War
war between Milan and Como (1118–1127)
The war of Milan against Como, sometimes called the 10-Year War, was a conflict over the control of Insubria, Brianza and Valtellina in the early 12th century, fought between the comuni of Milan and Como. It resulted in the defeat and destruction of the latter, cementing Milan's position as the dominant power in Lombardy.
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Text from the Wikipedia article “Milan Como War”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
The war of Milan against Como, sometimes called the 10-Year War, was a conflict over the control of Insubria, Brianza and Valtellina in the early 12th century, fought between the comuni of Milan and Como. It resulted in the defeat and destruction of the latter, cementing Milan's position as the dominant power in Lombardy.
At the beginning of the 12th century the two comuni of Milan and Como had been rivals for many decades, especially for ecclesiastical and commercial disputes. Although Milan was a prominent trading power, the territory under its direct control was limited to the city itself and to a small strip of countryside beyond the walls. The Milanese merchants, therefore, had to pay heavy duties every time they went to trade in nearby cities. Como, in addition to being itself a thriving trading city and therefore a competitor, was located on the road that connected the Lombard capital to Switzerland through the passes of Lucomagno, Spluga and Settimo. Milan also aimed at freeing itself from the control of the Holy Roman emperor, and the possession of Lake Como and Canton Ticino could guarantee relative security in this sense, preventing any armed incursions from Germany. Como resented the fact that part of the eastern branch of the lake, the town of Lecco and the countryside of the Martesana, were under the influence of Milan. In fact, as early as the middle of the 11th century, the Milanese municipality had striven to gain autonomy from the Holy Roman Empire and, formally, Como depended on Milan. The political affirmation of Como could therefore only pass through an alliance with the Imperial government and with the reduction of the power of Milan.
A considerable role was also played by ecclesiastical matters. The Diocese of Como had dissolved its ties with the Archdiocese of Milan at the time of the tricapitoline schism in 607, becoming subordinated to the patriarchate of Aquileia. The bishop Ariberto da Intimiano, who died in 1045, had ruled the Milanese archdiocese from 1018 and had supported the claims of the emperor Henry IV against pope Gregory VII during the investiture controversy, up to the Humiliation of Canossa. Conversely, the bishop of Como Rainaldo had always maintained a pro-papal attitude, attracting the antipathies of most of the Lombard bishops and ending up imprisoned twice. Towards the end of 1083 he was released from his second imprisonment, served in Rome, but he had to renounce the bishopric and retired to Nesso, where he died the following year.
In 1094 the Emperor Henry IV of Franconia, who had claimed for himself the right to appoint bishops in dispute with Pope Gregory VII, appointed Ariberto (or Eriberto) de Amatia from Venosta, whose family were the feudal lords of Bormio. The new bishop died in 1096, and in his place the emperor appointed the deacon Landolfo da Carcano, who was consecrated by Federico di Moravia, Patriarch of Aquileia. Landolfo, hailing from a noble Milanese family, was considered an expression of the interests of his city and he was accused of simonia and not recognized as legitimate by the citizens and the clergy of Como. When Pope Urban II arrived in Como in the same year to consecrate the new cathedral of Sant'Abbondio, he canceled the imperial appointment by renewing the accusation of simonia to Landolfo, and called a new election. The clergymen of the Como Cathedral elected in his place Guido Grimoldi (or Guidone), a native of Cavallasca, archpriest of the Basilica di Sant'Abbondio and member of the local nobility.
In 1098 Landolfo was excommunicated by Anselmo da Bovisio, archbishop of Milan. Nonetheless, he refused to resign from his position, not wanting to lose the privileges and the religious and political power that the office of bishop entailed. Aware of lacking the strength to oppose Grimoldi and being unable to set foot in Como, he took refuge in the castle of San Giorgio in Magliaso, a small village near Lugano, then part of the diocese of Como. From that place he continued to act as he was the legitimate bishop. He granted investitures and privileges to ingratiate himself with the nobles of lakeside villages such as Samolaco, periodically organized raids against villages loyal to Como, and wrote several times to the new archbishop of Milan Giordano da Clivio, with whom he was related, asking for help in the reconquest of his seat in Como. The expansion of Landolfo's influence on the territory of the diocese of Como pushed the people of Como to resort to force. The diocese of Como therefore split into two factions: the first, headed by Guido Grimoldi, was mainly composed of cives, the citizens of Como; the second, led by Landolfo da Carcano, represented the inhabitants of the countryside.
The war broke out in 1118, and it was the Comaschi who provided the "casus belli" to the Milanese. The general council of Como, meeting in the church of San Giacomo, unanimously decided to attack the castle of San Giorgio, located in the territory of Pieve di Agno, home of the hated Landolfo da Carcano. The next day a small army of knights, led by consuls Adamo del Pero and Gaudenzio da Fontanella, left the city at dusk, passed through Borgo Vico, crossed the Roman bridge over the Breggia near the hamlet of Tavernola and after passing through Capolago, reached Magliaso. At the first light of dawn, the Comaschi broke into the castle, breaking through the door and taking by surprise the defenders, who nevertheless opposed a fierce but vain resistance. Two nephews of Landolfo, Ottone (or Datone) and Bianco (or Lanfranco), were killed in the fighting, while Landolfo himself was captured and taken in chains to Como, where he was imprisoned.
