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Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos (Greek: Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός, romanized: Aléxios Komnēnós, c. 1057 – 15 August 1118), Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. After usurping the throne he was faced with a collapsing empire and constant warfare throughout his reign. Alexios was able to curb the Byzantine decline and begin the military, financial, and territorial recovery known as the Komnenian restoration. His appeals to Western Europe for help against the Seljuk Turks were the catalyst that sparked the First Crusade. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power and initiated a hereditary succession to the throne.
The son of John Komnenos and a nephew of Isaac I Komnenos, Alexios served with distinction under three Byzantine emperors. In 1081, he led a rebellion against Emperor Nikephoros III Botaneiates and took the throne for himself. He immediately faced an invasion of the western Balkans by the Normans under Robert Guiscard and his son Bohemond. Despite initial defeats, Alexios secured an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV and drove back the Normans, recovering most of Byzantine losses by 1085. In 1091, he achieved a decisive victory over the Pechenegs at the Battle of Levounion in Thrace with the help of Cuman allies.
Later in the 1090s, Alexios directed his attention towards Asia Minor, most of which had fallen to the Seljuk Turks. Desiring western support, he took reconciliatory measures towards the Papacy, and in 1095 his envoys made a formal appeal to Pope Urban II at the Council of Piacenza. At the subsequent Council of Clermont, Pope Urban formally called the First Crusade, which began a year after and concluded with much of western Anatolia restored to Byzantine rule. On Alexios' death in 1118, he was succeeded by his son John II Komnenos. Alexios' reign and campaigns were recorded by his daughter Anna Komnene in her Alexiad, a political and military history, which she named after her father.
Alexios was the son of John Komnenos and Anna Dalassene, and the nephew of Isaac I Komnenos (emperor 1057–1059). Alexios' father declined the throne on the abdication of Isaac, who was thus succeeded by Constantine X Doukas (r. 1059–1067) and died as a monk in 1067. Alexios and his elder brother, Manuel Komnenos served under Romanos IV Diogenes (r. 1068–1071) with distinction against the Seljuk Turks. under Michael VII Doukas Parapinakes (1071–1078) and Nikephoros III Botaneiates (1078–1081), he was militarily employed, along with his elder brother Isaac, against rebels in Asia Minor, Thrace, and in Epirus.
In 1074, western mercenaries led by Roussel de Bailleul rebelled in Asia Minor, but Alexios successfully subdued them by 1076. In 1078, he was appointed commander of the field army in the West by Nikephoros III. In this capacity, Alexios defeated the rebellions of Nikephoros Bryennios the Elder (whose son or grandson later married Alexios' daughter Anna) and Nikephoros Basilakes, the first at the Battle of Kalavrye and the latter in a surprise night attack on his camp.[citation needed]Alexios was ordered to march against his brother-in-law Nikephoros Melissenos in Asia Minor but refused to fight his kinsman. This did not, however, lead to a demotion, as Alexios was needed to counter the expected invasion of the Normans of Southern Italy, led by Robert Guiscard.[citation needed]
While Byzantine troops were assembling for the expedition, the Doukas faction at court approached Alexios and convinced him to join a conspiracy against Nikephoros III. The mother of Alexios, Anna Dalassene, was to play a prominent role in this coup d'état of 1081, along with the current empress, Maria of Alania. First married to Michael VII Doukas and secondly to Nikephoros III Botaneiates, she was preoccupied with the future of her son by Michael VII, Constantine Doukas. Nikephoros III intended to leave the throne to one of his close relatives, and this resulted in Maria's ambivalence and alliance with the Komnenoi, though the real driving force behind this political alliance was Anna Dalassene.
The empress was already closely connected to the Komnenoi through Maria's cousin, Irene who had been married to Isaac Komnenos, thus the Komnenos brothers were able to treat her as member of the family's enlarged kinship. Furthermore, by espousing the custom of adoptive kingship, which was a social trend in the palace during the reign of empress Zoe, Maria had accepted to adopt Alexios as her son in order to aid the conspiracy. Maria was induced to do so on advice of her own "Alans", that is her Georgian entourage, and her eunuchs, the latter being instructed by Isaac Komnenos to talk the empress into. Apparently, Anna must have been informed of the arrangement of the adoptive kingship, and her tacit agreement on the matter allowed for the final conclusion of Alexios' adoption by the empress. As a result, Alexios became the adoptive brother of Constantine Doukas's, natural son of empress Maria. The completion of the adoptive kingship entailed as part of the ritual performed from the adoptive member's behalf pledging an oath of loyalty and allegiance to the heir of the throne, a typical practice in which the prospective member since he bore no blood relation and was not of imperial lineage he had to be tied to the emperor's person by a sacred oath. Therefore, both Alexios and his brother, Isaac pledged to safeguard the heir's rights to the throne.
