Manfred's Imperial Ambition

After Manfred of Sicily (née Lancia) was excommunicated by the pope in 1254, he handled it in two ways. The first was to talk to the pope and resolve whatever issue the pope had. This led to Manfred accepting the title of Papal vicar for southern Italy, acknowledging that the papacy had authority over the territory. Pope Innocent IV lifted the excommunication.

The second way was to reject the idea that he was "under" the pope. He went to the Muslims of Lucera for support, and with them he defeated a papal army on 2 December 1254 in Foggia, essentially declaring publicly that he intended to rule the Regno (southern Italy and Sicily).

He also gave German troops to aid the Ghibellines, the group that supported imperial power over papal power. This helped the Ghibellines take over Tuscany and Siena. They went on to defeat Florence.

Pope Innocent IV died, succeeded by Pope Alexander IV, who immediately excommunicated Manfred. Manfred, however, continued in his successful quest to put down any rebellions against his authority and firmly establish himself as the ruler of the Regno. He was still at this point considered the regent of young Conradin, the rightful King of Sicily.

In August 1258, a rumor that Conradin was dead led Manfred to have himself crowned King of Sicily (illustration). It turned out the rumor was false, but everyone was content to have an adult with clear military might be their king.

Pope Alexander declared the coronation invalid, but Manfred carried on anyway, ignoring the demands of Conradin's envoys to abdicate. He decided to gain more power. One step was to find political alliances through the marriages of his children. His daughter Constance of Sicily (named for Frederick II's mother) married the son of King James I of Aragon, Peter, who became King Peter III of Aragon in 1276, making her queen consort of Aragon.

Manfred also used his Ghibelline connections to gain more power in the north of Italy. This would mean the Papal States were surrounded on all sides by the power-hungry man who ignored excommunications and seemed to be trying to create for himself the power of his father Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II. A Mediterranean empire was possible under Manfred. Something had to be done, and along came Pope Urban IV to try to stop Manfred.

We will see how that worked tomorrow.