William I of Sicily.

William I (1131 - May 7, 1166), called the Bad or the Wicked, was the second king of Sicily, ruling from his father's death in 1154 to his own. Events 558 - In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses The following is a list of monarchs of Sicily. Counts of Sicily Sicily was granted pending its Christian reconquest to Robert Guiscard as "duke" He was the fourth son of Roger II and Elvira of Castile. Roger II ( 22 December 1095 &ndash 26 February 1154) was King of Sicily, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his Elvira of Castile (c 1100 &ndash 8 February, 1135) was a daughter of Alfonso VI of Castile by his fourth queen Isabel (perhaps identical to the Moslem His maternal grandparents were Alfonso VI of Castile and a concubine (perhaps wife) baptised Isabella, but born Zaida. Alfonso VI (before June 1040 &ndash June 29 / July 1, 1109) nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of

William's title "the Bad" seems little merited and expresses the bias of the historian Hugo Falcandus and the baronial class against the king and the official class by whom he was guided. Hugo Falcandus was an Italian historian who chronicled the reign of William I of Sicily and the minority of his son William II in a highly critical work entitled It is obvious, however, that William was far inferior in character and energy to his father, and was attached to the semi-Muslim life of his gorgeous palaces of Palermo. Palermo ( Sicilian: Palermu, Greek: Panormus, al-Madinah during Muslim rule is a historic City in

Early life

He grew up with little expectation of ruling. The deaths of his three older brothers Roger, Tancred, and Alfonso between 1138 and 1148 changed matters, though when his father died William was still not well-prepared to take his place. Roger III (1118 &ndash 2 or 12 May 1148) was the Norman Duke of Apulia from 1134 Tancred of Hauteville (c 1119 &ndash 1138 one of many of that name was the Prince of Bari and Taranto from 1132 to 1138 Alfonso of Hauteville ( Latin Anfusus) (died 10 October 1144) second son of Roger II of Sicily and Elvira of Castile

Kingship

The Kingdom of Italy as it existed at the ascension of William I of Sicily in 1154. The borders would remain virtually unchanged for 700 years.

On assuming power, William kept the administration which had guided his father's rule for his final years. Only the Englishman Thomas Brun was removed, and the chancellor Maio of Bari was promoted. Thomas Brun, also le Brun or Brown, was son or nephew of William Brun (first to bear the name Le Brun a clerk of Henry I of England. Chancellor or chancellour (archaic ( Latin: cancellarius) is an official Title used in countries whose civilization has arisen Maio of Bari (Majone di Bari Maion de Bari (died 10 November 1160) a Lombard merchant's son from Bari, was the third of the great Admirals The real power in the kingdom was at first exercised by this Maio, a man of low birth, whose title ammiratus ammiratorum was the highest in the realm. Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers Maio continued Roger's policy of excluding the nobles from the administration, and sought also to curtail the liberties of the towns. The barons, always chafing against the royal power, were encouraged to revolt by Pope Adrian IV, whose recognition William had not yet sought, by the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Comnenus, and by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I. Pope Adrian IV (or Hadrian IV – c 1100&ndash 1 September, 1159) born Nicholas Breakspear or Breakspeare, was Pope This is a list of the Emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly known as the Byzantine Empire by modern historians For the eldest son of Andronikos I Komnenos and father of Alexios I of Trebizond, see Manuel Komnenos (born 1145. The Holy Roman Emperor (Römischer Kaiser or Römisch-Deutscher Kaiser Romanorum Imperator was the elected monarch ruling over the many varying numbers of states Frederick I Barbarossa (1122 &ndash 10 June 1190) was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned

