John Komnenos Vatatzes
John Komnenos Vatatzes | |
---|---|
Born | unknown, probably c. 1132 |
Died | 16 May 1182 Philadelphia |
Allegiance | Megas domestikos |
Commands held | Commander in Chief of the Byzantine army, Governor (Doux) of Thrace, General commanding a number of field armies |
Battles/wars | Battle of Hyelion and Leimocheir, Battle of Philadelphia (1182) |
John Komnenos Vatatzes (Greek: Ἰωάννης Κομνηνὸς Βατάτζης, Iōannēs Komnēnos Vatatzēs), or simply John Komnenos or John Vatatzes (the transliteration 'Batatzes' is also employed) in the sources, was a major military and political figure in the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire during the reigns of Manuel I Komnenos and Alexios II Komnenos. He was born c. 1132, and died of natural causes during a rebellion he raised against Andronikos I Komnenos in 1182.
Background and family
John Komnenos Vatatzes was the son of the
John's parents married in 1131, and he was born soon thereafter, probably ca. 1132.
Military career in the reign of Manuel I
John Komnenos Vatatzes enters contemporary sources as a senior general in the 1170s; it is certain that he served in lesser military capacities before being appointed to high command, but no record of his activities has survived. He undoubtedly had a military apprenticeship under his father Theodore, also a prominent general, who undertook the siege of Zemun on the Hungarian frontier in 1151, and captured the city of Tarsus in Cilicia in 1158.[7]
In 1176 Emperor Manuel Komnenos attempted to destroy the
Vatatzes intercepted the Seljuq army as it was returning to Turkish territory loaded with plunder from sacked Byzantine cities. He deployed his army to create a classic ambush, which was sprung when the Turks were in the process of crossing the Meander River, near the settlements of Hyelion and Leimocheir. The Seljuq army was almost helpless to defend itself and was destroyed; the Byzantine historian Niketas Choniates stated that only a few out of many thousands escaped. The Seljuq commander, who held the title 'Atabeg', was killed as he attempted to fight his way out of the trap.[13][14] The battle was a significant victory for the Byzantines and it underlined how limited the immediate effects of the Byzantine defeat at Myriokephalon were on the empire's hold over its Anatolian possessions. The Byzantine victory was followed up by punitive expeditions against the Turcoman nomads settled around the upper Meander Valley.[15]
Alexios II and rebellion
When Vatatzes is again mentioned in the sources, in 1182, he is holding very high office: he was both
Following the death of Emperor Manuel I in 1180 the succession fell to his son Alexios II Komnenos. As Alexios was a child, power devolved on his mother, the empress Maria of Antioch. Her rule proved unpopular, especially with the aristocracy who resented her Latin (Western) origins. When Manuel's cousin Andronikos Komnenos (Andronikos I) made a bid for power in early 1182 he wrote to John Vatatzes in an attempt to suborn him. Vatatzes recognised Andronikos as a potential tyrant and wrote back in insulting terms.[16] Vatazes' cousin Andronikos Kontostephanos the commander of the navy, however, was deceived and played a key role in allowing Andronikos' forces to enter Constantinople. Once in power, Andronikos Komnenos proved that he had indeed a tyrannical nature and a vehement desire to break the power and influence of the Byzantine aristocratic families.[19]
At the time, Vatatzes is recorded as residing near Philadelphia in western Anatolia; presumably he had been dismissed from his offices. As a member of the imperial family and a respected and successful general he had no difficulties in raising a substantial army when he openly rebelled against the new regime. Vatatzes upbraided Andronikos as a "demonic adversary" who was "intent on exterminating the imperial family." The second accusation, at least, was an accurate assessment.[20][21]
Andronikos I sent the general
Legacy
John Komnenos Vatatzes is one of the few figures whose character is described with unalloyed admiration in the works of the Byzantine historian Niketas Choniates.[23]
Footnotes
- ^ a b Varzos, p. 382
- ^ Magdalino, p. 207
- ^ Magdalino, p. 208
- ^ Choniates, pp. 440–441.
- ^ Varzos, pp. 382–383
- ^ Varzos, p. 383
- ^ John Kinnamos, pp. 91 and 138
- ^ Magdalino, p. 99
- ^ Choniates, p. 108
- ^ Choniates, pp. 108–109
- ^ Birkenmeier, p. 196
- ^ Varzos, pp. 383–384
- ^ Choniates, p. 110
- ^ Varzos, p. 384
- ^ Angold, p. 193
- ^ a b Choniates, p. 138
- ^ The previously separate Themes of Macedonia and Thrace were usually governed together in this period, with Adrianople (Theme of Macedonia) being the administrative centre.
- ^ Magdalino, p. 153
- ^ Angold, p. 267
- ^ Choniates, p. 146
- ^ Angold, p. 267
- ^ Choniates, pp. 146–147
- ^ Magdalino, p. 13.
References
Primary
- ISBN 0-8143-1764-2.
- Kinnamos, John (1976). Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus. transl. by Charles M. Brand. Columbia University Press.
Secondary
- Angold, Michael (1984). The Byzantine Empire, 1025–1204: A Political History. Longman.
- Birkenmeier, John W. (2002). The Development of the Komnenian Army: 1081–1180. Brill. ISBN 90-04-11710-5.
- ISBN 0-521-52653-1.
- Varzos, Konstantinos (1984). Η Γενεαλογία των Κομνηνών [The Genealogy of the Komnenoi] (PDF) (in Greek). Vol. B. Thessaloniki: OCLC 834784665.