Albert Sterz (known in Italy as Alberto Sterz) was a German noble who was a leader of mercenary Free companies, primarily operating in Italy. Born in what is now Germany he moved to France to fight alongside the English during the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

. When a truce was agreed between England and France at Brétigny in 1360 he formed, with other demobilised soldiers of fortune such as the Englishman

John Hawkwood Sir John Hawkwood ( 1323 – 17 March 1394) was an English soldier who served as a mercenary leader or '' condottiero'' in Italy. As his name was difficult to pronounce for non-English-speaking contemporaries, there are many variations of it in ...

, a company of mercenaries originally named the Great Company. Later to be known as the

White Company The White Company ( it, Compagnia Bianca del Falco) was a 14th-century English mercenary Company of Adventure ( it, Compagnia di ventura), led from its arrival in Italy in 1361 to 1363 by the German Albert Sterz and later by the Englishman John H ...

it recruited unemployed veteran English, German and Gascon soldiers and, like other similar groups (or companies), it survived initially by extortion, threatening to ravage towns if not bought off. Starting in the Champagne district they worked their way south and set up a base only 25 miles from Avignon, where the Pope of that time lived. There they extorted 100,000 florins from the Pope after promising not to attack and to leave the area. The Pope suggested they might like to go to Italy to give military aid to the

Marquis of Montferrat The Marquises and Dukes of Montferrat were the rulers of a territory in Piedmont south of the Po and east of Turin called Montferrat. The March of Montferrat was created by Berengar II of Italy in 950 during a redistribution of power in the no ...

who was feuding with the powerful Visconti family of Milan. The company spent almost a year in Savoy before signing a six-month contract with the Marquis of Montferrat to help him fight the Viscontis. After hearing the Lord of Pavia was sick he teamed up with Luchino Novello Visconti of Genoa to attack the town. Ransoms for captured townspeople brought in 180,000 florins. Further attacks on numerous other towns followed. In April 1363 he finally confronted the rival Great Company of

Konrad von Landau Konrad Wirtinger von Landau (died 22 April 1363), known in Italy as Conte Lando, was a German military adventurer and condottiero who was active in north and central Italy. He was born the eldest son of Count Eberardo III in the ancient Swabian vil ...

who were under contract to the Viscontis. At the

Battle of Canturino The Battle of Canturino (22 April 1363) was a clash of two condottiere companies, the long-established Great Company under Konrad von Landau and the newer White Company under Albert Sterz and John Hawkwood near Novara, north-west of Milan. The ...

bridge near Romagnano Sesia in Piedmont Sterz's forces overcame the opposition and the injured Landau was captured, dying later that day from his injuries. The Great Company never recovered from its defeat. Sterz then contracted with the town of

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

to assist them in a war with neighbouring

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

. During the rest of that year his troops attacked several Florentine towns. In mid-1364, owed back-pay by Pisa, Sterz switched sides to fight for Florence, leaving the White Company and joining up with Anichino di Bongardo (Hannekin Baumgarten) to form the Compagnia della Stella (Company of the Star). At the end of 1365 he signed up with the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

and suffered a defeat at the hands of the Perugian forces led by his erstwhile colleague Bongardo. In 1366 he signed up himself to defend Perugia. However, accused of treachery by the Perugians, he was arrested and executed in the town in early November. After his death the Compagnia della Stella disbanded.

References

{{Authority control 1366 deaths 14th-century condottieri