Guglielmo Embriaco (Latin ''Guillermus Embriacus'', Genoese ''Ghigærmo de ri Embrieghi'',Gaitan Gallin, Ra Gerusalemme deliverâ, 1755, XVIII-43
/ref> English ''William the Drunkard''; born c. 1040), was a Genoese merchant and military leader who came to the assistance of the

Crusader States The Crusader States, also known as Outremer, were four Catholic realms in the Middle East that lasted from 1098 to 1291. These feudal polities were created by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade through conquest and political i ...

in the aftermath of the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic ...

. Embriaco is considered one of the founders of what would become the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

Biography

Embriaco was probably born in the late 1030s, but did not gain fame until he and his brother Primo di Castello landed at

Jaffa Jaffa, in Hebrew Yafo ( he, יָפוֹ, ) and in Arabic Yafa ( ar, يَافَا) and also called Japho or Joppa, the southern and oldest part of Tel Aviv-Yafo, is an ancient port city in Israel. Jaffa is known for its association with the b ...

in June 1099 with a squadron of galleys: two, according to the ''Annales'' of Caffaro di Rustico, and six or nine according to Raymond of Aguilers. The expedition was a private undertaking. He and Primo initially marched south towards Ascalon, but an Egyptian army forced them to march inland towards the Siege of Jerusalem, then in progress. The lumber from their dismantled ships was converted into

siege tower A Roman siege tower or breaching tower (or in the Middle Ages, a belfry''Castle: Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections''. Dorling Kindersley Pub (T); 1st American edition (September 1994). Siege towers were invented in 300 BC. ) is a specialized siege ...

s which were instrumental in the successful taking of the city on 15 July. It was there that Embriaco earned his sobriquet Caputmallei or Testadimaglio, meaning "mallet head". Embriaco assisted in the capture of Jaffa and then, with 200 to 300 men, at the Battle of Ascalon on 12 August, where he commanded a naval contingent offshore. Embriaco and his brother returned to Genoa with letters from

Godfrey of Bouillon Godfrey of Bouillon (, , , ; 18 September 1060 – 18 July 1100) was a French nobleman and pre-eminent leader of the First Crusade. First ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1099 to 1100, he avoided the title of king, preferring that of princ ...

and

Daimbert of Pisa Dagobert (or Daibert or Daimbert) (died 1105) was the first Archbishop of Pisa_and_the_second_Latin_Patriarch_of_Jerusalem.html" ;"title="717, Pisan and on 31 July 1725 Defender_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre_and_Latin_Patriarch_of_Jerusalem.html" ;"title="King of Jerusalem">Defender of the Holy Sepulchre and Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem">King of Jerusalem">Defender of the Holy Sepulchre and Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem respectively, describing the success of the Crusaders and the urgent need of reinforcements. They arrived in Genoa on 24 December. Embriaco was granted the title of ''consul exercitus Ianuensium'' — "consul of the Genoese army" — by the Compagna and sent back with a fleet of twenty six or seven galleys, four to six cargo ships, and three to four thousand men. He embarked, carrying the new papal legate, the cardinal-bishop of Ostia, on 1 August 1100. Upon his second arrival in the Holy Land, he met Baldwin I of Jerusalem, King Baldwin I at Latakia, Laodicea and together they planned a campaign against for the next spring. At Laodicea, he wintered and fought many skirmishes with the Saracen corsairs. In March 1101, he set out from Laodicea, evading a large Egyptian fleet near

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

, and landed at Jaffa on Easter Monday. He accompanied Baldwin from there to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

to celebrate Easter and visit the

River Jordan The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...

. The Genoese were promised a third of the booty of the campaign and they set out for Arsuf, which fell after three days on 9 May.

Caesarea Caesarea () ( he, קֵיסָרְיָה, ), ''Keysariya'' or ''Qesarya'', often simplified to Keisarya, and Qaysaria, is an affluent town in north-central Israel, which inherits its name and much of its territory from the ancient city of Caesar ...

held out until 17 May. A thousand Arab merchants who had taken refuge in the mosque paid the Genoese for their release and safety. In July 1101, Embriaco returned to Genoa after making a treaty with

Tancred, Prince of Galilee Tancred (1075 – December 5 or December 12, 1112) was an Italo- Norman leader of the First Crusade who later became Prince of Galilee and regent of the Principality of Antioch. Tancred came from the house of Hauteville and was the great-grands ...

. He met a

Byzantine fleet The Byzantine navy was the naval force of the East Roman or Byzantine Empire. Like the empire it served, it was a direct continuation from its Imperial Roman predecessor, but played a far greater role in the defence and survival of the state tha ...

in the Ionian Islands and landed at

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

to send ambassadors to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

. He entered Genoa in triumph in October. In February 1102, he was elected

Consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

, but that is the last recorded trace of him.

References

Bibliography

* Airaldi, Gabriella. ''Blu come il mare: Guglielmo e la saga degli Embriaci'', ed. Fratelli Frilli. Genoa: 2006. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Embriaco, Guglielmo 1040s births 12th-century deaths Embriaco family Christians of the Crusades Businesspeople from Genoa Christians of the First Crusade Military personnel from Genoa 11th-century Genoese people

Biography

See also

References

Bibliography