Guglielma Pallavicini (rarely ''Wilhelmina''; died 1358), the Lady of Thermopylae, was the last
Pallavicino
The House of Pallavicini, also known as Pallavicino and formerly known as Pelavicino, is an ancient Italian noble family founded by Oberto II ''Pelavicino'' of the Frankish Obertenghi family.
The Pallavicini of Genoa
The first recorded member of ...
heir to rule in
Bodonitsa. She ruled as Margrave of Bodonitza in 1311 – 1358. She was an infant when she succeeded her father
Albert
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in 1311. She shared the margraviate with her mother
Maria dalle Carceri
Maria dalle Carceri (died 1323) was sovereign marchioness of Bodonitsa from 1311 until 1323. She succeeded her late spouse Albert Pallavicini on his death in 1311. While she avoided submitting her principality to the Catalan Company, she could n ...
and later with her stepfather
Andrea Cornaro and her own husband
Bartolomeo Zaccaria.
Life
The succession of all
Latin fiefs in
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
was regulated at the time of Albert's death by the ''
Book of the Customs of the Empire of Romania''. By custom, the inheritance was split between the widow and daughter. Maria soon remarried to Andrea in order to protect the margraviate from
Catalan
Catalan may refer to:
Catalonia
From, or related to Catalonia:
* Catalan language, a Romance language
* Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia
Places
* 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
incursions.
In 1327, Guglielma married the
Genoese Zaccaria, who had been captured while repelling, alongside Andrea Cornaro, an invasion of
Alfonso Fadrique
Don Alfonso Fadrique ( en, Alfonso Frederick; ca, N'Anfós Frederic d'Aragó; died 1338) was the eldest and illegitimate son of Frederick II of Sicily. He served as vicar generalHe is referred to with the magniloquent title ''magnificus dominus, ...
of
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
. In 1334, Bartolomeo died and Guglielma married
Niccolò Zorzi, a
Venetian. This marriage was especially important after the death of Cornaro, for it allowed her to remain in residence on
Negroponte and to reconcile her claims to the castle of
Larmena with Venice's. In fact, Guglielma had contacted the Republic beseeching one of their own as a husband. Zorzi arrived in Bodonitsa in 1335.
Guglielma and Niccolò continued the annual tribute of four
destrier
Mounted on a destrier, Richard Marshal unseats an opponent during a skirmish.
The destrier is the best-known war horse of the Middle Ages. It carried knights in battles, tournaments, and jousts. It was described by contemporary sources as the ...
s made to the Athenian Catalans. Peace did not attend their house, however. Venice continued the dispute over Larmena and even sought the arbitration of the
bailiff
A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their offi ...
of
Catherine II
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...
,
Princess of Achaea This is a list of the princess consorts of Achaea, the consorts of the Princes of Achaea.
The Principality of Achaea had three princesses by their own rights: Isabella, Matilda, and Joan. Their husbands were not consorts. Maria II Zaccaria was pri ...
, the legal
suzerain
Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is calle ...
of
Euboea
Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...
and Bodonitsa. The bailiff decided for Venice. This strained the marriage, with Guglielma accusing her husband of "cowardice and bias
owards Venice"
[Miller, 240.] Guglielma further believed that he ignored the interests of her child by Bartolomeo,
Marulla, in favour of his own offspring. Guglielma had saved a large amount of money for her daughter, but deposited it in a Venetian bank. The marchioness was finally whipped into a fury by the execution of her relative Manfredo, ordered by her husband. While the execution had been legal, Guglielma stirred the people against Zorzi, who was forced to flee to Negroponte.
The ensuing battle between husband and wife was anything but pretty. He went to Venice and appealed to the Senate, which demanded the return of him to his position or the relinquishing of his property, which she held. She refused and the bailiff of Negroponte was ordered to sever all communication between Bodonitsa and the island. The Catalans, who had initially been asked to stay out of the fray, were now pressed by Venice to intervene for peaceful settlement, along with
Joan I of Naples
Joanna I, also known as Johanna I ( it, Giovanna I; December 1325 – 27 July 1382), was Queen of Naples, and Countess of Provence and Forcalquier from 1343 to 1382; she was also Princess of Achaea from 1373 to 1381.
Joanna was the eldest daug ...
, head of the
Angevins, and
Humbert II, Dauphin of Vienne
Humbert II de la Tour-du-Pin (1312 – 4 May 1355) was the Dauphin of the Viennois from 1333 to 16 July 1349. Humbert was the last dauphin before the title went to the French crown, to be bestowed on the heir apparent.
Character
Humbert was a so ...
, then a papal naval commander. This failing, Marulla's money was confiscated and Niccolò compensated from the funds. Guglielma still refused to readmit her husband to her court. Despite the pleadings of
Pope Clement VI
Pope Clement VI ( la, Clemens VI; 1291 – 6 December 1352), born Pierre Roger, was head of the Catholic Church from 7 May 1342 to his death in December 1352. He was the fourth Avignon pope. Clement reigned during the first visitation of the Bla ...
, she preferred to heed the advice of her own nationalist bishop
Nitardus of Thermopylae.
In 1354, Niccolò finally died and Guglielma immediately installed their eldest son,
Francis
Francis may refer to:
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*Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome
*Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
*Francis (surname)
Places
* Rural M ...
, as co-ruler. With him ruling beside her, she was on good terms again with Venice and was included in the treaty subsequently signed with the Catalans. She died in 1358 and was succeeded by Francis. She left two other sons who later ruled Bodonitsa:
Giacomo and
Niccolò III.
References
Sources
*
*Setton, Kenneth M. ''Catalan Domination of Athens 1311–1380''. Revised edition. Variorum: London, 1975.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pallavicino, Guglielma
1300s births
1358 deaths
Christians of the Crusades
Guglielma
Guglielma
14th-century rulers in Europe
14th-century Italian nobility
14th-century women rulers
14th-century Italian women
14th-century Greek people
14th-century Greek women