The Ten Year war

The summer of 1118 was drawing to a close when the rulers of Milan sent a herald to Como announcing war, informing them of the decision taken and giving them time to prepare their defence.
Such was the virtue amid ferocity of men in the Middle Ages. While nowadays a surprise attack is considered a prudent move, then it was deemed the most cowardly and deplorable of deeds.

Thus began the Ten Year War, when the Milanese troops, gathered around their battle cart, presented themselves at the gates of Como. 
The first of the Milanese assaults proved weak and they were roundly defeated. Over a thousand Milanese lost their lives on the streets of Como.

The defeat only increased their wrath towards the enemy. The Como troops had besmirched the reputation at arms of the Milanese, mowing down the flower of their army, and proven how victory is won when their homeland is dearer to the fighter than their own life.

Meanwhile the inhabitants of Isola Comacina, until then docile subjects of Como, began to press for greater independence, daring to hope that Como might be defeated. 
The dream of an independent republic was more vivid than ever.
Some of them, happening to be in Como on personal  business, and hearing themselves accused of being Friends of the Milanese solemnly protested that they would rather sell their own children and choose to live on beans than pollute themselves with such treachery.

But as it happened, once they had been assured that Milan would not cease to give battle until Como was undone, they espoused the Milanese cause, also managing to convince the powerful lake fiefdoms of Bellagio, Menaggio and Gravedona. The Milanese welcomed the rebels gladly, providing them with arms, victuals, men and equipment for building ships.
Cumano, an anonymous poet of the 12th century, had this to say: Because of you, Comacina, the honour of our bishopric, once so rich and magnificent, is lost. You it is who destroys the noble city of Como,  and makes every effort to wipe out its church. You betray your friends as Judas betrayed the Lord. 

All the lakeside towns chose to fight on the side of Milan, probably beaten down by the high taxes under the rule of Como; only the towns from Torno to Argegno remained faithful to Como, and so it came to be written by the historians of Como: The forces were unequal, but the men of Como measured the outcome of the war not by the territory won but by the virtue of the soul.

Seven ships set out from Isola Comacina for Como, stopping off at Laglio where part of their army went ashore. Then the ships set off again for Como and the soldiers proceeded on land, heading down the western shore on foot. The idea was to carry out an attack on two fronts.
The scribes of Como recount: The enemy ships reached the promontory of Torno, rowing manfully, and the crew was glad as they espied their fellows making their way towards Como along the narrow trails on the western shore.

During the journey, the two groups lost sight of one another until the ships came close to Como. From the ships, the men of Comacina saw troops on the shore and, thinking that they were the men who had disembarked at Laglio, landed near the mouth of the River Breggia in order to join up with them. Alas, it was the Como knights, informed of the imminent attack, who were waiting in ambush: they attacked the men of Comacina with great vigour and forced them to close ranks on the beach in great confusion. 

Many fell in the flight to the ships. Many threw themselves into the water and tried to swim away from the fury of the Como troops. The few who made it back on board beat a hasty retreat.
Once again Milan and its allies suffered humiliation.
The Milanese reacted to this defeat by political manoeuvres with a view to building a powerful alliance.

They sent ambassadors to cities near and far, entreating them for aid, and this they received from Cremona, Pavia, Brescia, Bergamo, Asti and Vercelli; and from Verona, Bologna, Ferrara, Mantova, Guastalla. […] This league of the Lombard peoples against Como, which had caused them no harm and moreover, being a small state, could not arouse in them jealousy of any kind, and which was only endeavouring to protect not only its independence but also the very home which the others had sworn to raze to the ground[…] 
In order to withstand such effort of war, our army surrounded the city, and their first thought was to raise walls, reinforcing these where they were weak, then to dig trenches, equip themselves with men and arms, and see to provisions. A long and arduous task, which they undertook most willingly for the love of their birthplace.

