William III (c. 970 – 1042) was the third
Marquis of Montferrat
The marquises and dukes of Montferrat were the rulers of a territory in Piedmont south of the Po River, 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 o ...
and Count of
Vado from 991 to his death. He was the eldest son and successor of
Otto I
Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...
.
William I William I may refer to:
Kings
* William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England
* William I of Sicily (died 1166)
* William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion
* William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...
and
II were the father and son, respectively, of
Aleram, the first Marquis, but neither served as Marquis himself.
Life
William's religious policy was a continuation of Aleram's. He founded the monastery of
Spigno. In 1014, he and his brother Riprando donated land to the abbey of
Fruttuaria. Between his succession and 1002, he made other donations to
Acqui Terme
Acqui Terme (; ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont, northern Italy. It is about south-southwest of Alessandria. It is one of the principal winemaking communes of the Italian DOCG wine Brachetto d'Acqui.
The c ...
.
While following in the familiar policy of ecclesiastical patronage, William abandoned Aleram's support of the
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...
s. Instead, he intervened in the wars of the Italian communes which characterised early-eleventh-century Italy. He joined an anti-imperial alliance with Count Obert the Red, Marquis
Ulric Manfred II of Turin
Ulric Manfred II (; 975 992 – 29 October 1033 or 1034) or Manfred Ulric (') was the count of Turin, count of county of Turin, Turin and marquis of Susa, marquis of marquisate of Susa, Susa in the early 11th century. He was the last ...
, and Bishop
Leo of Vercelli Leo (''c''.965–1026) was a German prelate who served as the Bishop of Vercelli from 999. Born in Hildesheim, he was made an archdeacon by 998 and was appointed to the see of Vercelli as the candidate of the Emperor Otto III and Pope Sylvester II ...
. The allies soon found themselves at odds and warring on each other. Leo besieged
Santhià
Santhià (; or ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northwest of Vercelli.
Santhià is home to a historic carnival named the ''Carnevale Stori ...
, where William was then residing, and William, to avenge himself on the bishop, besieged
Vercelli
Vercelli (; ) is a city and ''comune'' of 46,552 inhabitants (January 1, 2017) in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, around 600 BC.
...
and put it to flame. William signed a peace treaty with Ulric Manfred and married his son
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters
* Henry (surname)
* Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone
Arts and entertainmen ...
to Manfred's daughter
Adelaide
Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
.
Even after all his allies had been pacified by imperial troops, William continued to resist
Conrad II, but he fared poorly. Conrad destroyed his fortress in the valley of
Orba.
The ''Miracula sancti Bononii'' records William's wife as Waza. She prayed at the tomb of
Saint Bononio
Saint Bononio or Bononius (died 30 August 1026) was a Benedictine abbot, who is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church, being commemorated with a feast day on 30 August.
Biography
Bononio was born in Bolo ...
, abbot of
Santissimi Michele e Genuario di Lucedio. William died in 1042, probably before 29 January, when his son
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters
* Henry (surname)
* Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone
Arts and entertainmen ...
cites him in an act donating land to the church in
Turin
Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
. He succeeded by his elder son
Otto II, Marquis of Montferrat
Otto II (also ''Otho'', ''Ottone'', or ''Oddone'') (c. 1015 – 20 November 1084) was the fourth Marquis of Montferrat from 1042 until his death. He was a member of the Aleramid dynasty.
Life
Otto was the son and successor of William III and W ...
.
Sources
*Caravale, Mario (ed). ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani: LX Grosso – Guglielmo da Forlì''. Rome, 2003.
Marchesi di Monferrato: Guglielmo III.
{{DEFAULTSORT:William 03 of Montferrat
970s births
1042 deaths
Marquesses of Montferrat
11th-century Italian nobility
Aleramici