Battle of Sanluri

The Battle of Sanluri was fought on June 30, 1409 between the armies of the Giudicato of Arborea (a kingdom in Sardinia) and the Catalan-Sicilian army of King Martin I of Sicily.

The location was the fortified village of Sanluri. The Arborean army was led by giudice William III of Narbonne, and Martin commanded in person the Aragonese army. The Sardinian army was composed mostly of mercenaries, including the renowned Genoese crossbowmen and other units from France and northern Italy.

There are few details about the battle. The Aragonese were less numerous though better trained, and managed to divide the Arborean army in two parts which were then destroyed separately. A contingent under William survived taking refuge in the castle of Monreale, in the near village of Sardara. Other Sardinian troops were captured in Sanluri and much of the population was slaughtered.

Martin died a few days later in Cagliari, allegedly by malaria transmitted him by a Sanlurese mistress. The battle was not conclusive, but opened the way to the easy Catalan conquest of the giudicato of Arborea, which fell the following year.