Alberic I (died c. 925) was the Lombard

Duke of Spoleto The Duke of Spoleto was the ruler of Spoleto and most of central Italy outside the Papal States during the Early and High Middle Ages (c. 500 – 1300). The first dukes were appointed by the Lombard king, but they were independent in practice. Th ...

from between 896 and 900 until 920, 922, or thereabouts. He was also Margrave of Camerino, and the son-in-law of

Theophylact I, Count of Tusculum Theophylact I (before 864 – 924/925) was a medieval count of Tusculum who was the effective ruler of Rome from around 905 through to his death in 924. His descendants controlled the papacy for the next 100 years. Biography Theophylact was t ...

, the most powerful man in Rome.

Life

He first appears as a

page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

Guy III of Spoleto Guy III of Spoleto (, ; died 12 December 894) was the Margrave of Camerino from 880, and became Duke of Spoleto and Camerino in 883. He was crowned King of Italy in 889 and emperor by the pope in 891. Guy died in 894 while campaigning to asser ...

at the Battle on the Trebbia in 889. He may have later been the count of

Fermo Fermo (; ancient: Firmum Picenum) is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche, Italy, in the Province of Fermo. Fermo is on a hill, the Sabulo, elevation , on a branch from Porto San Giorgio on the Adriatic coast railway. History The oldest huma ...

, but whatever the case, he succeeded to Spoleto after murdering Duke Guy IV. He was recognised soon by King Berengar I, with whom he fought the

Magyars Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common culture, language and history. They also have a notable presence in former parts of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

in 899 or 900. Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, in the

Alban Hills The Alban Hills () are the caldera remains of a quiescent volcanic complex in Italy, located southeast of Rome and about north of Anzio. The high Monte Cavo forms a highly visible peak in the centre of the caldera, but the highest point is ...

southeast of Rome served as '' palatine iudex'' (or leader of the militia) for

Emperor Louis III Louis the Blind ( – 5 June 928) was king in Provence and Lower Burgundy from 890 to 928, and also king of Italy from 900 to 905, and also the emperor between 901 and 905, styled as Louis III. His father was king Boso, from the Bosonid family, ...

. He remained in Rome, commanding a group of soldiers after the emperor's return to Provence in 902, and was prominent in the overthrow of

Antipope Christopher Christopher claimed the papacy from October 903 to January 904. Although he was listed as a legitimate pope in most modern lists of popes until the first half of the 20th century, the apparently uncanonical method by which he obtained the papacy ...

in January 904. Together with Alberic, they secured the succession of

Pope Sergius III Pope Sergius III ( − 14 April 911) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from 29 January 904 to his death. He was pope during a period of violence and disorder in central Italy, when warring aristocratic factions soug ...

. Under Sergius, Theophylact became both ''sacri palatii vestararius'' and ''magister militum''. As the first oversaw appointments, and the second supervised the soldiers, Theophylact had effective control of the city. Theophylact was married to

Theodora Theodora may refer to: * Theodora (given name), a given name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift" Historical figures known as Theodora Byzantine empresses * Theodora (wife of Justinian I) ( 500 – 548), saint by the Orthodox Church * Theodo ...

. They had two daughters:

Marozia Marozia, born Maria and also known as Mariuccia or Mariozza ( 890 – 937), was a Roman noblewoman who was the alleged mistress of Pope Sergius III and was given the unprecedented titles ''senatrix'' ("senatoress") and ''patricia'' of Rome by Po ...

and Theodora. In 909, Marozia married Alberic. This alliance with the Tusculani was very advantageous, and he received the title of " patrician of the Romans," ''patricius Romanorum''. Although Alberic was a supporter of Pope Sergius, around 906, when the Pope agreed to crown Berengar Holy Roman Emperor, Alberic allied with his neighbour, Adalbert II,

margrave of Tuscany The March of Tuscany (; Modern ) was a march of the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages. Located in northwestern central Italy, it bordered the Papal States to the south, the Ligurian Sea to the west and Lombardy to ...

. Together their combined forces blocked the road, preventing Berengar from reaching Rome. Alberic was margrave of

Camerino Camerino is a town in the province of Macerata, Marche, central-eastern Italy. It is located in the Apennines bordering Umbria, between the valleys of the rivers Potenza and Chienti, about from Ancona. Camerino is home to the University of Ca ...

,Mann, Horace K., The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Vol. IV: The Popes in the Days of Feudal Anarchy, 891-999 (1910), pp. 154–155 and Duke of Spoleto. He was one of the leaders of the Christian League which defeated the

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

at the

Battle of the Garigliano The Battle of Garigliano was fought in 915 between Christian forces and the Saracens. Pope John X personally led the Christian forces into battle. The aim was to destroy the Arab fortress on the Garigliano River, which had threatened central I ...

in June 915. He led his troops from Spoleto and Camerino with those of Theophylact of Tusculum to join with

Pope John X Pope John X (; died 28 May 928) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from March 914 to his death. A candidate of the counts of Tusculum, he attempted to unify Italy under the leadership of Berengar of Friuli, and was in ...

—and his contingent from

Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil (Old Latium) on whic ...

and Adalbert of Tuscany—and

Nicholas Picingli Nicholas Epigingles (), better known by his Latinized surname Picingli, was a Byzantine general active in southern Italy and the Balkans. As ''strategos'' of the '' thema'' of Longobardia, he led the Byzantine contingent of the Christian league in ...

