Francesco I Gattilusio (died 6 August 1384) was the first member of the Gattilusio family to rule the Aegean island of

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Asia Minor by the nar ...

as a vassal of the

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 Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, to Fall of Constantinople, its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. On ...

Freebooter

The Gattilusio family came from the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

. The parents of Francesco and his brother

Niccolò Niccolò is an Italian male given name, derived from the Greek Nikolaos meaning "Victor of people" or "People's champion". There are several male variations of the name: Nicolò, Niccolò, Nicolas, and Nicola. The female equivalent is Nicole. The fe ...

are not known, although based on the heraldic evidence of their inscriptions, Anthony Luttrell argues that their mother was a member of the

Doria Doria or Dória may refer to: People Surname * Doria (family), a prominent Genoese family ** Andrea Doria (1466–1560), Genoese admiral ** Ansaldo Doria, 12th century Genoese statesman and commander ** Brancaleone Doria (died c. 1409?), husband ...

family. Francesco enters the historical record as a freebooter or

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

. In 1354, Francesco and his crew landed on

Tenedos Tenedos (, ''Tenedhos'', ), or Bozcaada in Turkish, is an island of Turkey in the northeastern part of the Aegean Sea. Administratively, the island constitutes the Bozcaada district of Çanakkale Province. With an area of it is the third l ...

. The island served at the time as residence to

John V Palaiologos John V Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( el, Ἰωάννης Παλαιολόγος, ''Iōánnēs Palaiológos''; 18 June 1332 – 16 February 1391) was Byzantine emperor from 1341 to 1391, with interruptions. Biography John V was the son of E ...

, one of three co-emperors to the throne of 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 ...

, the others being his father-in-law

John VI Kantakouzenos John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzene ( el, , ''Iōánnēs Ángelos Palaiológos Kantakouzēnós''; la, Johannes Cantacuzenus; – 15 June 1383) was a Byzantine Greek nobleman, statesman, and general. He served as grand domestic under ...

and brother-in-law

Matthew Kantakouzenos Matthew Asen Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzenus (Greek: Ματθαῖος Ἀσάνης Καντακουζηνός, ''Matthaios Asanēs Kantakouzēnos'', c. 1325 – 1383 or 1391) was Byzantine Emperor from 1353 to 1357 and later Despot of the Morea fr ...

. John V and his in-laws were in

conflict Conflict may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Conflict'' (1921 film), an American silent film directed by Stuart Paton * ''Conflict'' (1936 film), an American boxing film starring John Wayne * ''Conflict'' (1937 film) ...

at the time. John V and Francesco entered an alliance to enable John to regain control of

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 ( ...

. In return, he would be given the hand of Maria Palaiologina, a sister of John V, in marriage. In early December 1354, Francesco led a fleet to Constantinople. They approached the city late at night and pretended that they needed assistance. They claimed that one of their ships was sinking and requested help in salvaging the cargo from shipwreck, and promised a share of it to the sentries of the city for their help. Seeing a chance to profit, the sentries opened a gate. Francesco then led about five hundred armed men through the gate, took command of the

Walls of Constantinople The Walls of Constantinople ( el, Τείχη της Κωνσταντινουπόλεως) are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople (today Istanbul in Turkey) since its founding as the ...

, and roused the citizens from their sleep with shouts in favor of John V. Riots in favor of John V soon started. By 4 December 1354, John VI resigned his title and retired to a monastery.

Lord

Francesco had managed to regain control of the capital for John V and removed his main rival from the political field. John V completed their agreement by making Francesco his brother-in-law. On 17 July 1355, Francesco was further rewarded by the title of Archon (Lord) of Lesbos. John V had offered him the island as

dowry A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment ...

for his sister. In 1366, Francesco joined with Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy and Louis I of Hungary in a campaign to restore the stability of the Byzantine Empire. Together they captured Gallipoli from

Murad I Murad I ( ota, مراد اول; tr, I. Murad, Murad-ı Hüdavendigâr (nicknamed ''Hüdavendigâr'', from fa, خداوندگار, translit=Khodāvandgār, lit=the devotee of God – meaning "sovereign" in this context); 29 June 1326 – 15 Jun ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

after two days of fighting. In October Amadeus and Gattilusio fleet going to

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

coast of

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

and captured several castles and coastal towns like Skafida,

Sozopol Sozopol ( bg, Созопол , el, Σωζόπολη, translit=Sozopoli) is an ancient seaside town located 35 km south of Burgas on the southern Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. Today it is one of the major seaside resorts in the country, known for th ...

Mesembria Mesembria ( grc, Μεσημβρία; grc-x-doric, Μεσαμβρία, Mesambria) was an important Greek city in ancient Thrace. It was situated on the coast of the Euxine and at the foot of Mount Haemus; consequently upon the confines of Moe ...

Emona Emona (early gkm, Ἤμονα) or Aemona (short for ) was a Roman castrum, located in the area where the navigable Ljubljanica river came closest to Castle Hill,

and Anchialo. In 1369, Francesco accompanied John V on his trip to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, along with

Demetrios Kydones Demetrios Kydones, Latinized as Demetrius Cydones or Demetrius Cydonius ( el, Δημήτριος Κυδώνης; 1324, Thessalonica – 1398, Crete), was a Byzantine Greek theologian, translator, author and influential statesman, who served an ...

, which concluded with John V personally accepting the Catholic faith on Thursday 18 October, in an unsuccessful effort to attract Western support for the greatly weakened Empire. On 6 August 1384, an

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...

affected Lesbos. Francesco I, Maria, and their two eldest sons, Andronico and Domenico, were all killed. In a letter he wrote from Constantinople soon after the event, Kydones describes how the two dead sons' prospective brides arrived from afar and searched among the ruins for the bodies of the intended husbands they had never seen. However the third son Jacopo survived and succeeded in the rule of Lesbos under the name ''Francesco II''.Miller, "The Gattilusj", pp. 411f

Children

Francesco and Maria Palaiologina had three known children: *Andronico Gattilusio (c. 1356 – 6 August 1384). *Domenico Gattilusio (c. 1358 – 6 August 1384). * Francesco II Gattilusio (c. 1365 – 26 October 1404).

References

External links

* *
"The Lesbian ancestors of Prince Rainier of Monaco, Dr. Otto von Habsburg, Brooke Shields, and the Marquis de Sade" by William Addams Reitwiesner, an extensive article on the Gattilusio and their descendants
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gattilusio, Francesco 01 14th-century births 1384 deaths Medieval pirates Francesco 01 Deaths in earthquakes Francesco 01 14th-century rulers in Europe 14th-century Genoese people