Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas
Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas | |
---|---|
Komnenos Doukas | |
Father | Michael II |
Mother | Theodora Petraliphaina |
Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas, Latinized as Nicephorus I Comnenus Ducas (Greek: Νικηφόρος Κομνηνός Δούκας, romanized: Nikēphoros Komnēnos Doukas; c. 1240 – c. 1290) was ruler of Epirus from 1267/8 to his death in 1296/98.
Life
Born around 1240, Nikephoros was the eldest son of the
In the following years Nikephoros was engaged in his father's struggle against Emperor
In 1267/8 Nikephoros I succeeded his father as ruler of Epirus and had to deal with
After the restoration of Orthodoxy under Andronikos II Palaiologos in 1282, Nikephoros renewed the alliance with the Byzantine Empire through his wife Anna, who traveled to Constantinople to arrange the treaty. In fact Nikephoros became a willing tool in the hands of his wife Anna, who served the interests of the Byzantine court. In 1284 they lured Michael, the son of John Doukas of Thessaly, to Epirus with the promise of a dynastic alliance, and had him arrested and sent off to Constantinople. This drew Nikephoros into a war against his half-brother, who ravaged the environs of Arta in retaliation in 1285. Anna embarked on an ambitious project of uniting the houses of Epirus and Constantinople by marrying her daughter Thamar to Michael IX Palaiologos, Andronikos II's son and co-emperor. Although this project failed, in 1290 her young son Thomas was conferred the dignity of despotes by the emperor.
The anti-Byzantine aristocracy now persuaded Nikephoros to open negotiations with King
The inevitable tension between local Greek landlords and their Angevin overlord created an opportunity for the Nikephoros' nephew, the ruler of Thessaly, to intervene and to seize mostly the fortresses that had been turned over to Philip. Eventually most of these were recovered by the Angevins and peace was restored in 1296. Nikephoros died shortly after the conclusion of the peace, between September 1296 and July 1298. His widow Anna ensured the succession of their underage son Thomas.
Family
From his first marriage, Nikephoros had a daughter, Maria.[2][3] She married the future Count John I Orsini of Cephalonia (1304–1317) in 1294;[4] their sons Nicholas Orsini and John II Orsini became despots in Epirus.[5]
By his second wife Anna, the niece of Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos, Nikephoros I had three children:
- Philip I of Taranto, a son of King Charles II of Naples.[6]
- Michael, he was a hostage at Glarentza in 1279–1281.[7] He presumably died before his father.[8]
- Thomas, who succeeded as ruler of Epirus.
References
- ^ Polemis 1968, p. 94.
- ^ a b PLP, 91042. Ἄγγελος, Νικηφόρος Ι. Δούκας Κομνηνός.
- ^ a b c Polemis 1968, p. 95.
- ^ Nicol 1984, pp. 40–43.
- ^ Polemis 1968, pp. 95 (note 2), 98–99.
- ^ Nicol 1984, pp. 37, 45–47.
- ^ Nicol 1984, pp. 23, 29.
- ^ Nicol 1984, p. 37 (note 11).
Sources
- ISBN 0-472-08260-4.
- ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
- ISBN 978-0-521-13089-9.
- Polemis, Demetrios I. (1968). The Doukai: A Contribution to Byzantine Prosopography. London: The Athlone Press. OCLC 299868377.
- Trapp, Erich; Beyer, Hans-Veit; Walther, Rainer; Sturm-Schnabl, Katja; Kislinger, Ewald; Leontiadis, Ioannis; Kaplaneres, Sokrates (1976–1996). ISBN 3-7001-3003-1.