John was the '' amiratus'' or

emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

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 Roger I ( it, Ruggero I, Arabic: ''رُجار'', ''Rujār''; Maltese: ''Ruġġieru'', – 22 June 1101), nicknamed Rog ...

. John was born to the Admiral Eugenius in

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, where his family had moved from

Troina Troina ( Sicilian: ''Traina'') is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Enna, Sicily, southern Italy. It is located in the Nebrodi Park. History Excavations have proved that the area of Troina was settled as early as the 7t ...

. His brothers were the ''

logothete Logothete ( el, λογοθέτης, ''logothétēs'', pl. λογοθέται, ''logothétai''; Med. la, logotheta, pl. ''logothetae''; bg, логотет; it, logoteta; ro, logofăt; sr, логотет, ''logotet'') was an administrative title ...

'' Philip and the ''amiratus'' Nicholas. His uncle was the

notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is disti ...

Basil. All his family members were closely connected to the royal family and in its service. John's son was the equally famous Eugenius II. In 1131, John was sent across the

Strait of Messina The Strait of Messina ( it, Stretto di Messina, Sicilian: Strittu di Missina) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily (Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria ( Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Se ...

to join up with a royal troop from

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

and

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and march on

Amalfi Amalfi (, , ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto (1,315 metres, 4,314 feet), surrounded by dramatic c ...

by land while

George of Antioch George of Antioch ( gr, Γεώργιος Ἀντιοχείας, died 1151 or 1152) was the first to hold the office of '' ammiratus ammiratorum'' (emir of emirs) in the Norman Kingdom of Sicily. He was a Syrian-born Byzantine Christian of Gree ...

blockaded the town by sea and set up a base on

Capri Capri ( , ; ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. The main town of Capri that is located on the island shares the name. It has been ...

. Amalfi soon capitulated. In 1135, John and the

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Guarin {{about, the Italian chaplain and chancellor, the surname, Guarin (surname) Guarin (French: ''Guérin'', Italian: ''Guarino'', Norman: ''Warin'') (died 21 January 1137) was the chaplain (''magister capellanus'') and chancellor of Roger II of Sicily ...

were sent to

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

and the

Principality of Salerno The Principality of Salerno ( la, Principatus Salerni) was a medieval Southern Italian state, formed in 851 out of the Principality of Benevento after a decade-long civil war. It was centred on the port city of Salerno. Although it owed alle ...

to defend the royal castles against the general rebellion of

Robert II of Capua Robert II (died 1156) was the count of Aversa and the prince of Capua from 1127 until his death . He was the only son and successor of Jordan II of Capua. According to the Lombards, Lombard chronicler Falco of Benevento, he was "of delicate cons ...

Ranulf II of Alife Ranulf II (or Rainulf II, it, Rainulfo; died 30 April 1139) was the count of Alife (CE), Alife and Caiazzo, and duke of Apulia. He was a member of the Italo-Norman Drengot family which dominated the Principality of Capua for most of the century ...

, and

Sergius VII of Naples Sergius VII (died 30 October 1137) was the thirty-ninth and last dux, duke (or ''magister militum'') Duke of Naples, of Naples. He succeeded his father John VI of Naples, John VI on the Neapolitan throne in 1122 at a time when Roger II of Sicily wa ...

. They successfully defended

Capua Capua ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, in the region of Campania, southern Italy, situated north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. History Ancient era The name of Capua comes from the Etrusc ...

with 2,000 knights and a similar-sized complement of infantry, but

Aversa Aversa () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Caserta in Campania, southern Italy, about 24 km north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the ''Agro Aversano'', producing wine and cheese (famous for the typical bu ...

fell to Robert.Houben, 66.

Notes

{{reflist

Sources

* Norwich, John Julius. ''The Kingdom in the Sun 1130-1194''. London: Longmans, 1970. *Curtis, Edmund. ''Roger of Sicily and the Normans in Lower Italy 1016–1154''. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1912. *Matthew, Donald. ''The Norman Kingdom of Sicily (Cambridge Medieval Textbooks)''. Cambridge University Press, 1992. *Houben, Hubert (translated by Graham A. Loud and Diane Milburn). ''Roger II of Sicily: Ruler between East and West''. Cambridge University Press, 2002. Medieval admirals Military personnel from Palermo 12th-century Sicilian people