Aspietes ( el, Ἀσπιέτης) was an

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 ...

nobleman who entered the service of the

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 Constantinopl ...

and served during much of the reign of

Alexios I Komnenos Alexios I Komnenos ( grc-gre, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός, 1057 – 15 August 1118; Latinized Alexius I Comnenus) was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during ...

(1081–1118). He was a member of the noble family of the Aspietai, which claimed descent from the Arsacid royal dynasty of Armenia. Aspietes is first attested alongside Alexios I during the 1081 campaign against the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Fran ...

that led to the disastrous Battle of Dyrrhachium, where Aspietes himself was gravely injured. The scene is graphically narrated by Alexios' daughter Anna Komnene in her ''

Alexiad The ''Alexiad'' ( el, Ἀλεξιάς, Alexias) is a medieval historical and biographical text written around the year 1148, by the Byzantine princess Anna Komnene, daughter of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. It was written in a form of artificial ...

'', highlighting Aspietes' valour. The name "Aspietes" appears in two different portions of the ''Alexiad'', and it is not entirely clear whether it refers to the same or different people. Most scholars identify the Aspietes of Dyrrhachium with the Aspietes who in 1105/6 was appointed governor of Tarsus by the Emperor. Shortly after, he succeeded Monastras as '' stratopedarches'' of the East, in charge of the campaign against the

Principality of Antioch The Principality of Antioch was one of the crusader states created during the First Crusade which included parts of modern-day Turkey and Syria. The principality was much smaller than the County of Edessa or the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It extende ...

. In this capacity he failed to react effectively to Tancred of Antioch, who proceeded to recapture Mopsuestia and several other fortresses that Monastras had taken the previous year. Instead, Aspietes occupied himself with debauched revelries. More recently, Alexis Savvides argued that the two personages are usually treated as distinct people, and interpreted—erroneously, according to Alexandra Wassiliou-Seibt—the relevant passage in the ''Alexiad'' as indicating that the first Aspietes died of his wounds at Dyrrhachium. Aspietes is not mentioned again after 1105/6. Nevertheless, beginning with the 17th-century scholar

Du Cange Charles du Fresne, sieur du Cange (; December 18, 1610 in Amiens – October 23, 1688 in Paris, aged 77), also known simply as Charles Dufresne, was a distinguished French philologist and historian of the Middle Ages and Byzantium. Life Educate ...

, many historians, including Ferdinand Chalandon,

Steven Runciman Sir James Cochran Stevenson Runciman ( – ), known as Steven Runciman, was an English historian best known for his three-volume ''A History of the Crusades'' (1951–54). He was a strong admirer of the Byzantine Empire. His history's negative ...

, and Alexis Savvides, have traditionally identified him with

Oshin of Lampron Oshin of Lampron ( hy, Օշին Լամբրոնացի - ''Oshin Lambronatsi'') was an Armenian nakharar. Historical sources mentioned that he was a lord of a fortress near the city of Ganja Caucasian Albanian origin (modern-day Azerbaijan), who migr ...

(1073–1112), the lord of

Cilician Armenia The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (Middle Armenian: , '), also known as Cilician Armenia ( hy, Կիլիկեան Հայաստան, '), Lesser Armenia, Little Armenia or New Armenia, and formerly known as the Armenian Principality of Cilicia ( hy, ...

, who in turn is identified with the Ursinus of Western sources. It was only in 1924 that Joseph Laurent rejected this identification, and this view has been followed by several modern scholars since.

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* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aspietes 11th-century births 11th-century Byzantine people 12th-century deaths 12th-century Byzantine people Aspietes family Byzantine people of Armenian descent Generals of Alexios I Komnenos Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Byzantine governors of Cilicia