The Normans in Sicily
Since the beginning of 1061 CE, the Normans began to skirmish with the Sunni Taifas that ruled in Sicily and Malta. Not even a year after the conclusion of the Siege of Bari, resulting in the Norman annexation of Byzantine holdings in Italy, the Normans found themselves about to conquer one of the most important cities in the Mediterranean at the time, the economic and culturally diverse port city of Palermo. The Normans, who were once again led by Robert Guiscard, captured the city of Palermo and forced the city’s surrender on the seventh of January in 1072 CE. With Palermo captured, the Normans continued to expand across the island, eventually capturing the entirety of the island in 1091 CE. At the same time, Robert’s brother Roger de Hauteville (also known as Roger Bosso, or Roger “the Great”), who had become Roger I of Sicily in 1071 CE, conquered Malta around the same time as Sicily fell entirely to the Normans.
With the Sicilian campaign finished, Robert Guiscard wouldn’t see it through, as he passed in 1085 CE due to age and disease. His succession went to his brother Roger Bosso, who now controlled the Duchies of Apulia, Calabria, and Sicily. Eventually, he too would pass, with his domain passing on to his son Simon de Hauteville, who was still too young to rule and thus had his mother Adelaide del Vasto acting as his regent. However, Simon passed away four years later on the twenty-eighth of September, 1105 CE, giving his domain to his brother Roger II of Sicily. With the Norman domain under control, Roger II de Hauteville established the Norman Kingdom of Sicily on Christmas Day of 1130 CE with the blessing of Pope Innocent II. The capital of the kingdom was then established in the Sicilian city of Palermo, where the kingdom endured until its defeat in 1194 CE.
The seizure and control of Sicily and Malta proved to be pivotal for the Normans. For one, they controlled what was arguably the most important port city in the region economically. The flow of trade was seemingly guaranteed to enter the region, with merchants having connections across all aspects of the Mediterranean world. The island was also a strategic point for the Normans and their future endeavors into regions like North Africa and the Balearic Islands of Spain. On top of that, the Normans had a massive population from all aspects of the Mediterranean world under their control for political and military use. Everyone from Lombards, Italians, Greeks, and Berbers found themselves serving different roles in the kingdom, ranging from political advisors to standard infantry units for future Norman conquests.
