TheLatin Empire, also referred to as theLatin Empire of Constantinople or theConstantinopolitan Empire, was a feudalCrusader state founded by the leaders of theFourth Crusade on lands captured from theByzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzantine Empire as the Western-recognizedRoman Empire in the east, with aCatholic emperor enthroned in place of theEastern Orthodox Roman emperors. The main objective to form a Latin Empire was planned over the course of the Fourth Crusade, promoted by crusade leaders such asBoniface I of Montferrat,[2] as well as theRepublic of Venice.[3]
The Fourth Crusade had originally been called to retake theMuslim-controlled city ofJerusalem, but a sequence of economic and political events culminated in the Crusader armysacking the city ofConstantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. Originally, the plan had been to restore the deposed Byzantine EmperorIsaac II Angelos, who had been usurped byAlexios III Angelos, to the throne. The crusaders had been promised financial and military aid by Isaac's sonAlexios IV, with which they had planned to continue to Jerusalem. When the crusaders reached Constantinople, the situation quickly turned volatile, and while Isaac and Alexios briefly ruled, the crusaders did not receive the payment they had hoped for. In April 1204, they captured and plundered the city's enormous wealth.
The crusaders selected their own emperor from among their own ranks,Baldwin IX of Flanders, and divided the territory of the Byzantine Empire into various new vassal crusader states. The Latin Empire's authority was immediately challenged by Byzantinerump states led by theLaskaris family (connected to theAngelos dynasty of 1185–1204) inNicaea and theKomnenos family (which hadruled as Byzantine Emperors 1081–1185) inTrebizond. From 1224 to 1242, theKomnenos Doukas family, also connected to the Angeloi, challenged Latin authority fromThessalonica. The Latin Empire failed to attain political or economic dominance over the other Latin powers that had been established in former Byzantine territories in the wake of the Fourth Crusade, especiallyVenice, and after a short initial period of military successes, it went into a steady decline due to constant war withBulgaria to the north and the various Byzantine claimants. Eventually, theNicene Empire recovered Constantinople and restored the Byzantine Empire underMichael VIII Palaiologos in 1261. The last Latin emperor,Baldwin II, went into exile, but the imperial title survived, withseveral pretenders to it, until the 14th century.
Seal ofPhilip of Courtenay, Latin Emperor in exile 1273–1283. His title in the seal isDei gratia imperator Romaniae et semper augustus ("By the Grace of God, Emperor of Romania, ever august").
The term "Latin Empire" was not contemporary, and was first used by historians in the 16th century to distinguish the Crusader state from the classicalRoman Empire and theByzantine Empire, all of which called themselves "Roman". The term "Latin" was chosen because the crusaders (Franks, Venetians, and other Westerners) were Roman Catholic and used Latin as their liturgical and scholarly language in contrast to the Eastern Orthodox locals who usedGreek in both liturgy and common speech. The Byzantines referred to the Latin Empire as theFrankokratia 'rule of the Franks', or theLatinokratia 'rule of the Latins'.[4]
Founding treaties issued by the crusaders specifically refer to the empire as theimperium Constantinopolitanum ("Constantinopolitan Empire"). Although this is a marked departure from the standard Byzantine nomenclature and ideology, designating the empire as theBasileía Rhōmaíōn 'Empire of the Romans',imperium Constantinopolitanum was the standard name used for the eastern empire in western sources, such as in papal correspondence, and suggests that the Latin leaders viewed themselves as "taking over" the empire rather than "replacing" it. It would have been difficult for the crusaders to justify referring to the empire as "Roman" considering that Western Europe generally held the GermanicHoly Roman Empire to represent the legitimate Roman Empire.[5] These two conclusions—that for outsiders the Roman identity of this empire remained controversial and that its conquest was considered a takeover, not a replacement—are further supported by an entry inDeeds of the Bishops of Halberstadt, a contemporaneous chronicle made in Germany. When referring to the elevation of the first Latin Emperor,Baldwin I, the chronicle called himimperator Grecorum ("emperor of the Greeks"), the same title used on an earlier page forAlexios I Komnenos. Similarly, the Emperor Isaac Angelos is listed in the chronicle asrex Grecorum ("king of the Greeks").[6]
