Enzo of Sardinia

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Enzo of Sardinia
King of Sardinia
Reign1238 –1249
Judge/King of Logudoro/Torres (jure uxoris)
Reign1238 – 1245/6 (de facto) or 1272 (de jure)
Co-rulerAdelasia
Bornc. 1218
Died14 March 1272
Bologna, Papal States
SpouseAdelasia of Torres
FatherFrederick II, Holy Roman Emperor

Enzo (or Enzio;

King of Sardinia' in 1238. He played a major role in the wars between Guelphs and Ghibellines in the Imperial kingdom of Italy, and was captured by his enemies in 1249. He remained imprisoned in Bologna
until his death.

Biography

Enzo was an illegitimate son of Frederick II by a certain Adelaide, possibly a member of the Swabian noble House of Urslingen and relative of Duke Conrad I of Spoleto. He was the eldest of the emperor's illegitimate sons and allegedly the favourite one. He had a pleasant personality, a strong physical resemblance to his father, and also shared his love for the arts. Enzo fought in the ongoing wars of his father with Pope Gregory IX and the Northern Italian communes of the Lombard League.

When

Gallura, covering the northern half of the island of Sardinia. He was created a knight in Cremona and granted the Sardinian royal title, last held by Barisone II of Arborea
in 1164/65. Enzo travelled to the island to marry Adelasia in October that year.

Coat of arms of Enzo of Sardinia

In July 1239, he was assigned as Imperial

Battle of Giglio in the Tyrrhenian Sea. His first successful move as military leader was the reconquest of Jesi, in the Marche, which was Frederick's birthplace. In May 1241 he was in command of the forces which defeated the Genoese fleet at Meloria, where he seized a large amount of booty and captured a number of ecclesiastics who were proceeding to a council summoned by Gregory to Rome.[1] Later he was captured in a skirmish against the Milanese at Gorgonzola, but soon released. In 1245 or 1246 his marriage was annulled. In 1247, he took part in the unsuccessful Siege of Parma and continued to fight the Guelph Lombards, assaulting Reggio
and conducting an assault in the surroundings of Parma.

During a campaign to support the Ghibelline cities of

Basilica of San Domenico in Bologna.[1] After the death of his half-brothers Conrad IV in 1254, Frederick of Antioch in 1256 and Manfred in 1266, as well as the execution of his nephew Conradin in 1268, he was one of the last of Hohenstaufen heirs.[4][5]

Basilica of San Domenico
, Bologna

Enzo shared the father's passion for

Yatrib. Like his brother Manfred, he presumably grew fond of poetry at Frederick's court: during his long imprisonment Enzo wrote several poems, two of his canzoni and a sonnet (Tempo vene che sale chi discende) are preserved. His fate and the fall of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was itself a source of inspiration for several poets, such as the Italian lyricist Giovanni Pascoli (Canzoni di re Enzio, 1909).[7]

The powerful

Bentivoglio family of Bologna and Ferrara
claimed descent from him.

See also

Notes

  1. Italianisation of Heinz, diminutive of Heinrich, German form of Henry.[1]
    In the primary sources, in Latin he is Ensius, Encius, Enzius, Entius, Hençus, Henzius, and occasionally Henricus.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Chisholm 1911.
  2. ^ Bedürftig Friedemann: p. 63 "Taschenlexikon Staufer"
  3. ^ Decker-Hauff Hansmartin: Band III p. 367
  4. ^ The last member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was Enrico (d. 1318), son of Manfred of Sicily and Helena of Epirus, as cited in History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages. Vol. 5, Part 2, by Ferdinand Gregorovius (2010) [1897]. Cambridge University Press.
  5. ^ However, the last patrilineal descendant of the family, albeit not possessing dynastic rights for coming from an illegitimate branch, was Enzo's great-niece, Giovanna di Stevia (1280 – 1352), a daughter of his nephew, Conrad, and grand-daughter of his half-brother, Frederick of Antioch (as referenced by Mario Carrara in Gli Scaglieri, Varese, Dell'Oglio, 1966).
  6. ^ Mühlbacherer Josef: p. 205
  7. ^ Lexikon des Mittelalters: Band III, p. 2030

Sources

  • Cioppi, Alessandra (1995). Enzo re di Sardegna (in Italian). Sassari: Carlo Delfino.
  • Ferrabino, Aldo, ed. (1960). Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani: I Aaron – Albertucci (in Italian). Rome.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Mühlberger, Josef. Lebensweg und Schicksal der staufischen Frauen (in German).
  • Sperle, Christian (2001). König Enzo von Sardinien und Friedrich von Antiochia. Zwei illegitime Söhne Kaiser Friedrichs II. und ihre Rolle in der Verwaltung des Regnum Italiae (in German).
    ISBN 3-631-37457-7
    .
  • Columbia Encyclopedia: Enzio.
  •  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Enzio". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 9 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 661.
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Preceded by
Giudice of Logudoro

1238–1245 		Succeeded by
none
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