The March of Genoa or Eastern Liguria was created in 961 by Holy Roman

Emperor Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...

. The formal history of the march began around 951 after Berengar of Ivrea became the king of Italy. At that time Berengar completed the reorganization of the military districts south of the Po River that was begun by his predecessor

Hugh of Arles Hugh of Italy ( 880/885 – April 10, 948), known as Hugh of Arles or Hugh of Provence, was the king of Italy from 926 until 947, and regent in Lower Burgundy and Provence from 911 to 933. He belonged to the Bosonid family. During his reign in ...

to defend against attacks by the Saracens from the sea. In doing so, he formed three new territories, for which he appointed margraves with loyal followers: * Marquisate of Turin, which came to be known for a short period as Marca Arduinica based upon Berengar's appointment of

Arduin Glaber Arduin Glaber (,'' Glabrione'', or'' il Glabro'', meaning "the Bald"; died c. 977) was count of Auriate from c. 935, count of Turin from c. 941/942, and Margrave of Turin from c. 950/964. He placed his dynasty, the Arduinici, on a firm foundatio ...

as the margrave. * Western Liguria, which came to be known for a short period as Marca Aleramica based upon Berengar's appointment of his son-in-law, Aleramo as the margrave. * Eastern Liguria, which came to be known for a short period as Marca Obertenga based upon Berengar's appointment of Oberto von Luni as the margrave. This territory was also known as the marca Januensis or March of Genoa as its capital city was Genoa. In 961, Otto invaded Italy and displaced Berengar. Otto then continued the work that had been done to reorganize the northwest into the three great marches. For the Marquisate of Turin (Marca Arduinica), Otto reappointed Arduin Glaber as margrave. For Western Liguria (Marca Aleramica), Otto reconfirmed Aleramo's titles and position. For Eastern Liguria (Marca Obertenga), Otto returned Oberto to his lands, with the title of count palatine. As originally configured, the March of Genoa comprised the modern counties of Luni,

Tortona Tortona (; , ; ) is a ''comune'' of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Spinetta Marengo, Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. Its ''frazione'' of ...

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, and Genoa. The march was originally held in the elder line of the

Obertenghi The House of Obertenghi were a prominent Italian noble family of Longobard origin descended from Viscount Adalbert III, first Margrave of Milan. History The family held the titles of Marquis of Milan and Genoa, Count of Luni, Tortona, Genoa ...

, descended from Oberto I. The title ''marchio'' became common in the family. Albert Azzo II was called ''marchio de L(a/o)ngobardia''. By his time, the march was often called the March of Milan or Liguria. His grandson, Obizzo I, became the first Margrave of Este in 1173 and was created "Margrave of Milan and Genoa" in 1184 by the

Emperor Frederick I Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aa ...

. From thereafter, the title of Este had more importance, especially with the growth of the commune of Milan and the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...

Margraves

Oberto I Oberto I Obizzo (also known as Otbert) (born around 910; died 15 October 975) was an Italian count palatine and margrave and the oldest known member of the Obertenghi family. Biography Oberto I inherited the countship of Milan in 951 from his fath ...

, 961–c.997 *Adalbert, c.997 *

Oberto II Otbert (Latin Otbertus, Italian Oberto; born around 940; died after 1014) was Margrave of Milan. A member of the Obertenghi family, he succeeded his father, Otbert I, as margrave after his father's death in 975, together with his brother Adalbert ...

, c.997–c.1013 * Albert Azzo I, c.1013–c.1029 * Albert Azzo II, c.1029–1097 * Fulk I, 1097–c.1146 *Obizzo I, c.1146–1193

Margraves

Further reading