Otton of Braunschweig (Prince of Tarents)

Origin

Otton came from the Braunschweig-Grubenhagen branch of the Welsh dynasty - one of Germany's oldest and most noble families. The family estate of his family, the Duchy of ^{[K 1]} , was formed in 1292 as a result of the division of the inheritance between the three sons of the Duke of Braunschweig-Luneburg Albrecht I , inheriting his eldest son Henry I ^[3] . The eldest son of Henry I was Henry II , who in 1324 concluded an agreement with his brothers on the division of fatherly possessions ^[4] .

Otton was born around 1320 and was the eldest of the sons of Duke Henry II, his mother - Jutta of Brandenburg, daughter of Margrave Brandenburg of Henry I. Since Otton had several brothers, after the death of his father, he shared the clan possessions with them. As a result of several family divisions of the duchy between the descendants of Henry I of Braunschweig, Otto’s inheritance was insignificant: although he held the ducal title, the size of the personal feud in the Duchy of Braunschweig-Hrubenhagen made his prospects in the homeland very vague ^{[K 2]} . As a result, he decided to follow the example of his father, who spent most of his life outside Germany, and try his luck by choosing a career as a condottiere in Italy. Unlike many other condottieres, which were enough in Italy in the XIV century, Otton did not show unnecessary ambitions, was a man of honor and always remained faithful to his employers. Possessing military and diplomatic talents, he was able to occupy a prominent position in Italian politics of the XIV century ^{[6] [5]} .

Service at the Marquis of Monferrato and the King of France

Already in 1339 ^[6] or 1340 ^[5] Otton found himself at the court of the Marquis of Monferrato Giovanni II Paleolog , who was his relative ^{[K 3]} . At that time, in Piedmont, there was a constant struggle between various states seeking to expand their holdings. Giovanni II was drawn into a war between the rulers of Milan from the Visconti dynasty and the kings of Naples from the Anjou dynasty . Continuing the policy of his father , the ruler of Monferrato adjoined (at least at the beginning of his reign) the Visconti party. In the service of Giovanni Otton participated in this fight. In January 1345, the army under the command of the Anjou Seneschal captured Alba and began to threaten Monferrato. However, on April 22 of that year, near the castle of Gamenario, thanks to Otton, the Anjou were defeated, and their commander was killed. In 1349, Otton participated in the campaign of Giovanni II against Giacomo of Achaea , during the siege of Strambino he was seriously injured ^{[6] [5]} .

In 1351, he transferred to the service of the King of France, John II the Good . Nothing is known about Otto's participation in hostilities in France, but chroniclers report that in 1352 he had a duel with the Duke of Lancaster, Henry Grosmont . The reasons for this duel are not very clear. The English chronicler Henry Knighton reports that the Duke of Lancaster, returning from a campaign in Prussia , told the citizens and nobles of Cologne that Otton intended to capture him and deliver him to the king of France. Denying the charge, he challenged the Duke of Lancaster to a duel. Attempts to reconcile the opponents failed, and on December 4, Otton and the Duke of Lancaster met in a duel in the presence of the King of France, the Duke of Burgundy and several other representatives of the French nobility. The outcome of the duel is not exactly known. English chroniclers report that the Duke of Lancaster had the advantage, but the king of France interrupted the bout to save Otto from defeat. French chroniclers only report that the opponents have reconciled, but avoid the story of the outcome of the duel, which most likely confirms the English version ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

At the same time, Otto, with the help of the king of France, married the widow of King Mallorca Jaime III . This marriage brought Otton a great fortune and allowed him to recruit his own army ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

In 1354, Otton returned to Italy. He was present in Rome at the coronation of Charles IV of Luxembourg by the imperial crown. Then the emperor granted Otton possession in the in Provence , where he moved to occupy St. Lambert’s castle, which provoked the protest of . In response, Pope Innocent IV offered the emperor to cancel the gift, and as a result, Otton was forced to abandon the possessions. After that, he again appeared in the service of Giovanni II of Monferrato, helping him in the fight against Visconti and the Anjou. In this service, Otton proved himself as a good commander. Until the death of Giovanni, which occurred in 1372, he remained the most trusted associate of the Marquis, participating in various military operations and diplomatic missions. According to the testament of the Marquis, made a few days before his death, on March 9, 1372, Otton was appointed regent with the young sons of Giovanni. The second regent was Count Amadeus VI of Savoy . Otton’s ownership of a number of lens was also confirmed: Verolengo , Caluso , San Rafael , Castagnetto , Volpiano and Brandizzo . At the same time, the region of , where the courtyard was located, was to remain indivisible between the three sons of the Marquis and Otton ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

