Demetrius of Montferrat

Demetrius von Montferrat (* 1205 in Thessaloniki , † 1230 in Melfi ) was a king of Thessaloniki from 1205 to 1224 .

Life

Demetrius was the son of Boniface I of Montferrat , leader of the Fourth Crusade , and Margaret of Hungary , a daughter of King Bélas III. of Hungary and widow of the Byzantine emperor Isaac II Angelus . He succeeded his father in 1207 as King of Thessaloniki. The reign was first held by his mother, but she could not prevail against the local nobility and was ousted by Uberto di Biandrate . The Latin Emperor Heinrich reinstated Margarethe as regent and had Demetrius crowned king on January 6, 1209. The coronation was later carried out by Pope Innocent III. approved. From 1210 to 1216, Margarete was followed by Heinrich's brother Eustach of Flanders as regent. Theodoros I Angelos the despot of Epirus successively conquered the kingdom of Thessaloniki, whereupon Demetrius fled to Italy in 1222. Two years later Theodoros conquered the city of Thessaloniki, this was the end of the kingdom.

Demetrius joined the entourage of Emperor Frederick II in Italy and accompanied him on his crusade to the Holy Land in 1228 . Presumably he had influenced the marriage arrangements of his niece Alix and King Henry I of Cyprus in Limassol . In 1230 he was mentioned when the Treaty of San Germano was signed between the Emperor and the Pope. He died in Melfi that same year .

literature

• Alexios G. Savvides, Benjamin Hendrickx (Eds.): Encyclopaedic Prosopographical Lexicon of Byzantine History and Civilization . Vol. 2: Baanes-Eznik of Kolb . Brepols Publishers, Turnhout 2008, ISBN 978-2-503-52377-4 , p. 331.

Remarks

1. ↑ See Richard von San Germano , Chronica, in: MGH SS 19, p. 362.

Web links

• medieval-genealogie.de
• Foundation for Medieval Genealogy

predecessor	Office	successor
Boniface of Montferrat	King of Thessaloniki 1207–1224	---