Berard of Castagna
Berard of Castagna (c. 1172 – 8 September 1252) was a prelate and diplomat of the
Origins and early life
Berard was born between about 1167 and 1177.
In 1198, Berard was in the following of Counts Gentile and Manerio of Manoppello when they founded a hospital at
Archbishop of Bari
Berard succeeded Doferius as archbishop of Bari in the latter half of 1207 and was consecrated by the papal legate Gregorio de Galgano . His first two years in Bari are obscure. No document records his activities prior to July 1209.[2] That month, Frederick II granted the archdiocese two plots for building and the casalis of Laterza. In September 1209, the lord of Bitritto, in the presence of the papal legate, handed over the castle of Bitritto to the archbishop. This grant was confirmed by Frederick II in July 1210.[5]
In the fall of 1212, Berard accompanied Frederick to Germany as papal legate during the dispute over the German throne.[6] On 10 September 1213, Pope Innocent III transferred him to the vacant see of Palermo, which, since it was the capital of the kingdom, was effectively a promotion.[5]
Archbishop of Palermo
Berard attended the
Berard played an important role in the negotiations that preceded the
Berard embarked with Frederick on the Sixth Crusade at Brindisi in June 1229, in spite of the emperor's excommunication.[2] After the Treaty of Jaffa, he followed Frederick to Jerusalem and assisted at his coronation in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.[10] He was present with Frederick when the Treaty of San Germano ending the War of the Keys was publicly confirmed on 23 July 1230, paving the way for Frederick's absolution.[5]
In 1235, Berard accompanied Frederick from Palermo to Fano before going on to Perugia to confer with Pope Gregory IX while the emperor returned to Germany.[5] At Fano in April, Berard was appointed to the Sicilian regency council along with Thomas of Aquino, James of Capua, Peter of Ravello and Henry of Morra.[11] In December 1238, Berard escorted the Empress Isabella of England to Lombardy and in February 1240 he escorted her back to Sicily. Frederick's dispute with the papacy was ongoing. In 1238, Berard twice visited Gregory IX, once at Anagni and once at Rome, in an effort to maintain the peace. He failed and Gregory excommunicated Frederick on 20 March 1239.[5]
After the election of
Berard was Frederick's representative at the
Berard was a witness to Frederick's last will, drawn up at Fiorentino in 1250.[5] He was present at Frederick's deathbed and absolved him before his death on 13 December.[15] He brought his body back to Palermo for burial in the cathedral. On 27 January 1251, Innocent IV reprimanded Berard and ordered him to cooperate with the papal legate being sent to Sicily.[5]
Berard did not respond to the papal letter and the legate, Marino Filangieri, died in July.[2] A document from August shows that Berard was still regarded as a familiaris—a member of the royal household—of Frederick's successor, Conrad IV.[16] He died on 8 September 1252 at Palermo.[10] More a politician than a pastor, his episcopate was characterized by an extreme closeness to Frederick and unwavering loyalty in the face of papal opposition.[5]
Notes
- ^ Pispiso 2005 describes him as between about 30 and 40 years of age at the time of his election in 1207.
- ^ a b c d Pispiso 2005.
- ^ Pispiso 2005 outlines the history and uncertainty of the name, which was at times transformed into de Costaca and de Costa, or Italianized di Castacca. The English form "Berard of Castagna" can be found in Kamp 2002, p. 203.
- ^ Kamp 1975a, p. 578; Pispiso 2005.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Pratesi 1966.
- ^ Pratesi 1966; Van Cleve 1972, pp. 81–83.
- ^ Pixton 1995, p. 5.
- ^ a b Takayama 2010, pp. 173–174.
- Ibn Kathīr.
- ^ a b Pratesi 1966; Pispiso 2005.
- ^ Van Cleve 1972, p. 376.
- ^ Pratesi 1966; Whalen 2019, pp. 136–137.
- ^ Pratesi 1966; Whalen 2019, p. 161.
- ^ Whalen 2019, pp. 181–182.
- ^ Abulafia 1988, p. 407; Van Cleve 1972, p. 527.
- ^ Kamp 1975b, p. 1137.
Bibliography
- Abulafia, David (1988). Frederick II: A Medieval Emperor. Allen Lane.
- Kamp, Norbert [in German] (1975a). Kirche und Monarchie im staufischen Königreich Sizilien, 1: Prosopographische Grundlegung: Bistümer und Bischöfe des Königreichs 1194–1266, 2: Apulien. Wilhelm Fink.
- Kamp, Norbert (1975b). Kirche und Monarchie im staufischen Königreich Sizilien, 1: Prosopographische Grundlegung: Bistümer und Bischöfe des Königreichs 1194–1266, 3: Sizilien. Wilhelm Fink.
- Kamp, Norbert (2002). "The Bishops of Southern Italy in the Norman and Staufen Periods". In G. A. Loud; A. Metcalfe (eds.). The Society of Norman Italy. Brill. pp. 185–209.
- Matthew, Donald (1992). The Norman Kingdom of Sicily. Cambridge University Press.
- Pispiso, Enrico (2005). "Berardo di Castagna (di Castacca)". Federiciana: Enciclopedia fridericiana. Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana.
- Pixton, Paul B. (1995). The German Episcopacy and the Implementation of the Decrees of the Fourth Lateran Council, 1216–1245: Watchmen on the Tower. E. J. Brill. ISBN 9789004102620.
- ISBN 978-8-81200032-6.
- Takayama, Hiroshi (2010). "Frederick II's Crusade: An Example of Christian–Muslim Diplomacy". Mediterranean Historical Review. 25 (2): 169–185. S2CID 162571360.
- Van Cleve, Thomas C. [in French] (1972). The Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen: Immutator Mundi. Clarendon Press.
- Whalen, Brett Edward (2019). The Two Powers: The Papacy, the Empire, and the Struggle for Sovereignty in the Thirteenth Century. University of Pennsylvania Press.
External links
- Federico Messana, Berardo di Castacca, at Stupor Mundi.