At the end of 1155, Greek troops recovered Bari, Trani, Giovinazzo, Andria, Taranto and began to besiege Brindisi. Bari ( Barium in Latin, Bàrion or Vàrion in Greek, Bare in Neapolitan Trani is a Seaport of Apulia, southern Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, in the Province Giovinazzo is a port city situated on the Adriatic coast in the region of Apulia, Italy. Not to be confused with Toronto. Taranto ( Ancient Greek: Tarās; Modern Greek: Tarantas) is a coastal city in Brindisi can also refer to a song in which a company is exhorted to drink such as the "Tea-Cup Brindisi" in Gilbert and Sullivan 's " The Landing on the peninsula, William's army destroyed the Greek fleet (4 ships) and army at Brindisi (May 28, 1156) and recovered Bari. Events 585 BC - A Solar eclipse occurs as predicted by Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Adrian came to terms at Benevento in a treaty of the same name (June 18), abandoning the rebels and confirming William as king. Benevento is a town and Comune of Campania, Italy, capital of the Province of Benevento, 50 km northeast of Naples. The Treaty of Benevento was an important treaty between the Papacy of Adrian IV and the Norman Kingdom of Sicily. Events 618 - Coronation of the Chinese governor Li Yuan as Emperor Gaozu of Tang, the new Emperor of China, initiating three centuries During the summer of AD 1157, he sent a fleet of 164 ships carrying 10,000 men to sack Euboea and Almira. For the mythological figure see Euboea (mythology Euboea ( Modern Greek, Εύβοια - Évia &mdash Almira Königin von Castilien or Der in Krohnen erlangte Glückswechsel (HWV 1 is George Frideric Handel 's first Opera. In 1158 William made peace with the Greeks.

These diplomatic successes were probably due to Maio; on the other hand, the African dominions were lost to the Almohads, and it is possible that he advised their abandonment in face of the dangers threatening the kingdom down from the north. The Almohad Dynasty (From Arabic الموحدون al-Muwahhidun, i In 1156, a revolt began in Sfax and quickly spread. Sfax ( صفاقس, Safaqis, or /sfaqs/ in Tunisian Arabic, whence the French name is a city in Tunisia, located 270 km southeast of Tunis Nothing was done to put it down. In 1159, the admiral Peter led a raiding expedition against the Saracen-held Balearic Islands with 160 ships. Ahmed es-Sikeli, known as Peter during his time in Christendom was a eunuch and Kaid of the Diwan of the Kingdom of Sicily during the reign The Balearic Islands ( Catalan and official Illes Balears; Spanish: Islas Baleares) are an Archipelago in the western Mediterranean He tried to relieve besieged Mahdia with the same fleet, but turned around just after engaging in battle. For the town in Guyana see Mahdia Guyana. Mahdia, Arabic: المهدية (al-Mahdiya is a Tunisian Peter did not fall out of favour, but no further assistance was sent to the Christians holding out in Mahdia and the city surrendered on 11 January 1160, ending the "African Empire. Events 1055 - Theodora is crowned Empress of the Byzantine Empire. "

The policy of Maio led to a general conspiracy, and in November 1160 Maio was murdered in Palermo by Matthew Bonello, leader of the Sicilian nobles. Matthew Bonnellus (Matteo Bonello or Bonnel was a rich knight of an ancient and influential Norman family who became the lord of Caccamo in Sicily The barons, however, had long been plotting to overthrow the king. Desiring a weak power on the throne, they had been eyeing the king's eldest son, Roger, Duke of Apulia, as a possible replacement for his father. Roger IV (1152&ndash1161 was the eldest son of William I of Sicily and Margaret of Navarre.

After the assassination of Maio, the royal palace was stormed by two of the king's own relatives: Simon, his illegitimate half-brother, whom he had dispossessed of Taranto early in his reign, and Tancred, his bastard nephew, the count of Lecce. Simon, bastard son of Roger II of Sicily, was created by his father Prince of Taranto in 1144, on the death of Roger III Duke of Apulia, the Not to be confused with Toronto. Taranto ( Ancient Greek: Tarās; Modern Greek: Tarantas) is a coastal city in Tancred (died February 20, 1194) was King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194 This is about the Italian city of Lecce For the football club see U The king was captured along with his whole family, his life being barely spared by one Richard of Mandra. Richard of Mandra was a Norman nobleman in the Kingdom of Sicily appointed count of Molise and Chancellor by the Queen regent Roger was then paraded through the streets and it was announced that he would be crowned in the cathedral three days thence.

