John II of Nivelet (died 1316) is the name given in modern historiography to the last Baron of Nivelet in the

Principality of Achaea The Principality of Achaea () or Principality of Morea was one of the three vassal states of the Latin Empire, which replaced the Byzantine Empire after the capture of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. It became a vassal of the Kingdom ...

, in

Frankish Greece The ''Frankokratia'' ( el, Φραγκοκρατία, la, Francocratia, sometimes anglicized as Francocracy, "rule of the Franks"), also known as ''Latinokratia'' ( el, Λατινοκρατία, la, Latinocratia, "rule of the Latins") and ...

. The Nivelet family had lost their original fief, the

Barony of Geraki The Barony of Geraki was a medieval Frankish fiefdom of the Principality of Achaea, located on the western slopes of Mount Parnon in Laconia, of the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece, and centred on the castle of Geraki ( el, Γεράκι, Ἰερ ...

in the region of

Lakonia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word ''laconic''—to speak in a blunt, c ...

, in the early 1260s to 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 ...

, either in 1262, in exchange for the release of Prince

William II of Villehardouin William of Villehardouin (french: Guillaume de Villehardouin; Kalamata, 1211 – 1 May 1278) was the fourth prince of Achaea in Frankish Greece, from 1246 to 1278. The younger son of Prince Geoffrey I, he held the Barony of Kalamat ...

, taken captive by the Byzantines at the Battle of Pelagonia in 1259, or during the subsequent Byzantine offensives. Following the loss of Geraki, the family was compensated with new lands in

Messenia Messenia or Messinia ( ; el, Μεσσηνία ) is a regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, in Greece. Until the implementation of the Kallikratis plan on 1 January 2011, Messenia was a ...

and kept their baronial title, but the new "Barony of Nivelet" was no longer a distinct geographical entity, but apparently an assemblage of dispersed fiefs tied to his family. John II is not attested by name in the sources; his name is a conjecture by the 19th-century medievalist

Karl Hopf Karl Hopf may refer to: * Karl Hopf (historian) Karl Hopf (Hamm, Westphalia, February 19, 1832 – Wiesbaden, August 23, 1873) or Carl Hermann Friedrich Johann Hopf was a historian and an expert in Medieval Greece, both Byzantine and Frankish. ...

, which has since been repeated in several works dealing with the period. It is only known that in 1315–16 the then Baron of Nivelet supported

Ferdinand of Majorca Ferdinand of Majorca ( ca, Ferran de Mallorca; 1278 – 5 July 1316) was an ''infant'' of the Kingdom of Majorca; he was born at Perpignan, the third son of King James II. He was Viscount of Aumelas and Lord of Frontignan from 1311 and c ...

's attempt to claim the Principality of Achaea against Princess

Matilda of Hainaut Matilda of Hainaut ( French: ''Mathilde de Hainaut''; November 1293 – 1331), also known as Maud and Mahaut, was Princess of Achaea from 1316 to 1321. She was the only child of Isabella of Villehardouin and Florent of Hainaut, co-rulers of Ac ...

and her husband

Louis of Burgundy Louis of Burgundy (1297 – August 2, 1316) was a member of the Capetian House of Burgundy who ruled the Principality of Achaea and claimed the defunct Kingdom of Thessalonica. Louis was a younger son of Duke Robert II of Burgundy and Agnes o ...

. After Ferdinand was defeated and killed at the

Battle of Manolada The Battle of Manolada was fought on July 5, 1316, at Manolada, on the plains of Elis in the Peloponnese. The two leaders were Louis of Burgundy and the ''infante'' Ferdinand of Majorca, both of whom claimed the Principality of Achaea in right of ...

in July 1316, the Baron of Nivelet was executed by Louis of Burgundy, and his lands were given to one of Louis' Burgundian followers,

Dreux of Charny Dreux () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. Geography Dreux lies on the small river Blaise, a tributary of the Eure, about 35 km north of Chartres. Dreux station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Gran ...

.Bon (1969), pp. 113 note 2, 192–193

References

Sources

* {{La Morée franque 1316 deaths Barons of the Principality of Achaea Medieval Messenia 14th-century executions