Demetrios Angelos Doukas
Encyclopedia
Demetrios Komnenos Doukas or Comnenus Ducas , was ruler of Thessalonica from 1244 until his deposition in 1246. He was born c. 1220.
Demetrios was the younger son of Theodore Komnenos Doukas
and Maria Petraliphaina
. In 1230 his father was captured together with his family in the Battle of Klokotnitsa
by Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria
. When his sister Irene married Ivan Asen II in 1237, Demetrios was released from captivity together with his now blind father Theodore and his older brother John
. Theodore and his sons made their way back to Thessalonica and incited a revolt against Theodore's brother Manuel Komnenos Doukas
who had ruled the city since 1230. Since Theodore was blind, he installed his son John as ruler and retired to Vodena
. When John submitted to Emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes
of Nicaea
in 1242, Demetrios also received the title of despotes
.
Demetrios succeeded his brother as ruler of Thessalonica in 1244. Young and dissolute, Demetrios inspired little loyalty among the leading families of Thessalonica. When Emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes campaigned near the city during his invasion of Bulgaria
in 1246, the local nobility conspired to arrest Demetrios and turn over the city to the Nicaean emperor. Demetrios was powerless to resist and the city was surrendered to John III Doukas Vatatzes. Demetrios was sent into exile to the fortress of Lentiana. The date of his death is unknown.
Demetrios was the younger son of Theodore Komnenos Doukas
Theodore Komnenos Doukas
Theodore Komnenos Doukas was ruler of Epirus from 1215 to 1230 and of Thessalonica from 1224 to 1230.-Life:...
and Maria Petraliphaina
Maria Petraliphaina
Maria Petraliphaina was the wife of Theodore Komnenos Doukas. She is the earliest consort of the Despotate of Epiros known by name...
. In 1230 his father was captured together with his family in the Battle of Klokotnitsa
Battle of Klokotnitsa
The Battle of Klokotnitsa occurred on 9 March 1230 near the village of Klokotnitsa . As a result, the Second Bulgarian Empire emerged once again as the most powerful state in Eastern Europe and the power of the Despotate of Epirus faded...
by Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria
Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria
-Early rule:He was a son of Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria and Elena . Elena, who survived until after 1235, is sometimes alleged to be a daughter of Stefan Nemanja of Serbia, but this relationship is questionable and would have caused various canonical impediments to marriages between various descendants...
. When his sister Irene married Ivan Asen II in 1237, Demetrios was released from captivity together with his now blind father Theodore and his older brother John
John Komnenos Doukas
John Komnenos Doukas was ruler of Thessalonica from 1237 until his death in 1244....
. Theodore and his sons made their way back to Thessalonica and incited a revolt against Theodore's brother Manuel Komnenos Doukas
Manuel Komnenos Doukas
Manuel Komnenos Doukas , often inaccurately called Manuel Angelos , was ruler of Thessalonica from 1230 to 1237 and of Thessaly from 1239 until his death in c. 1241.-Life:Manuel was a legitimate son of the sebastokratōr John Doukas...
who had ruled the city since 1230. Since Theodore was blind, he installed his son John as ruler and retired to Vodena
Edessa, Greece
Edessa , is a city in northern Greece and the capital of the Pella regional unit, in the Central Macedonia region of Greece. It was also the capital of the defunct province of the same name.-Name:...
. When John submitted to Emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes
John III Doukas Vatatzes
John III Doukas Vatatzes, Latinized as Ducas Vatatzes |Nymphaion]]) was emperor of Nicaea 1221–1254.-Life:John Doukas Vatatzes was probably the son of the general Basileios Vatatzes, Duke of Thrace, who died in 1193, and his wife, an unnamed daughter of Isaakios Angelos and cousin of the Emperors...
of Nicaea
Empire of Nicaea
The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greek successor states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was occupied by Western European and Venetian forces during the Fourth Crusade...
in 1242, Demetrios also received the title of despotes
Despotes
Despot , was a senior Byzantine court title that was bestowed on the sons or sons-in-law of reigning emperors, and initially denoted the heir-apparent...
.
Demetrios succeeded his brother as ruler of Thessalonica in 1244. Young and dissolute, Demetrios inspired little loyalty among the leading families of Thessalonica. When Emperor John III Doukas Vatatzes campaigned near the city during his invasion of Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
in 1246, the local nobility conspired to arrest Demetrios and turn over the city to the Nicaean emperor. Demetrios was powerless to resist and the city was surrendered to John III Doukas Vatatzes. Demetrios was sent into exile to the fortress of Lentiana. The date of his death is unknown.