Continuum of Violence in the Mediterranean World: The Case of Roger de Lauria

The medieval and early modern Mediterranean world was characterized by various forms of violence. To investigate the connections among three of these—war, piracy, and privateering—we focus on the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302): two decades of conflict between the Angevins and the Aragonese over control of the centrally located island of Sicily. Six major naval battles punctuated these decades under—arguably—the greatest of medieval admirals, Roger de Lauria. We find that there is much ambiguity in the actions of Roger de Lauria, and that in some cases, rather than naval raiding or privateering, he seems to engage in piracy. Problematizing violence will reveal the ambiguities in the diverse and contested space that was the late medieval Mediterranean world.