Leo Diogenes ( el, Λέων Διογένης, ''Leōn Diogenes''), styled as ''
Porphyrogenitus
Traditionally, born in the purple (sometimes "born to the purple") was a category of members of royal families born during the reign of their parent. This notion was later loosely expanded to include all children born of prominent or high-ranking ...
'', was the son of
Byzantine Emperor
This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...
Romanos IV Diogenes
Romanos IV Diogenes (Greek: Ρωμανός Διογένης), Latinized as Romanus IV Diogenes, was a member of the Byzantine military aristocracy who, after his marriage to the widowed empress Eudokia Makrembolitissa, was crowned Byzantine Em ...
and
Eudokia Makrembolitissa
Eudokia Makrembolitissa ( el, Εὐδοκία Μακρεμβολίτισσα, Eudocia Macrembolitissa) was a Byzantine empress by her successive marriages to Constantine X Doukas and Romanos IV Diogenes. She acted as regent of her minor son, Mi ...
. Probably crowned co-emperor during his father's reign, he later served in the armies of Emperor
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 ...
. He does not appear on any of Romanos' coins, although there is at least one letter that refers to him as emperor (''
basileus
''Basileus'' ( el, ) is a Greek term and title that has signified various types of monarchs in history. In the English-speaking world it is perhaps most widely understood to mean "monarch", referring to either a "king" or an "emperor" and al ...
'').
['' PBW'']
Leon 15005.
/ref> Anna Komnene
Anna Komnene ( gr, Ἄννα Κομνηνή, Ánna Komnēnḗ; 1 December 1083 – 1153), commonly Latinized as Anna Comnena, was a Byzantine princess and author of the ''Alexiad'', an account of the reign of her father, the Byzantine emperor, ...
notes that he and his brother Nikephoros both wore the diadem
A diadem is a type of crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty.
Overview
The word derives from the Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω ''diadéō'', "I ...
and ''tzangion The ''tzangion'' ( grc-gre, τζαγγίον, ), plural ''tzangia'' () was a type of boot or sandal, which in the Middle Ages became an important part of the Byzantine Emperors' regalia.
In the 4th century, the was a type of elegant shoe, but its ...
'' (red sandals) usually reserved to emperors.
Life
Leo's father, Romanos IV Diogenes, died while Leo was still an infant. Although elevated to the rank of co-emperor on his birth, he was banished to a monastery along with his mother after the fall of Romanos. Here he remained until the accession of Alexios I Komnenos in 1081, who took in Leo and his brother Nikephoros and raised them like his own sons.
According to Anna Komnene
Anna Komnene ( gr, Ἄννα Κομνηνή, Ánna Komnēnḗ; 1 December 1083 – 1153), commonly Latinized as Anna Comnena, was a Byzantine princess and author of the ''Alexiad'', an account of the reign of her father, the Byzantine emperor, ...
’s account, Leo was a committed supporter of Alexios, who urged him not only to confront the Norman invaders early in his reign, but also the Pechenegs
The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks tr, Peçenek(ler), Middle Turkic: , ro, Pecenegi, russian: Печенег(и), uk, Печеніг(и), hu, Besenyő(k), gr, Πατζινάκοι, Πετσενέγοι, Πατζινακίται, ka, პა ...
who had invaded the empire from beyond the Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
in 1087. During one of the pitched battles against the Pechenegs, Leo allowed himself to be drawn away from the emperor's side, and as he approached the wagons of the enemy, he was struck down and died on the field of battle.[Komnene, Book 7, Chapter 3]
References
Sources
* Komnene, Anna (1928) 148 148 may refer to:
*148 (number), a natural number
*AD 148, a year in the 2nd century AD
*148 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC
*148 (album), an album by C418
*148 (Meiktila) Battery Royal Artillery
*148 (New Jersey bus) 148 may refer to:
*148 (numb ...
''The 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 ...
''
Translation
by Elizabeth Dawes
Elizabeth Anna Sophia Dawes (1864–1954) was a 19th-century British classical scholar and the first woman to receive a DLitt degree from the University of London.
Early life
Elizabeth was born on 7 November 1864 in Surbiton, England. In the 1 ...
.
*
External links
Leo Diogenes' profile
in the Prosopography of the Byzantine World
The Prosopography of the Byzantine World (PBW) is a project to create a prosopographical database of individuals named in textual sources in the Byzantine Empire and surrounding areas in the period from 642 to 1265. The project is a collaboration b ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diogenes, Leo
Leo
11th-century Byzantine people
Byzantine generals
Doukid dynasty
Leo
1087 deaths
1069 births
Byzantine junior emperors
Sons of Byzantine emperors