Seal ofBaldwin I, the first Latin Emperor. The abbreviationRom. leaves it open to interpretation if he refers toRomaniae 'Romania' orRomanorum 'the Romans'
The full title Baldwin actually used wasdei gratia fidelissimus in Christo imperator a Deo coronatus Romanorum moderator et semper augustus, a near perfect replication of the one used byAlexios IV Angelos, placed on the throne by the crusaders previously, in a letter (only known in its Latin version) toPope Innocent III:fidelis in Christo imperator a Deo coronatus Romanorum moderator et semper augustus. Letters by Baldwin to Pope Innocent III give his title asimperator Constantinopolitanus, possibly altered by Papal scribes as the Pope recognized the Holy Roman Emperor as theimperator Romanorum. In his seals, Baldwin abbreviatedRomanorum asRom., conveniently leaving it open for interpretation whether he referred toRomaniae 'land of the Romans' orRomanorum 'the Romans'. It is probably more likely that he meantRomanorum. Baldwin's successorHenry called the empireimperium Romanum at least in one letter.[5] A Venetian statesmanMarino Sanuto the Elder used yet another appellative,Sebastō Latíno Basilía ton Rhōmaíōn (Σεβαστό Λατίνο βασιλιά των Ρωμαίων, lit. "August Latin Empire of the Romans").[7] The term "Romania" had been a vernacular name used for centuries by the population of the Late Roman polity for their country.[8][9]
Three different versions of imperial titulature are attested under Henry;Henricus Dei Gratia Imperator Romaniae 'Emperor of Romania',Henricus Dei Gratia Imperator Romanorum 'Emperor of the Romans' andHenricus Dei Gratia Imperator Constantinopolitani 'Constantinopolitan Emperor', possibly intended for different recipients. Usage of the title Emperor of Constantinople may not just have been to appease the Pope and Western Europe, but might also have been used to legitimize the rule of the Latin Emperors in regards to the Byzantines that they ruled. Possession of the city itself was a key legitimizing factor that set the Latin Emperors apart from Byzantine claimants inNicaea,Trebizond andThessalonica.[5]
A 19th century tomb marker of the probable location of the tomb ofEnrico Dandolo, the leader of the Fourth Crusade and Doge of Venice, inside theHagia Sophia
Further duchies were projected inAsia Minor, atNicaea (forLouis of Blois),Nicomedia (Thierry de Loos),Philadelphia (Stephen du Perche), andNeokastra. These duchies remained theoretical, due to the establishment of theEmpire of Nicaea in the area.[10] Nicaea itself was never occupied and Louis of Blois waskilled in 1205.[11] Thierry de Loos was captured by the Nicaeans in 1207 and, although released, left the Latin Empire two years later. After a brief Nicaean reconquest, Nicomedia returned to Latin control, but theducatus Nichomedie remained part of the Imperial domain.[12] Philadelphia never came under actual Latin control, although the Latin emperor Henry of Flanders laid claim to the region after defeating the local strongman,Theodore Mangaphas, in 1205.[13] The duchy of Neokastra (ducatus Novi Castri) on the other hand was never accorded to a single holder, but was divided among theKnights Hospitaller (one quarter) and other feudatories. The term "duchy" in this case reflects the earlier Byzantine termtheme, usually governed by adoux, to designate a province.[14]
TheDoge of Venice did not rank as a vassal to the Latin Empire. Still, his position in control of three-eighths of its territory and of parts of Constantinople itself ensured Venice's influence in the Empire's affairs. However, much of the former Byzantine territory remained in the hands of rivalsuccessor states led by Byzantine Greek aristocrats, such as theDespotate of Epirus, theEmpire of Nicaea, and theEmpire of Trebizond, each bent on reconquest from the Latins.
