Alexios Aspietes ( el, Ἀλέξιος Ἀσπιέτης, ) was a

Byzantine 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 Constantinopl ...

governor and military leader who was captured by the

Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely understo ...

, and led an anti-Bulgarian rebellion at Philippopolis in 1205, being acclaimed emperor by the citizens.

Life

A member of the

Aspietes Aspietes ( gr, Ἀσπιέτης, from hy, ասպետ, aspet, rider, knight), feminine form Aspietina () or Aspietissa (), was the surname of a Byzantine noble family of Armenian origin active in the 12th–15th centuries. Despite the mention of ...

family, of noble

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

origin, Alexios Aspietes was probably a relative of the generals

Michael Aspietes Michael Aspietes ( el, Μιχαήλ Ἀσπιέτης, ) was a distinguished Byzantine general serving under Emperor Manuel I Komnenos. A member of the Aspietes family, of noble Armenian origin, Michael Aspietes is most likely the Aspietes whom Jo ...

and

Constantine Aspietes Constantine Aspietes ( el, Κωνσταντῖνος Ἀσπιέτης, ) was a Byzantine general active in the late 12th century. A member of the Aspietes family, of noble Armenian origin, Constantine was probably a close relative of his contempo ...

, who were active in the late 12th century. Alexios Aspietes first appears in 1195, when he was governor of the town of

Serres Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki. Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...

, and was ordered by Emperor

Alexios III Angelos Alexios III Angelos ( gkm, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός Ἄγγελος, Alexios Komnēnos Angelos; 1211), Latinized as Alexius III Angelus, was Byzantine Emperor from March 1195 to 17/18 July 1203. He reigned under the name Alexios Komnen ...

to march against the

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

–

Vlach "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...

rebellion Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

of the brothers

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

and Ivan Asen. In the event, in the summer or autumn of the same year, Aspietes and his army were defeated by the rebels, who took many prisoners, including Aspietes himself. Aspietes disappears from record for the next decade but was apparently released from captivity since in 1205 he is mentioned as being in Philippopolis (modern

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

in Bulgaria). In the aftermath of the crushing victory by the Bulgarian tsar

Kaloyan Kaloyan or Kalojan, also known as Ioannitsa or Johannitsa ( bg, Калоян, Йоаница; 1170 – October 1207), was emperor or tsar of Bulgaria from 1196 to 1207. He was the younger brother of Theodor and Asen, who led the anti-Byzant ...

over the forces of the

Latin Empire The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzanti ...

at the

Battle of Adrianople The Battle of Adrianople (9 August 378), sometimes known as the Battle of Hadrianopolis, was fought between an Eastern Roman army led by the Eastern Roman Emperor Valens and Gothic rebels (largely Thervings as well as Greutungs, non-Gothic A ...

on 14 April, the mostly

Byzantine Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman co ...

citizenry of Philippopolis rose up in opposition to the imminent conquest of their city by Kaloyan, and proclaimed Aspietes as

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

. Kaloyan immediately turned his army on the city, and after a brief resistance, the inhabitants were forced to surrender on terms in June. Kaloyan, however, enraged by the Greeks' collusion with the Latins, did not keep his word and executed the city's leaders, including Aspietes who, according to

Niketas Choniates Niketas or Nicetas Choniates ( el, Νικήτας Χωνιάτης; c. 1155 – 1217), whose actual surname was Akominatos (Ἀκομινάτος), was a Byzantine Greek government official and historian – like his brother Michael Akominatos, wh ...

, was first left hanging upside down before being dismembered and thrown into a ravine to be eaten by the vultures.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aspietes, Alexios 12th-century births 1205 deaths 12th-century Byzantine people 13th-century Byzantine people

Alexios Alexius is the Latinized form of the given name Alexios ( el, Αλέξιος, polytonic , "defender", cf. Alexander), especially common in the later Byzantine Empire. The female form is Alexia ( el, Αλεξία) and its variants such as Alessia ...

Byzantine governors Byzantine prisoners of war Byzantine people of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars 13th-century executions Dismemberments History of Plovdiv Byzantine usurpers History of Serres