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The Treaty of Orvieto was an agreement made in 1281 between
Charles I of Sicily Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) ...
, Giovanni Dandolo, Doge of Venice, and Philip of Courtenay, titular Latin Emperor, for recovery of the Latin Empire, with the blessing of the Papacy. Intended to restore Latin domination, both civil and ecclesiastical, to Greece, it was forestalled by the
War of the Sicilian Vespers The War of the Sicilian Vespers or just War of the Vespers was a conflict that started with the insurrection of the Sicilian Vespers against Charles of Anjou in 1282 and ended in 1302 with the Peace of Caltabellotta. It was fought in Sicily, ...
, which diverted the resources of Charles to the recovery of Sicily.


Background

Charles had long aspired to assemble a trans-Mediterranean kingdom. A younger brother of the French king, Louis IX, he had enlarged his
appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...
of Provence by agreeing to act as the Papal champion against the Hohenstaufen in 1263. He was rewarded with the Kingdom of Sicily as a papal fief, and almost immediately began to look eastward for further lands. With the defeat of
Manfred of Sicily Manfred ( scn, Manfredi di Sicilia; 123226 February 1266) was the last King of Sicily from the Hohenstaufen dynasty, reigning from 1258 until his death. The natural son of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, Manfred became regent over the ...
in 1266, Charles sent an army to
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares la ...
to seize the dowry of Manfred's wife, Helena of Epirus. This brought Charles into conflict with Emperor
Michael VIII Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( el, Μιχαὴλ Δούκας Ἄγγελος Κομνηνὸς Παλαιολόγος, Mikhaēl Doukas Angelos Komnēnos Palaiologos; 1224 – 11 December 1282) reigned as the co-emperor of the Empire ...
in the
Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...
theater. Baldwin II of Courtenay, then titular Latin Emperor, made a natural ally. Driven out of Constantinople by Michael VIII in 1261, Baldwin was practically penniless and desperate for aid to regain his empire. Charles agreed, but at a significant price: the two signed the Treaty of Viterbo in 1267, wherein Charles agreed to help reconquer the Latin Empire in exchange for the suzerainty of
Achaea Achaea () or Achaia (), sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia (, ''Akhaïa'' ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The ...
and other important concessions. However, the invasion of Italy by
Conradin Conrad III (25 March 1252 – 29 October 1268), called ''the Younger'' or ''the Boy'', but usually known by the diminutive Conradin (german: link=no, Konradin, it, Corradino), was the last direct heir of the House of Hohenstaufen. He was Duke ...
and the
Eighth Crusade The Eighth Crusade was the second Crusade launched by Louis IX of France, this one against the Hafsid dynasty in Tunisia in 1270. It is also known as the Crusade of Louis IX against Tunis or the Second Crusade of Louis. The Crusade did not see an ...
combined to delay any intervention by Charles. Under
Pope Gregory X Pope Gregory X ( la, Gregorius X;  – 10 January 1276), born Teobaldo Visconti, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 September 1271 to his death and was a member of the Secular Franciscan Order. He was ...
, negotiations for the union of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox Churches were initiated, and any move by Charles against Constantinople was forbidden. However, he was encouraged by the Pope to purchase the claim of Maria of Antioch to the
Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem ( la, Regnum Hierosolymitanum; fro, Roiaume de Jherusalem), officially known as the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem or the Frankish Kingdom of Palestine,Example (title of works): was a Crusader state that was establish ...
in 1277, to which he sent a
bailli A bailiff (french: bailli, ) was the king's administrative representative during the ''ancien régime'' in northern France, where the bailiff was responsible for the application of justice and control of the administration and local finances in h ...
to rule in his name. This was part of a papal strategy to preserve the Kingdom of Jerusalem by integrating it into a trans-Mediterranean empire allied with the French royal house, which would provide the necessary resource for the Kingdom's defense. In 1278, by a provision of the Treaty of Viterbo, the
Principality of Achaea The Principality of Achaea () or Principality of Morea was one of the three vassal states of the Latin Empire, which replaced the Byzantine Empire after the capture of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. It became a vassal of the Kingdom ...
also came under his direct rule. The accession of
Pope Martin IV Pope Martin IV ( la, Martinus IV; c. 1210/1220 – 28 March 1285), born Simon de Brion, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 February 1281 to his death on 28 March 1285. He was the last French pope to hav ...
, who was largely under Charles' influence, removed the last obstacle to Charles' ambitions. The new Pope declared the Union of the Churches a failure, clearing the way for Charles' plans of conquest. Like the Treaty of Viterbo, the new alliance against Constantinople would unite the arms of Charles and the dynast of the Latin Empire (now Philip of Courtenay, Baldwin II having died in 1273) under Papal sanction. Furthermore, the Venetians, who had played a key role in the Latin Empire but had not subscribed to the Treaty of Viterbo, were also to be brought into the alliance.


