Bohemond I of Antioch
Prince of Taranto and Prince of Antioch
Bohemond I of Antioch (c. 1054 – 5 or 7 March 1111), also known as Bohemond of Taranto or Bohemond of Hauteville, was the prince of Taranto from 1089 to 1111 and the prince of Antioch from 1098 to 1111. He was a leader of the First Crusade, leading a contingent of Normans on the quest eastward. Knowledgeable about the Byzantine Empire through earlier campaigns with his father, he was the most experienced military leader of the crusade.
Early life
Childhood and youth
Bohemond was the son of Robert Guiscard, Count of Apulia and Calabria, and his first wife, Alberada of Buonalbergo. He was born between 1050 and 1058—in 1054 according to historian John Julius Norwich. He was baptised Mark, possibly because he was born at his father's castle at San Marco Argentano in Calabria.
His parents were related within the degree of kinship that made their marriage invalid under canon law. In 1058, Pope Nicholas II strengthened existing canon law against consanguinity and, on that basis, Guiscard repudiated Alberada in favour of a then more advantageous marriage to Sikelgaita, the sister of Gisulf, the Lombard Prince of Salerno. With the annulment of his parents' marriage, Bohemond became a bastard.
The public source identifies “Bohemond I of Antioch” as prince of Taranto and Prince of Antioch. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Bohemond, Antioch and Prince.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Bohemond I of Antioch”, the useful work is to connect “prince of Taranto and Prince of Antioch” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q220806. VIAF identifies the subject as 305068694. The Library of Congress control number is n80030588. 3 of 8 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1054, 1111, 1089 and 1098.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Bohemond I of Antioch”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Bohemond I of Antioch primary sources, Bohemond I of Antioch archive and Bohemond research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Bohemond I of Antioch”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Bohemond I of Antioch” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.