Manfredi II Chiaramonte (c. 1300âÂÂ1353) was a Sicilian nobleman of the Chiaramonte family and Count of Modica. The son of Giovanni I "the Elder" and Lucca Palizzi, he became one of the leading figures of the kingdomâÂÂs "Latin" faction in the baronial wars against the Catalan party of Blasco II Alagona.
Manfredi was the second of his name in the Chiaramonte family, a powerful noble house of late medieval Sicily. He was the son of Giovanni I Chiaramonte, called il Vecchio (âÂÂthe ElderâÂÂ), and Lucca Palizzi, sister of Matteo Palizzi, Count of Novara.
Through his parents he inherited connections to two of the islandâÂÂs most influential baronial lineages: the Chiaramonte, established at Palermo and in western Sicily, and the Palizzi, with strongholds in the east.
He grew up in Palermo, where his father had established the family seat at the Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri, begun in 1307.
He had several brothers who later also played roles in Sicilian politics: Enrico, who became maestro razionale of the kingdom; Federico, later captain and justiciar of Agrigento; and Giacomo, associated with Nicosia. He also had a cousin, Giovanni II Chiaramonte âÂÂthe Younger,â son of Manfredi I Chiaramonte, from whom he would later inherit the County of Modica.
After the Sicilian Vespers (1282) the island (âÂÂKingdom of Sicilyâ or âÂÂTrinacriaâÂÂ) and the mainland (âÂÂKingdom of NaplesâÂÂ) were ruled by rival dynasties. In ManfrediâÂÂs career, Sicilian politics were further split between the baronial âÂÂLatinâ and âÂÂCatalanâ factions.
Sicily (Aragonese dynasty):
Naples (Angevin line):
The Sicilian Vespers (1282) split the old kingdom between the Aragonese on the island and the Angevins on the mainland. ManfrediâÂÂs career falls under Peter II and his successors Louis and Frederick IV. During this period the island was less threatened by Angevin attack than in Giovanni II ChiaramonteâÂÂs time, but was torn by internal strife between the âÂÂLatinâ and âÂÂCatalanâ baronial factions. As head of the Chiaramonte family and allied to his maternal uncle Matteo Palizzi, Count of Novara, Manfredi became a leading figure of the Latin party in its struggle against the Catalan leader Blasco II Alagona.
Manfredi emerges as an officeholder in 1337, when King Peter II appointed him royal majordomo and authorised him to act in place of his father as captain and justiciar of Palermo. The following year, on the death of the infante William of Athens (12 May 1338), he received the fief of Spaccaforno (now Ispica) as a legacy. When his father Giovanni I died in 1339, Manfredi succeeded to the familyâÂÂs feudal estates and the lifelong offices his father had held at Palermo, as well as to the dignity of seneschal of the kingdom.
The position of the family was further consolidated in 1342, when his cousin Giovanni II Chiaramonte, son of Manfredi I Chiaramonte, died. Manfredi inherited both the leadership of the Chiaramonte line and the claim to the County of Modica. Although this succession was contested by Giovanni IIâÂÂs daughter Margherita, Manfredi was able to assert his rights through earlier testamentary provisions and through financial claims arising from GiovanniâÂÂs captivity after the naval defeat at Lipari in 1339. The dispute lingered until 1347, but in practice Manfredi had already secured control of the county: on 25 May 1343 King Louis formally invested him as Count of Modica.
The royal investiture of 1343 placed Manfredi at the head of the Sicilian baronage. In the general levy of military forces that year, he was assessed at 150 onze for fifty armed horsesâÂÂby far the largest single contribution, and well above that of any other baron. With the unification of the estates of both branches of the family, his power extended across a vast territory. In the southeast this comprised the County of Modica, including Ragusa, Scicli, and Chiaramonte; in the west it included the paternal inheritance of Caccamo, Misilmeri, Racalmuto, Siculiana, and Favara.
From the Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri in Palermo, where he served as captain and justiciar, Manfredi exercised de facto lordship during a period of weakened royal authority. His brothers reinforced the familyâÂÂs position elsewhere: Federico as captain and justiciar of Agrigento, Enrico as maestro razionale of the kingdom, and Giacomo in Nicosia. At the coronation ceremonies in Palermo on 15 September 1342, King Louis created ManfrediâÂÂs eldest son, Simone, a knight and invested him with the title of Count of Chiaramonte (modern Chiaramonte Gulfi).
From 1348 the Chiaramonte were drawn into the civil wars that split the Sicilian nobility between the âÂÂLatinâ faction, led by Manfredi and his uncle Matteo Palizzi, and the âÂÂCatalanâ faction of the royal justiciar Blasco II Alagona. The Latin side quickly gained ground in western Sicily and advanced east to challenge the Catalans around Catania.
The campaign failed to produce a decisive victory. After setbacks before Catania and near Paternò, the leaders negotiated a settlement in November 1350 that effectively partitioned authority on the island. Blasco II Alagona remained grand justiciar, while Manfredi, Palizzi, and Alagona were recognised as royal vicars general; ManfrediâÂÂs brother Federico served as justiciar in the Latin-held regions.
On 13 December 1350 a revolt broke out in Palermo against ManfrediâÂÂs rule as captain of the city, led by Lorenzo Murra. Manfredi took refuge in the family palace, the Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri, while Murra assumed the captaincy of the commune; the rebels were supported by Francesco II Ventimiglia and Matteo Sclafani, baron of Adernò and Ciminna. Reinforcements from Caccamo led by ManfrediâÂÂs son Simone Chiaramonte and his cousin Manfredi III Chiaramonte entered the city, and on 25 January 1351 the uprising was bloodily suppressed. A contemporary chronicler, Michele da Piazza, even alleged the revolt had been staged to eliminate ManfrediâÂÂs domestic enemies.
ManfrediâÂÂs first wife is unknown. He later married Mattia dâÂÂAragona, a natural descendant of King Peter I of Sicily. They had one son, Simone. The family lived at the Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri in Palermo. In November 1353 Simone married Venezia Palizzi, daughter of Matteo Palizzi, at Messina in the presence of King Frederick IV.
In June 1353, already gravely ill, Manfredi made his will. He died soon afterwards in Palermo and was buried in the family chapel of San Nicolò la Kalsa. Simone succeeded him as Count of Modica and received formal investiture on 15 December 1353.