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The nobility of Rhōmanía in 1212 Part 1
Thanks!
Here's a bit of information on the Komnenoi and Doukai. Coming up in the next few days: the Kantakouzenoi and Nafpliotis families, then the Palaiologoi and Melissenoi, and then the more minor families, and then the next chapter! I'm aiming to get something new up on the thread every few days for the next few weeks, to compensate for lack of activity.
Any Greek speakers available to tell me what the plural of "Nafpliotis" would be? Nafpliotoi? Nafpliotai? Other?
Beginning in the early ninth century, imperial politics increasingly began to resemble a tug-of-war between various military baronial families, largely based in eastern Asia Minor, and the bureaucratic apparatus of the state back at Constantinople. This struggling reached a head in the tenth century, with the savage repression of the barons by the Emperor Basil II, but following Basil’s death, they began to spring back into life, although many of the old families, such as the Phokades and Skleroi would never regain the influence they enjoyed in the tenth century. New families arose in the post-Basil era, notably the Komnenoi and Palaiologoi, the former of whom seized the throne in 1057, and decisively defeated their rivals after the Battle of Claudiopolis in 1063. The Komnenoi generally managed to stay on top of their aristocratic rivals barring one savage flare-up in the reign of Isaac II (1117-22), but the other noble families continued to prosper, some more than others. This, then, is a brief guide to the major families encountered by George I when he took the throne in the autumn of 1212.
The House of Komnenos claims descent from one Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, a general and friend of Basil II. Manuel died young around 1010, and his two sons John and Isaac were brought up by the great Emperor. Isaac later took Basil’s throne in 1057, but his own son had died long before this, and the remaining Komnenoi are the descendents of his brother John Komnenos and his wife Anna Dalassēnē, from whose line five further Komnenid Emperors emerged.
By 1212, the Komnenoi are largely extinct, thanks to the purges of the 1180s that saw most of them destroyed. The notional heir to the family is the young Isaac, a great-great-great grandson of Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, but Isaac has been forced into monastic exile by the incoming regime of George of Genoa. Besides Isaac, there are his three sisters, all of whom have been married off to allies of George (the youngest, Zoe, is the bride of the new Emperor) and the nun Anna Komnena, the daughter of Isaac’s cousin Michael, who was killed in 1187 as a member of a rival branch of the family. Michael’s two infant sons Basil and Constantine disappeared in 1187, but their bodies were never displayed by the Empress Eirene (a Komnenid only by marriage) and her allies, which has led to rumours of their survival. To all extents and purposes, though, the Komnenid name is now extinct, even if the bloodline lives on.
Originally lords from the Anatolian marches, over the course of the eleventh and twelfth centuries the Doukai transferred their base further westward, to be centred on Thrace, for easy access to the capital. Though a very ancient family indeed, the current Doukai are all the descendents of another Basil II-era general named Andronikos Doukas, who participated in the Bulgarian wars of the early eleventh century. Andronikos’ two sons, Constantine and John, were significant figures at court in the early Komnenid period, allied especially to Michael Psellos. With the fall of the Psellos-led faction in the late 1070s, though, the Doukai found themselves being pushed somewhat into the background at court, and they reverted once more to largely holding military positions. The family heir, Constantine the Younger, died following his injuries sustained at the Battle of Haram in Serbia in 1130.
Leadership of the broader Doukas clan now passed to Constantine’s younger brother Bardas Doukas. Bardas was able to knit together close alliances with the other noble families of the empire, marrying off his son Michael to Eirene Melissene, the daughter of a disgraced but wealthy general named Theodosios, and his sister Theophano to Nikēphoros Bryennios the Younger, an ally of the imperial family. It is the line descended from Michael Doukas that is now the wealthiest, bringing together the combined might of the two ancient houses of Doukas and Melissenos, plus absorbing newcomers, notably the Photopouloi. With all of this wealth and power, Michael Doukas was able to act with plenty of eyebrow-raising swagger in the capital, notably naming his son and heir Theodosios after the boy’s anti-Komnenid rebel grandfather.
Theodosios was never a particularly strong supporter of John II or his successors, but by the marriage of his daughter Eirene Doukaina to a cousin, Alexios Doukas, from a lesser branch of the family, the Doukai were brought back into court politics, with Alexios being one of Eirene Nafpliotissa’s strongest supporters together with his brother-in-law Bardas and his son Constantine. This state of affairs continued right up to 1210, when Alexios was disgraced by the Empress Eirene. This foolish act cost her support of the powerful Doukai, who naturally threw their support behind the Bringas-led rebels (indeed, David Bringas himself was married to an aunt of Bardas Doukas) and were richly rewarded for it. Constantine Doukas can now count himself a member of George I’s family, being married to one of the last Komnenid princesses. The future for the Roman Empire’s “first family” undoubtedly looks bright.
Keep it up, BG!
Thanks!
