Boniface del Vasto (''c.'' 1055 – ''c.'' 1125) was the

margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the ...

Savona Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea. Savona used to be one of the chie ...

and

Western Liguria The March (also ''margraviate'' or ''marquisate'') of Montferrat was a Marches, frontier march of the Kingdom of Italy (medieval), Kingdom of Italy during the Middle Ages and a state of the Holy Roman Empire. The Margrave, margraviate was raised ...

from 1084 to ''c.''1130. He was the son and successor of Otto and of

Bertha Bertha is a female Germanic name, from Old High German ''berhta'' meaning "bright one". It was usually a short form of Anglo Saxon names ''Beorhtgifu'' meaning "bright gift" or ''Beorhtwynn'' meaning "bright joy". The name occurs as a theonym, s ...

, daughter of

Ulric Manfred II of Turin Ulric Manfred II ( it, Olderico Manfredi II; 975 992 – 29 October 1033 or 1034) or Manfred Ulric (') was the count of Turin and marquis of Susa in the early 11th century. He was the last male margrave from the Arduinid dynasty. Ul ...

. Boniface was a member of the

Aleramici The House of Aleramici were a medieval Italian noble family of Frankish origin which ruled various northwestern counties and marches, in Piedmont and Liguria from the tenth to the 14th centuries. History The founder of the family was William I ...

dynasty.

Marriages

As his first wife, Boniface intended to marry an unnamed woman who had been betrothed to his brother, Anselm, before his death. In 1079 Pope Gregory VII commissioned the bishops of Turin, Asti and Alba to convince Boniface del Vasto not to marry the woman, because her betrothal to his brother created a relationship of affinity between them. Boniface is sometimes said to have married Alice of Savoy, the daughter of Peter of Savoy. This is unlikely, however, since Boniface and Alice were first-cousins-once-removed (Boniface's mother Bertha and Alice's grandmother

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

were sisters), and thus far too closely related to be permitted to marry according to canon law. Boniface married a woman named Agnes, who is thought to have been the daughter of Hugh, Count of Vermandois.

Children

Probably with Agnes of Vermandois, Boniface had several children, including: *

Manfred I of Saluzzo Manfred I (died 1175) was the founder and first ruler of the marquisate of Saluzzo from 1142 until his death. Manfred was the eldest of seven sons of Bonifacio del Vasto, the ruler of scattered holdings between Savona and the Tanaro. He is first ...

*William, lord of Busca, and perhaps also

Lancia Lancia () is an Italian car manufacturer and a subsidiary of FCA Italy S.p.A., which is currently a Stellantis division. The present legal entity of Lancia was formed in January 2007 when its corporate parent reorganised its businesses, but it ...

*Hugh *Anselm, progenitor of the margraves of

Ceva Ceva, the ancient Ceba, is a small Italian town in the province of Cuneo, region of Piedmont, east of Cuneo. It lies on the right bank of the Tanaro on a wedge of land between that river and the Cevetta stream. History In the pre-Roman period t ...

* Henry, from whom the Del Carretto dynasty were descended. *Otto Boverio, margrave of Loreto *Boniface, 'the younger', bishop of Cortemilla *Sybil, who married

William VI of Montpellier William VI or Guillem VI (died 1161) was the eldest son of William V and his wife Ermessende, daughter of Count . William succeeded his father in the lordship of Montpellier in 1121, while still a minor, under his mother's guardianship. He suppres ...

Boniface was also the guardian of his brother Manfred's children:

Henry del Vasto Henry del Vasto (Italia: ''Enrico del Vasto''), died before 1141 was a son of Manfred del Vasto, margrave of Western Liguria, and brother of Adelaide, countess of Sicily (1089–1117) and Jerusalem (1112–1117) and of Boniface, margrave of ...

, who married Flandrina, a daughter of

Roger I of Sicily Roger I ( it, Ruggero I, Arabic: ''رُجار'', ''Rujār''; Maltese: ''Ruġġieru'', – 22 June 1101), nicknamed Roger Bosso and The Great, was a Norman nobleman who became the first Count of Sicily from 1071 to 1101. He was a member of the ...

, and

Adelaide del Vasto Adelaide del Vasto (Adelasia, Azalaïs) ( – 16 April 1118) was countess of Sicily as the third spouse of Roger I of Sicily, and Queen consort of Jerusalem by marriage to Baldwin I of Jerusalem. She served as regent of Sicily during the minor ...

, who was Roger's third wife. Following Roger's death, Adelaide married

Baldwin I of Jerusalem Baldwin I, also known as Baldwin of Boulogne (1060s – 2April 1118), was the first count of Edessa from 1098 to 1100, and king of Jerusalem from 1100 to his death in 1118. He was the youngest son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, and Ida of Lor ...

. Two of Manfred's unnamed daughters married Roger I of Sicily's sons from previous relationships, Jordan, Count of Syracuse, and

Geoffrey, Count of Ragusa Geoffrey or Godfrey was the second eldest son of Roger I of Sicily. He was probably a bastard, like his elder brother Jordan, but he may have been a legitimate son by either Judith of Évreux or Eremburga of Mortain. Either way, he stood no chanc ...

(who may have died before the marriage actually took place).Malaterra, ''De rebus gestis...'', IV.14, p. 93

References

* C.W. Previté-Orton, ''The Early History of the House of Savoy (1000–1233)'' (Cambridge, 1912), accessible online at:
archive.org
*Malaterra, ''De rebus gestis Rogerii Calabriæ et Siciliæ comitis et Roberti Guiscardi ducis fratris eius'', ed. E. Pontiari, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, nuova ed. v. 5.1 (Bolgna, 1927–1928). *R. Bordone, ‘Affermazione personale e sviluppi dinastici del gruppo parentalae aleramico: il marchese Bonifacio ‘del Vasto’,’ in ''Formazione e strutture dei ceti dominanti nel medioevo (Atti del I convegno di Pisa: 10–11 maggio 1983)'' (Rome, 1988), pp. 29–44. *L. Provero, ''Dai marchesi del Vasto ai primi marchesi di Saluzzo. Sviluppi signorili entro quadri pubblici (secoli XI-XII)'' (Turin, 1992). *

Giuseppe Sorge Giuseppe Sorge (1857–1937) was an Italian historian, prefect and director of the public security. He was born in Sutera, Sicily. Biography He came from a rich and distinguished family of Mussomeli. Son of Carmelo Sorce (1820–1896), admini ...

, ''Mussomeli dall'origine all'abolizione della feudalità'', vol. II, Catania 1916, poi Edizioni Ristampe Siciliane, Palermo 1982.

External links

Medieval Lands Project: Northern Italy, 900–1100.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasto, Boniface Del 11th-century births 1125 deaths 11th-century Italian nobility 12th-century Italian nobility

Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations o ...

Marquisate of Saluzzo