Andrea Giuseppe Torgia

Andrea "The Baron" Giuseppe Torgia was King of Naples from 1502 to 1562 and is a famous and infamous figure in history. His actions were seen by many as heretical, but with a modern perspective is seen as a hero of equality. He has been idealized due to actions and is seen by some as the Founder of Modern Italy since he practically founded the Torgia house which now rule Italy. His equally controversial wife Maria Giovanni Torgia is also well renowned and idealized as the most important female leader in Italian history.

Before Servitude
Andrea Giuseppe was born on the 29th of February 1472 in the Genoese village of Montoggio. Every little his known about is childhood however he seems to have been taught by his parents Stella and Giuseppe. By the time he become a servant of Rodrigo Borgia he seems to have been somewhat educated which endeared him to Rodrigo. It is unknown when exactly he fell into Rodrigo Borgia's hands, but it is believed to be sometime in the 1480s.

Servitude
When he entered Rodrigo Borgia's service he quickly gained his favor. At one point Rodrigo started trusting him to help him out in decision making. He soon become an unofficial adviser to Rodrigo and helped in some of the decisions he made. In 1501 French troops moved through Rome and conquered Naples. The Pope on recommendation of Andrea orchestrated a treaty between France and Spain which were competing over Italy. This is known as the Treaty of Reggio and may have been the brain child of Andrea himself. He said that a neutral figure either a minor noble or someone of no nobility at all should be put as king of Naples so he had no loyalties. Except to Rodrigo Borgia of course. Rodrigo recommended that Andrea be put as King of Naples. Other candidates were put forward, but shot down. Rodrigo had been pope for 10 years at this point and guessed that Andrea probably would have picked up on ruling. They barely choose Andrea on the 23rd of November and the treaty was signed the next day.

Early Years and Marriage
He was coronated on the 26th of December and became the King of Naples. Despite the treaty both the Spanish and French refused to recognize the treaty. Apparently the treaty had been signed by their respective commanders against the orders from their monarchs. The French army mutinied and dissolved, but the Spanish army was preparing for a campaign. Meanwhile a member of the previous Trastamara dynasty as rose up trying to take the throne seizing Taranto for the purpose.

Trastamara Revolt
The Neapolitan fleet had luckily not been based in Taranto at the moment. They were in Lecce and waiting to hear the results from Reggio. He immediately set out to seize control of the fleet right after his coronation. He managed to reach the fleet first only due to a Trastamara Siege of Montescaglioso and their indefinite knowledge of where the fleet was. He arrived and the the navy was suspicious. He gave a rousing speech and won the loyalty of the Naval Commanders. The Navy blockaded Reggio and he sent a demand to the city to let him in. They agreed and me marched into the city. After this he went on a campaign throughout the country recruiting every man he could. Meanwhile he sent out letters to the nobility to raise their levies and group in Salerno. A few complied, but he had to act immediately. He managed to sneak a message into Montecaglioso that said to sortie on the 3rd day. The desperation of the populace and garrison led them to comply. On the third day they attacked only to see the enemy camp on fire and Neapolitans attacking a disorganized and confused rebel army. The Trastamara pretender was killed in the confusion by one of his own troops who may have defected.

Trastamara Revolt Aftermath
After the revolt was crushed he dissolved the army he created and made sure every man made it back. His actions and quick reaction to this revolt gave him the respect he needed from his people and the nobles. Which he desperately need for the incoming wars with the Spanish and French. He managed to surprise and surround his enemies despite having an army half the size of his opponent. The rulers of Europe would hear this and so would the Neapolitans. Even today his tact in this battle and others have won him fame. The respect he earned would crucial to his future success.

Marriage
After his victory he returned to the capital of Naples with the army formed in Salerno. He called all nobles to the capital to pay homage and to send all possible troops to his army. All nobles who could did pay homage, but he believed many were holding back on military support. He could do nothing to combat this due to his precarious position. The army in Salerno would grow to 13,000 by the end of the year. During the rest of the year he spent his time organizing and building his court. Selecting advisers and appointing governors mostly based on merit and loyalty. At one point a woman in the court caught his eye. Her name was Maria of the irrelevant House of Torgia. However she was a noble and her looks and personality took the new king by storm. His feelings were reciprocated by Maria. The day after the two met she approached him asked him to marry her most unusual for the time. She had gotten the consent of her parents to try to get him to marry her. Andrea accepted and quickly started arranging a marriage. Both sides had things to gain from this. Andrea got legitimacy from the marriage and the security of a possible heir. Maria got her irrelevant Venetian house into the spotlight by marrying the king of Naples. The wedding was arranged for the 5th of July 1503. Rushed even for the time. The wedding went without a problem and Maria became Queen of Naples. Andrea unorthodoxly took his wife's surname due to his lack of one. This was controversial in the church, but his ally Pope Alexander VI suppressed the dissent. Despite this his actions would find much condemnation.

Spanish Invasion
In 1504 the Spanish were ready to invade and landing at Gaeta with reportedly 42,000 troops. He immediately took control of the army in Salerno and marched north with many of his nobles following him into battle to insure their loyalty. His scouts eventually located the Spanish army near Gaeta. He ordered his army to harass the Spanish army incessantly. Rotation his troops in and out while poisoning local water, collecting food and burning local food sources so the Spanish couldn't use them. This continued up to Naples itself. The Spanish army entered the city and as punishment for their harsh conditions burned the city to the ground and slaughtered the inhabitants. Andrea seeing what was happening lit fires through out the countryside to bottle the Spanish in those harsh conditions. However they continued to Salerno while Andrea's troops swelled to 24,000 from locals and nobles which previous held back their troops. Once the Spanish moved in Salerno displacing the inhabitants they settled and waited for reinforcement. The locals defected to Andrea and he sent an ultimatum to the Spanish. Basically saying let the people in or suffer the consequences. The Spanish commander was livid and sent a threat back. Andrea then sent a few brave inhabitants to burn down the city they once called home. The Spanish which were waiting for reinforcements were shocked to see the city started to light up. Spanish morale was low and seeing flames surrounding them broke them. Chaos broke out in the Spanish camp involving the death of Spanish commander. The Salerno people who had started the fire attacked the camp only contributing to the chaos. Soon enough Andrea ordered them to return and offered amnesty to any who defected. 15,000 or half of the remaining Spanish troops defected including the Navy commander. The joint Neapolitan Spanish navy attacked a reinforcement fleet of 20,000 crushing them in open sea. The remaining Spanish troops were left at the whim of the former inhabitants. The Spaniards were all slaughtered. This massive victory against a superior force gained him the full loyalty of the populace and most of nobles.

French Alliance
The French who were recovering from the mutiny soon heard of the victory. The French had already been considering an alliance with the upstart. This victory put it on the table for real and the French king sent diplomats to offer his resignation of his claim to Naples and offer of Alliance against the Habsburgs. Andrea accepted and this was a key moment tilting Italy into the favor of France.

Sicilian Revolt
In consequence of his a major revolt occurred on Sicily and a minor one on Sardinia which had been held by the Aragonese since his predecessor Charles I lost it in the War of the Sicilian Vespers. He soon set off to take advantage of the situation. By the end of his Sicilian Campaign he had full control of the island. He soon offered to negotiate with the Spanish King. Due to the French Alliance, glaring military defeats and the possible loss of Sardinia they complied. In 1505 the Treaty of Cagliari was signed officially ceding Sicily to Naples. After this the Kings of Naples and later Italy would once again hold the title of King of Sicily. This was a victory against a major power and cemented his ability in the minds of Europe.