On two occasions, the fleet of the League appeared before Como, but these assaults were always rebuffed. They therefore contented themselves with attacking and sacking some nearby villages such as Vico and Colognola.

The numerous hosts of the enemy launched themselves in fury on the lands nigh to Como, putting them to the torch and causing untold harm. Some skirmishes broke out, but naught of any import, until the Milanese again losing hope of overwhelming us, turned their war cart around, and sent a letter of challenge for the coming month of May.

The people of Como were unbowed, and with no intention of passively awaiting a new wave of assaults and spurred on by their bishop Guido, decided to attack.
Taking advantage of the momentary absence of the troops of the League, they prepared an attack on the rebel towns on Lake Como which were now without the protection of their allied armada.

The city, thus freed of its powerful enemies, proposed with wise council to turn all its force against the rebellious lake towns and bend them once more to their ancient allegiance.

Twelve ships were got ready, each bearing the name of one of the apostles. It was already the custom in those days to give names to ships. During the course of this ten-year war, some famous ships were the Grifo,  Lupo,'Alberga, Cristina and Ratto. 
In the centre of the largest ships there was a wooden tower, a safe fighting position for archers, in both attack and defence. On the stern there was the flag of the town, for Como a white cross in a red field, and at the bow, a great iron spur which rose and fell according to its use: it was useful for ramming ships or hooking them. This is how the historians of Como recount the launch:

The flower of our youth went aboard, the people of the city thronging the beach cheering them on, the bands filled the air with concerts of kettledrums and trumpets and the bells rang doubles. 
Our bishop Giudo moved among them accompanied by the clergy, in his pastoral robes bestowing his pontifical blessing on the armada which then sailed out bringing with it the hope of triumph in a most just cause. 

The twelve ship fleet left Como. The first landing was at Tremezzo which was sacked and set on fire. The ships then returned towards  Como with a fine enemy ship in tow laden with weapons they had seized. 
As they drew near Isola Comacina they found some ships of the islanders ready to do battle. One of these, which was very fast, charged the Como fleet, ramming into one of the ships. The Como ship withstood the impact, whereas the attacker broke up and sank. 
A ship even came from Bellagio to aid the islanders, but this too was defeated, requisitioned, and towed back to Como.
In the days that followed, Como would attack Lezzeno, Isola Comacina, Campo, Bellagio and Lierna, confiscating enemy ships and rich spoils. 
At this point, the Como fleet had grown to a hundred ships. 

With fresh reinforcements and their fleet swollen to a hundred warships, a marvellous thing for a small state, a reflection of Venice when it sailed the seas with a thousand armed ships […]

A subsequent assault on Como was the scene of a spectacular naval battle. The sack of Lezzeno was underway when the islanders sent ships to the aid of their ally.
The Como army, seeing the enemy ships approach, pretended to flee, deliberately leaving two small ships behind in order to insult and provoke the islanders. Meanwhile, the Como fleet took cover in an inlet. The islanders continued straight on in pursuit of the two small ships, but once they had passed the inlet, the found themselves surrounded without any means of escape.
Just one of the island ships managed to get away, heading towards Varenna, which was an ally of Isola Comacina’s. It was pursued by the Como ships Alberga and Cristina which when they landed on the shore were greeted with  a hail of stones from the entire population. They were forced to adopt the Roman tortoise formation and flee into open water.
The period that followed on Lake Como was one of relative calm. In 1123 the theatre of war moved to Lake Lugano where the Milanese suffered heavy defeats and loss of ships.
They retreated to Porlezza and here, with their customary diplomatic acumen, managed to corrupt the Como official Arduino degli Avvocati, custodian of the Como arsenal on Ceresio, so that he handed over all the ships to the Milanese.
Having learned of this treason and without time to build any other boats, the governors of Como loaded the ships Alberga and Cristina on great carts specially built for the purpose and, with the help of numerous oxen, transported them to Lake Lugano. A spectacular nighttime blitz caught the traitor by surprise and the entire fleet was recovered. Knowing the men of Como, we can only imagine the treatment which was reserved for Arduino.

