Theodore II, Marquess Of Montferrat
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Theodore II Palaeologus (Teodoro II Paleologo) (died 16 April 1418) was the
Margrave of Montferrat The marquises and dukes of Montferrat were the rulers of a territory in Piedmont south of the Po and east of Turin. The March of Montferrat was created by Berengar II of Italy in 950 during a redistribution of power in the northwest of his kin ...
from 1381.


Life

He was the thirdborn son of
John II of Montferrat John II Palaeologus (5 February 1321 – 19 March 1372) was the Margrave of Montferrat from 1338. Career John was the son of Theodore I of Montferrat, with whom he was associated in the government from 1336. He had great fortune in extending th ...
and
Isabel of Majorca Isabella of Majorca ( Catalan: ''Elisabet'') (1337–1406) was the titular Queen of Majorca and Countess of Roussillon and Cerdanya from 1375 to her death. She was the last titular monarch of Majorca. Life Early life She was the daughter of ...
. Theodore was named governor of the margraviate after the death of his brother John III. After the death of John II, Montferrat had been plunged into a crisis brought on by the quick succession of two young rulers, neither of whom had the necessary authority to deal with internal state of chaos. During his youth, Theodore was under the
regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
of
Gian Galeazzo Visconti Gian Galeazzo Visconti (16 October 1351 – 3 September 1402), was the first duke of Duchy of Milan, Milan (1395) and ruled that late-medieval city just before the dawn of the Renaissance. He also ruled Lombardy jointly with his uncle Bernabò V ...
. Soon it became apparent that he was a weak person on his own. By marrying, of his own will, a
Milanese Milanese (endonym in traditional orthography , ) is the central variety of the Western dialect of the Lombard language spoken in Milan, the rest of its metropolitan city, and the northernmost part of the province of Pavia. Milanese, due to t ...
woman, the daughter of Leonardo Malaspina, margrave of
Lunigiana The Lunigiana () or Lunesana is a historical territory of Italy that today falls within the provinces of Massa Carrara, Tuscany, and La Spezia, Liguria. Its borders derive from the ancient Roman settlement, later the medieval diocese of Luni, ...
, he was forced to cede
Asti Asti ( , ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 74,348 inhabitants (1–1–2021) located in the Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, about east of Turin, in the plain of the Tanaro, Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and ...
to Gian Galeazzo. After the death of his first and second wives, he remarried Margaret of Savoy, daughter of
Amadeus Amadeus may refer to: People and fictional characters * Amadeus (name) Amadeus is a theophoric name, theophoric given name derived from the Latin words ' – the Imperative mood, imperative of the word ' ("to love") – and ' ("god"). As a Compou ...
,
Prince of Achaea The Prince of Achaea was the ruler of the Principality of Achaea, one of the crusader states Frankokratia, founded in Greece in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade (1202–1204). The principality witnessed various overlords during its more than tw ...
, on 17 February 1403. Immediately, a war erupted between Theodore and
Amadeus VIII of Savoy Amadeus VIII (4 September 1383 – 7 January 1451), nicknamed the Peaceful, was Count of Savoy from 1391 to 1416 and Duke of Savoy from 1416 to 1440. He was a claimant to the papacy from 1439 to 1449 as Felix VWhen numbering of the popes began t ...
.
Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447) was the duke of Duchy of Milan, Milan from 1412 to 1447. Reports stated that he was "paranoid", but "shrewd as a ruler." He went to war in the 1420s with Romagna, Republic of Florenc ...
of Milan intervened on behalf of Theodore in return for the aid the
Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...
had received in reestablishing their power in Milan. In 1400, Theodore had granted Borgo San Martino to one
Facino Cane Facino Cane. Facino Cane da Casale (1360 – 16 May 1412), born Bonifacio Cane, was an Italian condottiero. Biography Facino Cane was born in Casale Monferrato to a noble family that produced a number of military captains and administrators. Hi ...
for his service. In 1409, Theodore and Facino succeeded in taking possession of Milan and
Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
. Theodore maintained possession of these places until 1413, when, despite several military expeditions, finding the government of both his
Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...
ese and Lombard dominions too difficult, he gave them up in exchange for a large sum. After the death of Facino, Theodore had to fight the Visconti in Piedmont until an agreement was reached in 1417. Theodore died soon after, leaving a widow in the person of Margaret, later the Blessed Margaret. He was succeeded by his son John Jacob.


