The Dukes of Naples were the military commanders of the ''
ducatus Neapolitanus'', a
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
outpost in Italy, one of the few remaining after the conquest of the
Lombards
The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774.
The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...
. In 661, Emperor
Constans II
Constans II ( grc-gre, Κώνστας, Kōnstas; 7 November 630 – 15 July 668), nicknamed "the Bearded" ( la, Pogonatus; grc-gre, ὁ Πωγωνᾶτος, ho Pōgōnãtos), was the Eastern Roman emperor from 641 to 668. Constans was the last ...
, highly interested in south Italian affairs (he established his court in
Syracuse
Syracuse may refer to:
Places Italy
* Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa''
* Province of Syracuse
United States
*Syracuse, New York
**East Syracuse, New York
** North Syracuse, New York
* Syracuse, Indiana
*Syracuse, Kansas
*Syracuse, M ...
), appointed a Neapolitan named Basil ''
dux'' or ''
magister militum
(Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...
''. Thereafter a line of dukes, often largely independent and dynastic from the mid-ninth century, ruled until the coming of the
Normans
The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...
, a new menace they could not weather. The thirty-ninth and last duke,
Sergius VII
Sergius VII (died 30 October 1137) was the thirty-ninth and last duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, ...
, surrendered his city to King
Roger II of Sicily
Roger II ( it, Ruggero II; 22 December 1095 – 26 February 1154) was King of Sicily and Africa, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, became Duke of Apulia and Calabria i ...
in 1137.
Dukes appointed by Byzantium
*
Gudeliscus, as duke of Campania (''dux Campaniae'')
*
Guduin, first recorded duke of Naples
**'' seized by the rebel
John of Conza
John of Conza or Compsa ( la, Iohannes Consinus / Compsinus, ''fl.'' ca. 615/618), was a native of Compsa (modern Conza della Campania). Taking advantage of the turmoil in the Exarchate of Ravenna and the preoccupation of the Byzantine emperor Her ...
''
*
Anatolius
*661–666
Basil
Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...
*666–670
Theophylactus I
*670–673
Cosmas
*673–677
Andrew I Andrew I may refer to:
* Andrew I of Hungary ( 1015 – before 1060)
* Andrew, Archbishop of Antivari (14th century)
* Andrei of Polotsk
Andrei of Polotsk ( be, Андрэй Альгердавіч, lt, Andrius Algirdaitis, pl, Andrzej Olgier ...
*677–684
Caesarius I
*684–687
Stephen I
*687–696
Bonellus
*696–706
Theodosius
*706–711
Caesarius II
*711–719
John I John I may refer to:
People
* John I (bishop of Jerusalem)
* John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople
* John of Antioch (died 441)
* Pope John I, Pope from 523 to 526
* John I (exarch) (died 615), Exarch of Ravenna
* John I ...
*719–729
Theodore I
*729–739
George
*739–755
Gregory I Gregory I may refer to:
* Gregory the Illuminator (250s–330s), Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church in 288–325
* Gregory of Nazianzus (329–390), Patriarch Gregory I of Constantinople, in office 379–381
* Pope Gregory I (540–604), ...
*755–766
Stephen II
*767–794
Gregory II
*794–801
Theophylactus II
*801–
Anthimus
*–821
Theoctistus
*821
Theodore II
*821–832
Stephen III
*832–834
Bonus
Bonus commonly means:
* Bonus, a Commonwealth term for a distribution of profits to a with-profits insurance policy
* Bonus payment, an extra payment received as a reward for doing one's job well or as an incentive
Bonus may also refer to:
Plac ...
*834 Leo
*834–840
Andrew II
*840
Contardus
Contard (also Contardus or Contardo), a Frank, was briefly the Duke of Naples in 840.
He was sent by Lothair I, King of Italy, in 839 to aid Duke Andrew II against the warring Lombards of the Principality of Benevento. Fearful of Contard's powe ...
Hereditary dukes
These dukes were more independent than their predecessors and they were not chosen by the emperor, but the descendants of
Sergius I, who was elected by the citizens.
Sergian dynasty (Sergii)
*840–864/865
Sergius I
*864/865–870
Gregory III
*870–877/878
Sergius II
*877/878–898
Athanasius
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
*898–
Gregory IV
*–919
John II John II may refer to:
People
* John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499)
* John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672)
* John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302)
* John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318)
* John II Komnenos (1087–1 ...
*919–928
Marinus I
Pope Marinus I (; died 15 May 884) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 882 until his death. Controversially at the time, he was already a bishop when he became pope, and had served as papal legate to Constantinople. He was ...
*928–968/969
John III
*968/969–992/997
Marinus II
Pope Marinus II (died May 946) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 30 October 942 to his death. He has also been mistakenly called Martinus III. He ruled during the ''Saeculum obscurum''. He was also erroneously called Mart ...
*992–997/999
Sergius III
*997/999–1005
John IV
*1005–1038
Sergius IV
Pope Sergius IV (died 12 May 1012) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from 31 July 1009 to his death. His temporal power was eclipsed by the patrician John Crescentius. Sergius IV may have called for the expulsion of Mu ...
, co-ruling with his son (below) after 1033
**''1027–1029 under control of
Pandulf IV of Capua
Pandulf IVAlso spelled ''Randulf'', ''Bandulf'', ''Pandulph'', ''Pandolf'', ''Paldolf'', or ''Pandolfo''. (died 1049/50) was the Prince of Capua on three separate occasions.
From February 1016 to 1022 he ruled in association with his cousin Pa ...
''
*1033–1050
John V John V may refer to:
* Patriarch John V of Alexandria or John the Merciful (died by 620), Patriarch of Alexandria from 606 to 616
* John V of Constantinople, Patriarch from 669 to 675
* Pope John V (685–686), Pope from 685 to his death in 686
* J ...
, co-ruling with his father (above) before 1038 and with his son (below) after
*1038–1076
Sergius V, co-ruling with his father (above) until 1050
*1077–1107
Sergius VI Sergius VI (died 1107) was the ''magister militum'' and duke of Naples from 1077 to his death. He was the son of the Neapolitan senator John, and succeeded his uncle, John's elder brother, Sergius V. His sister Inmilgia married Duke Landulf of Gaet ...
, co-ruling with his son (below) after 1090
*1090–1122
John VI, co-ruling with his father (above) until 1107
*1122–1137
Sergius VII
Sergius VII (died 30 October 1137) was the thirty-ninth and last duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, ...
**''1137–1139 vacant''
In 1139, Naples capitulated to the Normans and shortly after elected a Norman ruler from
the ruling dynasty.
[The late chronology is taken from Paul Arthur, ''Naples, from Roman Town to City-state: An Archaeological Perspective'' (London: British School at Rome, 2002), p. 167.]
House of Hauteville
*1139–1144
Alfonso
Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...
*1144–1154
William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
In 1154, William succeeded to the Sicilian crown and the line of dukes ends.
Notes
External links
Naples in the Dark Agesby David Taylor and Jeff Matthews.
Further reading
*
Chalandon, Ferdinand. ''Histoire de la domination normande en Italie et en Sicile'', 2 vol. Paris: 1907.
*
Norwich, John Julius. ''The Normans in the South 1016–1130''. Longmans: London, 1967.
*
Norwich, John Julius. ''The Kingdom in the Sun 1130–1194''. Longman: London, 1970.
*
Oman, Charles. ''The Dark Ages 476–918''. Rivingtons: London, 1914.
*
Skinner, Patricia. ''Family Power in Southern Italy: The Duchy of Gaeta and its Neighbours, 850-1139''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. .
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dukes Of Naples
Naples Dukes
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...