Stephen Pateranos was a

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 ...

general who served as the final

Catepan of Italy The Catepanate (or Catapanate) of Italy ( el, ''Katepaníkion Italías'') was a province of the Byzantine Empire from 965 until 1071. At its greatest extent, it comprised mainland Italy south of a line drawn from Monte Gargano to the Gulf of S ...

. By 1071, the Catepanate of Italy was severely reduced, with only a few holdings left and their capital

besieged Besieged may refer to: * the state of being under siege * ''Besieged'' (film), a 1998 film by Bernardo Bertolucci {{disambiguation ...

by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Fran ...

. According to the ''

Anonymus Barensis ''Anonymi Barensis Chronicon'' is a medieval Italian annalistic chronicle. Composed in Latin by an anonymous author from Bari in the first quarter of the 12th century, it covers the years 855–1118, concentrating first and foremost on the event ...

'', Romanos IV, the reigning Byzantine Emperor, sent twenty ships under command of Joscelin of Molfetta, a Norman rebel, along with Pateranos, to relieve Bari. However, the Normans intercepted and scattered the fleet off the coast of Bari, and captured the ship carrying Joscelin, though Stephen was able to reach the city. Stephen realized that defense of the city was impossible, and sent

Argyritzos Argyritzos (fl. 1071–81) was one of the leading citizens of Bari during the final years of Byzantine rule. He held the rank of ''protospatharios'' under the empire.Alessandro Pratesi"Argirizzo di Giovannacio" ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italia ...

, a local noble, to offer peace. The Normans accepted peace, and Bari surrendered. Stephen was imprisoned by the Normans, but was allowed later to return to Byzantium with other survivors.

Sources

* * 11th-century catepans of Italy Byzantine people of the Byzantine–Norman wars Byzantine prisoners of war {{Byzantine-mil-bio-stub