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Alexios Komnenos (protosebastos)
Alexios Komnenos ( gr, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός; – after 1182) was a Byzantine aristocrat and courtier. A son of Andronikos Komnenos and nephew of Emperor Manuel I Komnenos, he rose to the high rank of '' prōtostratōr'' in 1167. In 1176 he participated in the Myriokephalon campaign where, following the death of his older brother John, he was raised to the titles of '' prōtosebastos'' and '' prōtovestiarios''. Following Manuel's death in 1180, he won the favour, and reportedly became the lover, of Empress-dowager Maria of Antioch. Through her he ruled the Byzantine Empire for two years as ''de facto'' regent of the underage emperor Alexios II Komnenos. The aristocracy challenged his dominance, led by the princess Maria Komnene, who plotted to assassinate the ''prōtosebastos''. The plot was discovered and most conspirators arrested, but Maria and her husband fled to the Hagia Sophia, protected by Patriarch Theodosios Borradiotes and the common people ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Political Mutilation In Byzantine Culture
Mutilation was a common method of punishment for criminals in the Byzantine Empire, but it also had a role in the empire's political life. By blinding a rival, one would not only restrict his mobility but also make it almost impossible for him to lead an army into battle, then an important part of taking control of the empire. Castration was also used to eliminate potential opponents. In the Byzantine Empire, for a man to be castrated meant that he was no longer a man—half-dead, "life that was half death". Castration also eliminated any chance of heirs being born to threaten either the emperor’s or the emperor's children's place at the throne. Other mutilations were the severing of the nose ( rhinotomy), or the amputating of limbs. Rationale The mutilation of political rivals by the emperor was deemed an effective way of side-lining from the line of succession a person who was seen as a threat. Castrated men were not seen as a threat, as no matter how much power they gaine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dowager
A dowager is a widow or widower who holds a title or property—a "dower"—derived from her or his deceased spouse. As an adjective, ''dowager'' usually appears in association with monarchical and aristocratic titles. In popular usage, the noun ''dowager'' may refer to any elderly widow, especially one of wealth and dignity or autocratic manner. Some dowagers move to a separate residence known as a dower house. Use In the United Kingdom In the United Kingdom the widow of a peer or baronet may continue to use the style she had during her husband's lifetime, e.g. "Countess of Loamshire", provided that his successor, if any, has no wife to bear the plain title. Otherwise she more properly prefixes either her forename or the word ''Dowager'', e.g. "Jane, Countess of Loamshire" or "Dowager Countess of Loamshire". (In any case, she would continue to be called "Lady Loamshire".) The term ''queen dowager'' is used in the United Kingdom and several other countries for the widow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Konstantinos Varzos
Konstantinos or Constantinos (Κωνσταντίνος, ''Konstantínos'') is a Greek male given name. * Konstantinos (born 1972), occultist * Konstantinos "Kosta" Barbarouses (born 1990), New Zealand footballer * Konstantinos Chalkias (born 1974), Greek footballer * Konstadinos Gatsioudis (born 1973), Greek athlete * Konstantinos Gavras (born 1933), Greek-French filmmaker * Konstantinos Kanaris (1790–1877), Greek admiral and statesman, former Prime Minister of Greece * Konstantinos Karamanlis (1907–1998), former Prime Minister and President of Greece * Konstantinos Kenteris (born 1973), Greek athlete (sprinter) and Olympic gold medalist * Konstantinos Koukodimos (born 1969), former Greek athlete and politician * Konstantinos Logothetopoulos (1878–1961), former Prime Minister of Greece * Kostas Mitroglou (born 1988), Greek footballer * Konstantinos Mitsotakis (1918–2017), former Prime Minister of Greece * Konstantinos Paparrigopoulos (1815–1891), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Komnenoi
Komnenos ( gr, Κομνηνός; Latinized Comnenus; plural Komnenoi or Comneni (Κομνηνοί, )) was a Byzantine Greek noble family who ruled the Byzantine Empire from 1081 to 1185, and later, as the Grand Komnenoi (Μεγαλοκομνηνοί, ''Megalokomnenoi'') founded and ruled the Empire of Trebizond (1204–1461). Through intermarriages with other noble families, notably the Doukai, Angeloi, and Palaiologoi, the Komnenos name appears among most of the major noble houses of the late Byzantine world. Origins The 11th-century Byzantine historian Michael Psellos reported that the Komnenos family originated from the village of Komne in Thrace—usually identified with the "Fields of Komnene" () mentioned in the 14th century by John Kantakouzenos—a view commonly accepted by modern scholarship. The first known member of the family, Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, acquired extensive estates at Kastamon in Paphlagonia, which became the stronghold of the family in the 11th cent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prosopographical
Prosopography is an investigation of the common characteristics of a group of people, whose individual biographies may be largely untraceable. Research subjects are analysed by means of a collective study of their lives, in multiple career-line analysis.Stone 1971. The discipline is considered to be one of the auxiliary sciences of history. History British historian Lawrence Stone (1919–1999) brought the term to general attention in an explanatory article in 1971, although it had been used as early as 1897 with the publication of the ''Prosopographia Imperii Romani'' by German scholars. The word is drawn from the figure of prosopopeia in classical rhetoric, introduced by Quintilian, in which an absent or imagined person is figured forth—the "face created" as the Greek suggests—in words, as if present. Stone noted two uses of prosopography as an historian's tool: first, in uncovering deeper interests and connections beneath the superficial rhetoric of politics, in order to e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theodore Prodromos
