Ranulf II, Count of Alife

Ranulf II (or Rainulf II, ; died 30 April 1139) was the count of Alife and Caiazzo, and duke of Apulia. He was a member of the Italo-Norman Drengot family which dominated the Principality of Capua for most of the century between 1050 and 1150. Ranulf's wife, Matilda, was the sister of King Roger II of Sicily. Ranulf II was the son of Robert, count of Alife and Caiazzo. and Gaitelgrima. His grandfather was Ranulf I of Caiazzo, a brother of Prince Richard I of Capua. His great-grandfather was Asclettin, count of Acerenza. Asclettin was a brother of the Ranulf Drengot, the first Norman fiefholder in Italy. As the third Ranulf in his family, Ranulf of Alife is sometimes called "Ranulf III". Rise to influence In July 1127, Duke William II of Apulia died. Count Roger II of Sicily believed that the duchy passed to him. However, this was opposed by many of the largely Norman nobility on the mainland, and in this they had the support of Pope Honorius II. A rallying-point for this opposition might have been the only other independent prince in southern Italy, Count Jordan of Ariano, but he also died on 12 August 1127. His heir was the short-lived Prince Jordan II but, on his death on 19 December, his son Robert II of Capua became Prince. His leading lord was Ranulf of Alife. In December, Honorius visited Capua, a longtime papal ally, and there organised the resistance to Roger's claim, recruiting both Ranulf and Robert to his cause. He promised them that all who took part in the campaign against Roger would earn remission of their sins. Robert's leadership was less than stellar and Ranulf was soon the effective military leader of the opposition. When Roger arrived on the peninsula with an army, Ranulf tried to organise resistance, especially in Troia, but gave up when Roger threatened to invade his lands. Eventually, the rebels' negotiations with Roger led to a truce by which Honorius invested Roger as Duke of Apulia and Calabria in August 1128.