John Chaldos ( el, Ἰωάννης Χάλδος, Ioannes Chaldos; ) was a Byzantine general under Basil II.

Life

As his surname indicates, Chaldos was native of

Chaldia Chaldia ( el, Χαλδία, ''Khaldia'') was a historical region located in the mountainous interior of the eastern Black Sea, northeast Anatolia (modern Turkey). Its name was derived from a people called the ''Chaldoi'' (or ''Chalybes'') that i ...

, region in northeastern Asia Minor. He may have been of Armenian origin.. He served as military governor (''

strategos ''Strategos'', plural ''strategoi'', Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized ''strategus'', ( el, στρατηγός, pl. στρατηγοί; Doric Greek: στραταγός, ''stratagos''; meaning "army leader") is used in Greek language, Greek to ...

'') of the Armeniac and Bucellarian themes in Asia Minor, before being sent to Thessalonica as '' doux'' in , in succession to Gregory Taronites, who had been killed in a Bulgarian ambush. Alternatively, he may have held all three offices concurrently, despite their wide geographic separation. He was certainly at his post as governor of Thessalonica in September 995, for he issued an act ('' sigillion'') confirming various privileges and exemptions of the Kolobou Monastery at Ierissos on

Chalcidice Chalkidiki (; el, Χαλκιδική , also spelled Halkidiki, is a peninsula and regional unit of Greece, part of the region of Central Macedonia, in the geographic region of Macedonia in Northern Greece. The autonomous Mount Athos region c ...

, which survives to this day. Soon after, in early 996, he was captured by the Bulgarians in another ambush placed by Tsar Samuel of Bulgaria. He remained in Bulgarian captivity for 22 years, until the final collapse of Bulgarian resistance in 1018, when he was released upon the surrender of Dragomouzos, the Bulgarian governor of

Strumitza Strumica ( mk, Струмица, ) is the largest city2002 census results
in English and Macedon ...

, to Emperor Basil II. Following the death of Taronites and the capture of Chaldos, Basil II appointed one of his most trusted subordinates, Nikephoros Ouranos, as commander-in-chief in the Balkans, resulting in the crushing victory over Samuel and his army at the Battle of Spercheios. John Chaldos is mentioned next, and for the last time, during the 1030 campaign by Emperor Romanos III Argyros against the Mirdasids of

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, which he advised against. The Emperor did not heed his opinion, and the campaign ended in a humiliating defeat in the Battle of Azaz.

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chaldos, John 10th-century Byzantine people Byzantine generals Byzantine governors of Thessalonica Byzantine people of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars Byzantine people of Armenian descent Byzantine Pontians Byzantine prisoners of war Governors of the Armeniac Theme Governors of the Bucellarian Theme Generals of Basil II Patricii Prisoners and detainees of the First Bulgarian Empire