These brilliant victories on Lake Lugano were soon marred by treachery. Arduino degli Avvocati won over by the promise of gold, handed over the rock of Melano, of which he was guardian, and the fleet to the enemy 
As soon as the infamy of Arduino reached our ears, we determined to speedily win back with valour that which had been lost to us through bad faith. Many carts were built and the two best ships, Cristina and Alberga, placed upon them, and we went by night, drawing them along the rocky roads […] from Como to Melano where the little fleet was launched in the water to rush at the Milanese ships, poorly guarded in the harbour of La vena; what had been stolen was taken back and Lake Lugano returned to its ancient allegiance.

The year 1124 saw the Parish of Gravedona break its alliance with Milan and return to the protection of Como. 

Gravedona came to its senses and rejoined Como; but the other rebels remained obstinate in their cause and once again provoked the men of Como to take up arms.

In this moment of apparent military superiority, Como decided to offer peace to the rebels, and sent an ambassador to the island.

Our coming to this town after the bloodshed in such a cruel war makes […] all hearts hearken […]. The time has come to govern with generous council, to put aside insult, to set our thoughts on those blessed times when peace flowered in these lands which now, through the fault of others, go to rack and ruin. My fellow citizens extend this invitation to you for the horror they have of this war, and for the compassion they feel for your condition. […] Can proud Milan, which has not defeated us with the help of many cities, hope for victory now that they have only your arms behind them?
A powerful fleet is here before your eyes, countless vessels are anchored in Gravedona, Torno, and Como. Lake Lugano is ours once more, Valtellina has taken up arms for us, and Valle Intelvi filled with courageous men at arms and boatmen threatens you from behind. […] 
Will you not imitate the generous example of Gravedona, a land of such importance?
[…] What hope you against the arms of the overbearing ally you have chosen for yourselves? The opportunity presents itself for you to avoid a terrible fate. Como offers you friendship, to forget the past, confirmation of ancient privileges; new ones will be added as deemed needful. Choose therefore between life and death”.

The messenger’s words fell on deaf ears, we can therefore only imagine that the reply was something like this:

You have come here with those ships with other intentions than to offer us peace. Now that you have learned that there is no hope of defeating us with arms, you would allies yourselves to us with sweet words and deceptive hopes, to then destroy us when we have fallen into your hands.  Your true intent is this. 
Be it, as you claim, that the Milanese would subject us to their yoke, as yet we have no surety of this, but of your greed and lust for dominion we do alas have experience. […] you believe that the lands of the county must all bow to you, provide you with arms, men, provisions, and obey you as a servant his lord […]  but your comune, because it is more populous, presumes to claim dominion over the others and hand down the law. […]  Our land has all it needs in order to maintain itself. We have weapons and arms to defend ourselves. The harsh mountain terrain comes to our aid. Comacina cannot be taken. This rock, which for one score years has resisted the full force of the Lombards, fears no clash with the boats of Como.

Their outrage at the refusal of the peace treaty so inflamed the army of Como that they reinforced the fleet and launched an attack, razing to the ground Isola Comacina, Colonno, Mezzegra and Menaggio, where they also took the belfry which gave refuge to the inhabitants.
In Campo they took great spoils in gold and silver vessels, jewels and rich garments.
They then regrouped in Como, fortifying their defences, awaiting the counterattack of the Milanese.
But the Milanese strategy had no plans for attack: instead they plotted to wear Como down with an embargo, blocking the arrival of supplies and provisions by land or lake.
The Milanese army camped on the plain to the south while the ships of the island and its allies guarded the lake to the north. The mountains made access difficult from east or west.
For a time, this isolation yielded results, but then news came to Como of a great cargo of food sent by their allies in Valtellina and delivered to the Pieve di Gravedona, ready to be loaded onto boats. Como decided to run the risk of sending a fleet to Gravedona, led by their best ship, the Grifo.
The fleet arrived at Gravedona, took the cargo on board and managed to return home, forcing the naval blockade.

