Leonardo III Tocco

Leonardo III Tocco, last ruler of Epirus from 1448 to 1479.

Life

Leonardo III Tocco was the son of Carlo II Tocco (count of Cephalonia and Zante, duke of Leukas, and ruler of Epirus) and Ramondina of Ventimiglia. On his father's death in October 1448, Leonardo succeeded as a minor to all his titles and possessions. He reigned as ruler of Epirus from Arta until March 24, 1449, when the city was taken by the Ottoman Turks.

His mainland possessions reduced to three fortresses, Leonardo established himself in Angelokastron. In 1460, this city was also lost to the Turks, leaving only Vonitsa in the possession of Leonardo, who moved to his islands. A new Turkish advance in 1479 captured Vonitsa and then Cephalonia, Leukas, and Zante later the same year. Deprived of both Epirus and the Ionian Islands, Leonardo fled to the Kingdom of Naples, where he was invested with several fiefs by Ferdinand I of Naples. He died in c. 1499.

Marriages and children

On 1 May, 1463, Leonardo married his first wife Milica of Serbia. She was a daughter of Lazar Branković and Helena Palaiologina. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/SERBIA.htm#Milicadied1464 Profile of Milica in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] Her maternal grandparents were Thomas Palaiologos, Ruler of Morea, and Catherine Zaccaria of the Principality of Achaea. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/BYZANTIUM%2012611453.htm#HelenePdied1473 Profile of Helena in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] Milica died in childbirth in 1464. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ]

Their only son was Carlo III Tocco (1464 - 1518). He succeeded his father as titular ruler of Epirus (Arta) and Zakynthos to his death. He married Andronike Araniti. She was a daughter of Constantino Komino Araniti [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] , titular "Prince of Macedonia" since 1490. Her mother was Fransesca Paleologo, an illegitimate daughter of Boniface III, Marquess of Montferrat (1424 - 1494). [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/MONFERRATO,%20SALUZZO,%20SAVONA.htm#BonifacioIVdied1494 Profile of Boniface IV and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] Constantino was a son of Gjergj Arianit Komneni and his second wife Pietrina Franco. His older, paternal half-sisters Anronike and Angelina were the respective wives of Skanderbeg and Stefan Branković. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ALBANIA.htm#_Toc157144110 Profile of the Araniti family in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ]

In 1477, Leonardo married his second wife Francesca Marzano. She was a daughter of Mariano Marzano, Prince of Rossano and his wife Leonora of Aragon. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] Leonora was an illegitimate daughter of Alfonso V of Aragon and his mistress Giraldona Carlino. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ARAGON%20&%20CATALONIA.htm#AlfonsoVdied1458 Profile of Alfonso V and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] According to "The Latins in the Levant. A History of Frankish Greece (1204-1566)" by William Miller, Leonardo had lost the support of the Republic of Venice by that point. His second marriage was an effort to form family ties with the ruling house of the Kingdom of Naples and secure their support. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] Ferdinand I of Naples was another illegitimate of Alfonso V and a half-brother of Leonora. The marriage secured him as an uncle-by-marriage of Leonardo. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ARAGON%20&%20CATALONIA.htm#AlfonsoVdied1458 Profile of Alfonso V and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ]

By his second marriage to Francesca Marzano, Leonardo III Tocco had five children. Their order of birth is unknown: Hippolyta Tocco, Leonora Tocco (a nun), Maria Tocco (who married Pietro Talamanca), Pietro Tocco (considered to have died young) and Ramondina Tocco (who married Federigo Pico della Mirandola). [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ] :

Leonardo also had an illegitimate son, Ferrante Tocco (d. 1535). According to Miller, Ferrante served as Spanish ambassador to the court of Henry VII of England in 1506. Benet Tocco, a son of Ferrante, became Bishop of Girona from 1572 to 1583. Benet also served as Bishop of Lleida from 1583 to his death in 1585. [ [http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/LATIN%20LORDSHIPS%20IN%20GREECE.htm#LeonardoIIIToccodied1495 Profile of Leonardo III and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley] ]

ources

*"The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium", Oxford University Press, 1991.
* George C. Soulis, "The Serbs and Byzantium", Athens, 1995.
* John V.A. Fine Jr., "The Late Medieval Balkans", Ann Arbor, 1987.

References