Robert Guiscard proclaimed Duke of Apulia

1058

The sixth of the Hauteville brothers, a red-bearded Norman who had started out robbing pilgrims, was recognized as Count of Apulia by his fellow adventurers. Within a decade Pope Nicholas II would formally invest him with the duchy, turning the Norman freebooters into legitimate lords of southern Italy. His transformation from brigand to duke was one of the most remarkable social ascents in medieval history.