The Kallergis family ( el, Καλλέργης) is a

Cretan Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

aristocratic family which claims descent from Byzantine Emperor

Nikephoros II Phokas Nikephoros II Phokas (; – 11 December 969), Latinized Nicephorus II Phocas, was Byzantine emperor from 963 to 969. His career, not uniformly successful in matters of statecraft or of war, nonetheless included brilliant military exploits whi ...

, and were at one stage the most powerful noblemen of

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

Origin

According to later tradition, Emperor

Alexios II Komnenos Alexios II Komnenos ( gkm, Αλέξιος Β' Κομνηνός; 14 September 1169, p. 383September 1183), Latinized Alexius II Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1180 to 1183. He ascended to the throne as a minor. For the duration of his shor ...

sent twelve noble

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 ...

families to Crete, in order to strengthen the ties between the island and

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 (" ...

. The families were credited important land and administrative privileges. Ioannis Phokas was one of those 12 Byzantine rulers. The Phokas name changed to "Kallergis" during the Venetian dominion over Crete, which began in the aftermath of the

Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...

. As

Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi Richard Nikolaus Eijiro, Count of Coudenhove-Kalergi (16 November 1894 – 27 July 1972) was an Austrian-Japanese politician, philosopher and Count of Coudenhove-Kalergi. A pioneer of European integration, he served as the founding president of ...

describes in his book ''An idea conquers the world'' the Kallergis name is composed of the Greek word ''kalon'' (=beautiful) and ''ergon'' (from ergō="work, task, deed, accomplishment, or purpose") reek: Καλλ(ι)έργης > Καλλέργης, known in many versions as Kalergis, Calergis, Kallergi, Callergi, Calergi Heraldic ensembles containing the Kallergis family

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

(''bendy argent and azure'') can be found all over the island of Crete, in churches and other monuments. The name reappears many times in the turbulent history of Crete but also of modern Greece. Their prominent position and privileges survived during the Venetian dominion of Crete as they were part of the "privilegiati" (Greek: Αρχοντορωμαίοι) and sometimes of "nobili Veneti". They served many times the Venetian regime but at the same time defended the welfare of the Cretan people, being involved in several uprisings, most notably the Revolt of Alexios Kallergis in the late 13th century.

Sally McKee Sally may refer to: People *Sally (name), a list of notable people with the name Military *Sally (military), an attack by the defenders of a town or fortress under siege against a besieging force; see sally port *Sally, the Allied reporting nam ...

, Uncommon dominion:Venetian Crete and the myth of ethnic purity, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2000, p. 74 and ss. During the Venetian dominion and after the Ottoman conquest of the island of Crete (1669 AD) many of the Kallergis moved to the Ionian islands and

Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. In Venice the family, hereafter named ''Calergi'' in this branch, built bonds with the families of

Vendramin The House of Vendramin (, ) was a rich merchant family of Venice, Italy, who were among the ''case nuove'' or "new houses" who joined the patrician class when the ''Libro d'Oro'' was opened after the battle of Chioggia (June 1380). Andrea Ven ...

Crespi Crespi (the Italian form of "Crispus") is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Benedetto Crespi (d. 725 AD), archbishop of Milan * Consuelo Crespi (1928–2010), model and editor of ''Vogue Italia'' *Cristoforo Benigno Crespi (1833 ...

and

Grimani The House of Grimani was a prominent Venice, Venetian patricianship, patrician family, including three Doges of Venice. They were active in trade, politics and later the ownership of theatres and opera-houses. Notable members included: Notable m ...

through marriages . The family is also connected to the Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi, which is found in

on the Grand Canal.

References

{{reflist Greek noble families Kingdom of Candia

Origin

See also

References