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Allagion
The ''allagion'' ( el, ) was a Byzantine military term designating a military unit of 50-400 soldiers. It first appeared in the mid-to-late 10th century, and by the 13th century had become the most frequent term used for the Byzantine army's standing regiments, persisting until the late 14th century. Etymology The term means "rotation of duties"On proposals by earlier scholars on the meaning of the term, cf. and first appears in the '' Tactica'' of Leo VI the Wise in the early 10th century for a generic body of troops. In a more technical use it came into use as an alternate term for a cavalry '' bandon'', numbering between 50 and 400 men. In the 10th and 11th centuries, provincial ''allagia'' had some 50–150 men, while those of the central imperial army were closer to the upper limit, with circa 320–400 men. ''Allagia'' in the late Byzantine era From the late 11th century, as evidenced in the writings of Michael Attaleiates, the term also began to be used in a more specif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tzaousios
The ''tzaousios'' ( gr, τζαούσιος) was a late Byzantine military office, whose exact functions and role are somewhat unclear.. The term is derived from the Turkish '' çavuş'', meaning "courier" or "messenger", and was in use by the Byzantines perhaps as early as the late 11th century.. In the 13th–15th centuries, it became applied to officers serving in provincial posts. A ''tzaousios'' could serve as commander of the garrison of a ''kastron'' (a fortified administrative center run by a '' kephale''), possibly combining the military and administrative roles, or as an officer to the '' megala allagia'' of the imperial field army. Most of the ''tzaousioi'' mentioned in the sources came from the Byzantine Morea, where they played an important role in provincial administration. In Macedonia and Thrace by contrast, they seem to have been limited to a purely military role within the ''megala allagia''. The variant ''megas tzaousios'' (μέγας τζαούσιος, "grand ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palaiologan Byzantine Army
The Palaiologan army refers to the military forces of the Byzantine Empire under the rule of the Palaiologos dynasty, from the late 13th century to its final collapse in the mid-15th century. The army was a direct continuation of the forces of the Empire of Nicaea, which itself was a fractured component of the formidable Komnenian army of the 12th century. Under the first Palaiologan emperor, Michael VIII, the army's role took an increasingly offensive role whilst the naval forces of the empire, weakened since the days of Andronikos I Komnenos, were boosted to include thousands of skilled sailors and some 80 ships. Due to the lack of land to support the army, the empire required the use of large numbers of mercenaries. After Andronikos II took to the throne in 1282, the army fell apart and the Byzantines suffered regular defeats at the hands of their eastern opponents, although they would continue to enjoy success against the Latin territories in Greece. By c. 1350 the Empire's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paramonai
The ''Paramonai'' ( el, Παραμοναί) were an obscure Byzantine guard regiment of the Palaiologan period. The name derives from the Greek verb παραμένω, meaning "to stand near something". Unlike other major guard units in the Palaiologan army like the Varangian Guard, the regiment of the ''Paramonai'' was a native Byzantine formation, although little else is known about it. Its existence is safely attested in the literary sources only for the period from 1272 until 1315.. They are still mentioned by the mid-14th century writer Pseudo-Kodinos George Kodinos or Codinus ( el, Γεώργιος Κωδινός), also Pseudo-Kodinos, ''kouropalates'' in the Byzantine court, is the reputed 14th-century author of three extant works in late Byzantine literature. Their attribution to him is mere ..., however, who records that the regiment had two divisions, one on foot and the other on horse, each commanded by an '' allagator'', and that all the soldiers were armed with sw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinople. It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire remained the most powerful economic, cultural, and military force in Europe. The terms "Byzantine Empire" and "Eastern Roman Empire" were coined after the end of the realm; its citizens continued to refer to their empire as the Roman Empire, and to themselves as Romans—a term which Greeks continued to use for themselves into Ottoman times. Although the Roman state continued and its traditions were maintained, modern historians prefer to differentiate the Byzantine Empire from Ancient Rome ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael VIII Palaiologos
Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( el, Μιχαὴλ Δούκας Ἄγγελος Κομνηνὸς Παλαιολόγος, Mikhaēl Doukas Angelos Komnēnos Palaiologos; 1224 – 11 December 1282) reigned as the co-emperor of the Empire of Nicaea from 1259 to 1261, and as Byzantine emperor from 1261 until his death in 1282. Michael VIII was the founder of the Palaiologan dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453. He recovered Constantinople from the Latin Empire in 1261 and transformed the Empire of Nicaea into a restored Byzantine Empire. His reign saw considerable recovery of Byzantine power, including the enlargement of the Byzantine army and navy. It would also include the reconstruction of the city of Constantinople, and the increase of its population. Additionally, he re-established the University of Constantinople, which led to what is regarded as the Palaiologan Renaissance between the 13th and 15th centuries. It was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chronicle Of The Morea
The ''Chronicle of the Morea'' ( el, Τὸ χρονικὸν τοῦ Μορέως) is a long 14th-century history text, of which four versions are extant: in French, Greek (in verse), Italian and Aragonese. More than 9,000 lines long, the ''Chronicle'' narrates events of the Franks' establishment of feudalism in mainland Greece. West European Crusaders settled in the Peloponnese (called Morea at the time) following the Fourth Crusade. The period covered in the ''Chronicle'' was 1204 to 1292 (or later, depending on the version). It gives significant details on the civic organization of the Principality of Achaia. The extant texts of the ''Chronicle of the Morea'' The Greek text is the only text written in verse. The French, Italian and Aragonese texts are written in prose.Jean-Claude Polet, ''Patrimoine littéraire européen'', De Boeck Université, 1995, Greek text The verses of the Greek text are written in a 15-syllable political verse. The verses are accented but not r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mercenary
