Building an Aristocratic Identity in Medieval Italy

Abstract The 10th and the 11th centuries were a crucial period for the development of new forms of aristocracy in central Italy. The case study of the Counts of the Marsi, also known as the Berardi family, exemplifies this process. Originally from southern France, the family founder, Berardus, moved to Italy during the reign of Hugh of Arles and settled in the Marsica region, in modern-day Abruzzo. Over the course of several generations, the family managed to acquire substantial wealth and secure an important social role among the local elites. Two of the most important partners in this consolidation of their power were the monasteries of Farfa and Subiaco, located in Latium, not far from the borders of Marsica. The documents held in the monastic archives testify not only to the different phases of the Berardi family’s rise to power but also to the progressive establishment of a common identity. This paper discusses these sources to investigate the features of this identity-building process and determine how the Counts of the Marsi represented a new form of aristocratic group.