Ranulf I (also spelled Rainulf or Raynulf; died 1088) was the count of Caiazzo in the Principality of Capua from about 1078. He also brought the formerly Lombard counties of Alife,

Telese Telese Terme, called simply Telese until 1991, is a city, ''comune'' (municipality) and former episcopal seat in the Province of Benevento, in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is located in the valley of the Calore, well known for its sulfu ...

and

Sant'Agata dei Goti Sant'Agata dei Goti is a church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to the martyr Agatha of Sicily. It is the ''diaconia'' assigned to Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. (It became ''pro hac vice'' title in 20 ...

and the castles of

Airola Airola is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Benevento in the Italian region Campania, located about 35 km northeast of Naples and about 20 km southwest of Benevento in the Valle Caudina, facing the Monte Taburno. Nearby is ...

and Tocco Caudio under his control, dominating the region between Capua and

Benevento Benevento (, , ; la, Beneventum) is a city and ''comune'' of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and the ...

(a Papal fief). He passed this territorial lordship on intact to his heirs, and it remained in their possession until the death of his grandson and namesake, Ranulf II, in 1139. Ranulf I was the youngest son of Count Asclettin of Acerenza, of the

Drengot family The Drengots were a Normans, Norman family of mercenaries, one of the first to head to Southern Italy to fight in the service of the Lombards. They became the most prominent family after the Hauteville family, Hautevilles. Origins The family came f ...

of the Norman nobility. At the invitation of Abbot Desiderius, Ranulf was present at the dedication service of the new basilica of the Abbey of Monte Cassino on 1 October 1071. That same year, he assisted his nephew, Jordan, in a short-lived rebellion against the latter's father—Ranulf's brother—Prince Richard I of Capua. His loyalty to his nephew was rewarded when the latter succeeded Richard in 1078. Jordan granted Ranulf the old Lombard county of Caiazzo. Ranulf also accompanied Jordan on a diplomatic journey to Rome in 1078, where both nephew and uncle were reconciled with

Pope Gregory VII Pope Gregory VII ( la, Gregorius VII; 1015 – 25 May 1085), born Hildebrand of Sovana ( it, Ildebrando di Soana), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 April 1073 to his death in 1085. He is venerated as a saint ...

for past encroachments on Papal territory and the ban of excommunication on them was lifted. After the death of Pope Gregory in 1085, when the lands of Monte Cassino were threatened, Desiderius called on Ranulf to defend them. In 1078–79, Ranulf and Prince Jordan lent their support to a rebellion against Duke

Robert Guiscard Robert Guiscard (; Modern ; – 17 July 1085) was a Norman adventurer remembered for the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily. Robert was born into the Hauteville family in Normandy, went on to become count and then duke of Apulia and Calabri ...

in the Duchy of Apulia. The rebels included Counts Peter II of Trani,

Henry of Monte Sant'Angelo Henry (died probably 21 December 1102A necrology of Montecassino dates his death to 21 December in an uncertain year. He is known to have been dead by August 1103.) was the Count of Monte Sant'Angelo, with his seat at Foggia, from November 1081. H ...

and Amico II of Giovinazzo, as well as four of Robert's nephews— Abelard,

Herman Herman may refer to: People * Herman (name), list of people with this name * Saint Herman (disambiguation) * Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman Places in the United States * Herman, Arkansas * Herman, Michigan * Herman, Minne ...

, Count

Geoffrey of Conversano Geoffrey the Elder (died September 1100) was an Italo-Norman nobleman. A nephew of Robert Guiscard through one of his sisters, he was the count of Conversano from 1072 and the lord of Brindisi and Nardò from 1070, until his death. According to ...

and Count Robert of Montescaglioso—and the noblemen Gradilone and Baldovino. After defeating Abelard, Gradilone and Baldovino, Robert went to Salerno in July 1079, and then to Sarno, where he made peace with Prince Jordan and Count Ranulf. With the loss of Capuan support, the rebellion collapsed. Ranulf's wife was Sibilla, and together they made donations to the monastery of San Gabriele in

. These were confirmed to Abbot Aganus by Pope Paschal II on 25 September 1108. They had one daughter, who married Duke Gualganus of Gaeta, and two sons: Robert (''floruit'' 1086–1116), who succeeded to Ranulf's counties, and Richard (''fl.'' 1072–96). Ranulf died in 1088.

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* * * * * * * * {{refend 1088 deaths Italo-Normans Norman warriors Counts of Italy