The death of Giovanni II occurred during the period when Pope Gregory XI and the main Italian states formed the League, trying to resist the expansion of powerful Visconti, trying to expand their holdings. In this situation, Otton tried to secure Monferrato a place in the political game. Immediately after the death of the Marquis, he went to Pavia to try to reach an agreement with Visconti, who claimed Asti. After the first refusal, Otton traveled to Avignon , offering Monferrato's participation in an alliance against Visconti. On June 17, 1372, through the mediation of the pope, Otton entered into an alliance with Count Amadeus VI of Savoy, according to which he pledged to pay 200 thousand florins to help Monferrato defend his possessions and redeem those lands of the marquise claimed by Visconti ^[5] .

Visconti's response came in July of the following year, when their army besieged Asti, but in August, with the help of Count Savoy Otton was able to achieve the lifting of the siege. Later he received from Emperor Charles IV recognition of Monferrat suzerainty over Asti: on December 6, 1374, three young marquises received the status of imperial vicars of Asti , Alba, and Mondovi . In addition, in 1373–1374, Otton, joining his forces with the Neapolitan army under the command of , participated in the struggle against Visconti in Piedmont: in August 1373, Centallo was returned, and in October of the same year, Vercelli . However, the inability of Visconti's opponents to effectively confront the dukes of Milan led to the fact that the war died out. In the summer of 1374, Bernabo Visconti tried to reconcile with Otton, offering him the hand of his niece (daughter of Matteo II Visconti ), but he refused this marriage, fearing to quarrel with dad ^[5] .

In the same period, Pope Gregory XI put forward the idea of ​​a marriage between Otton and the Dowager Queen , a relative of Queen Naples Giovanna I, to use Otto’s diplomatic and military capabilities to protect the Kingdom of Naples from the Turks. Although this plan was never implemented, soon a much more ambitious marriage project appeared before Otton ^[5] .

Queen Naples husband

In January 1375, Jaime of Mallorca , the third husband of Queen of Naples Giovanna I, died. Soon, the Queen realized that she could not resist the frequent uprisings of the Neapolitan barons. Apparently, Pope Gregory XI, who entered into an alliance with Niccolo Spinelli, the most influential of the barons of Giovanna, proposed a draft marriage with the Neapolitan Queen Otton. He possessed all the qualities that were required for the queen's spouse: he belonged to a noble family, one of whose representatives ( Otton IV of Braunschweig ) was even an emperor; during his long service the Marquises of Monferrato proved himself to be a good warrior and politician; in addition, he was known for his chivalrous spirit and great devotion, which excluded the possibility of rivalry with the queen ^[5] .

Otton signed the marriage agreement in Asti on December 18, 1375. For greater caution, a clause was forbidden in it, forbidding him to be crowned by the Neapolitan crown. In return, he was guaranteed the receipt of the Principality of Taranto , annexed to the crown after the death of Prince Philip II ^{[K 4]} . The marriage was concluded on December 28 in Avignon in the presence of the pope by the attorneys of Giovanna and confirmed by Gregory XI on January 2, 1376 ^[5] .

In February 1376, Giovanna sent several close to Nice to escort her husband to her kingdom. On March 25, Otton arrived in Naples, where the wedding was celebrated on the same day. According to the Chronicon siculum, on May 11, 1376, the queen granted her husband the county of Acherra , the city of Teano, and several castles in the kingdom. The Principality of Taranto Otton probably received only in 1380 ^{[6] [5]} .

On July 19, 1376, a peace agreement was concluded between Visconti and Pope Gregory XI, to which Monferrato, Savoy and Ferrara joined. To confirm peace between Milan and Monferrato, it was proposed to marry Marquis Otton III of Monferrato and Violanta Visconti , daughter of Galeazzo II Visconti . On October 18, 1376, the pope, who was traveling from Avignon to Rome , met in Genoa with Otton of Braunschweig to hold the necessary negotiations on marriage. After Otto accompanied Gregory XI to Orbetello , he returned to Naples ^[5] .

The new political situation associated with the hostile actions of Florence , which organized an uprising against the pope, again brought Otton into the political arena. In early March 1378, he, accompanied by Nicola Spinelli, went as a representative of Giovanna to a conference in Sarzana , in which, in addition to representatives of most Italian states, the envoys of the emperor, as well as the kings of France and Hungary , took part. The objective of the conference was to reconcile Florence with the papacy, as well as to restore order in Italy. However, on March 27, 1378, Pope Gregory XI suddenly died, after which the conference was interrupted. Otton and Spinelli went to Rome, where he met with the new Pope Urban VI , after which he returned to Naples alone ^[5] .

