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"Norman conquest of southern Italy" [add dates]
Main article: Norman conquest of southern Italy

 

The Normans ' initial military involvement in southern Italy was on the side of the Lombards against the Byzantines. Eventually, some Normans also served in the army of George Maniakes during the attempted Byzantine reconquest of Sicily. ''' By 1030, Rainulf became count of Aversa, marking start of permanent Norman settlement in Italy.   In 1042, William de Hauteville was made a count, taking Lombard prince Guaimar IV of Salerno as his liege.   To further strengthen ties and legitimacy, Robert Guiscard also married Lombard Princess Sikelgaita in 1058.  Following the death of  Guaimar, ''' the Normans were increasingly independent actors on the south Italian scene, which brought them into direct conflict with Byzantium.

 

 

 

During the time that the Normans had conquered southern Italy, the Byzantine Empire was in a state of internal decay; the administration of the Empire had been wrecked, the efficient government institutions that provided Basil II with a quarter of a million troops and adequate resources by taxation had collapsed within a period of three decades. [needs citation]

After defeating the Byzantines in a series of battles in Apulia, and after two major attempts to relieve the city had failed, the city Bari surrendered in April 1071, ending the Byzantine presence in southern Italy. [needs citation]

In 1079–80, the Byzantines again gave their support to a rebellion against Guiscard. [needs citation, could be expanded upon]

'''Over a thirty year period (1061-1091), Norman factions also completed the initial Byzantine attempt to retake Sicily. However, it would not be until 1130 that both Sicily and southern Italy were united into one kingdom, formalized by Roger II.'''

First Norman Invasion of the Balkans (1081-1085) [heavy citation needed, expansion possible as well]
When Alexios I Comnenus ascended to the throne of Byzantium, his early emergency reforms, such as requisitioning Church money - a previously unthinkable move - proved too little to stop the Normans. [citation]

Led by the formidable Robert Guiscard and his son Bohemund, they took Dyrrhachium and Corfu, and laid siege to Larissa in Thessaly (see Battle of Dyrrhachium). [citation]

The Norman danger ended for the time being with the death of Robert Guiscard in 1085, combined with a Byzantine victory and crucial Venetian aid that allowed the Byzantines to retake the Balkans. [citation]

Rebellion of Antioch (1104-1140)
During the First Crusade, a large number of Normans naturally joined in what appeared to be a great expedition into the unknown where land and loot was plentiful. [citation needed, rework possible, along with expansion]

During this time the Byzantines, under Alexios I Comnenus, were able to utilize, to some extent, the aggressive Normans to defeat the Seljuk Turks in numerous battles and many cities fell. [citation]

It is speculated that, in exchange for an oath of loyalty, Alexios promised land around the city of Antioch to Bohemond, son of Robert Guiscard, in order to create a buffer vassal state and simultaneously keep Bohemond away from Italy. However, when Antioch fell the Normans refused to hand it over although in time Byzantine domination was established. ''' Emperor John Comnenus made two expeditions against the Principality, in 1337-8 and 1142. Out of fear that this signaled Byzantine intentions to reconquer southern Italy and remove his suzerainty over the Normans, Pope Innocent II declared the emperor an excommunicate, and threatened any Latin Christian who served in his army with the same consequence . Upon''' the death of John Comnenus the Norman Principality of Antioch rebelled once again, attacking Cyprus and invading Cilicia, which also rebelled. The quick and energetic response of Manuel Comnenus allowed the Byzantines to extract an even more favorable modus vivendi with Antioch (in 1145 being forced to provide Byzantium with a contingent of troops and allow a Byzantine garrison in the city). [citations needed for all]

Second Norman Invasion of the Balkans (1147-1149) [light citation needed, bulk of current references listed in this section]
However, despite being distracted by a Cuman attack in the Balkans, in 1148 Manuel enlisted the alliance of Conrad III of Germany, and the help of the Venetians, who quickly defeated Roger with their powerful fleet. [needs citation]

Notes for Use

 * De Hauteville brothers joined Byzantine expedition to Sicily in 1038; when emirate proved difficult to conquer, many stayed with Constantinople’s emperor, but others (with Hautevilles) turned against Byzantines and defeated them a few times in the 1040s. (Homes 210)


