William I, Marquis of Montferrat (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

: ''Guglielmo I del Monferrato'', ''floruit'' 921, d. 933 or before) stands at the head of the Aleramici family which ruled

Montferrat Montferrat (, ; it, Monferrato ; pms, Monfrà , locally ; la, Mons Ferratus) is part of the region of Piedmont in northern Italy. It comprises roughly (and its extent has varied over time) the modern provinces of Province of Alessandria, ...

for four centuries. He was the father of the first Marquis Aleram.

Life

According to the '' Gesta Berengarii Imperatoris'', William was a

Frank Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...

who crossed the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

leading 300 armed retainers in 888–889 to fight alongside

Guy III of Spoleto Guy III of Spoleto (german: Wido, it, Guido; died 12 December 894) was the margrave of Camerino from 880 and then duke of Spoleto and duke of Camerino, Camerino from 883. He was crowned king of Italy in 889 and Holy Roman Emperor, emperor in 891. ...

against

Berengar of Friuli Berengar I ( la, Berengarius, Perngarius; it, Berengario; – 7 April 924) was the king of Italy from 887. He was Holy Roman Emperor between 915 and his death in 924. He is usually known as Berengar of Friuli, since he ruled the March of Fri ...

for the

Iron Crown of Lombardy The Iron Crown ( lmo, Corona Ferrea de Lombardia; it, Corona Ferrea; la, Corona Ferrea) is a relic and may be one of the oldest royal insignia of Christendom. It was made in the Early Middle Ages, consisting of a circlet of gold and jewels fi ...

. He apparently established himself in northwestern Italy, probably supported by Guy, where he eventually received the title of ''

comes ''Comes'' ( ), plural ''comites'' ( ), was a Roman title or office, and the origin Latin form of the medieval and modern title "count". Before becoming a word for various types of title or office, the word originally meant "companion", either i ...

''. It is also probable that he gave his support to Berengar after Guy's death, for he appears, in 921, along with Lambert, Archbishop of Milan, and two other counts, Giselbert and Samson, as ''dilectissimi fideles'' of the

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

. The counts were also cited as ''illustres comites''. They stood opposed to Adalbert of Ivrea and others in rebellion against Berengar. William transferred his allegiance again following the death of Berengar. He appears for the last time alive in 924, intervening on behalf of the

bishop of Piacenza A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

with Rudolf II of Burgundy, a claimant for the Italian crown. Never again does he appear in history and a diploma of his son's dating to around 933 fixes his death sometime between those two years (924–933). Nonetheless, some, including 18th-century historian Malaspina and 20th-century historians Usseglio and Cognasso (writing in 1960), consider him to have been alive in 961, based on a faulty reading and interpretation of the foundation charter of the monastery of Grazzano, founded that year by Aleram and his family. Various legendary assertions about his Saxon and Kentish origins and the origins of his wife have been met by the definitive ''Dizionario Biografico'' with the pronouncement: : "But such assertions are not yet seriously backed up by the documents."

Sources

*. {{DEFAULTSORT:William 01 of Montferrat Marquesses of Montferrat 10th-century Italian nobility Aleramici People from Grazzano Badoglio