In September 1378, the conflict between Urban VI and most of the cardinals led to a church schism and the election of Antipope Clement VII . This event had serious consequences for the Kingdom of Naples. Initially, Giovanna enthusiastically accepted the election of Urban VI, who was a Neapolitan. However, she soon began to move away from him, going to the side of Clement VII. The reason for this turning point was called the embassy, ​​which Otton took in July 1378 to Pope Urban VI. Chronists report on the objectives of the embassy in different ways. According to one version, Otton asked the pope to crown him with a Neapolitan crown, according to another, he asked for the consent of the pope to the marriage of his ward Giovanni III of Monferrato , who replaced his brother Otto III after his death, with the heiress of Sicily, Maria of Aragon . However, the conflict between Giovanna and Urban VI occurred later, in addition, it is unlikely that Otto, who was betrayed to his wife, would demand for himself a Neapolitan crown. Most likely, he tried to reconcile the pope with a college of cardinals. Even if this attempt was unsuccessful, apparently, Otton has long been a supporter of Urban VI. Chronicler Dietrich of Nieheim claims that Urban VI was sympathetic to Otton ^[5] .

The defeat of Clement VII and his flight to France in the summer of 1379 predetermined the fate of Giovanna and Otto. 11 мая 1380 года Урбан VI отлучил Джованну и объявил её лишённой королевства, признав королём Неаполя Карла III Дураццо , который 1 июня 1381 года при поддержке папы начал войну против Джованны ^[5] .

В первой половине июня 1381 года Оттон с небольшой армией встретил армию Карла около Ананьи , однако после ожесточённой битвы был вынужден отступить в Ариенцо . Воспользовавшись этим, Карл, практически не встречая сопротивления, двинулся к Неаполю. Войдя в город, он осадил Кастель-Нуово , где укрылась Джованна. Будучи в отчаянии, она в августе 1381 года начала переговоры с Карлом. 24 августа Оттону удалось захватить Сант-Эльмо , создав угрозу вторжения в город, однако на следующий день его армия, в составе которой были его брат Балтазар и маркиз Монферрато Джованни III, была разбита. При этом Джованни III был убит, а сам Оттон попал в плен. Джованна также оказалась в плену у Карла и в 1382 году была задушена по его приказу ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

Recent years

Оттон провёл в заключении несколько лет. Сначала его содержали в Кастель-Нуово, потом он был переведён, по одной версии, в замок Муро , по другой — в замок Сан-Феличе. В середине 1384 года он получил свободу, но обстоятельства этого неизвестны. Версия одной из хроник, согласно которой Карл отпустил Оттона из-за данного тем ценного совета о том, как бороться против Людовика I Анжуйского , наследника Джованны и претендента на неаполитанский престол ^{[К 5]} , не кажется исследователям убедительной. Тот факт, что, получив свободу, он вместе с , капитаном умершего 20 сентября 1384 года Людовика I, отправился в Авиньон, где предложил Марии де Блуа , вдове покойного, и папе Клименту VII свои услуги, планируя захватить Неаполь для её сына Людовика II , опровергает это сообщение ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

Однако в Авиньоне прибытие Оттона не было встречено с энтузиазмом: внезапная смерть Людовика I и хроническая нехватка денег предотвратили вмешательство Марии и её несовершеннолетнего сына Людовика II, коронованного Климентом VII 21 мая 1385 года королём Неаполя, в борьбу против Карла Дураццо. Кроме того, Оттон просил Марию подтвердить пожалованные ему Джованной владения, в первую очередь Таранто. Хотя папа Климент VII был настроен поручить командование Оттону, Марии тот казался слишком лично заинтересованным в данной кампании, и она не скрывала своего недоверия к нему ^{[К 6]} . Другим источником конфликтов между папой и Марией был недостаток финансирования экспедиции. Однако 25 октября 1385 года папа назначил Оттону содержание в 500 франков , половину из которых должен был выплачивать сам Климент VII, а вторую — королева Мария ^[5] .

