Constantine Doukas ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Δούκας; died 30 May 1185), called Makrodoukas (Μακροδούκας, "Tall Doukas", probably a sobriquet) by

Niketas Choniates Niketas or Nicetas Choniates ( el, Νικήτας Χωνιάτης; c. 1155 – 1217), whose actual surname was Akominatos (Ἀκομινάτος), was a Byzantine Greek government official and historian – like his brother Michael Akominatos, wh ...

, 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 ...

nobleman.

Life

Although a distinguished figure in the late

Komnenian period The Byzantine Empire was ruled by emperors of the Komnenos dynasty for a period of 104 years, from 1081 to about 1185. The ''Komnenian'' (also spelled ''Comnenian'') period comprises the reigns of five emperors, Alexios I Komnenos, Alexios I, Jo ...

, it is impossible to establish his family origin or his ties to the 11th-century

Doukas The House of Doukas, Latinized as Ducas ( el, Δούκας; feminine: Doukaina/Ducaena, Δούκαινα; plural: Doukai/Ducae, Δοῦκαι), from the Latin title ''dux'' ("leader", "general", Hellenized as 'ðouks'', is the name of a Byzant ...

dynasty. He is first attested in documents dating to 1166, where he already bears the high court rank of '' pansebastos sebastos'' and is related to the ruling dynasty by marriage with a daughter of the ''

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 wh ...

'' Isaac Komnenos and niece of the emperor

Manuel I Komnenos Manuel I Komnenos ( el, Μανουήλ Κομνηνός, translit=Manouíl Komnenos, translit-std=ISO; 28 November 1118 – 24 September 1180), Romanization of Greek, Latinized Comnenus, also called Porphyrogennetos (; "born in the purple"), w ...

(r. 1143–1180). Makrodoukas next appears in 1170 and 1176, when he accompanied Emperor Manuel I in his campaigns against the

Seljuk Turks The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes by the Turk ...

. Under

Andronikos I Komnenos Andronikos I Komnenos ( gr, Ἀνδρόνικος Κομνηνός; – 12 September 1185), Latinization of names, Latinized as Andronicus I Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1183 to 1185. He was the son of Isaac Komnenos (son of Alexio ...

(r. 1183–1185), Makrodoukas initially enjoyed the emperor's favour, and rose to the rank of ''

panhypersebastos The title of ( gr, πανυπερσέβαστος, , venerable above all) was a Byzantine court title created by Alexios I Komnenos () using the imperial root (the Greek translation of ). It was always conferred to members of aristocratic families ...

''. However, after the rebellion of Makrodoukas' nephew Isaac Komnenos, who declared himself emperor in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

, he was arrested along with other relatives of the rebel, accused of treason and condemned on 30 May to death by

stoning Stoning, or lapidation, is a method of capital punishment where a group throws stones at a person until the subject dies from blunt trauma. It has been attested as a form of punishment for grave misdeeds since ancient times. The Torah and Ta ...

. After surviving the stoning, he was dragged to Mangana, where he was dismembered.

Family

Constantine Makrodoukas married Anna Komnene, daughter of Isaac Komnenos by 1166. They had at least one daughter, Zoe Doukaina, who married John Doukas.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Makrodoukas, Constantine 12th-century births 1185 deaths 12th-century Byzantine people Executed Byzantine people People executed by dismemberment People executed for treason

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

12th-century executions by the Byzantine Empire Generals of Manuel I Komnenos Panhypersebastoi Sebastoi