Hugh of Sully (french: Hugues de Sully) was a general under the
Sicilian King Charles of Anjou
Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) ...
. He was nicknamed "the Red" ("''le Rousseau''") on account of his red hair.
A
Burgundian knight of fiery and haughty temperament, according to the chroniclers, Hugh was named Vicar-General of Charles'
Kingdom of Albania in August 1279, and led the Sicilian forces in their
unsuccessful attempt to take
Berat
Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier.
Berat is located in ...
from the
Byzantine Empire
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 ...
in 1280–1281. Sully was taken prisoner in an ambush, whereupon his army scattered and suffered many losses to the pursuing Byzantines. He was then taken to
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...
where he was paraded in the streets along with the other captives. Sully was eventually released after years in Byzantine captivity and returned to Italy.
References
* Norwich, John Julius. ''Byzantium: The Decline and Fall'' (New York: Alfred A Kopf, 1996)
{{Italy-mil-bio-stub
French prisoners of war in the 13th century
Vicars-General of the Kingdom of Albania
13th-century French people
Military history of the Kingdom of Sicily
Prisoners of war held by the Byzantine Empire
Italian prisoners of war
People from Burgundy (French region)
Charles I of Anjou