Name Thomas Marquess | ||
Thomas II (Italian: Tommaso del Vasto) (1304 – 18 August 1357) was Marquess of Saluzzo from 1336 to his death. He succeeded his father, Frederick I.
His mother Margarete de La Tour du Pin, a daughter of Humbert I de La Tour du Pin, Dauphin de Viennois.
His succession was disputed by his uncle Manfred. The ensuing war was part of the wider Guelf-Ghibelline conflict. Thomas, who had married a Visconti, was a Gibelline and Manfred a Guelf with the support of the Angevin King Robert of Naples. Robert therefore, to reduce Ghibelline (and Visconti) power in the north, advanced on Saluzzo and besieged it. He succeeded in taking it and sacking it, setting the city on fire and imprisoning Thomas, who had to pay a ransom. The whole dramatic event is recorded by Silvio Pellico.
In August 1347, he joined John II, Marquess of Montferrat and Humbert II of Viennois as they attacked Savoy and conquered the Angevin lands in northern Italy after the death of Robert. The 1348 treaty which resolved this war left none of the participants satisfied. Thomas now owed allegiance to Milan, as well as his prior allegiance to Savoy.
Thomas was eventually succeeded by his son Frederick II.
Marriage and children
Thomas married Ricciarda Visconti. She was a daughter of Galeazzo I Visconti, Lord of Milan and Beatrice d'Este. Beatrice was a daughter of Obizzo II d'Este by either his first wife Giacoma Fieschi or his second wife Constanza della Scala. They had eleven children: