Battle of Legnano
Frederick Barbarossa spent his reign attempting to make imperial rights in Lombardy real. At the Diet of Roncaglia in 1158 he had jurists define the regalia — tolls, mints, courts, the appointment of magistrates — as belonging to the emperor, and set about collecting them. The cities, which had been governing themselves for generations, formed the Lombard League in 1167 with papal backing and built a new fortress city, Alessandria, named for the pope who supported them. On 29 May 1176 the League's forces met the imperial army near Legnano, north-west of Milan. Barbarossa's heavy cavalry broke the League's horse and drove it from the field, but the infantry held around the carroccio — the ox-drawn wagon carrying the commune's standard and altar — long enough for the cavalry to regroup and return. The emperor was unhorsed and briefly believed dead. The Peace of Constance in 1183 recognised the cities' right to elect their own consuls, raise armies and administer justice, in return for a formal acknowledgement of imperial overlordship and a payment. Barbarossa kept the title and gave up the substance.
- Year: 1176 CE
- Category: Military
