Peloponnese (Byzantine theme)
The theme of the Peloponnese ( Greek θέμα Πελοποννήσου ) was a Byzantine theme that included the area of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. It was established around the year 800 and its capital was Corinth .
history
The parts of the Peloponnese peninsula ruled by the Byzantine Empire formed the theme of Hellas from the late 7th century . Around 800, Hellas was split up: while eastern central Greece and Thessaly retained the original title, the area of the Peloponnese became a separate topic. The first known strategos of the Peloponnese is Leo Skleros , who is mentioned in 811 and was perhaps the first holder of this office. The emergence of the topic is closely linked to the regaining of Byzantine sovereignty over large parts of Greece and the resettlement of Italians and Greeks from Asia Minor in the area.
The strategos of the Peloponnese was the most important among the "western" (i.e. European) thematic commanders. Its main task was to control the Slavic tribes that had settled on the peninsula and to repel Arab attacks at sea: a tour marches of the subject was familiar with the defense of the coasts and even had four chelandia under his command. After the Byzantine reconquest of Crete in 961 put an end to the emirate of Crete , the Peloponnese prospered. From the late 10th century, the administration of the theme was increasingly merged with that of Hellas, in the late 11th century this connection became permanent when both themes came under the control of Megas Doux , the Grand Admiral of the Byzantine Fleet . Since he did not reside in the topic, the local administration remained with the Praetor . The Peloponnese remained under Byzantine control until 1204 when, as a result of the Fourth Crusade, it came under the rule of the Latin kingdoms of Thessalonica and Athens .
literature
- Alexander Kazhdan (Ed.): The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium . 3 volumes. Oxford / New York 1991.
- Johannes Koder , Friedrich Hild (Ed.): Tabula Imperii Byzantini . Volume 1: Hellas and Thessalia. Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1976, ISBN 3-7001-0182-1 .
- Paul Magdalino: The Empire of Manuel I Komnenos, 1143-1180. Cambridge 2002 (reprinted 1993).
- John W. Nesbitt, Nicolas Oikonomides (Ed.): Catalog of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art. Volume 2: South of the Balkans, the Islands, South of Asia Minor. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington DC 1994, ISBN 0-88402-226-9 .
- A. Pertusi: Constantino Porfirogenito: De Thematibus. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Rome 1952.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e Nesbitt, Oikonomides: Catalog of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art. 1994, p. 62.
- ↑ Kazhdan: The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. 1991, pp. 1620-1621.
- ↑ a b c d Kazhdan: The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. 1991, p. 1621.
- ↑ Pertusi: Constantino Porfirogenito: De Thematibus. 1952, pp. 172-173.
- ↑ Pertusi: Constantino Porfirogenito: De Thematibus. 1952, p. 173.
- ↑ Magdalino: The Empire of Manuel I Komnenos, 1143-1180. 2002, p. 234.