 * William de Hauteville was named Norman count c.1042, takes Lombard Guaimar of Salerno as overlord, Robert Guiscard marries Lombard Princess Sichelgaita (Holmes 210)
 * 1080 Robert Guiscard swears fealty to Pope Gregory VII, not Emperor Henry IV (Holmes 211-212)
 * “Norman forces under Robert Guiscard began attacking Byzantine territories in the Balkans from their southern Italian lands as early as 1081 in what is known as the Battle of Dyrrhachium (Durazzo).” (Davis-Secord 216-7)
 * “Although the Norman invasion took place across the years 1060-1091, it would be another four decades before it was declared a kingdom and politically united with southern Italy by Roger II in 1130.” (Davis-Secord 214)
 * Roger II crowned king of Sicily, duchy of Apulia, principality of Capua c.1130; symbolic papal grant of lands in southern Italy and Sicily were key to Norman rulers’ pursuit of international recognition (Holmes 212)
 * “campaigns against Byzantine lands in the Balkans led in the 1080s by Robert Guiscard and his son Bohemond of Taranto, confirmed the Normans...as champions of the true faith...seen to be ‘fighting the good fight’ against schismatic Greeks.” (Holmes 212)
 * Alexius was fighting both the Turks and the Normans by 1081, may not have felt he had enough quality troops to handle both challenges at once (Shepard 72)
 * Guiscard sent thousands of silver coins from Romania, part of the empire in the Balkans, around first expedition 1081-2 or before his death in Cephalonia 1085. (Loud 824)
 * Roger II created unified kingdom of Sicily and southern Italy in 1130, which prompted the Papacy and Byzantium to form a sort of defensive alliance against their overarching enemy, Roger. (Rowe 115)
 * E mperor John Comnenus made two expeditions to Antioch in 1137-8 and 1142.
 * The legal basis for Byzantine claim to Antioch was established by the Devol treaty, which Alexius had forced on Bohemund (son of Robert Guiscard) in 1108 (Rowe 118).
 * Reaffirmation of East-West alliance (explicitly against Roger) by marriage of Manuel to Conrad’s niece in 1142 (Rowe 118)
 * Pope Innocent probably feared that the Greek intent to destroy Roger was just a preliminary attempt to reconquer southern Italy, which would have meant a loss of Papal suzerainty over the Normans, which would have been a serious blow to Innocent's power. (Rowe 120)
 * John Comnenus’ attack on Antioch prompted his “excommunication,” and Pope threatened any Latin who served in the Byzantine army with the same consequence. (Rowe 121)
 * Roger II crowned king of Sicily, duchy of Apulia, principality of Capua c.1130; symbolic papal grant of lands in southern Italy and Sicily were key to Norman rulers’ pursuit of international recognition (Holmes 212)
 * Roger clearly wanted Second Crusaders to go through his lands in order to use them against the Byzantines. However, the French rejected his offers of assistance, and instead went through Greek lands, realizing their crusade would be doomed from the onset if they sided with Conrad’s enemy, since they’d have to go through his lands; enmity with Papacy also disqualified Roger. (Rowe 123)
 * Emperor Manuel Comnenus likely agreed to allow the Second Crusaders to march through his lands out of fear that if they went through Sicily, Roger II would use them to attack. Manuel probably also hoped the crusaders would help defend the empire, as he tried to recruit Louis VII against Roger. Above all, Manuel's goal was to prevent the strengthening of Antioch. (Charanis 130)
 * William II died in 1189 without an heir, driving the kingdom into upheaval and eventual seizure by Hohenstaufen/Swabian dynasty (Davis-Secord 215)
 * Territorial gains from Dyrrhachium short-lived, but Norman leaders still became invoved in the broader Rome-Constantinople conflict as a result. While physical gain was limited, the legacy of attacks on imperial land last much longer; “hostile Greek sources showed the Norman crusaders raiding Byzantine lands again along the crusading journey and linked these attacks to Norman ambitions for greater power and the lack of trustworthiness among Normans as a whole.” (Davis-Secord 217)