Переговоры Оттона с Марией и Климентом VII тянулись больше года, и только 3 октября 1386 года он был назначен генерал-капитаном анжуйской армии на 2 года. Кроме того, Мария подтвердила все пожалования Оттону, сделанные Джованной, и обязалась, как только Неаполь будет завоёван, пожаловать ему княжество Таранто или выплатить соответствующую компенсацию. На кампанию было выделено 32 000 флоринов. 14 октября Оттон принёс клятву верности папе, а 25 октября — королеве Марии, после чего отправился в Эг-Морт , откуда намеревался выступить на Неаполь ^[5] .

Момент был достаточно благоприятен для вторжения в Неаполитанское королевство: в феврале 1386 года Карл Дураццо погиб в Венгрии, его наследнику Владиславу было всего 10 лет, а вдова Карла, Маргарита Дураццо , регент королевства, из-за конфликта с Урбаном VI и спровоцированного папой восстания в Неаполе столкнулась с почти неразрешимыми проблемами. Поэтому когда в начале июля 1387 года Оттон со своей армией появился под стенами Неаполя, он практически без боя захватил город. Маргарита Дураццо с сыновьями бежала, укрывшись в замке Гаэта ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

Однако сложные отношения с Марией де Блуа вскоре привели к разрыву отношений между Оттоном и анжуйцами. Помимо того, что ему пришлось требовать отправку обещанных ему денег, королева отказалась передать обещанное по договору княжество Таранто, хотя он и выполнил свою часть сделки, захватив Неаполь. В итоге после назначения Марией в октябре 1388 года коннетаблем королевства Оттон посчитал себя оскорблённым, в результате чего в конце октября 1388 года покинул Неаполь со своими людьми и удалился в Сант-Агату . В дальнейшем он перешёл на сторону Дураццо, хотя произошло это, судя по всему, не сразу. Возможно, его подтолкнули к такому шагу флорентийский посол Заноби да Меголе и английский кондотьер Джон Хоквуд , посланные из Флоренции на помощь Маргарите Дураццо. Ценой перехода Оттона стало подтверждение Маргаритой пожалованных ранее Джованной I владений, после чего он сохранял верность партии Дураццо до самой смерти ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

В числе капитанов армии Дураццо Оттон появился в марте 1389 года. Однако попытка захватить Неаполь успехом не увенчались, и он удалился в свои земли. После возобновления военных действий против Людовика II Анжуйского он вместе с Альбериго да Барбьяно сражался на стороне Дураццо, однако во время битвы в 24 апреля 1392 года попал в плен к представителям семьи , самым яростным врагам Владислава Дураццо. Для своего освобождения Оттон был вынужден заплатить 28 000 гульденов , отказаться от Ачерры и пообещать в течение 10 лет не предпринимать никаких военных действий против Сансеверино ^{[6] [5] [8]} .

Последние годы жизни Оттон, которому было уже больше 70 лет, провёл в Таранто, не вмешиваясь в политику. Сведения об этом периоде его жизни достаточно скудны. Известно, что 20 марта 1395 года он назначил маркиза управляющим своих феодов в Монферрато. Последний раз Оттон упоминается 8 марта 1399 года: поскольку у него не было наследников, король Владислав пообещал после его смерти передать Таранто Раймондо дель Бальцо Орсини . Оттон умер вскоре после этого, вероятно, в апреле 1399 года в Фодже , поскольку уже 8 мая 1399 года Раймондо дель Бальцо Орсини получил инвеституру на Таранто ^[5] .

Наследников Оттон не оставил, похоронен он был в Фодже ^{[6] [7]} .

1-я жена: с 1352 Виоланта де Виларагут (ум. до 1372), дочь Беренгера де Виларагута и Сауры Мальоркской, вдова Хайме III , короля Майорки ^[7] . Виконтесса д'Омелас (1352/62).

2-я жена: с 25/28 марта / 25 сентября 1376 ^[5] Джованна I (ок. 1328 — 22 мая 1382), королева Неаполя, дочь герцога Карла Калабрийского и Марии де Валуа, вдова Андрея Венгерского , герцога Людовика Тарентского и Хайме IV ,титулярного короля Майорки ^[7] .

Детей не было ^[7] .

Comments

Sources

• . Otto der Tarentiner // Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). - Bd. 24. — Lpz. : Duncker & Humblot, 1886. — S. 682—685. (German)
• Otto der Tarentiner (нем.) // Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). — Berlin: , 1999. — Bd. 19. — S. 681 f.
• Brunswick, Ottone di (итал.) // (Hrsg.) (DBI). — Rom: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana , 1972. — V. 14 (Branchi–Buffetti) .

• Herzogen von Braunschweig-Grubenhagen (англ.) . Foundation for Medieval Genealogy. Дата обращения 20 мая 2012.