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Margraviate of Montferrat Marchesato del Monferrato (Italian) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 967–1574 | |||||||||
 The March of Montferrat (blue) in 1494 | |||||||||
| Status | March of theKingdom of Italy State of theHoly Roman Empire | ||||||||
| Capital | Casale Monferrato 45°08′N08°27′E / 45.133°N 8.450°E /45.133; 8.450 (from 1305) | ||||||||
| Common languages | Piedmontese | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Marquess | |||||||||
• 967–991 | Aleramo (first) | ||||||||
• 1550–1574 | William X (last) | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 967 | ||||||||
• End ofAleramici rule | 1305 | ||||||||
| 1536 | |||||||||
| 1574 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
TheMarch (alsomargraviate ormarquisate)of Montferrat was afrontier march of theKingdom of Italy during theMiddle Ages and a state of theHoly Roman Empire. Themargraviate was raised to become theDuchy of Montferrat in 1574.
Originally part of the March ofWestern Liguria (Marca Liguriae Occidentalis) established by KingBerengar II about 950, the area ofMontferrat was constituted as themarca Aleramica ("Aleramic march") for his son-in-lawAleramo. The earliest secure documentation of Aleramo and his immediate family is derived from the founding charter of theAbbey of Grazzano in 961, occasioned by the recent death of Aleramo's son Gugliemo.
After KingOtto I of Germany invaded Italy in 961 and displaced Berengar II, he continued, in a manner much like his predecessors to redefine the great fiefs of Italy. He continued the work that had been done to organize the northwest into three great marches. In the Eastern Liguria territory known asmarca Obertenga, Otto returnedOberto Obizzo to his lands and appointed him the margrave of the newly createdMarch of Genoa. In the Turin territory known as themarca Arduinica, Otto returned management toArduin Glaber and then in 964 Otto appointed Arduin margrave of the newly createdMarch of Turin. And finally in the Western Liguria territory known asmarca Aleramica, Otto confirmed Aleramo's titles and position and then in 967 Otto appointed Aleramo margrave of the newly created March of Montferrat.
Aleramo's descendants were relatively obscure until the time of MarquessRainier in the early twelfth century. About 1133 Rainier's son MarquessWilliam V marriedJudith of Babenberg, a half-sister of KingConrad III of Germany, and so greatly increased his family's prestige. He entered into the Italian policies of Conrad and the Byzantine EmperorManuel I Komnenos, setting aGhibelline precedent for his successors, and with his sons became involved in theCrusades.
MarquessBoniface I was the leader of theFourth Crusade and established theKingdom of Thessalonica in theLatin Empire ofGreece. Reuniting Thessalonica, inherited by Boniface's Greek sonDemetrius, with Montferrat became a goal of Boniface's Italian heirs, though nothing ever came of their endeavours.
In the thirteenth century, Montferrat became embroiled in the conflict between theGuelph and Ghibelline parties underBoniface II andWilliam VII. It had to wage several long wars against the independence-minded communes ofAsti andAlessandria and it became the standard-bearer of a renewedLombard League which was forged to fight the spread ofAngevin influence into northern Italy. The capital of Montferrat at this time wasChivasso, the centre of the margraves' power.
In 1305, the lastAleramici margrave died and Montferrat was inherited by the Greek imperialPalaiologos dynasty, who held it until 1533, during a period of diminishing territoriality. In that year, Montferrat was seized by the Spanish under EmperorCharles V of Habsburg, who restored it toFederico II, Duke of Mantua from theHouse of Gonzaga in 1536. His son MargraveWilliam X was elevated to a Duke of Montferrat in 1574 and the "march" ceased to exist as an entity, though it had already undergone the significant change from a feudal collection of frontier counties to one of the petty states ofRenaissance Italy, divided into two separated territories.
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