La frontiera tra il Regno di Sicilia (Napoli) e lo Stato della Chiesa. Alcune riflessioni

The frontier between the Kingdom of Sicily and the Papal territories was definitively established with the Pact of Benevento signed in 1156 by Pope Adrian IV and King William I, confirming the division of the ancient imperial territories of the Duchy of Spoleto. To the south of the border the demarcation was based on the diocesan borders established starting from the Carolingian era. To the north an arbitrary line was im­ posed by political and military powers, corresponding neither to ancient demarcations nor to regional history. The creation of the border changed the geopolitical structure of central­southern Italy and was an object of particular interest to kings and popes. Dur­ ing the twelfth century some border areas such as Rieti, Terracina, Anagni, Benevento, Antrodoco and Tagliacozzo acquired a special role and prestige they could not otherwise have obtained. On the negative side, the border was a stage for nearly constant warfare. In conclusion, the Norman era laid the foundations for what sources in the following century described as one of the best guarded and administered borders of the Middle Ages.