, the ''

strategos ''Strategos'' (), also known by its Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized form ''strategus'', is a Greek language, Greek term to mean 'military General officer, general'. In the Hellenistic world and in the Byzantine Empire, the term was also use ...

'' of

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

, leading the Byzantine forces and Lombard and Greek princes of the South:

Guaimar II of Salerno Guaimar II (also ''Waimar'', ''Gaimar'', or ''Guaimario'', sometimes called Gybbosus, meaning "Hunchback") (died 4 June 946) was the Lombard prince of Salerno from 901, when his father retired (or was retired) to a monastery, to his death. His fath ...

Landulf I of Benevento Landulf or Landulph, Italian Landolfo and Latin Landolfus, Landulphus, etc., is a masculine given name of Germanic (possibly Lombardic) origin. It may refer to: Landulf * Landulf I of Benevento * Landulf II of Benevento * Landulf III of Benevent ...

, Atenulf II of Capua,

John I John I may refer to: People Religious figures * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John I of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope from 496 to 505 * Pope John I, P ...

and the later

Docibilis II of Gaeta Docibilis II (; 880 – c. 954) was the List of Hypati and Dukes of Gaeta, ruler of Gaeta, in one capacity or another, from 906 until his death. He was the son of the hypatus John I of Gaeta, John I, who made him co-ruler in 906 or thereabouts. Do ...

, and Gregory IV and the later

John II of Naples John II (died 919) was the duke of Naples from 915 to his death. He succeeded his father Gregory IV on the latter's death late in 915. He had accompanied his father to the Battle of the Garigliano under Nicholas Picingli, where the Christian co ...

. Even Berengar sent a contingent from the

March of Friuli The March of Friuli was a Carolingian frontier march, centered in the historical region of Friuli (corresponding mainly to the modern province of Friuli-Venezia Giulia in north-eastern Italy). Since the Frankish conquest and pacification of the ...

. The battle went famously and many a petty prince received titles of great honour. Alberic was appointed the "

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

of the Romans" in 917. He became, however, a tyrant in the Eternal City and people and pope expelled him. He was subsequently murdered in

Orte Orte is a town, ''comune'', former Catholic bishopric and Latin titular see in the province of Viterbo, in the central Italian region of Lazio, located about north of Rome and about east of Viterbo. Geography Orte is situated in the Tiber V ...

between 924 or 926, probably because of his reliance on marauding Hungarians who supported his power. The dates of his downfall and death are as uncertain as those of his rise. He last appears in a datable document of 917, the ''Liber largitorius'' of

Farfa Abbey Farfa Abbey () is a territorial abbey in northern Lazio, central Italy. In the Middle Ages, it was one of the richest and most famous abbeys in Italy. It belongs to the Benedictines, Benedictine Order and is located about from Rome, in the ''co ...

. He had four or five sons by Marozia: *

Pope John XI Pope John XI (; 910 – December 935) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from March 931 to his death. The true ruler of Rome at the time was his mother, Marozia, followed by his brother Alberic II. His pontificate occu ...

(b.910) * Alberic II, who was later prince of Rome * Constantino (d. after January 14, 945) * Sergio, bishop of Nepi (d. before 963) * David or Deodatus, who was the father of

Pope Benedict VII Pope Benedict VII (; died 10 July 983) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from October 974 to his death on 10 July 983. Family and early career Benedict was born in Rome, the son of David or Deodatus and nephew of Alberic II ...

In addition, they had at least one daughter who was used to attempt a marriage alliance with the

Byzantine emperor The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, which Fall of Constantinople, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised s ...

Romanos I Lekapenos Romanos I Lakapenos or Lekapenos (; 870 – 15 June 948), Latinisation of names, Latinized as Romanus I Lacapenus or Romanus I Lecapenus, was Byzantine emperor from 920 until his deposition in 944, serving as regent for and senior co-ruler of ...

by marrying her to one of his sons, either

Stephen Lekapenos Stephen Lekapenos or Lecapenus (; died 18 April 963) was the second son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (r. 920–944), and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his younger brother Constantine, he deposed Romanos I in December 944, but ...

Constantine Lekapenos Constantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus () was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (), and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his elder brother Stephen, he deposed Romanos I in December 944, but was overthrown and exiled by the c ...

Liutprand of Cremona Liutprand, also Liudprand, Liuprand, Lioutio, Liucius, Liuzo, and Lioutsios ( – 972),"LIUTPRAND OF CREMONA" in ''The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium'', Oxford University Press, New York & Oxford, 1991, p. 1241. was a historian, diplomat, and t ...

says that Marozia's first son, who later became Pope John XI, was illegitimate, and the result of an affair with Pope Sergius. Subsequent commentators have repeated this report.

Edward Gibbon Edward Gibbon (; 8 May 173716 January 1794) was an English essayist, historian, and politician. His most important work, ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', published in six volumes between 1776 and 1789, is known for ...

says that the birth of John in 910, after her marriage to Alberic, would seem to indicate that Sergius was not the father. Horace Mann says that the report "...must be regarded as highly doubtful," and are assertions only made by bitter or ill-informed adversaries, and inconsistent with what is said by reliable contemporaries.Mann, Horace. "Pope Sergius III." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 23 September 2017

Life

References

Sources

Further reading