According to Anna Comnena's narrative in the Alexiad, Isaac and Alexios left Constantinople in mid-February 1081 to raise an army against Botaneiates. When the time was right and the army already marching to the capital, Anna Dalassene quickly and surreptitiously mobilised the remainder of the family and took sanctuary in the cathedral of Hagia Sophia, wherefrom she negotiated with Nikephoros III Botaneiates for the safety of her family, while disclaiming her two sons' hostile actions against the emperor. Anna Comnena offers in detail the course of steps her grandmother took to be able to enter the church. Under the pretence of making a vesperal visit to worship at the church, she deliberately excluded the grandson of Botaneiates and his loyal tutor and met with her sons' Alexios and Isaac and went with them to the forum of Constantine. When the tutor discovered she had gone missing, he went looking for her to eventually find her on the palace's grounds. Yet again cunningly Anna convinced him that they would leave the palace shortly. However, the rest of the female members of her family in order to be allowed to gain entrance although the church was at that time closed, pretended to be pilgrims from Cappadocia who had been penniless and wanted to prostrate the holy icons before their return trip. Straboromanos and royal guards who were caught up with them, were summoned back to the palace. Anna then went on protesting for the safety of her family, that she feared of the emperor's wrath and that her sons were nothing but loyal subjects, despite the fact that Alexios and Isaac were discovered to be missing without the emperor's consent. She even suggested that a plot had been unravelling by enemies of the family to have them blinded and for that she had fled to the capital so they may continue to be of loyal service to the emperor. She refused to go with them and demanded that they allow her to pray to the Mother of God for protection. This request was granted and Anna then manifested her true communicative and leadership capabilities:
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Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos (Greek: Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός, romanized: Aléxios Komnēnós, c. 1057 – 15 August 1118), Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. After usurping the throne he was faced with a collapsing empire and constant warfare throughout his reign. Alexios was able to curb the Byzantine decline and begin the military, financial, and territorial recovery known as the Komnenian restoration. His appeals to Western Europe for help against the Seljuk Turks were the catalyst that sparked the First Crusade. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power and initiated a hereditary succession to the throne.
The son of John Komnenos and a nephew of Isaac I Komnenos, Alexios served with distinction under three Byzantine emperors. In 1081, he led a rebellion against Emperor Nikephoros III Botaneiates and took the throne for himself. He immediately faced an invasion of the western Balkans by the Normans under Robert Guiscard and his son Bohemond. Despite initial defeats, Alexios secured an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV and drove back the Normans, recovering most of Byzantine losses by 1085. In 1091, he achieved a decisive victory over the Pechenegs at the Battle of Levounion in Thrace with the help of Cuman allies.
Later in the 1090s, Alexios directed his attention towards Asia Minor, most of which had fallen to the Seljuk Turks. Desiring western support, he took reconciliatory measures towards the Papacy, and in 1095 his envoys made a formal appeal to Pope Urban II at the Council of Piacenza. At the subsequent Council of Clermont, Pope Urban formally called the First Crusade, which began a year after and concluded with much of western Anatolia restored to Byzantine rule. On Alexios' death in 1118, he was succeeded by his son John II Komnenos. Alexios' reign and campaigns were recorded by his daughter Anna Komnene in her Alexiad, a political and military history, which she named after her father.
Alexios was the son of John Komnenos and Anna Dalassene, and the nephew of Isaac I Komnenos (emperor 1057–1059). Alexios' father declined the throne on the abdication of Isaac, who was thus succeeded by Constantine X Doukas (r. 1059–1067) and died as a monk in 1067. Alexios and his elder brother, Manuel Komnenos served under Romanos IV Diogenes (r. 1068–1071) with distinction against the Seljuk Turks. under Michael VII Doukas Parapinakes (1071–1078) and Nikephoros III Botaneiates (1078–1081), he was militarily employed, along with his elder brother Isaac, against rebels in Asia Minor, Thrace, and in Epirus.
