Raimondo Orsini del Balzo, known as Raimondello, was born between 1350 and 1355, cadet son of Nicola Orsini (1331-1399), 3rd Count of Nola, Grand Justiciar and Chancellor of the Kingdom of Naples and of Giovanna de Sabran. Furthermore, she was the nephew of Sveva del Balzo, in turn sister of the more famous Raimondo Conte di Soleto and San Pietro in Galatina. Being the ancestor’s favorite nephew, she sold all his jewels for him in order to make him a knight and leader. It was always his grandmother who took him to the Castle of Casaluce at the age of eight, in the presence of his great-uncle Raimondo, as well as her brother, where the young man had the opportunity to understand the importance of the art of war. Subsequently Raimondo del Balzo himself and his wife Isabella d’Apia, Countess of Campagna and Casaluce, having no children of his, decided to adopt him, on the condition that he also took on the surname del Balzo to continue the lineage. As a consequence, the titles of Count of Soleto and San Pietro in Galatina with the related fiefdoms were transmitted to him, however his father, Nicola Orsini, took steps to seize them since, in his opinion, they rightfully belonged first to him and then to his firstborn. Roberto.
Disappointed by his father’s initiative, Raimondello joined a band of soldiers of fortune going to fight in the Baltic countries where a Crusade against the Pagans was taking place, during which he stood out for his warlike skills, quickly becoming time captain of some troops. Subsequently he went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, in particular to Mount Sinai near the Egyptian monastery where the remains of Saint Catherine were kept. Here, in the act of kissing the hand of the Saint, he bit off a finger, keeping it secretly, with the intention of building a church and a convent in which to keep it upon his return to his homeland.
Returning to Puglia, at the head of his soldiers he placed Soleto and Galatina under siege against his father’s troops who found himself forced to capitulate and hand over the two fiefdoms and the related titles to him. Subsequently, after the sinister intrigues that led to the deposition of Joanna I of Anjou from the throne of Naples in 1381, Raimondello Orsini del Balzo sided with the party of Anjou-Durazzo, giving his support to the “coup” that brings Charles III to the throne. Subsequently, upon the death of the sovereign, he allied himself with Louis I of Anjou-Valois who, to seal the alliance, in 1384 arranged the marriage between the captain and the seventeen-year-old Maria d’Enghien, Countess of Lecce, as well as promising him the Principality of Taranto which includes almost the entire Salento Peninsula. The wedding, however, is frowned upon by the people of Lecce who revolt the following year, but the revolt is suffocated in a bloodbath. From the apparently very happy union, four children were born: Giovanni Antonio, Maria, Caterina and Gabriele. Previously Raimondello had had a natural son: Angelo.
Upon the death of Louis I of Anjou-Valois, which occurred on 20 September 1384, dynastic rivalries were rekindled, fomented by the widow Mary of Brittany, aiming to encircle the head of her son Louis II with the crown, and supported by great part of the barons, aligned with the Angevin party. However, Raimondello initially decides to support the sovereign Ladislaus I of Anjou-Durazzo, which once again triggers the revolt in some centers of the Terra d’Otranto, with Lecce in the lead, because they were against the choice. Taranto and Brindisi, however, side with Ladislao, as does Mesagne despite belonging to the County of Lecce. The war is inevitable and Orsini del Balzo leads it in a somewhat equivocal manner, moving from one side to another, first with Ladislaus I, then he goes over to the side of Pope Urban VI, who thanks to his military intervention is freed from siege of Nocera, then he sides with the Anjou, to return at the end with Ladislaus when the latter’s victory is now certain. This last choice allows him to obtain recognition as Prince of Taranto. Orsini del Balzo and his lady make their triumphal entrance into the City of Two Butre: they are now the most powerful feudal lords of the Kingdom of Naples.
Having taken possession of Taranto, Raimondello immediately proceeded to fortify it with new defensive works, including a high tower erected in 1404, of which today only part of the remains. Clock tower, around which stands a real military citadel, unfortunately dismantled at the end of the 19th century because it was considered a legacy of the feudal era. In San Pietro in Galatina, however, he enlarged it as well as starting the construction of the Church of Santa Caterina d’Alessandria with its annexed convent and hospital, where the relic of the Saint brought from the monastery on Sinai was kept, according to the provisions of the Papal Bull previously issued in Genoa by Urban VI, after being freed in Nocera. In Soleto, however, he had the spectacular spire built.
The enormous power concentrated in the hands of Raimondello, however, did not take long to unleash the hatred of the other lords, in particular that of Bernabò Sanseverino, Lord of Nardò, but not only that, even the sovereign Ladislaus I of Anjou-Durazzo began to contrast his policy with a certain ambiguity, until, in 1405, the Prince of Taranto and Count of Lecce, Soleto and Galatina openly sided with the renewed cause of the Anjou, rising up against the sovereign. It is war again, however, just as he is preparing to move his armies towards Taranto to stop the king’s offensive, Raimondello dies in Lecce on 17 January 1406. Maria d’Enghien will now defend the square and the Principality in memory of the beloved husband…
Cosimo Enrico Marseglia
Born in Lecce, the city where he lives. He attended regular courses at the Italian Army Military Academy in Modena and at the TRAMAT Weapon Application School at the Cecchignola military citadel in Rome, and served as an Army officer at the 3rd Maneuver Logistics Battalion in Milan, the Military District of Lecce and the Logistics Battalion of the Pinerolo Brigade in Bari. After eight years in effective permanent service, he left his military career, dedicating himself to jazz music and theatre. He currently collaborates with the Department of Historical Studies of the University of Salento, as an expert in Military History, and since 2009 he has been the official commissioner of the Military Corps of the Italian Red Cross. He writes for L’Autiere, official organ of the ANAI (National Association of Italian Drivers), Sallentina Tellus (Magazine of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre), for L’Idomeneo (Magazine of the Association of Homeland History) and for other newspapers . He has already published Les Enfants de la Patrie. The French Revolution and the First Empire lived on the battlefields (2007), The Military Scourge. The Art of War in Giovan Battista Martena, 17th century artilleryman (2009), Battles and events of arms in Puglia. The region as a theater of conflict from antiquity to the contemporary age (2011), Devoto ad Hippocrates. Rodolfo Foscarini CRI medical officer between research and the great war (2015), Marseglia. Story of a family through the centuries (2016), Contention for Naples. Puglia and the Kingdom of Naples in the wars between Spain and France between the 15th and 16th centuries (2024). for Edit Santoro, and Attacco a Maruggio. 13 June 1637. Chronicle of a day of Turkish piracy in the European political-social context (2010) for Apulus, the latter together with Dr. Tonino Filomena. He obtained a University Diploma in Strategic Sciences from the University of Modena and Reggio.
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