Theodore Prodromos or Prodromus ( el, Θεόδωρος Πρόδρομος; c. 1100 – c. 1165/70), probably also the same person as the so-called Ptochoprodromos (Πτωχοπρόδρομος "Poor Prodromos"), was a Byzantine Greek writer, well known for his prose and poetry. Biography Very little is known about his life. Further developing a genre begun by Nicholas Kallikles, he wrote many occasional poems for a widespread circle of patrons at the Byzantine court. Some of the literary pieces attributed to him are unpublished, while still others may be wrongly attributed to him. Even so, there does emerge from these writings the figure of an author in reduced circumstances, with a marked inclination towards begging, who was in close touch with the court circles during the reigns of John II Komnenos (1118–1143) and Manuel I Komnenos (1143–1180). He was given a prebend by Manuel I, and he ended his life as a monk. Despite the panegyric and conventional treatment, his writin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irene Of Hungary
Irene of Hungary ( Greek: Είρήνη, born Piroska; 1088 – 13 August 1134) was a Byzantine empress by marriage to John II Komnenos. She is venerated as a saint. Life The name Piroska was a Hungarian derivation of the Latin name Prisca, literally meaning 'ancient', but implying 'serious' or 'grave' behaviour. She was a daughter of Ladislaus I of Hungary and Adelaide of Swabia. Her mother died in 1090 when Piroska was still a child. Her father died on 29 July 1095 and was succeeded by his nephew Coloman. In an effort to improve relations with Alexios I Komnenos of the Byzantine Empire, Coloman negotiated the marriage of Piroska to John II Komnenos. John II was the eldest son of Alexios I and Irene Doukaina. He was already co-ruler of his father since late 1092 and was expected to succeed him. The negotiations were successful and Piroska married John in 1104. The marriage was recorded by Joannes Zonaras and John Kinnamos. Following her conversion to the Eastern Ortho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John II Komnenos
John II Komnenos or Comnenus ( gr, Ἱωάννης ὁ Κομνηνός, Iōannēs ho Komnēnos; 13 September 1087 – 8 April 1143) was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as "John the Beautiful" or "John the Good" ( gr, Καλοϊωάννης, Kaloïōannēs), he was the eldest son of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and Irene Doukaina and the second emperor to rule during the Komnenian restoration of the Byzantine Empire. As he was born to a reigning emperor, he had the status of a . John was a pious and dedicated monarch who was determined to undo the damage his empire had suffered following the Battle of Manzikert, half a century earlier. John has been assessed as the greatest of the Komnenian emperors. This view became entrenched due to its espousal by George Ostrogorsky in his influential book, ''History of the Byzantine State'', where John is described as a ruler who, "... combined clever prudence with purposeful energy ... and ashigh principled b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sebastokrator
''Sebastokrator'' ( grc-byz, Σεβαστοκράτωρ, Sevastokrátor, August Ruler, ; bg, севастократор, sevastokrator; sh, sebastokrator), was a senior court title in the late Byzantine Empire. It was also used by other rulers whose states bordered the Empire or were within its sphere of influence ( Bulgarian Empire, Serbian Empire). The word is a compound of '' sebastós'' (, the Greek equivalent of the Latin ''Augustus'') and ''krátōr'' ('ruler', the same element as is found in '' autokrator'', 'emperor'). The wife of a ''Sebastokrator'' was named ''sebastokratorissa'' (, ''sevastokratórissa'') in Greek, ''sevastokratitsa'' () in Bulgarian and ''sebastokratorica'' in Serbian. Eastern Roman Empire The title was created by Emperor Alexios I Komnenos () to honour his elder brother Isaac Komnenos.. According to Anna Komnene, Alexios did this to raise Isaac above the rank of ''Caesar'', which he had already promised to his brother-in-law, Nikephoros Melisse ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andronikos I Komnenos
Andronikos I Komnenos ( gr, Ἀνδρόνικος Κομνηνός; – 12 September 1185), Latinized as Andronicus I Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1183 to 1185. He was the son of Isaac Komnenos and the grandson of the emperor Alexios I. In later Byzantine historiography, Andronikos I became known under the epithet "Misophaes" ("Hater of Sunlight") in reference to the great number of enemies he had blinded. Early years Andronikos Komnenos was born around 1118. Most of what is known of him is from the writings of the historian Niketas Choniates,Niketas Choniates, ''Annals,'' XIX. certain passages in a work by Eustathios, 'The Capture of Thessaloniki', or inferred by later historians of the Byzantine Empire. He was handsome and eloquent, active, hardy, courageous, a great general and an able politician, but also licentious. His early years were spent alternately in pleasure and in military service. In 1141, he was taken captive by the Seljuk Turks and remained in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theodosios Borradiotes
Theodosius I Borradiotes ( el, Θεοδόσιος Α΄ Βορραδιώτης; b. Antioch – d. after 1183 in Constantinople) was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1179 to 1183. References 1183 deaths 12th-century patriarchs of Constantinople People from Antioch Year of birth unknown Officials of Manuel I Komnenos {{EasternOrthodoxy-bishop-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia ( 'Holy Wisdom'; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque ( tr, Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi), is a mosque and major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The cathedral was originally built as a Greek Orthodox Church, Greek Orthodox church which lasted from 360 AD until the Fall of Constantinople, conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire in 1453. It served as a mosque until 1935, when it became a museum. In 2020, the site once again became a mosque. The current structure was built by the eastern Roman emperor Justinian I as the Christian cathedral of Constantinople for the state church of the Roman Empire between 532 and 537, and was designed by the Greeks, Greek geometers Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles. It was formally called the Church of the Holy Wisdom () and upon completion became the world's largest interior space and among History of Roman and Byzantine domes, the first to employ a fully pendentive dome. It is co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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