William's sarcophagus. A sarcophagus is a Funeral receptacle for a Corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone

For a while the king remained in the hands of the conspirators, who purposed murdering or just deposing him, but the people and the army rallied round him; he recovered power, crushed the Sicilian rebels, had Bonello blinded, and in a short campaign reduced the rest of the Regno, avenging the rebel burning of Butera. Butera is a chain of Supermarkets in the Chicago area. Originally known as "Butera Finer Foods" then "Butera Market" and Sadly, during the initial assault on the palace, to release the captive king, the king's son Roger was killed by a wayward arrow (though Falcandus, seemingly ever-ready to impugn the royal character, has the king kicking his "faithless" son dead).

Later years

Thus freed from feudal revolts, William confided the government to men trained in Maio's school, creating a triumvirate: the grand protonotary, Matthew of Ajello; Count Sylvester of Marsico, who had inherited Maio's property; and the Bishop Palmer of Syracuse, elect, but not consecrated. The word prothonotary is recorded in English since 1447 as "principal clerk of a court" from L Matthew of Ajello (Matteo d'Ajello was a high-ranking member of the Norman court of the Kingdom of Sicily in the 12th century Sylvester (born c 1100 count of Marsico, was a Norman nobleman of the Kingdom of Sicily. Syracuse (Siracusa Sicilian: Sarausa, Classical Greek: / transliterated Syrakousai) is a historic City in His latter years were peaceful; he was now the champion of the true pope against the emperor, and Alexander III was installed in the Lateran Palace in November 1165 by a guard of Normans. Pope Alexander III (c 1100/1105 &ndash August 30, 1181) born Rolando (or Orlando) Bandinelli, was Pope from 1159 The Lateran Palace, sometimes more formally known as the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran (Italian Palazzo Laterano) is an ancient Palace of the Roman The Normans were the people who gave their names to Normandy, a region in northern France.

William died on May 7, 1166 and was interred in Monreale Cathedral. Events 558 - In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses Monreale ( Sicilian: Murriali) is a town and Comune in the Province of Palermo, in Sicily, Italy, By his wife, Margaret of Navarre, daughter of García Ramírez of Navarre, he had four sons:

1. Roger IV, Duke of Apulia (b. García Ramírez, sometimes García IV, V, VI or VII (died 21 November 1150, Lorca) called the Restorer Roger IV (1152&ndash1161 was the eldest son of William I of Sicily and Margaret of Navarre. 1152 - d. 1161).
2. Robert, Prince of Capua (b. Robert III (1153-1158 was the second son of William I of Sicily and Margaret of Navarre. 1153 - d. 1158).
3. William II of Sicily (b. William II (French language Guillaume II, 1155 &ndash November 11 1189 Palermo) called the Good, was king of Sicily 1155 - d. 1189).
4. Henry, Prince of Capua (b. Henry ( Arricus or Arrico) (1160 &ndash 1172 was the youngest and second surviving son of William I of Sicily by Margaret of Navarre. 1158 - d. 1172).

References

• Norwich, John Julius. Tancred of Hauteville (c 1119 &ndash 1138 one of many of that name was the Prince of Bari and Taranto from 1132 to 1138 The history of Taranto dates back to the 8th century BC when it was founded as a Greek colony Simon, bastard son of Roger II of Sicily, was created by his father Prince of Taranto in 1144, on the death of Roger III Duke of Apulia, the Roger III (1118 &ndash 2 or 12 May 1148) was the Norman Duke of Apulia from 1134 This is a list of Counts and Dukes of Apulia and Calabria in Southern Italy from the 11th century to the 12th century Roger IV (1152&ndash1161 was the eldest son of William I of Sicily and Margaret of Navarre. Roger II ( 22 December 1095 &ndash 26 February 1154) was King of Sicily, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his The following is a list of monarchs of Sicily. Counts of Sicily Sicily was granted pending its Christian reconquest to Robert Guiscard as "duke" William II (French language Guillaume II, 1155 &ndash November 11 1189 Palermo) called the Good, was king of Sicily John Julius Cooper 2nd Viscount Norwich CVO (born 15 September 1929) is an English historian travel writer and television personality The Kingdom in the Sun 1130-1194. Longman: London, 1970. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
• History of the Tyrants of Sicily at Patrologia Latina. The Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between
• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911 is a 29-volume reference work that marked the beginning of the Encyclopædia Britannica The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone
• This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913. The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia