Nikephoros III
Encyclopedia
Nikephoros III Botaneiates, Latinized as Nicephorus III Botaniates ' onMouseout='HidePop("7076")' href="/topics/Constantinople">Constantinople
) was Byzantine
emperor from 1078 to 1081. He belonged to a family which claimed descent from the Byzantine Phokas family
.
of Paradounavon, defended the Balkan frontiers against the invading Oghuz Turks
, but was defeated and suffered the humiliation of being taken captive. However, the outbreak of an epidemic soon began decimating the Turks and the prisoners were recovered, while the survivors were quickly recruited in the Byzantine army
.
In 1067, he had been considered as a possible husband for the empress Eudokia Makrembolitissa
, widowed wife of Constantine X, but she eventually set her heart of Romanos IV Diogenes. Excluded from Romanos's campaign at Manzikert, he retired to his estates in Anatolia
. Eventually, under Michael VII Doukas, he became strategos
of the Anatolic theme
and commander of the troops in Asia Minor
. Here he participated in the shambolic acts that crippled the empire’s eastern provinces, including his strategic retreat when Caesar John Doukas
was confronting Norman
mercenary rebels, resulting in the humiliating defeat of the Byzantine army, and the capture of John Doukas.
In 1078 he revolted against Michael VII and his finance minister Nikephoritzes
, and with the support of the Seljuk Turks who provided him with valuable troops he marched upon Nicaea
, where he proclaimed himself emperor. In the face of another rebellious general, Nikephoros Bryennios, his election was ratified by the aristocracy and clergy, while Michael VII abdicated and became a monk. On March 24, 1078, Nikephoros III Botaneiates entered Constantinople in triumph and was crowned by Patriarch Kosmas I of Constantinople. With the help of his general Alexios Komnenos
, he defeated Bryennios and other rivals, but failed to clear the invading Turks out of Asia Minor
.
, the mother of Michael VII and the widow of Constantine X and Romanos IV. This plan was undermined by the Caesar
John Doukas, and Nikephoros instead married Maria of Alania. They married in contravention of church canons, as Maria was still at that time, the wife of Michael VII who had entered the monastery of Stoudios. Nevertheless, Nikephoros did not recognize the succession rights of Maria's son Constantine Doukas, while his plan to promote his worthless nephew Synadenos as co-emperor exposed him to the suspicion and plots of the surviving portions of the Doukas faction at court. Nikephoros' administration did not win him much support, as his favored courtiers alienated much of the older court bureaucracy and failed to stop the devaluation of the Byzantine currency.
Almost immediately, the uprisings began. Apart from the discontent of the Byzantine aristocracy, several Armenian
princes in Asia Minor attempted to establish their independence from the empire. Two Paulician leaders launched their own rebellion in Thrace
, in a brutal religious conflict that was not easily suppressed. Consequently, Nikephoros became increasingly dependent on the support of Alexios Komnenos, who successfully defeated the rebellion of Nikephoros Basilakes in the Balkans (1079) and was charged with containing that of Nikephoros Melissenos
in Anatolia (1080). The Byzantine Empire also faced foreign invasion, as the Norman
Duke Robert Guiscard
of Apulia declared war under the pretext of defending the rights of young Constantine Doukas
, who had been engaged to Robert's daughter Helena. As Alexios was entrusted with substantial armed forces to combat the impending Norman invasion, the Doukas faction, led by the Caesar John, conspired to overthrow Nikephoros and replace him with Alexios. Failing to secure the support of either the Seljuk Turks or Nikephoros Melissenos (both parties being his traditional enemies), Nikephoros III was forced to abdicate in favour of the Komnenos dynasty, to which he was connected through the engagement of his grandson to the daughter of Alexios's older brother Manuel. The deposed emperor retired into the monastery that he had endowed, and died later the same year.
's alternate history
novel Agent of Byzantium.
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
) was Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
emperor from 1078 to 1081. He belonged to a family which claimed descent from the Byzantine Phokas family
Phokas (Byzantine family)
Phokas or Phocas , feminine form Phokaina , was the name of a Byzantine aristocratic clan from Cappadocia, which in the 9th and 10th centuries provided a series of high-ranking generals and an emperor, Nikephoros II Phokas...
.
Early career
Nikephoros Botaneiates had served as general from the reign of Constantine IX. Drawn to politics, he had been an active participant in the uprising that brought Isaac I to the throne in 1057, including a prominent role in the Battle of Petroe. Although considered a competent general, he had suffered a number of humiliating setbacks throughout his career. In 1064, he, together with Basil Apokapes, douxDux
Dux is Latin for leader and later for Duke and its variant forms ....
of Paradounavon, defended the Balkan frontiers against the invading Oghuz Turks
Oghuz Turks
The Turkomen also known as Oghuz Turks were a historical Turkic tribal confederation in Central Asia during the early medieval Turkic expansion....
, but was defeated and suffered the humiliation of being taken captive. However, the outbreak of an epidemic soon began decimating the Turks and the prisoners were recovered, while the survivors were quickly recruited in the Byzantine army
Byzantine army
The Byzantine army was the primary military body of the Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct descendant of the Roman army, the Byzantine army maintained a similar level of discipline, strategic prowess and organization...
.
In 1067, he had been considered as a possible husband for the empress Eudokia Makrembolitissa
Eudokia Makrembolitissa
Eudokia Makrembolitissa was the second wife of the Byzantine emperor Constantine X Doukas. After his death she acted as regent and became the wife of Romanos IV Diogenes...
, widowed wife of Constantine X, but she eventually set her heart of Romanos IV Diogenes. Excluded from Romanos's campaign at Manzikert, he retired to his estates in Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
. Eventually, under Michael VII Doukas, he became strategos
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
of the Anatolic theme
Anatolic Theme
The Anatolic Theme , more properly known as the Theme of the Anatolics was a Byzantine theme in central Asia Minor...
and commander of the troops in Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
. Here he participated in the shambolic acts that crippled the empire’s eastern provinces, including his strategic retreat when Caesar John Doukas
John Doukas, Caesar
John Doukas was the son of Andronikos Doukas, a Paphlagonian nobleman who may have served as governor of the theme of Moesia and younger brother of Emperor Constantine X Doukas...
was confronting Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
mercenary rebels, resulting in the humiliating defeat of the Byzantine army, and the capture of John Doukas.
In 1078 he revolted against Michael VII and his finance minister Nikephoritzes
Nikephoritzes
Nikephoritzes was an influential Byzantine eunuch official, who served as chief minister and virtual ruler of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Emperor Michael VII Doukas . His actual name was Nikephoros; he received the nickname "Nikephoritzes" as a result of his relative youth when he...
, and with the support of the Seljuk Turks who provided him with valuable troops he marched upon Nicaea
Iznik
İznik is a city in Turkey which is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea, the first and seventh Ecumenical councils in the early history of the Church, the Nicene Creed, and as the capital city of the Empire of Nicaea...
, where he proclaimed himself emperor. In the face of another rebellious general, Nikephoros Bryennios, his election was ratified by the aristocracy and clergy, while Michael VII abdicated and became a monk. On March 24, 1078, Nikephoros III Botaneiates entered Constantinople in triumph and was crowned by Patriarch Kosmas I of Constantinople. With the help of his general Alexios Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos, Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus , was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and although he was not the founder of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power. The title 'Nobilissimus' was given to senior army commanders,...
, he defeated Bryennios and other rivals, but failed to clear the invading Turks out of Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
.
Reign
To solidify his position, on the death of his second wife Nikephoros III sought to marry Eudokia MakrembolitissaEudokia Makrembolitissa
Eudokia Makrembolitissa was the second wife of the Byzantine emperor Constantine X Doukas. After his death she acted as regent and became the wife of Romanos IV Diogenes...
, the mother of Michael VII and the widow of Constantine X and Romanos IV. This plan was undermined by the Caesar
Caesar (title)
Caesar is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
John Doukas, and Nikephoros instead married Maria of Alania. They married in contravention of church canons, as Maria was still at that time, the wife of Michael VII who had entered the monastery of Stoudios. Nevertheless, Nikephoros did not recognize the succession rights of Maria's son Constantine Doukas, while his plan to promote his worthless nephew Synadenos as co-emperor exposed him to the suspicion and plots of the surviving portions of the Doukas faction at court. Nikephoros' administration did not win him much support, as his favored courtiers alienated much of the older court bureaucracy and failed to stop the devaluation of the Byzantine currency.
Almost immediately, the uprisings began. Apart from the discontent of the Byzantine aristocracy, several Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
princes in Asia Minor attempted to establish their independence from the empire. Two Paulician leaders launched their own rebellion in Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
, in a brutal religious conflict that was not easily suppressed. Consequently, Nikephoros became increasingly dependent on the support of Alexios Komnenos, who successfully defeated the rebellion of Nikephoros Basilakes in the Balkans (1079) and was charged with containing that of Nikephoros Melissenos
Nikephoros Melissenos
Nikephoros Melissenos , latinized as Nicephorus Melissenus, was a Byzantine general and aristocrat. Of distinguished lineage, he served as a governor and general in the Balkans and Asia Minor in the 1060s. In the turbulent period after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, several generals tried to...
in Anatolia (1080). The Byzantine Empire also faced foreign invasion, as the Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
Duke Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
of Apulia declared war under the pretext of defending the rights of young Constantine Doukas
Constantine Doukas
Constantine Doukas or Ducas , was Byzantine co-emperor from c. 1074 to 1078 and from 1081 to 1087. He was the son of Emperor Michael VII Doukas and his Georgian wife Maria of Alania....
, who had been engaged to Robert's daughter Helena. As Alexios was entrusted with substantial armed forces to combat the impending Norman invasion, the Doukas faction, led by the Caesar John, conspired to overthrow Nikephoros and replace him with Alexios. Failing to secure the support of either the Seljuk Turks or Nikephoros Melissenos (both parties being his traditional enemies), Nikephoros III was forced to abdicate in favour of the Komnenos dynasty, to which he was connected through the engagement of his grandson to the daughter of Alexios's older brother Manuel. The deposed emperor retired into the monastery that he had endowed, and died later the same year.
Nikephoros III in fiction
Nicephorus III is also a fictional Byzantine Emperor ruling in the beginning of the 14th century in Harry TurtledoveHarry Turtledove
Harry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
's alternate history
Alternate history (fiction)
Alternate history or alternative history is a genre of fiction consisting of stories that are set in worlds in which history has diverged from the actual history of the world. It can be variously seen as a sub-genre of literary fiction, science fiction, and historical fiction; different alternate...
novel Agent of Byzantium.
Sources
- George Finlay, History of the Byzantine and Greek Empires from 1057–1453, Volume 2, William Blackwood & Sons, 1854