Manfred, King of Sicily

Manfred
Contemporary depiction of Manfred from the De arte venandi cum avibus - Vatican Library ms. pal. lat. 1071 , fol. 1v (13th-century)
King of Sicily
Reign	1258 – 26 February 1266
Coronation	10 August 1258
Predecessor	Conradin
Successor	Charles I
Born	Manfred Lancia 1232 Venosa, Kingdom of Sicily
Died	26 February 1266 (aged 34) Benevento, Kingdom of Sicily
Spouse	Beatrice of Savoy ​ ​ (m. 1247; died 1259)​ Helena Angelina Doukaina ​ ​ (m. 1259)​
Issue	Constance, Queen of Sicily Beatrix Henry Anselm Frederick (illeg.) Flordelis
House	Hohenstaufen
Father	Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Mother	Bianca Lancia

Manfred (Sicilian: Manfredi di Sicilia; 1232 – 26 February 1266) was the last King of Sicily from the Hohenstaufen dynasty, reigning from 1258 until his death. The natural son of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II,^[1] Manfred became regent over the kingdom of Sicily on behalf of his nephew Conradin in 1254. As regent he subdued rebellions in the kingdom, until in 1258 he usurped Conradin's rule. After an initial attempt to appease Pope Innocent IV he took up the ongoing conflict between the Hohenstaufens and the papacy through combat and political alliances. He defeated the papal army at Foggia on 2 December 1254. Excommunicated by three successive popes, Manfred was the target of a Crusade (1255–66)^[2] called first by Pope Alexander IV and then by Urban IV. Nothing came of Alexander's call, but Urban enlisted the aid of Charles of Anjou in overthrowing Manfred. Manfred was killed during his defeat by Charles at the Battle of Benevento, and Charles assumed kingship of Sicily.