Trebbia and the Staffora). Obizzo changed sides between the emperor and the Lombard League and the Peace of Constance (1183) confirmed his possessions.

Allies and rivals

Allies: Piacenza (treaties of 1187, 1189 and 1195, vassals for Grondola, alliance against Parma; renewed in 1200), Milan (alliance renewed in 1200), Tortona (Alberto led its army in 1198; vassals of its bishop for half of Mongiardino), Genoa (vassalage renewed 1199). Rivals: the bishop of Luni (war over the Lunigiana counties until 1202), Parma and Pavia (against whom the alliances of 1200 are made), the commune of Pontremoli (disputes submitted to Piacenza's judgment in 1200), the lords of Vezzano and the smaller Lunigiana castellans. Kin: Alberto's wife was a daughter of William V of Montferrat, so Boniface of Montferrat is his brother-in-law.

The realm that morning

On the morning of 1 January 1200 the house holds its Apennine valleys and the middle Lunigiana in common under Alberto and his nephews. It is at peace with Genoa (vassalage renewed in 1199), bound to Piacenza, and still at odds with the bishop of Luni and with Pontremoli. Corrado, about 20, has come of age; Guglielmo acts with them. No division of the lands has been made: the split into the Spino Secco and Spino Fiorito lines comes only in 1221.

Wealth

Tolls on the roads from the Po plain to the coast and to Tuscany: the Staffora, the Trebbia and the Borbera roads to Genoa, and the Magra road (the Via Francigena by the Cisa pass) through the Lunigiana. In a mocking exchange of verses (tenso) the troubadour Raimbaut de Vaqueiras taxed Alberto with robbing travellers on these roads. Rents of mountain villages; no mint.

Military

Castles in every valley and a following of vassal families (the lords of Pietra Corva served them until 1194). The house can raise and lead a small field force: Alberto led Tortona's army in 1198 and was beaten. No numbers in the sources.

Threats

• Piacenza's steady purchase and conquest of their Apennine lands
• The bishop of Luni and the Lunigiana castellans
• Genoa's grip on the roads to the coast
• The empire: Henry VI banned Alberto and Moroello in 1194; neither German king has acted in the Apennines since

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.

In 1200

1. 1200 (month not pinned)Alberto and his nephews guarantee free passage of goods in the Lunigiana, renew their alliances with Piacenza and Milan against Parma and Pavia, and agree to submit to Piacenza's judgment their disputes with Pontremoli and over the Lunigiana lands acquired from the Este.Depends on: The league of Piacenza and Milan against Parma and Pavia holding. Stopped by: A Parmesan or Pavese victory, or a break with Genoa.

Later, on the likely course

1. April 1202Alberto and Corrado cede to a member of the Doria a share of their tolls in the Trebbia and the Val Borbera.Depends on: Need for money and peace with Genoa. Stopped by: A new war with Genoa.
2. May 1202An arbitration with Bishop Gualtiero of Luni (the peace of 1202) binds the bishop and the marquises to mutual aid in the diocese and gives the bishop half the rights over the lands inherited from the Este.Depends on: Both sides tiring of the war. Stopped by: A decisive victory by either side.
3. 1206-1212Alberto dies; his nephews hold the house until Guglielmo's death in 1220 and the division of 1221 between Corrado and Guglielmo's son Obizzino.Depends on: Natural death. Stopped by: Nothing likely.

Places of note

• Oramala: The family castle in the Staffora hills (1189) [coordinates approximate]
• Mulazzo: Lunigiana castle of the house (later the seat of the Spino Secco line)
• Villafranca: Castle and toll on the Magra road
• Varzi: Market and castle on the Staffora road to Genoa
• Carana: Castle in the Trebbia held of the abbey of Bobbio (1187) [exact site not identified]

Where the sources disagree

• The Italian Wikipedia article on Corrado calls Guglielmo his uncle; the DBI life of Alberto calls Guglielmo and Corrado both Alberto's nephews, and the 1221 division between Corrado and Guglielmo's son Obizzino fits them being cousins. We follow the DBI.
• The Church map's Luni record says the peace of Aulla of 1202 settled the war 'in the Malaspina's favour'; the DBI summary says the 1202 arbitration gave the bishop half the rights over the Este lands and bound both sides to mutual aid, a compromise rather than a clear Malaspina victory.

Evidence: The joint acts of Alberto and his nephews in 1194-1202 are well dated in the DBI; the castles held in each valley in 1200 are drawn from the 1164 diploma, the 1221 division and later evidence, and are not pinned castle by castle.

On the map: The blocks are drawn from the 1164 diploma, the 1221 division and later evidence. The Lunigiana outline leaves out Pontremoli and the bishop of Luni's lower Magra; inside it some castles belonged to vassal or rival castellans.

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