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather than for political interests. Beginning in the 20th century, mercenaries have increasingly come to be seen as less entitled to protections by rules of war than non-mercenaries. The Geneva Conventions declare that mercenaries are not recognized as legitimate combatants and do not have to be granted the same legal protections as captured service personnel of the armed forces. In practice, whether or not a person is a mercenary may be a matter of degree, as financial and political interests may overlap. Modern mercenary organizations are generally referred to as private military companies or PMCs. Laws of war Protocol Additional GC 1977 (APGC77) is a 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pronoia
The ''pronoia'' (plural ''pronoiai''; Greek: πρόνοια, meaning "care" or "forethought," from πρό, "before," and νόος, "mind") was a system of granting dedicated streams of state income to individuals and institutions in the late Byzantine Empire. Beginning in the 11th century and continuing until the empire's conquest in the 15th century, the system differed in significant ways from European feudalism of the same period. The institution A ''pronoia'' was a grant that temporarily transferred imperial fiscal rights to an individual or institution. These rights were most commonly taxes or incomes from cultivated lands, but they could also be other income streams such as water and fishing rights, customs collection, etc. and the various rights to a specific piece of geography could be granted to separate individuals. Grants were for a set period, usually lifetime, and revokable at will by the Emperor. When institutions, usually monasteries, received grants they were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thrace (theme)
The Theme of Thrace ( el, ) was a province (''thema'' or theme) of the Byzantine Empire located in the south-eastern Balkans, comprising varying parts of the eponymous geographic region during its history. History Traditionally, it has been held that the theme (at the time primarily a military command) was constituted in c. 680, as a response to the Bulgar threat... This is based on the mention of a certain ''patrikios'' Theodore, Count of the ''Opsikion'' and ''hypostrategos'' of Thrace, in 680/681. However, it is unclear whether this implies the existence of Thrace as a separate command, with Theodore holding a dual post, or whether Thrace was administratively united to the ''Opsikion''. In fact, separate ''strategoi'' of Thrace are not clearly attested in literary sources until 742, while seals of ''strategoi'' are also extant only from the eighth century on. Initially, Adrianople was probably the theme's capital. Under Empress Irene of Athens, in the late eighth century, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strymon (theme)
The Theme of Strymon ( el, θέμα Στρυμόνος) was a Byzantine military-civilian province (theme) located in modern Greek Macedonia, with the city of Serres as its capital. Founded probably by the mid-to-late 9th century, its history as an administrative history was chequered, being variously split up and/or united with neighbouring themes. Location The theme covered the region between the Strymon and Nestos rivers, between the Rhodope mountains and the Aegean Sea. The area was strategically important. Not only did the theme control the exits to the mountain passes from the Slav-dominated interior of the Balkans into the coastal plains of Macedonia, but it was transversed by the great ''Via Egnatia'' highway, which linked Byzantine-controlled Thrace with Thessalonica, the Empire's second-largest city.. The region was peopled predominantly with Slavs from the late 7th century on, and retained a significant Slavic population at least until the 11th century.. Its main citie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thessalonica (theme)
The Theme of Thessalonica ( el, Θέμα Θεσσαλονίκης) was a military-civilian province (''thema'' or theme) of the Byzantine Empire located in the southern Balkans, comprising varying parts of Central and Western Macedonia and centred on Thessalonica, the Empire's second-most important city. History In Late Antiquity, Thessalonica was the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia and of the Diocese of Macedonia, and the seat of the praetorian prefect of Illyricum. With the loss of most of the Balkan hinterland to the Slavic and Bulgar invasions in the 7th century, however, the authority of the prefect (in Greek ''eparchos'', "eparch") was largely confined to the city and its immediate surroundings. The eparch continued to govern Thessalonica until the early 9th century, when he was replaced by a ''strategos'' at the head of the new theme of Thessalonica. The ''strategos'' of Thessalonica is attested for the first time in 836, but a letter of Emperor Michael II () t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theme (Byzantine District)
The themes or ( el, θέματα, , singular: , ) were the main military/administrative divisions of the middle Byzantine Empire. They were established in the mid-7th century in the aftermath of the Slavic invasion of the Balkans and Muslim conquests of parts of Byzantine territory, and replaced the earlier provincial system established by Diocletian and Constantine the Great. In their origin, the first themes were created from the areas of encampment of the field armies of the East Roman army, and their names corresponded to the military units that had existed in those areas. The theme system reached its apogee in the 9th and 10th centuries, as older themes were split up and the conquest of territory resulted in the creation of new ones. The original theme system underwent significant changes in the 11th and 12th centuries, but the term remained in use as a provincial and financial circumscription until the very end of the Empire. History Background During the late 6th and e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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