Chapter 10 - The Unfortunate Life and Times of Martino I
At a somber court meeting, the top lords and ladies of the realm joined the courtiers at Ferdinando II d'Ivrea's funeral. The top historians assembled earlier to honor Ferdinando II with the epithet, 'the Magnanimous', for his noble spirit and energy. Curiously absent was his son, the current King of Sicily, Martino I d'Ivrea.
Martino I was both sickly in terms of physical and mental health. His tutors deemed him an imbecile for his greatly ******ed learning development. However, being the eldest son of Ferdinando II 'the Magnanimous' d'Ivrea, he assumed the throne. His brother, Carlo d'Ivrea, duke of Apulia, was the heir apparent now.
Despite all of Martino I d'Ivrea's shortcomings, he was blessed with a fantastic court which more-or-less delegated the day-to-day actions of the Monarchy, which eased the transition from the end of Ferdinando's rule to the beginning of Martino's.
The first action done was to complete Martino's father's ambition of subjugating the pesky Urbinese.
However, the Urbinese possessed a cherished alliance with Milan, whom, other than the Kingdom of Sicily, were the most powerful state in Italy. Nevertheless, the Monarchy's military strategists felt confident in being able to secure favorable terms with the scummy Milanese.
Being of ill mental health, a liberal education was out of the question, and being of ill physical shape, the martial arts were never taught to young Martino. However, the lad did possess a relatively keen understanding for tactics, making him a capable commander of his troops.
Martino I d'Ivrea's first major engagement was the July 18th, 1454 Battle of Abruzzi, which pitted 27,000 Sicilian troops against almost 25,000 Milanese troops, commanded by the Milanese king Gian Galeazzo I Visconti. However, the familiar territory was a boon for the Sicilians, and were able to slaughter a great number of Milanese troops and Gian Galeazzo I's troops were in full retreat.
Twelve days later, Martino I and his troops surround the Milanese army in the region of Perugia. However, Gian Galeazzo I Visconti was able to escape by way of sailboat back to Milan. Hence the commanding general present was nothing more than a pawn of Gian Galeazzo's.
Martino I's court seized the opportunity to shape the Kingdom's domestic policies by relaxing the trade restrictions imposed on the nation's merchants. As a result, a merchant in Napoli gained great renown for his craft, and was summoned by the Monarchy to become a courtier.
Meanwhile, the generals on the troop produced win after win, which allowed the Kingdom to obtain an extremely favorable treaty with the scummy Milanese, which netted the territories of Perugia and Pisa to the Crown.
It would be ironic that under an imbecile king that Sicily attained her highest wealth and prestige. But the military victories of Ferdinando II were able to set up a glorification of the Sicilian state.
However, the nation's infamy, due to the seizure of Perugia and Pisa had grown high. To combat this rise in infamy, an embassy was commissioned in Pisa to improve relations with the neighboring Italian princely states.
The Sicilian state could next annex the neighboring Kingdom of Modena, which bordered on the boundary with the newly patriated territory of Pisa.
Not soon thereafter, however, the thuggish Bohemian Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire formally request the release of the territory of Pisa, despite the great distance that separated Prague from Pisa. Hence, the Kingdom refused the Emperor's request, at a slight expense of prestige and stability of the Kingdom.
As a result, the Kingdom rescinded the Imperial privileges of Pisa.
However, not much time later, Martino I's frailty caught up with him and caused him to pass away early, after a reign of only five years. However, Carlo II d'Ivrea was everything Martino wasn't. A gifted administrator and diplomat, Carlo II was both gregarious and socially competent and already wed (no one wished to wed Martino I due to his sickly frame). Everybody in Napoli knew that Carlo II d'Ivrea would be an able man and would led Sicily to great fame and wealth.
![](http://i.imgur.com/i9g54.jpg)