The March of Genoa or Eastern Liguria was created in 961 by the

Emperor Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Francia, East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the olde ...

. It was originally called either the ''marca Obertenga'' after its first holder,

Oberto I Oberto I Obizzo (also known as Otbert) (died 15 October 975) was an Italian count palatine and margrave and the oldest known member of the Obertenghi family. Biography Oberto I inherited the countship of Milan in 951 from his father Adalberto the M ...

, or the ''marca Januensis'' after its original capital and chief city,

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

. Its creation was part of a general reorganisation of the northwest of Italy into three frontier districts.

Western Liguria The March (also ''margraviate'' or ''marquisate'') of Montferrat was a Marches, frontier march of the Kingdom of Italy (medieval), Kingdom of Italy during the Middle Ages and a state of the Holy Roman Empire. The Margrave, margraviate was raised ...

became the

March of Montferrat The March (also ''margraviate'' or ''marquisate'') of Montferrat was a frontier march of the Kingdom of Italy during the Middle Ages and a state of the Holy Roman Empire. The margraviate was raised to become the Duchy of Montferrat in 1574. Or ...

and the interior became the

March of Turin The March or Marquisate of Turin ( it, marca di Torino) was a territory of medieval Italy from the mid-10th century, when it was established as the Arduinic March ( la, marca Arduinica). It comprised several counties in Piedmont, including the cou ...

. It comprised the counties of Luni,

Tortona Tortona (; pms, Torton-a , ; lat, Dhertona) is a ''comune'' of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. History ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, and Genoa. The march was originally held in the elder line of the

Obertenghi The House of Obertenghi were a prominent Italian noble family of Frankish origin descended from Viscount Adalbert III, first Margrave of Milan. The family held the titles of Marquis of Milan and Genoa, Count of Luni, Tortona, Genoa and Milan ...

, descended from Oberto I. The title ''marchio'' became common in the family. Albert Azzo II was called ''marchio de L(a/o)ngobardia''. By his time, the march was often called the March of Milan or Liguria. His grandson, Obizzo I, became the first Margrave of Este in 1173 and was created "Margrave of Milan and Genoa" in 1184 by the

Emperor Frederick I Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on ...

. From thereafter, the title of Este had more importance, especially with the growth of the commune of Milan and the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

Margraves

, 961–c.997 *

Adalbert Adalbert is a German given name which means "noble bright" or "noble shining", derived from the words ''adal'' (meaning noble) and ''berht'' (shining or bright). Alternative spellings include Adelbart, Adelbert and Adalberto. Derivative names inclu ...

, c.997 *

Oberto II Otbert (Latin Otbertus, Italian Oberto; died after 1014) was Margrave of Milan. A member of the Obertenghi family, he succeeded his father, Otbert I, as margrave after his father's death in 975, together with his brother Adalbert. He was also c ...

, c.997–c.1013 * Albert Azzo I, c.1013–c.1029 * Albert Azzo II, c.1029–1097 * Fulk I, 1097–c.1146 * Obizzo I, c.1146–1193

Margraves

Further reading