Marriages and children

Theodore married, as his first wife, Argentina Malaspina. She was a daughter of Leonardo Malaspina, Marquis of
Massa Massa may refer to: Places Italy *Province of Massa and Carrara, province in the Tuscany region of Italy * Duchy of Massa and Carrara, controlled the towns of Massa di Carrara and Carrara * Roman Catholic Diocese of Massa Marittima-Piombi ...
. They had no known children. In 1393, Theodore married his second wife Joanna of Bar. She was a daughter of
Robert I, Duke of Bar Robert I of Bar (8 November 1344 – 12 April 1411) was Marquis of Pont-à-Mousson and Count and then Duke of Bar. He succeeded his elder brother Edward II of Bar as count in 1352. His parents were Henry IV of Bar and Yolande of Flanders. When ...
and Marie of Valois. Her maternal grandparents were
John II of France John II (; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which killed between a thir ...
and
Bonne of Bohemia Bonne of Luxemburg or Jutta of Luxemburg (20 May 131511 September 1349), was born Jutta (Judith), the second daughter of King John of Bohemia, and his first wife, Elisabeth of Bohemia. She was the first wife of King John II of France; however, a ...
. They had two known children: *
John Jacob of Montferrat John Jacob Palaeologus (Italian: ''Giovanni Giacomo Paleologo'') (23 March 1395 – 12 March 1445) was the Margrave of Montferrat from 1418 to 1445. He was born in Trino, Piedmont, the son of Theodore II of Montferrat, with whom he collaborated ...
(23 March 1395 – 12 March 1445). *
Sophia of Montferrat Sophia of Montferrat (or Sophia Palaiologina, ; died 21 August 1434) was a Byzantine empress by marriage to John VIII Palaiologos. Life Sophia was a daughter of Theodore II Palaiologos, Marquess of Montferrat, and his second wife, Joanna of B ...
(died 21 August 1434). Married
John VIII Palaiologos John VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus (; 18 December 1392 – 31 October 1448) was the penultimate Byzantine emperor. Ruling from 1425 to 1448, he attempted to bring about the reunification of the Orthodox and Catholic churches and prior ...
. Joanna died on 15 January 1402. Theodore remained a widower for a year. On 17 January 1403, Theodore married his third wife Margaret of Savoy. She was the eldest daughter of Amedeo, Prince of Achaea and Catherine of Geneva. Their marriage was childless. Margaret survived her husband by forty-six years and died on 23 November 1464.


Literary References

Theodore is one of the major antagonists in
Rafael Sabatini Rafael Sabatini (29 April 1875 – 13 February 1950) was an Italian people, Italian-born British writer of novels, writer of romance novel, romance and adventure novel, adventure novels. He is best known for his worldwide bestsellers: ''The Sea ...
's 1926 novel
Bellarion the Fortunate ''Bellarion the Fortunate'', published in 1926, is an historical novel by Rafael Sabatini. Set at the beginning of the 15th century in northern Italy, it takes place first in the Marquessate of Montferrat and later in the Duchy of Milan. Most o ...
, wherein he is portrayed as being sly, untrustworthy, and overly ambitious, though a formidable opponent in war. This is in contrast to his historical repute as a captain, which was not great. Sabatini's book alters history slightly by having Theodore as Regent, when he was in fact the reigning Marquis. Theodore's son and successor John Jacob also appears as a minor character in the book, though he is portrayed as Theodore's nephew.


Ancestry


References


Sources

*236


External links

{{S-end 1418 deaths 14th-century Italian nobility 15th-century Italian nobility Theodore 2 Marquesses of Montferrat 1364 births