Andronikos I of Trebizond
Andronikos I Gidos | |
---|---|
A daughter of Alexios I of Trebizond | |
Family | Gidos |
Andronikos I Gidos (
Origins
The Gidos family appears briefly in
Apart from the
On the death of the Emperor Alexios, control of the empire passed over Alexios' oldest son, John in favor of Andronikos. The steps that led to Andronikos' ascension have not been recorded. Finlay assumes that "the hereditary principle" of succession had not become common practice for the Empire of Trebizond at this point.[8] Although William Miller assumes that John was not old enough to assume the throne,[9] one primary source attests that more than one son was, indeed, old enough to do so: during the siege of Sinope, according to Ibn Bibi, when Kaykaus I told the city that unless they surrendered he would kill Alexios, who was his prisoner, the inhabitants replied that "he has grown sons in Trebizond who are capable of governing. We will elect one of them as our ruler and will not surrender the country to the Turks."[10] Miller describes Andronikos Gidos as "a shrewd man of great experience in warfare".[11] His experience at war served the new-born polity well in facing a serious attack on the capital in 1224.
Marriage to Komnene
Andronikos married a daughter of
The Seljuks
The
Upon learning of this attack, Sultan Melik marched on Trebizond. In response to the sultan's threat, Andronikos summoned all his troops and fortified the passes leading to the city. The emperor inflicted considerable loss upon the advance guard of the sultan before withdrawing within the walls of the city, which were already accounted impregnable although they did not yet extend to the sea. At this point the
The sultan made camp near the Monastery of Saint Eugenios, and set fire to the suburbs outside the walls. A string of attacks and counterattacks followed over the next few days (punctuated by a Seljuk embassy being shown the ample stores inside the city) ended with an attempt to storm the walls by night. This last attack failed when a sudden thunderstorm, accompanied by torrential rain and hail, terrified and scattered the besiegers. Some rode over the cliffs in the dark into the ravines, others were caught by swollen torrents from the mountains.
Melik was brought a prisoner to Trebizond, where Andronikos received him with honor. A pact was made between them that in the future the tie of vassalage, which had previously bound Trebizond to Iconium, should cease, and that the Trapezuntines should no longer be obliged either to perform military service to the sultan or to send tribute or gifts. Melik is reported to have been so impressed by this moderation that he performed more than the treaty required by sending an annual present of Arab horses to Andronikos and money to the Monastery of St Eugenios.
Cult of St Eugenios
The siege of 1224 is the source of two early legends of the St Eugenios cult. Fear of the army of Melik is said to have driven many Trapezuntines to the sanctuaries of
The Khwarizmshah and the Mongols
The independence of Trebizond lasted only until 1230.
The alliance with Jalal ad-Din cost Andronikos the loss of the privileges which he had gained in his treaty with Kaykaus. Trebizond once more became a vassal to the Sultan of Iconium. About 1240
The Mongols occupied a large part of Georgia.
Coinage
Andronikos is the earliest Emperor of Trebizond whose coins have survived. A number of bronze trachea (also called scyphates) have been identified as having been struck during his reign. These bear the image of the Virgin Mary seated on a throne and holding an icon of the Christ Child—somewhat similar to the obverses of the later aspers of Manuel I—while on the reverse appears an emperor with a forked beard and Christ standing beside him with his hand raised in benediction.[18]
Notes
- ^ This rare issue of coins have in the past also alternatively been attributed to the Byzantine emperor Andronikos I Komnenos (r. 1183–1185), but a Trapezuntine origin under Andronikos I Gidos is supported by isolated coin finds as well as finds of hoards within the borders of the former Empire of Trebizond.[1]
- ^ Although Andronikos I was not related to the otherwise ruling Komnenos dynasty of Trebizond with the exception of his marriage, his coins nevertheless contain the inscription KOMMNC|OΓΔΩN (i.e. Komnenos Gidos).[1]
References
- ^ a b Grierson 1982, p. 275.
- ^ Finlay, The History of Greece and the Empire of Trebizond, (1204-1461) (Edinburgh: William Blackwood, 1851), p. 332 n. 1; repeated by William Miller, Trebizond: The last Greek Empire of the Byzantine Era: 1204-1461, 1926 (Chicago: Argonaut, 1969), p. 19
- OCLC 636671800.
The name Γίδος, of Andronicos I Gidos Comnenos of Trapezous (around 1200) and of Alexios Gidos (the father of the first) is traced by N. Bees* back to mod. Gr. γίδα f., γίδι n. goat. Be it noted here that from mod. Gr. Γίδα a name form Γίδας ought to be expected, cf. Κατσίκας from κατσίκα, and from mod. Gr. γίδι the personal name Γίδης as κριάρι – Κριάρης; περιστέρι – Περιστέρης etc. ;
- ^ a b Kazhdan 1991, pp. 850–851
- ^ ISBN 9780884022770.
The lineage of Gidoi comes to the fore after Manuel's death:... 151 No text treats the Gidoi as foreigners; their name, however, resembles that of Guido, but it is not possible to demonstrate that they were descendants of the son of Robert Guiscard. W. Hecht even questions the Western origin of the Gidoi.
- ^ Kazhdan 1991, p. 850.
- ^ Bryer, "David Komnenos and Saint Eleutherios", Archeion Pontou, 42 (1988-1989), p. 186
- ^ Empire of Trebizond, p. 384
- ^ Trebizond, pp. 20, 24
- ^ Cited in A. A. Vasiliev, "The Foundation of the Empire of Trebizond (1204-1222)", Speculum, 11 (1936), p. 27
- ^ a b Miller, Trebizond, p. 20
- ^ Williams, Kelsey J. (2006). "A Genealogy of the Grand Komnenoi of Trebizond". Foundations: 171–189.
- ^ A. C. S. Peacock, "The Saliūq Campaign against the Crimea and the Expansionist Policy of the Early Reign of'Alā' al-Dīn Kayqubād", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, 16 (2006), p. 140
- ^ Miller, Trebizond, p. 21
- ^ Miller, Trebizond, pp. 22f
- ^ Miller, Trebizond, pp. 23f
- ^ a b Miller, Trebizond, p. 24
- ^ D.M. Metcald and I.T. Roper, "A Hoard of Copper Trachea of Andronicus I of Trbizond (1222-35)", Spink Numismatic Circular, 83 (1975), pp. 237-9.
Sources
- Grierson, Philip (1982). Byzantine Coins. Los Angeles: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-04897-0.
- Kazhdan, Alexander (1991). "Gidos". In ISBN 978-0-19-504652-6.
External links
- Vougiouklaki Penelope, "Andronikos I Grand Komnenos", Encyclopedia of the Hellenic World: Asia Minor