Perceval Doria (born c. 1195, died 1264) was a Genoese naval and military leader in the thirteenth century. A Ghibelline, he was a partisan of the

Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...

in Italy and served the Emperor Frederick II and

Manfred of Sicily Manfred (; 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 Kingdom of Sicily on b ...

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

Romagna Romagna () is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, in northern Italy. Etymology The name ''Romagna'' originates from the Latin name ''Romania'', which originally ...

, the March of Ancona, and the Duchy of Spoleto.Siberry, 184. He was probably a member of the famous Doria family, whose name was originally ''D'Oria'' or ''da Otranto''. Between 1228 and 1243 he assumed the character of a ''

podestà (), also potestate or podesta in English, was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of central and northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a c ...

'' in several Provençal and north Italian cities, such as

Arles Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and Communes of France, commune in the South of France, a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Reg ...

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

Asti Asti ( , ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 74,348 inhabitants (1–1–2021) located in the Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, about east of Turin, in the plain of the Tanaro, Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and ...

, and

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

. In 1255 Manfred nominated him to the vicariate general of Ancona and in 1258 that of Romagna. With relations between Manfred and Pope Urban IV deteriorating, Doria was forced to put

Spoleto Spoleto (, also , , ; ) is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east-central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is south of Trevi, north of Terni, southeast of Perugia; southeast of Florence; and north of Rome. H ...

to fire and the sword in 1259. Five years later, in 1264, he led a small army of

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

and Germans against Charles of Anjou, who contested Manfred's throne. On the ensuing march he drowned in the river Nera di Narco near Arrone with his horse. Doria was also a troubadour of the Sicilian School, composing two '' cansos'' in Provençal" Perceval Doria, Poète italien, écrit en Langue Provençale " in Ulysse Robert, ''Histoire litéraire de la France ou l'on traite de l'origine et du progres, de la decadence'', volume 9, 1750, p.177 and table of matters as well as two poems in Italian. In one poem, entitled ''Felon cor ai et enic'' (1258/9), he praised Manfred's bravery and magnanimity. His other Provençal poem was a '' tenso'', ''Per aquest cors, del teu trip'', with Felip de Valenza.

Sources

*Bertoni, Giulio. ''I Trovatori d'Italia: Biografie, testi, tradizioni, note''. Rome: Società Multigrafica Editrice Somu, 1967 915 * Riquer, Martín de. ''Los trovadores: historia literaria y textos''. 3 vol. Barcelona: Planeta, 1975. *Siberry, Elizabeth. ''Criticism of Crusading, 1095–1274''. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1985. . * Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie, Band VII, Seiten 221-223, Professor an der Universität Strassburg Dr. Gustav Gröber, Max Pfister, Verlag Max Niemeyer, Halle 1883.

Notes

{{Authority control 1190s births 1264 deaths Military personnel from the Republic of Genoa 13th-century Italian troubadours

Perceval Perceval (, also written Percival, Parzival, Parsifal), alternatively called Peredur (), is a figure in the legend of King Arthur, often appearing as one of the Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Tro ...

Sicilian School poets Occitan-language poets 13th-century Genoese people