Manfred V, Marquess of Saluzzo

Who is Manfred V, Marquess of Saluzzo?

Manfred V was marquess of Saluzzo from 1330 and 1332, and later usurper from 1341-1342.

He was the second son of Manfred IV of Saluzzo and first by his second wife, Isabella Doria. The influence of his mother at court caused his father to appoint him to succeed him as sixth marquess of Saluzzo. However, on the elder Manfred's death in 1330, his eldest son, Frederick, contested the throne and a civil war broke out. Through the intercession of Frederick's cousin, Amadeus VI of Savoy, Manfred was forced, after being caught in a sex scandal with his own mother, to cede the throne to his brother in 1334.

After the death of Frederick in 1336, Manfred declared war on the legitimate heir, his young nephew Thomas II. His army was mostly composed by Angevin mercenaries. In 1341, after a short siege, Saluzzo surrendered and his troops sacked it, destroying also the castle. Thomas was imprisoned.

However, when the fortunes of Manfred's protector Robert of Anjou, King of Naples, declined after the battle of Gamenario, he was compelled by the Viscontis to abandon Saluzzo in 1342.