Here's a bit of information on the Komnenoi and Doukai. Coming up in the next few days: the Kantakouzenoi and Nafpliotis families, then the Palaiologoi and Melissenoi, and then the more minor families, and then the next chapter! I'm aiming to get something new up on the thread every few days for the next few weeks, to compensate for lack of activity.
Any Greek speakers available to tell me what the plural of "Nafpliotis" would be? Nafpliotoi? Nafpliotai? Other?
THE NOBILITY OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE IN THE EARLY THIRTEENTH CENTURY
Beginning in the early ninth century, imperial politics increasingly began to resemble a tug-of-war between various military baronial families, largely based in eastern Asia Minor, and the bureaucratic apparatus of the state back at Constantinople. This struggling reached a head in the tenth century, with the savage repression of the barons by the Emperor Basil II, but following Basil’s death, they began to spring back into life, although many of the old families, such as the Phokades and Skleroi would never regain the influence they enjoyed in the tenth century. New families arose in the post-Basil era, notably the Komnenoi and Palaiologoi, the former of whom seized the throne in 1057, and decisively defeated their rivals after the Battle of Claudiopolis in 1063. The Komnenoi generally managed to stay on top of their aristocratic rivals barring one savage flare-up in the reign of Isaac II (1117-22), but the other noble families continued to prosper, some more than others. This, then, is a brief guide to the major families encountered by George I when he took the throne in the autumn of 1212.
HOUSE OF KOMNENOS
The House of Komnenos claims descent from one Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, a general and friend of Basil II. Manuel died young around 1010, and his two sons John and Isaac were brought up by the great Emperor. Isaac later took Basil’s throne in 1057, but his own son had died long before this, and the remaining Komnenoi are the descendents of his brother John Komnenos and his wife Anna Dalassēnē, from whose line five further Komnenid Emperors emerged.
By 1212, the Komnenoi are largely extinct, thanks to the purges of the 1180s that saw most of them destroyed. The notional heir to the family is the young Isaac, a great-great-great grandson of Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, but Isaac has been forced into monastic exile by the incoming regime of George of Genoa. Besides Isaac, there are his three sisters, all of whom have been married off to allies of George (the youngest, Zoe, is the bride of the new Emperor) and the nun Anna Komnena, the daughter of Isaac’s cousin Michael, who was killed in 1187 as a member of a rival branch of the family. Michael’s two infant sons Basil and Constantine disappeared in 1187, but their bodies were never displayed by the Empress Eirene (a Komnenid only by marriage) and her allies, which has led to rumours of their survival. To all extents and purposes, though, the Komnenid name is now extinct, even if the bloodline lives on.
HOUSE OF DOUKAS
Originally lords from the Anatolian marches, over the course of the eleventh and twelfth centuries the Doukai transferred their base further westward, to be centred on Thrace, for easy access to the capital. Though a very ancient family indeed, the current Doukai are all the descendents of another Basil II-era general named Andronikos Doukas, who participated in the Bulgarian wars of the early eleventh century. Andronikos’ two sons, Constantine and John, were significant figures at court in the early Komnenid period, allied especially to Michael Psellos. With the fall of the Psellos-led faction in the late 1070s, though, the Doukai found themselves being pushed somewhat into the background at court, and they reverted once more to largely holding military positions. The family heir, Constantine the Younger, died following his injuries sustained at the Battle of Haram in Serbia in 1130.
Leadership of the broader Doukas clan now passed to Constantine’s younger brother Bardas Doukas. Bardas was able to knit together close alliances with the other noble families of the empire, marrying off his son Michael to Eirene Melissene, the daughter of a disgraced but wealthy general named Theodosios, and his sister Theophano to Nikēphoros Bryennios the Younger, an ally of the imperial family. It is the line descended from Michael Doukas that is now the wealthiest, bringing together the combined might of the two ancient houses of Doukas and Melissenos, plus absorbing newcomers, notably the Photopouloi. With all of this wealth and power, Michael Doukas was able to act with plenty of eyebrow-raising swagger in the capital, notably naming his son and heir Theodosios after the boy’s anti-Komnenid rebel grandfather.
Theodosios was never a particularly strong supporter of John II or his successors, but by the marriage of his daughter Eirene Doukaina to a cousin, Alexios Doukas, from a lesser branch of the family, the Doukai were brought back into court politics, with Alexios being one of Eirene Nafpliotissa’s strongest supporters together with his brother-in-law Bardas and his son Constantine. This state of affairs continued right up to 1210, when Alexios was disgraced by the Empress Eirene. This foolish act cost her support of the powerful Doukai, who naturally threw their support behind the Bringas-led rebels (indeed, David Bringas himself was married to an aunt of Bardas Doukas) and were richly rewarded for it. Constantine Doukas can now count himself a member of George I’s family, being married to one of the last Komnenid princesses. The future for the Roman Empire’s “first family” undoubtedly looks bright.
- Basileus Giorgios
- Word Count: 960