Duchy of Durazzo (Republic of Venice)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Duchy of Durazzo
Overseas colony of the Republic of Venice
1205–1213
Flag of Duchy of Durazzo
Flag
Durazzo
Historical eraMiddle Ages
• Established
1205
• Treaty with Epirus
1210
• Captured by Epirus
1213
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Theme of Dyrrhachium
Despotate of Epirus
Today part ofAlbania

The Duchy of Durazzo was a short-lived overseas colony of the

dissolution of the Byzantine Empire in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade, and lasted until it was reclaimed by the Byzantine Despotate of Epirus
in 1213.

Background

During the late 11th and the 12th centuries, the city of Durazzo and its province (the "

western Balkans.[1][2][3]

Establishment and end

After the

Latin Patriarch of Constantinople to his see, also attacked and captured Durazzo and Corfu.[4]

At Durazzo, the Venetians met little opposition and one of the captains, Marino Vallaresso, was appointed governor of Durazzo with the title of

Greek Orthodox prelate, directly by Venice, without the involvement of the Pope.[6][7]

Although the Venetians had also laid claim to the mainland region of

Corinthian Gulf in the south. Unable and unwilling to undertake the effort necessary confront him, the Venetians preferred to conclude a compromise treaty with Doukas in June 1210, which recognized him as ruler of Epirus, but as the nominal vassal of Venice, which had claimed this territory since 1204.[8] This treaty was expedient for Doukas, but did not mean the abandonment of his own designs on Durazzo: in 1213, his forces captured the city, ended the Venetian presence, and restored a Greek Orthodox archbishop to the local see.[6][7] Soon after, Doukas' forces also took Corfu, and moved to extend his rule over Albania and western Macedonia, capturing the lordship of Croia and pushing up to the borders of Zeta.[9]

Aftermath

In 1216, the Venetians turned to the new Latin Emperor, Peter II of Courtenay, to help them recover Durazzo. Peter landed at Durazzo in 1217, but although he may have briefly recovered the city, he was soon defeated and captured by Michael Doukas' half-brother and successor, Theodore Komnenos Doukas, and the city returned to Epirote hands.[10]

After the Epirote conquest, the city declined as an entrepôt for trade, as the Venetians moved their commerce to Ragusa instead.[6]

The city continued to change hands in the 13th and 14th centuries between the Greeks of Epirus and the restored Palaiologan Byzantine Empire, the Angevins of Naples, and the Serbs. Venice once again took possession of the city in 1392, holding it until it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1501.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b ODB, "Dyrrachion", (T. E. Gregory), p. 668.
  2. ^ Angold 1997, pp. 129ff., 152.
  3. ^ Stephenson 2004, pp. 151–152, 159–160.
  4. ^ a b Nicol 1988, p. 155.
  5. ^ Nicol 1988, pp. 155–156, 161.
  6. ^ a b c d Robbert 1985, p. 426.
  7. ^ a b Nicol 1988, p. 161.
  8. ^ Nicol 1988, pp. 159–160.
  9. ^ Fine 1994, p. 68.
  10. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 112–113.

Sources

  • ISBN 0-582-29468-1
    .
  • Ducellier, Alain (1981). La façade maritime de l'Albanie au Moyen Age. Durazzo et Valona du ΧIe au XVe siècle [The Albanian Seaboard in the Middle Ages. Durazzo and Valona from the 11th to the 15th Century] (in French). Thessaloniki: Institute for Balkan Studies.
  • ISBN 0-472-08260-4
    .
  • ISBN 0-19-504652-8
    .
  • ISBN 0-521-34157-4
    .
  • Robbert, Louise Buenger (1985). "Venice and the Crusades". In Zacour, N.P.; Hazard, Harry W. (eds.). A History of the Crusades, Volume V: The impact of the Crusades on the Near East. University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 379–451.
  • Stephenson, Paul (2004). Byzantium's Balkan Frontier: A Political Study of the Northern Balkans, 900–1204. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    ISBN 0-521-77017-3
    .
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Duchy_of_Durazzo_(Republic_of_Venice)&oldid=1061616310"