In 1074, western mercenaries led by Roussel de Bailleul rebelled in Asia Minor, but Alexios successfully subdued them by 1076. In 1078, he was appointed commander of the field army in the West by Nikephoros III. In this capacity, Alexios defeated the rebellions of Nikephoros Bryennios the Elder (whose son or grandson later married Alexios' daughter Anna) and Nikephoros Basilakes, the first at the Battle of Kalavrye and the latter in a surprise night attack on his camp.[citation needed]Alexios was ordered to march against his brother-in-law Nikephoros Melissenos in Asia Minor but refused to fight his kinsman. This did not, however, lead to a demotion, as Alexios was needed to counter the expected invasion of the Normans of Southern Italy, led by Robert Guiscard.[citation needed]
While Byzantine troops were assembling for the expedition, the Doukas faction at court approached Alexios and convinced him to join a conspiracy against Nikephoros III. The mother of Alexios, Anna Dalassene, was to play a prominent role in this coup d'état of 1081, along with the current empress, Maria of Alania. First married to Michael VII Doukas and secondly to Nikephoros III Botaneiates, she was preoccupied with the future of her son by Michael VII, Constantine Doukas. Nikephoros III intended to leave the throne to one of his close relatives, and this resulted in Maria's ambivalence and alliance with the Komnenoi, though the real driving force behind this political alliance was Anna Dalassene.
The empress was already closely connected to the Komnenoi through Maria's cousin, Irene who had been married to Isaac Komnenos, thus the Komnenos brothers were able to treat her as member of the family's enlarged kinship. Furthermore, by espousing the custom of adoptive kingship, which was a social trend in the palace during the reign of empress Zoe, Maria had accepted to adopt Alexios as her son in order to aid the conspiracy. Maria was induced to do so on advice of her own "Alans", that is her Georgian entourage, and her eunuchs, the latter being instructed by Isaac Komnenos to talk the empress into. Apparently, Anna must have been informed of the arrangement of the adoptive kingship, and her tacit agreement on the matter allowed for the final conclusion of Alexios' adoption by the empress. As a result, Alexios became the adoptive brother of Constantine Doukas's, natural son of empress Maria. The completion of the adoptive kingship entailed as part of the ritual performed from the adoptive member's behalf pledging an oath of loyalty and allegiance to the heir of the throne, a typical practice in which the prospective member since he bore no blood relation and was not of imperial lineage he had to be tied to the emperor's person by a sacred oath. Therefore, both Alexios and his brother, Isaac pledged to safeguard the heir's rights to the throne.
According to Anna Comnena's narrative in the Alexiad, Isaac and Alexios left Constantinople in mid-February 1081 to raise an army against Botaneiates. When the time was right and the army already marching to the capital, Anna Dalassene quickly and surreptitiously mobilised the remainder of the family and took sanctuary in the cathedral of Hagia Sophia, wherefrom she negotiated with Nikephoros III Botaneiates for the safety of her family, while disclaiming her two sons' hostile actions against the emperor. Anna Comnena offers in detail the course of steps her grandmother took to be able to enter the church. Under the pretence of making a vesperal visit to worship at the church, she deliberately excluded the grandson of Botaneiates and his loyal tutor and met with her sons' Alexios and Isaac and went with them to the forum of Constantine. When the tutor discovered she had gone missing, he went looking for her to eventually find her on the palace's grounds. Yet again cunningly Anna convinced him that they would leave the palace shortly. However, the rest of the female members of her family in order to be allowed to gain entrance although the church was at that time closed, pretended to be pilgrims from Cappadocia who had been penniless and wanted to prostrate the holy icons before their return trip. Straboromanos and royal guards who were caught up with them, were summoned back to the palace. Anna then went on protesting for the safety of her family, that she feared of the emperor's wrath and that her sons were nothing but loyal subjects, despite the fact that Alexios and Isaac were discovered to be missing without the emperor's consent. She even suggested that a plot had been unravelling by enemies of the family to have them blinded and for that she had fled to the capital so they may continue to be of loyal service to the emperor. She refused to go with them and demanded that they allow her to pray to the Mother of God for protection. This request was granted and Anna then manifested her true communicative and leadership capabilities: