Albertino Morosini

For the earlier namesake, see Albertino Morosini (Podestà of Constantinople).

Albertino Morosini was a Venetian nobleman and statesman of the late 13th and early 14th centuries. He was elected governor (podestà) of the Republic of Pisa until his defeat and capture by the Genoese at the Battle of Meloria in 1284. He served in high offices in the Venetian Republic, including as bailo in Acre and Duke of Crete, where he confronted the Revolt of Alexios Kallergis. After 1290 was mostly active in the Kingdom of Hungary, where the son of his sister Tomasina became King Andrew III. Albertino entered the high Hungarian nobility, and was created Duke of Slavonia and Count of Požega, as well as being given a claim to the Hungarian succession. Nothing is known of him after November 1305, when he likely died.

Life

Early life in Venetian service

Albertino Morosini's early life is obscure. He was likely born in the 1230s or early 1240s. His father was Michele Morosini, who served as governor (podestà) of Faenza in 1240, and his mother was Agnese Corner, of the "dalla Sbarra" branch of the House of Corner. He had two sisters, Geneure and Tommasina. A number of brothers—Paolo, Giovanni, Marino, Tomasso, and Albano—are also ascribed to this family by later Venetian genealogies, but no documentary evidence has emerged to support this.

Albertino Morosini is first attested as a member of the Great Council of Venice in 1261. He held a seat there several times until 1283, a testament to the prominence and wealth of his family. In 1274–1276, he also served as the Venetian governor of Zara (Count of Zara) in Dalmatia. During his tenure, he promoted agricultural reform and the cultivation of abandoned land. In August 1274 he helped bring about a treaty between Venice and the piratical town of Almissa, aided by the pressure put on the town by the anti-piracy campaigns launched by Charles I of Anjou. In 1277–1278, Morosini served as the Venetian representative (bailo) in Acre. With the help of the Templar Knights, he concluded a treaty with the Lordship of Tyre in July 1277. The agreement restored the Venetian community and privileges in Tyre that had been abolished in 1257 as a result of the War of Saint Sabas, and was, in part at least, also directed against the ambitious Charles I of Anjou, who in the same year had acquired the title of King of Jerusalem and sought to extend his influence of the Christian states of the Levant.

In 1278–1279 Morosini served in the Great Council. In 1280–1281 he served as podestà of Treviso, concluding a treaty with Venice over the division of estates in San Cataldo. He was elected to another tenure in the Great Council in 1283, and participated in a special commission for the revision of the 1277 agreement with Tyre. Morosini was then elected podestà of Chioggia, but his tenure was cut short when he was elected podestà of the Republic of Pisa in January 1284.

Podestà of Pisa and further career in Venice

The Battle of Meloria, from a 14th-century illuminated chronicle

Morosini arrived in Pisa in March, accompanied by his son, Marino (erroneously called Martino by the Pisan sources). Morosini's election came at a time of rising tensions between Pisa and its rival, the Republic of Genoa. In June, Morosini was appointed 'lord-general of the war at sea' against Genoa, while Marino undertook to serve as his deputy in the governance of the city. The choice of Morosini by the Pisans has been the subject of considerable debate among medieval and modern historians. Most consider it a means by the Pisans for securing Venetian backing against the Genoese, who were also rivals of Venice. In view of the eventual conflict, the opinion has been voiced that he was selected for naval expertise, but nothing in his prior career points to that. At the same time, his appointment was part of a trend of central and northern Italian communes selecting Venetians as their podestàs.

In summer of the same year, Morosini led a Pisan fleet of 72 galleys in a surprise attack against the Genoese. The endeavour failed due to bad weather, and the Pisans moved towards the French coast, before turning back east and making for their home port. At the island of Meloria, off the Tuscan coast, the Pisan fleet met their Genoese rivals, with 66 galleys. In the ensuing battle, the Genoese received reinforcements of further 30 vessels, securing a crushing victory: 10,000 prisoners were taken, including a wounded Morosini. Venice sent an embassy to Genoa on 19 August, pleasing for his release; the Genoese complied, in exchange for an oath that he would not return to Pisa. His son, Marino, remained as deputy podestà in the city until Ugolino della Gherardesca replaced him on 18 October.

Back in Venice, Morosini resumed his seat in the Great Council. In 1285, he was involved in the ratification of a peace treaty with the Byzantine Empire. In 1289 he was sent to Crete as its governor (Duke of Crete), confronting the Revolt of Alexios Kallergis. In the second half of 1290 he was again podestà of Chioggia.

Later life in Hungary

Albertino's sister, Tommasina Morosini, with her son Andrew III, King of Hungary

Morosini's sister Tommasina had married in second marriage Stephen, the posthumous son of King Andrew II of Hungary (r. 1205–1235), who lived in exile in Italy. The couple had a son, also named Andrew, and when Stephen died in 1272, Albertino took over as Andrew's guardian. Among other affairs, he ensured Andrew's rights to the inheritance of Stephen's first wife, Isabella Traversari, daughter of a powerful Ravennate family.

In 1290, Andrew became King of Hungary as Andrew III (r. 1290–1301), an event which drastically changed Morosini's fortunes. In 1292, he was accorded the status of a Hungarian nobleman, and in the next year, his niece Constanza married Stefan Vladislav II (r. 1316–1325), the son and heir of the King of Syrmia, Stefan Dragutin (r. 1282–1316). Following the death of Tommasina, Andrew III also raised Albertino Morosini to the Duchy of Slavonia and the County of Požega in 1299, as well as naming him heir after his own sons. Andrew's death in 1301, and the subsequent interregnum and civil war over the Hungarian crown rendered Morosini's influence and rights more theoretical than real, although he took care to have them confirmed by papal legate Niccolò Boccasini (future Pope Benedict XI) and even repeated them in his testament. This testament, dated 3 November 1305, is the last information about Morosini, who probably died soon after. His tomb is in the church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice.

Family

Albertino Morosini was married to a Marchesina, of unknown family. The couple had four children: two sons, Michele and Marino (who had died by 1305), and two daughters, Cubitosa and Caterina. Albertino also had a natural daughter, Tommasina.

Sources

• Jacoby, David (2015). "The Venetian Presence in the Crusader Lordship of Tyre: A Tale of Decline". In Boas, Adrian J. (ed.). The Crusader World. Venice: Routledge. pp. 181–195. ISBN 978-0-415-82494-1.
• Salvatori, Enrica (2012). "MOROSINI, Albertino". Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Volume 77: Morlini–Natolini (in Italian). Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. ISBN 978-8-81200032-6.