Drogo was a son of Tancred of Hauteville by his first wife Muriella. Goffredo Malaterra records him as being the second son, after William Iron Arm, while Romuald Guarna records him as being the third, coming after Serlo and Geoffrey. Regardless, it is unlikely anyway that Drogo was older than Serlo, as Serlo stayed in Normandy to inherit their father’s possessions, while Drogo journeyed to Southern Italy.[1][2][3]
Since Tancred had many sons, and his possessions weren’t enough to satisfy all of them, Drogo and many of his brothers were soon forced to seek fortune elsewhere.[4]
With time, Drogo and his brothers put themselves under the direct service of Guaimar IV. Under Guaimar’s authority, Norman and Lombard forces served the Byzantine army in an attempt to conquer Sicily from the Saracens. After two years, however, they left the expedition because of a loot dispute. In 1040 they joined a Lombard rebellion in Apulia, this time against the Byzantines.[3][4]
During said rebellion, Drogo’s brother William Iron Arm had managed to keep the Normans under his control, and was the key to many victories. Thus, in September 1042, William was nominated Count of all the Normans in Apulia, with the Norman capital in Melfi. His title and territories were recognized by Guaimar IV; In turn, William declared himself Guimar’s vassal, as Guaimar assumed the title of Duke of Apulia and Calabria.[2][3][4] In this occasion, Drogo was given Venosa. He took advantage of his new possession, and also occupied Bovino in 1045.[1][4]
Count of Apulia and Calabria
When William Iron Arm died childless in 1046, Drogo succeeded him as Count of Apulia after fighting for the title with Peter I of Trani. Guaimar IV of Salerno acknowledged Drogo’s succession, and gave him his daughter’s hand in marriage. Drogo’s legitimacy grew significantly when Emperor Henry III came to Southern Italy in 1047: Drogo paid homage to the Emperor on February 3, and Henry III confirmed the possession of his territories and invested him as “Dux et magister totius italiae comesque Normannorum totius Apuliae et Calabriae”, which translates to “Duke and master of all of Italy, and Count of all the Normans in Apulia and Calabria”. Henry III, however, didn’t recognize Guaimar IV’s title of “Duke of Apulia”, and stripped him of it, theoretically meaning that Drogo wasn’t subject to Guaimar’s control anymore.[1][5]
During Drogo’s tenure as Count, between 1046 and 1047, his half-brother Robert Guiscard arrived in Southern Italy. Drogo, however, welcomed him coldly, not granting him any fief and sending him to Calabria to get him out of the way, probably fearing his competition for the County. Drogo also initially refused to allow Robert’s marriage with Alberada of Buonalbergo. If we consider that Robert and Alberada’s marriage was later annulled on the grounds of consanguinity, Drogo might’ve had actual reasons; however, the claim of consanguinity is usually regarded as an excuse to divorce.[5]
At one point during his reign, Drogo imprisoned Richard Drengot, one of the contenders for succession to the County of Aversa. The reason for Richard's eventual release is unclear. According to Amatus of Montecassino, Guaimar IV of Salerno pressured Drogo to free him. Alternatively, Drogo might have kept Richard prisoner in order for William Bellabocca, regent of Aversa and possibly a relative of Drogo, to keep his power. If this is the case, Drogo probably released Richard after the Aversans expelled Bellabocca, as keeping him prisoner no longer served a purpose.[5]
Death and succession
Towards the end of his reign, Drogo met with Pope Leo IX, when he came to Southern Italy to restore the Libertas Ecclesiae under Henry III’s directives. However, as he was returning from the meeting with the Pope, he was assassinated along with several of his followers on Saint Lawrence’s Day (10 August) of 1051, while he was entering the chapel of his castle at Monte Ilario, near Bovino, to attend mass. Goffredo Malaterra records that he was killed by a Lombard man of his entourage. Drogo was possibly the victim of an anti-Norman conspiracy led by Argyrus, the Byzantine catepan of Italy, who was trying to reclaim the region for the Byzantine Empire. Drogo was buried at the Abbey of Santissima Trinità of Venosa.[1][5][6]
Drogo’s second wife was Gaitelgrima, daughter of Guaimar IV of Salerno (not the same as this Gaitelgrima, who was princess of Capua). No children result from this marriage.[2]
