Hugh (
fl.
''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...
1023–1040) was the Count of
Suio in the
Duchy of Gaeta. He was probably a son of Docibilis ''magnificus'', who in turn was probably a son of Landolf, son of
Gregory,
Duke of Gaeta, and Landolf's mistress Polyssena (Pulessene).
[Skinner, 141.] He was a brother of Duke
Leo II of Gaeta.
Hugh is first mentioned in 1023, when he made a donation of the
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
at Suio to the
Abbey of Montecassino
An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns.
The conce ...
.
[Skinner, 168.] Hugh was ill at the time and the donation may have been an attempt to solicit divine favour.
[Skinner, 187.] On the other hand, considering the instability in Gaeta, Hugh may have been seeking a protector in the abbot,
Theobald.
[ What is certain is that Hugh remained staunchly loyal to the ruling branch of his dynasty, the Docibilians, in Gaeta, for he dated his charter by the rule of John V of Gaeta and his regents Emilia and Leo I at a time when the other high-ranking vassals of Gaeta were moving towards independence.][Skinner, 169.] Hugh's loyalty may be self-serving, however: his son John, at least, had economic interests in Gaeta.[
Hugh maintained his position even after Pandulf IV of Capua conquered Gaeta in 1032.][ In 1040 he confirmed his gift of 1023 to abbot Riccherius and specifically reserving half of the castle for his son.][
He was succeeded by his son John, who was still in power in 1079.][
]
Notes
Sources
* Skinner, Patricia. (1995). ''Family Power in Southern Italy: The Duchy of Gaeta and its Neighbours, 850-1139''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. .
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hugh, Count Of Suio
Counts of Italy
11th-century deaths
Year of birth unknown