The wives of the killed men, dressed in mourning clothes and accompanied by their relatives, went to Milan and entered the cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore carrying crosses and unfolding the bloody shirts of their husbands, kneeling crying to the archbishop of Milan and begging for justice and protection. Giordano da Clivio summoned the general council and harangued the crowd that had gathered inside and outside the cathedral, describing the insults of the Comaschi against the Diocese of Milan and the crimes committed against the noble family of Carcano, even going so far as to place a ban on the city and a ban on entering churches for all Milanese until they avenged the offenses received by the Comaschi. The general council, inflamed by the speech of the archbishop, decided to go to war.
After the meeting of the general council of the municipality of Milan, heralds were sent to declare war on Como and to spread the news throughout the city and in the countryside. As usual, the Carroccio was pulled by three pairs of white oxen to the cathedral square and remained there for three days during which the Martinella bell, placed on top of it, was rung, indicating the call to arms. The Milanese soldiers, divided into six companies, each for one of the six major gates of the city, gathered around their captain and went to the square, where a mass was celebrated before departure. In the countryside the war was announced by the tolling of the bells. The Comaschi prepared by reinforcing the city walls and calling to arms the people of the villages who remained loyal, among which those of Val d'Intelvi stood out.
In August the Milanese army left the city from Porta Comasina and marched along the Roman road that connected Milan to Como up to a marshy plain, called Canneta or Canneda, located between the villages of Grandate and Lucino, where it camped. The Comaschi, warned by the scouts of the enemy's presence, went out with their army from Porta Pretoria, led by the consuls, and encamped between Rebbio and Grandate in order to halt the enemy advance, having the mountains on which Castel Baradello stood behind them. The next day the Milanese advanced against the Comaschi and the first armed clash of the conflict took place, the battle of Morsegna. The fighting raged until sunset, then the people of Como retreated and camped at the foot of the Baradello hill. Adamo del Pero, one of the two consuls, was killed in the fighting. At dawn the Milanese, after fortifying the positions gained the previous day, advanced as far as Rebbio, cutting off the Como army from any reinforcements coming from the city. The people of Como, to try to open up an escape route, attacked the Milanese on the flanks. In the clash a priest, son of Ardizzone da Samarate and Girolamo, the standard bearer of the Como family, fell after having fought valiantly.
While part of the Milanese army kept the enemy engaged, the rest followed the course of the Aperto river in the Val Mulini, and after having crossed the Cosia they headed towards the southern walls of Como. Here the Milanese managed to surprise the guards guarding the gate and entered the city, where they massacred the few defenders and citizens, freed Landolfo da Carcano and set fire to the buildings. The Como army, entrenched on the slopes of the Baradello, saw the columns of smoke rising from the city and headed towards the Val Mulini, crossing the woods that covered the slopes of the hill. Passing through Borgo Vico, they entered the city, surprising the enemies intent on looting. The assault put the Milanese to flight, some of whom remained behind to cover the retreat to their comrades and were largely killed or taken prisoner. In the clash, the Milanese lost over a thousand men. Bishop Grimoldi distinguished himself as the main political and military leader of the Comaschi, able to "animate and support the courage of his men" and when he blessed the ships that took part in lake battles, "he sent them almost to a certain victory".
The defeat suffered was not enough to make the Milanese desist from their intentions. A new general council was convened in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore where the citizens and nobles decided to renew hostilities, vowing to undertake to destroy the villages of Vico and Coloniola, located respectively to the west and north of the walled city in Como. Among the main proponents of the new oath was Arduino (sometimes called Arialdo or Arderico) degli Avogadri, a member of the Como diocese. It was perhaps thanks to his diplomatic work that Milan secured the support of the parish churches of Bellagio, Menaggio, Gravedona and Nesso and above all of the parish church of Isola, which included the strategic and fortified Isola Comacina, which has always been a thorn in the side of the Comaschi over the control of Lake Como. Bishop Guido Grimoldi sent embassies to the Milanese people, with the aim of making them desist from the war or, at least, to refrain from the oath to continue it until the complete destruction of Como, but without success.
In April 1119 the islanders of Isola Comacina sailed with seven ships and landed an army in Laglio, from where the soldiers headed towards Cernobbio along wooded paths until they took up position north of the village, near the mouth of the Garovo stream. The Cernobbio garrison, warned by some local peasant or by the tower located on the Colma della Guardia, became aware of the presence of the enemy and sent messengers to ask reinforcements in Como, which sent a substantial number of knights to attempt an ambush. The cavalry took up position among the trees of the marshes near the mouth of the Breggia. In the meantime, the islanders aboard the seven ships disembarked more men, leaving only the crews aboard the ships; the soldiers went in search of their companions in the bush, believing they would find them looting. Some scouts then warned them of the presence of the enemy, but a part of them still wanted to continue and seek battle. As soon as they reunited with their companions, they were attacked by the Comaschi, who routed them, forcing them to flee in a rush towards the ships. When they reached the shores of the lake, they saw that their ships had moved away from the shore but, being afraid of being pursued by the enemy, they tried to reach them anyway, resulting in many drowning due to their armors weighing them down.
Text from the Wikipedia article “War of Milan against Como”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.