Provisions

Like the Treaty of Viterbo, the new treaty was signed in the Papal palace, which
Pope Martin IV Pope Martin IV ( la, Martinus IV; c. 1210/1220 – 28 March 1285), born Simon de Brion, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 February 1281 to his death on 28 March 1285. He was the last French pope to hav ...
had moved to
Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are comp ...
after
Viterbo Viterbo (; Viterbese: ; lat-med, Viterbium) is a city and ''comune'' in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in its early histor ...
was placed under interdict for imprisoning two
cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
s. Its stated purpose was the dethronement of the Byzantine Emperor
Michael VIII Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( el, Μιχαὴλ Δούκας Ἄγγελος Κομνηνὸς Παλαιολόγος, Mikhaēl Doukas Angelos Komnēnos Palaiologos; 1224 – 11 December 1282) reigned as the co-emperor of the Empire ...
in favor of Philip and the establishment of the Union of the Churches, bringing the Greek Orthodox Church under the authority of the Pope. Its practical motivation, however, was to re-establish the Latin Empire, under Angevin domination, and to restore Venetian commercial privileges in Constantinople. Under the terms of the treaty, Philip and Charles were to supply 8,000 troops and mounts, and sufficient ships to transport them to Constantinople. Philip, Dandolo, and Charles, or Charles' son, Charles, Prince of Salerno, were to personally accompany the expedition. In practice, Charles would have supplied almost all of the troops, Philip having little or no resources of his own. The Venetians would supply forty galleys as escorts for the invasion fleet, which was to sail from
Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Hist ...
no later than April 1283. Upon Philip's restoration to the throne, he was to confirm the concessions of the Treaty of Viterbo and the privileges granted to Venice at the founding of the Latin Empire, including recognition of the Doge as ''dominator'' of "one-fourth and one-eighth of the Latin Empire." A second document was also drawn up to organize a vanguard to precede the main expedition of 1283. Charles and Philip were to supply fifteen ships and ten transports with about 300 men and horses. The Venetians were to provide fifteen warships for seven months of the year. These forces would make war against Michael VIII and "other occupiers" of the Latin Empire (presumably the Genoese), and would meet at
Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek islands, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of G ...
by 1 May 1282, paving the way for the next year's invasion. The two treaties were signed by Charles and Philip on 3 July 1281. They were ratified by the Doge of Venice on 2 August 1281.


Consequences

A few weeks after the signing of the treaty, Pope Martin excommunicated Michael VIII. Provisions were duly made for the expedition, and a few skirmishes took place around Euboea. Nikephoros, the ruler of
Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinric ...
, also concluded a treaty with Charles, Philip, and Dandolo in September 1281. However, shortly before the expedition was to sail, the
Sicilian Vespers The Sicilian Vespers ( it, Vespri siciliani; scn, Vespiri siciliani) was a successful rebellion on the island of Sicily that broke out at Easter 1282 against the rule of the French-born king Charles I of Anjou, who had ruled the Kingdom of Si ...
broke out (30 March 1282). The resulting
civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policie ...
split the Kingdom of Sicily in two, and Charles spent the rest of his life trying to quell it. His descendants would continue to maintain an ever more tenuous rule over parts of the Latin Empire, but no grand expedition against Constantinople was ever mounted.


References

{{reflist 1280s in the Byzantine Empire 1281 in Europe
Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are comp ...
Treaties of the Republic of Venice Treaties of the Kingdom of Sicily 13th century in the Republic of Venice 13th century in the Kingdom of Sicily