Principality of Capua

The principality of Capua was a Lombard state in Southern Italy, usually de facto independent, but under the varying suzerainty of Western and Eastern Roman Empires. It was originally a gastaldate, then a county, within the principality of Salerno.

Origins

Old Capua was an ancient Italian city, the greatest Roman city of the south. It was the centre of Lombard gastaldate in the duchy of Benevento, though of this part of its history little is known. It first enters history as a Lombard state under Landulf the Old with the death of the Beneventan duke Sicard. Landulf and his sons were partisans of Siconulf of Salerno. In 841, Capua was sacked and completely destroyed by Saracens in the pay of Radelchis I of Benevento. Landulf and his eldest son, Lando I, took the initiative in fortifying the nearby hill of Triflisco on which was built "New Capua": the Capua of today.

Pando the Rapacious declared Capua independent of Salerno in 862. On his death in the same year, the succession to the county was thrown into dispute. His son was deposed by Bishop Landulf who thus united the ecclesiastical and secular rule of the region as Athanasius was to do near-contemporaneously in Naples. Disputes over the bishopric and the countship befell Capua on Landulf's death and a civil war enveloped the principality between Pandenulf, the earlier deposed son of Pando, and Lando III, another grandson of Landulf I. Salerno allied with Lando and Benevento with Pandenulf. A succession crisis followed in 887 and Atenulf established himself and his princely status with the aid of the aforementioned Athanasius of Naples. Atenulf would try to avert future succession crises and to vindicate the independent pretensions of Capua à la those of Benevento and Salerno.

Union with Benevento

In 899, Atenulf I defeated Radelchis II and conquered Benevento. He declared Capua and Benevento inseparable and introduced the principle of co-rule, whereby sons would be associated with their fathers and brothers with each other, a principle soon borrowed by Salerno. However, all Langobardia minor was unified for the last time by Duke Pandulf Ironhead, who became prince of Salerno in 978. Before his death (March 981), he had gained from Emperor Otto I the title of Duke of Spoleto also. However, he split his great dominion between his sons: Landulf IV received Benevento-Capua and Pandulf II, Salerno.

Sources

• Chalandon, Ferdinand. Histoire de la domination normande en Italie et en Sicilie. Paris, 1907.
• Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani. Rome, 1960–Present.
• Oman, Charles. The Dark Ages 476-918. Rivingtons: London, 1914.
• Gwatkin, H.M., Whitney, J.P. (ed) et al. The Cambridge Medieval History: Volume III. Cambridge University Press, 1926.
• Norwich, John Julius. The Normans in the South 1016-1130. Longmans: London, 1967.