Within the walls provisions were scarce, but a number of stout gondoliers betook themselves to Gravedona where they took on board plentiful supplies of wheat and victuals, and evading enemy boats that wished to block their passage, returned safely to the city, and this brought down the price of food. 

The year 1125 saw a massive Milanese offensive, as together with the town of Lecco they built thirty ships and headed for Como, joining those of the islanders.
Meanwhile, the Milanese army was also preparing a land assault.
The rulers of Como fitted out 18 brigantines which received the blessing of Bishop Guido and then went to wait for the enemy just behind the headland of Torno.

The armada of the rebels could already be seen advancing from Toriggia in tight formation, and according to the verses of the poet Cumano, appeared as a dense forest floating upon the waters; spirits were high as they felt victory must surely be theirs, and the joyous song of their crews echoed in the neighbouring valleys. 
Battle was joined, [...] the clash was mighty; ship drew alongside ship, and almost as if they were upon the battlefield, soldiers fought hand to hand. Their numbers made the rebels cocksure, the memory of past defeats fed their wrath; but our men drew greater strength from those past victories, as from the image of their dear homeland, imperilled […] and the helmsmen held firm and fought.  Above all else it was marvellous to behold with what great mastery they rowed to aid the soldiers, how they would suddenly change course, darting before the enemy, and ram them with great force.
[…] Fortune was on our side and the rebel fleet, beaten and broken, fled to open water. 

The brave fleet of Como managed to return home in time for the soldiers to land and face the Milanese troops who had meanwhile entered the city over land. They fought heroically, leaving over a thousand Milanese dead in the streets. Once more the enemy turned tail and fled. Como was impregnable!

But the rejoicing turned to bitter tears upon the death of Bishop Guido. He had known how to organise the citizens, counsel them, keep them united: now that he was dead, there was no person among them possessed of the same authority or ingenious mind; and matters went from bad to worse until the city fell. With affectionate words, the poet Cumano bemoans the death of Bishop Guido and tells that without his leadership, victory forsake the battlements of Como.

The course of the war changed with the death of Guido. In order to fully comprehend how greatly the bishop was loved by his people, we need to take a step backwards.
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, had appointed Bishop of Como the Milanese nobleman Landolfo da Carcano despite the firm opposition of the people of Como who claimed the right to elect their own bishop. The hostility of Como reached the pointed where they actually denied Landolfo entry to the city and forced him to take refuge near Lugano while they proceeded to elect Giudo Grimoldi to the position of Bishop of Como.
Notwithstanding this, enjoying the protection of the Emperor, Landolfo usurped numerous prerogatives of the Como Church, claiming certain rights for himself and behaving as if he were the legitimate holder of the bishopric.
When in 1118, the Emperor returned to Germany, the people of Como had Landolfo da Carcano arrested and killed two of his nephews, captains in the Milanese army.
This episode was the casus belli which triggered the outbreak of the ten year war.
In reality however, as is often the case, there were many other interests behind the justification for the Milanese assault. The Lake Como route was the gateway to rich commerce with the North. Moreover, Como had always had strong links with the Papal State, in strong opposition in those years to the imperial power which was promoted by Milan.
With the death of Guido in 1127, the war moved into its final phase.
The Milanese redoubled their efforts, returning to attack Como by land and water. They organised an even greater coalition than the previous league, requesting the technological support of Pisa and Genoa, expert in the construction of war machines such as catapults and other machinery for breaching city walls.
The shipwrights of Pavia built the Scanciera or Ganzerra, speedy flat-bottomed ships, fitted with battering rams, with fifty or more oars, and machines for hurling stones and incendiary material. They carried up to six hundred men.
The historians of Como recounted the dreadful assault. 

