WI the lands of Matilda of Canossa stay united?

[Gonzaga]

For those who never read about her, Matilda of Canossa was an Italian countess who was the heiress of a huge territory in Italy, including Tuscany, Parma, Mantua, Ferrara, Reggio, Brescia and Modena. However, she was one of the main opponents of the Emperor in his conflicts against the Pope. After her childless death many of the cities ruled by had no successor indicated by the Emperor, starting the period of the city-states in Italy.

So, how could we keep her territory united after her death? Or, if you prefer, could the survival of her brother Frederick do it? And all those lands remain united, what could be effects for the development of Italy in Middle Ages?

Here a map of the territory ruled by Matilda from 1052 to 1115:

 

[LordKalvan]

The Great Countess (Magna Comitissa) is possibly my favourite historical figure: she signed an age, the age of the fight for the investitures and of the birth of the free town, the comuni: last daughter of a dinasty who claimed descendance from the Langobard dukes of Tuscia and the gratest Frank nobles, niece and cousin of the German emperors, strongest bulwark of the papacy in its fight against the empire. She was as successful in her role of feudal lady and patroness of the arts as she was unlucky in her family life (her father killed when she was 10, her only known daughter died just after birth, a very unhappy marriage with Godfrey the Hunchback of Lorraine, a worse one and never consummated with Welf the Fat of Bavaria. Recent biographers ascribe her unfortunate lovelife to a lifelong relation with Ildebrand of Soana, who became Gregory VII and whose sword and shield the great countess was always, against the empire and against the great Roman nobles, but in the end the legacy of Matilde did not survive her death).

I contributed to a Mathilde TL a few years ago (look up Tuscan Sons, by ShadowKnight): the POD was that the marriage between Mathilda and Godfrey was fruitful, two sons and two daughters, and there was no phisycal relation with Ildebrand (Matilde found love in the arms of Roger Curthose -who met her IOTL and actually proposed to her - had a daughter from him who later became duchess of Normandy and ultimately went to the 1st Crusade with Roger and died at the taking of Jerusalem). Politically she was even more successful: she befriended the cities against the feudal lords and the support of the cities allowed her to expand her domains even more. Her firstborn, Bonifacio (named after her father) became king of Italy all but in name. her second son was duke of Spoleto and carved a state in Outremer.

It was quite a good TL, if I say so, and I suggest you to have a look.

Today I'd do it possibly in a slightly different way: maybe the POD would be her father not being killed in 1052 during a hunt near Mantua: this pod would most likely butterfly away the early death of her brothers and would result in a strong feudal state in Italy (maybe too strong: even if it is not proven, it is most likely the Bonifacio of Canossa - nicknamed the Black or the Tyrant - was killed on orders of Henry III who was suspicious of this too rich and powerful noble who had married his sister Beatrice) and quite possibly into an early end for the HRE influence in Italy. A Bonifacio's POD would be simpler to manage (the weakness of Matilda was that the lands the Canossas had in fief from the empire could not be inherited by a woman) but would butterfly away a great historical figure.

 

[Janprimus]

A surviving margraviate of Tuscany and no or fewer city states, could delay certain developments. And maybe Italy/Lombardia and the German kingdom end up going separate ways, which could also be good news for the German kingdom. Not sure what would happen to the title of Holy Roman Emperor, if the king of Italy and the Lombards has it, then ambitious neighbours like the German kingdom and France might invade from time to time.

 

[SavoyTruffle]

As it was, keeping Italy divided was in the interests of France and the Emperor.

France especially once they had designs on Lombardy, the Emperor because he didn't want the power base to shift south.

 

[Gonzaga]

...

It was quite a good TL, if I say so, and I suggest you to have a look.

Surely I'll do it, thanks! I also consider Matilda one of the most fascinating historical figures of the Middle Ages.

Today I'd do it possibly in a slightly different way: maybe the POD would be her father not being killed in 1052 during a hunt near Mantua: this pod would most likely butterfly away the early death of her brothers and would result in a strong feudal state in Italy (maybe too strong: even if it is not proven, it is most likely the Bonifacio of Canossa - nicknamed the Black or the Tyrant - was killed on orders of Henry III who was suspicious of this too rich and powerful noble who had married his sister Beatrice) and quite possibly into an early end for the HRE influence in Italy. A Bonifacio's POD would be simpler to manage (the weakness of Matilda was that the lands the Canossas had in fief from the empire could not be inherited by a woman) but would butterfly away a great historical figure.

Maybe you are right, having her father living more time and avoiding the death of her brother would be easier. But as you said, she was a historical figure too good to be wasted. Maybe Bonifacio lives longer, but his son Frederick still dies childless, but before his death he had married Matilda to a man who could be an important ally: Roger I of Sicily. Would it be likely?

 

[LordKalvan]

Maybe you are right, having her father living more time and avoiding the death of her brother would be easier. But as you said, she was a historical figure too good to be wasted. Maybe Bonifacio lives longer, but his son Frederick still dies childless, but before his death he had married Matilda to a man who could be an important ally: Roger I of Sicily. Would it be likely?

It is almost ASBish that Matilda can marry Roger of Sicily, at least in first marriage. Consider:

• if Boniface dies as IOTL and Matilda is raised as a ward of the emperor, there is no way she can marry someone outside of the empire. The Canossa possessions are too rich and widespread and the emperor will want to exert as much control as possible over them. Therefore the first marriage would most likely be as IOTL, and it makes a lot of sense (in imperial eyes) to marry Matilda to the duke of Lorraine, since it would also be helpful to sort out in a way the claims over the duchy of Lorraine (Matilda's mother Beatrice had been duchess of Lorraine before her marriage to Bonifacio.
• if Bonifacio survives the ambush and mends his relations with the emperor (not easy given the paranoia of Henry III, but who knows) the political situation does not really change: the heir to the duchy of Lorraine is still the best bet. Maybe there can be some alternatives, but they must be searched for among the German great nobles supporting Henry III
• now suppose that Bonifacio breaks up with the emperor, maybe not in 1052 but soon after. His strategy is to secure alliances with the great German dukes, only this time the close supporters of the emperor would not be considered so attractive. Maybe someone from the house of Welf, dukes of Carinthia, who control the passes into Italy and the March of Verona.

The other issue is that Henry III is going to die in 1056, and I don't see why this should change. His son (Henry IV) is a minor, and a longish regency council has to be set up. If Bonifacio is still alive and in good graces at court he might be on the regency council (he would certainly try to, since it would be a great opportunity to strengthen even more his position). Once again Matilda becomes a valuable token in the great game.

From the point of view of Roger (who's busy conquering Calabria at this time), the Canossa are an unknown quantity, and I do not expect the pope to arrange a marriage within the empire as he did for his daughter Constance.
So the most likely thing is that Roger will marry some heiress from Normandy (as he did IOTL where he married the daughter of the count of Evreux), to keep up the ties with the old land.

Roger will be a widower by 1070 or so, and there are good possibilities that Matilda also might have become a widow, whomever she married. Assuming that the fight for investitures is on (which IMHO is not a given, in particular if Bonifacio is on the regency council and has a hand in the education of Henry IV) the pope (who might or might not be Hildebrand of Soana, but for the sake of simplicity let's assume he is) might see an advantage in a marriage between his nominal vassal in Sicily and a daughter of the house of Canossa (maybe even the heiress to the Canossa domains if Frederick dies prior to 1070 without progeny). I think that 1070-1072 is the earliest date for a possible marriage between Roger I and Matilda