In the period between 1257 and 1259 the

Despotate of Epirus The Despotate of Epirus () was one of the Greek Rump state, successor states of the Byzantine Empire established in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204 by a branch of the Angelos dynasty. It claimed to be the legitimate successor of the ...

and

Empire of Nicaea The Empire of Nicaea (), also known as the Nicene Empire, was the largest of the three Byzantine Greeks, Byzantine Greek''A Short history of Greece from early times to 1964'' by Walter Abel Heurtley, W. A. Heurtley, H. C. Darby, C. W. Crawley, C ...

fought each other for Byzantine territories. Nicaea had by 1253 occupied Macedonia and Albania, and forced Despot Michael II of Epirus to submission. Michael II, fearing an Nicaean attack after

Theodore II Laskaris Theodore II Laskaris or Ducas Lascaris (; November 1221/1222 – 16 August 1258) was Emperor of Nicaea from 1254 to 1258. He was the only child of Emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes and Empress Irene Laskarina. His mother was the eldest da ...

' defeat of the

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

(1255–56), allied himself with Serbian king

Stefan Uroš I Stefan Uroš I ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош I; 1223 – 1 May 1277), known as Uroš the Great () was the King of Serbia from 1243 to 1276, succeeding his brother Stefan Vladislav. He was one of the most important rulers in Serbian history ...

. The Epirotes involved chieftains in

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

in the springtime of 1257, and the Epirote and Serbian armies then coordinated their attacks. Michael regained most of Albania, then sent forces into Macedonia.

References

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* * * Despotate of Epirus Empire of Nicaea Conflicts in 1257 Conflicts in 1258 Conflicts in 1259 1257 in Europe 1258 in Europe 1259 in Europe Albania under the Byzantine Empire 13th century in Greece Civil wars of the Byzantine Empire Wars involving medieval Serbian states Rebellions in Albania {{Europe-hist-stub

See also

References

Sources