Having decided to make a supreme effort, the Milanese gathered a magnificent army […] the burghers of Lecco felled the forests for timber for the construction of machines of all sorts, and military engineers were called from Pisa and Genoa to oversee the siege works […]. Soldiers arrived from every quarter and albeit those already gathered seemed great in number, others arrived to swell their ranks by the day.
Thus were seen the banners of Pavia, Novara, the Countess of Biandrate, […] then too the banners of Asti, Albegna, Alba, Cremona, Piacenza,  Parma, Mantova, Ferrara, Bologna, Modena, Vicenza, and the knights of the Garfagnana […]. 
All the area surrounding Como was occupied by their battalions; they also held the mountain heights and had a great encampment around the castle of Chiasso. The armada of rebels from Lake Como and the auxiliary soldiers from Lecco prepared the attack from the water. 
The genoese engineers fabricated four siege towers from stout beams, with a lattice framework covered with cow hides so that fire shot at them by the besieged city would find no purchase. In the midst of the four towers they placed two great engines to ram the walls […] They also built four mighty siege engines to fire rocks and combustible material into the city. […] 
Men, women and children were divided into parties, and sent to clean the trenches, strengthen the weaker walls, and spread upon them cowhides and other such materials so that the blow of the siege engines might be softened, some to prepare arms. […] and as Como was prepared and defended in this manner, a fearsome assault commenced. […] and fury was met with fury. […]
On the morrow the assault was renewed and a great part of the wall torn down, but still they fought on, yet knew that the city could not hope to prevail much longer. Night fell, and in an incessant hail of stones and fiery arrows made it perilous either to stay within the four walls of home or to venture into the open street. 
Many districts were thronged with women and children who wailed piteously against the fate of their imperilled homeland. It was decided to abandon the city and seek refuge in the fortress of Vico.

The siege was unrelenting, the decision was taken to abandon the city, take to the ships and head for the nearby fort of Vico. Its strategic position meant it could not be assailed by the great war engines of the Milanese.
However, though on the one hand, it was virtually impossible to lay siege to Vico, the people of Como who had fled there were sure to succumb to hunger as a consequence of the embargo which was bound to follow.
The Milanese sent their Archbishop Anselmo and a delegation of Abbots to negotiate the surrender. The leaders of Como accepted, on condition that they promise “to safeguard the lives, possessions and dwellings, and destroy nought but the towers and walls of the city and those of Vico and Coloniola.”

The Milanese accepted their requests and sealed the treaty with two parchments upon which the highest in rank on each side put their names and their oath. But no sooner had they laid down their arms than the worst came to pass.

Once they had laid down their arms, they set to work dismantling the walls and knocking down the towers. Then, riding roughshod over their holy oath, they set fire to the houses, and the city and villages were soon reduced to a heap of ash and ruins. That which flame failed to destroy, they knocked down with hammer and hoe; the monuments from Roman times were pulled down, and the mallet swept away the plaques, arches, bas reliefs, and precious columns which recalled its former glory. 
Only the churches were spared. The commoners and farmers were all made slaves; the possessions of the nobles were stolen; and to make the situation even more dire, they were subject to all manner of insults. 
It was expressly forbidden to rebuild the walls which had been torn down or the ruined dwellings; the people of Como betrayed in such vile manner were only allowed to build humble cabins covered with thatch and beams here and there about the plain upon which the city rose, queen of the Lario no more.
They were forbidden to build the cabins together for this would arouse suspicion and the citizens were moreover divided into four boroughs. An annual tribute was exacted from them; and so as to take away all commerce and ensure the site remained unpopulated, the customary markets were banned (I 1). 
Then our people, helpless against the oathbreakers and the dread spectacle of their homeland laid low by the fury of the bold enemy, could not hold back their tears.
Thus was Como undone on the 27th day of August in the year of our Lord 1127.

 

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