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II who was not in captivity and was in a position to assert her rights. Pedro III
championed his wife's claim to the entirety of the Kingdom of Sicily.
Prior to the Vespers, Pedro (Peter) III had constructed and outfitted a fleet for war
and upon the pope's inquiry of the need for such a great war fleet, Pedro stated that
it was to be used against the followers of Islam along the northern coast of Africa as
he had legitimate interests in trade there and he needed to protect them. So when
Pedro received a request for help from the Sicilians he was conveniently on the
north coast of Africa in Tunis just 200 miles across the sea from the island. At first
Pedro feigned to be indifferent to the request of the Sicilians and to the plight of the
islanders, but after several days to allow a proper showing of deference made for
the pope's consumption, Pedro took advantage of the revolt. He ordered his fleet to
sail for Sicily, landed at Trapani on August 30, 1282. While he marched towards
Palermo, his fleet followed close by the coastal road. Pedro's involvement changed
the character of the uprising from a local revolt into a European War. Pedro arrived
at Palermo on September 2 and initially he was received by the populace with
indifference, it was merely one foreign king replacing another; they much preferred
a free commune under a vague suzerainty of the pope. However, after Pope Martin
made plain his orders for the populace to accept Charles, Pedro made a promise to
the islanders that they would enjoy the ancient privileges they had had under the
Norman king, William the Good. Thereafter, Pedro was accepted as a satisfactory
second choice and was crowned by acclamation of the people at the cathedral in
Palermo on September 4, thus becoming also Peter I of Sicily.
With the pope's blessing the counter-attack from Charles was not long in coming;
his fleet from Naples arrived and blockaded the port of Messina and made several
attempts to land troops on the island, but all were repulsed.
Peter of Sicily
Peter nevertheless pressed his advantage and by February
1283 had taken most of the Calabria coastline. Charles,
perhaps feeling desperate, sent letters to Peter demanding
they resolve the conflict by personal combat. The invader
accepted and Charles returned to France to arrange the duel.
Both kings chose six knights to settle matters of places and
dates. A duel was scheduled for 1 June at Bordeaux. A
hundred knights would accompany each side and Edward I
of England would adjudge the contest; the English king,
heeding the pope, however, refused to take part. Peter left
John of Procida in charge of Sicily and returned via his own
The Hohenstaufen Dynasty - Page 157 of 200