Roger, count of

Andria Andria (; Barese: ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Apulia region of Southern Italy. It is an agricultural and service center, producing wine, olives and almonds. It is the fourth-largest municipality in the Apulia region (behind ...

and

Great Chamberlain Holders of the office of Lord Chamberlain of Scotland are known from about 1124. It was ranked by King Malcolm as the third great Officer of State, called ''Camerarius Domini Regis'', and had a salary of £200 per annum allotted to him. He ancien ...

of Sicily, was a claimant for the Sicilian throne after the death of William II in 1189. He is claimed by some to have been a great-grandson of

Drogo of Hauteville {{Infobox noble , name = Drogo of Hauteville , title = , image = {{CSS image crop, Image = Statue cathédrale Coutances Drogon de Hauteville.JPG, bSize = 607, cWidth = 235, cHeight = 247, oTop = 155, oLeft = 200, Location = center , caption ...

, but this cannot be proven. Roger, along with

Romuald Guarna Romuald Guarna (between 1110 and 1120 – 1 April 1181/2) was the Archbishop of Salerno (as Romuald II) from 1153 to his death. He is remembered primarily for his ''Chronicon sive Annales'', an important historical record of his time. Li ...

Archbishop of Salerno The Archdiocese of Salerno-Campagna-Acerno () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Campania, southern Italy, created in 1986. The historic Archdiocese of Salerno was in existence from the tenth century, having been elevated from a ...

, was sent by William in 1177 to attend discussions in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

following the

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Frederick Barbarossa 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 on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...

's defeat at Legnano—a victory in which Roger had participated—in the previous year. Together, the Sicilian envoys assented to the

Treaty of Venice The Treaty or Peace of Venice, 1177, was a peace treaty between the papacy and its allies, the north Italian city-states of the Lombard League, and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor. The Norman Kingdom of Sicily also took part in negotiations and ...

. Roger initially resisted the claims of

Tancred of Lecce Tancred (; 113820 February 1194) was King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194. He was born in Lecce, an illegitimate son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia (the eldest son of King Roger II) by his mistress Emma, a daughter of Achard II, Count of Lecce. H ...

in favour of those of

Constance Constance may refer to: Places * Constance, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Constance, Minnesota, United States, an unincorporated community * Mount Constance, Washington State, United States * Lake Constance (disambiguat ...

, daughter of

Roger II Roger II or Roger the Great (, , Greek: Ρογέριος; 22 December 1095 – 26 February 1154) was King of Sicily and Africa, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, became ...

, and wife of Henry VI, son of Barbarossa, though he was a candidate himself. He had most of the barons of the peninsula on side, but Tancred's chancellor,

Matthew of Ajello Matthew of Ajello () was a high-ranking member of the Norman court of the Kingdom of Sicily in the 12th century. His brother John was a bishop. Career He first appears as the notary of the Admiral Maio of Bari who drew up the Treaty of Beneven ...

, was spreading sordid tales of his private life and the count's support eroded fast. Roger joined with Count Richard of Carinola and Henry Testa, the

marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used fo ...

of Henry VI, and invaded

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

. They captured

Corneto Tarquinia (), formerly Corneto, is an old city in the province of Viterbo, Lazio, Central Italy, known chiefly for its ancient Etruscan tombs in the widespread necropoleis, or cemeteries. Tarquinia was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage s ...

, but at the siege of

Ariano Ariano may refer to: Places * Ariano Irpino, Campania, Italy ** ''Ariano di Puglia'' until 1930 * Ariano nel Polesine, Veneto, Italy * , Mesola, Emilia-Romagna, Italy * Ariano, Olevano sul Tusciano, Campania, Italy People * Ariano Fernandes ...

Richard, Count of Acerra Richard, count of Acerra (died 30 November 1196) was an Italo-Norman nobleman, grandson of Robert of Medania, a Frenchman of County of Anjou, Anjou. Brother of Sibylla of Acerra, Sibylla, queen of Tancred of Sicily, Richard was the chief peninsular ...

, tricked the count of Andria and captured him (1190). He executed him soon after.

Sources

''Annales Casinenses''.
Translated by G. A. Loud. * Norwich, John Julius. ''The Kingdom in the Sun 1130-1194''. Longman:

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, 1970. {{Authority control Italo-Normans Norman warriors 1190 deaths Counts of Andria Year of birth unknown