John Doukas ( el, Ἰωάννης Δούκας, ''Iōannēs Doúkas'') was a son of the

Despot of Epirus The despot of Epirus was the ruler of the Despotate of Epirus, one of the successor states of the Byzantine Empire in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade. The name "Despotate of Epirus" and the title "despot of Epirus" are modern historiographical ...

Michael II Komnenos Doukas Michael II Komnenos Doukas, Latinized as Comnenus Ducas ( el, Μιχαήλ Β΄ Κομνηνός Δούκας, ''Mikhaēl II Komnēnos Doukas''), often called Michael Angelos in narrative sources, was from 1230 until his death in 1266/68 the rule ...

, and a general in

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 ...

service. John was the second-born son of the

, and Theodora Petraliphaina. In 1261 his mother brought him as a hostage to the Byzantine court at

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, where he married Tornikina Komnene (of unknown first name), the second-born daughter of the ''

sebastokrator ''Sebastokrator'' ( grc-byz, Σεβαστοκράτωρ, Sevastokrátor, August Ruler, ; bg, севастократор, sevastokrator; sh, sebastokrator), was a senior court title in the late Byzantine Empire. It was also used by other rulers wh ...

'' Constantine Tornikios. The couple had at least one daughter, Helena, but the marriage was unhappy, with John apparently despising his wife. As a result, he was imprisoned and blinded in 1280, and committed suicide shortly after.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Doukas, John 1280s deaths 13th-century Byzantine people Komnenodoukas dynasty People of the Despotate of Epirus Suicides in the Byzantine Empire