On 9 May 1204,Baldwin I was elected the emperor with Venetian support, and crowned on 16 May in the Hagia Sophia in a ceremony that closely followed Eastern Roman practices.[15] Not long after the coronation, Baldwin ventured out into the Thracian countryside, posturing not as a conqueror but as a legitimate ruler, expecting to be universally acclaimed by the populace as the Emperor of the Romans.[16] The establishment of the Latin Empire had the curious effect of creating five simultaneously existing polities claiming to be the Roman Empire: the Latin empire, theHoly Roman Empire, and the three remnants of theByzantine Empire, the Despotate of Epirus, the empire of Nicaea, and the empire of Trebizond.
Capture of Constantinople during theFourth Crusade in 1204.
The initial campaigns of the crusaders in Asia Minor resulted in the capture of most ofBithynia by 1205, with the defeat of the forces ofTheodore I Laskaris at Poemanenum and Prusa. Latin successes continued, and in 1207 a truce was signed with Theodore, newly proclaimed Emperor of Nicaea. The Latins inflicted afurther defeat on Nicaean forces at the Rhyndakos river in October 1211, and three years later theTreaty of Nymphaeum (1214) recognized their control of most of Bithynia andMysia.
The peace was maintained until 1222, when the resurgent power of Nicaea felt sufficiently strong to challenge the Latin Empire, by that time weakened by constant warfare in its European provinces. At thebattle of Poimanenon in 1224, the Latin army was defeated, and by the next year EmperorRobert of Courtenay was forced to cede all his Asian possessions to Nicaea, except forNicomedia and the territories directly across from Constantinople. Nicaea turned also to theAegean, capturing the islands awarded to the empire. In 1235, finally, the last Latin possessions fell to Nicaea.
Unlike in Asia, where the Latin Empire faced only an initially weak Nicaea, in Europe it was immediately confronted with a powerful enemy: theBulgarian tsarKaloyan. When Baldwin campaigned against the Byzantine lords ofThrace, they called upon Kaloyan for help. At theBattle of Adrianople on 14 April 1205, the Latin heavy cavalry and knights were crushed by Kaloyan's troops andCuman allies, and Emperor Baldwin was captured. He was imprisoned in the Bulgarian capitalTarnovo until his death later in 1205. Kaloyan was murdered a couple of years later (1207) during a siege ofThessalonica, and the Bulgarian threat conclusively defeated with avictory the following year, which allowed Baldwin's successor,Henry of Flanders, to reclaim most of the lost territories in Thrace until 1210, when peace was concluded with the marriage of Henry toMaria of Bulgaria, tsar Kaloyan's daughter.
At the same time, another Byzantine successor state, theDespotate of Epirus, underMichael I Komnenos Doukas, posed a threat to the empire's vassals in Thessalonica and Athens. Henry demanded his submission, which Michael provided, giving off his daughter to Henry's brother Eustace in the summer of 1209. This alliance allowed Henry to launch a campaign inMacedonia,Thessaly andCentral Greece against the rebelliousLombard lords of Thessalonica. However, Michael's attack on the Kingdom of Thessalonica in 1210 forced him to return north to relieve the city and to force Michael back into submission.
In 1214 however, Michael died, and was succeeded byTheodore Komnenos Doukas, who was determined to capture Thessalonica. On 11 June 1216, while supervising repairs to the walls of Thessalonica, Henry died, and was succeeded byPeter of Courtenay, who himself was captured and executed by Theodore the following year. Peter's widowYolanda of Flanders ruled alone in Constantinople until her death in 1219. Her sonRobert of Courtenay being absent in France, the regency passed first toConon de Béthune, and after his death shortly after, to CardinalGiovanni Colonna, until 1221, when Robert of Courtenay arrived in Constantinople. Distracted by the renewed war with Nicaea, and waiting in vain for assistance fromPope Honorius III and the King of FrancePhilip II, the Latin Empire was unable to prevent the final fall of Thessalonica to Epirus in 1224. Epirote armies then conquered Thrace in 1225–26, appearing before Constantinople itself. The Latin Empire was saved for a time by the threat posed to Theodore by the Bulgarian tsarIvan II Asen, and a truce was concluded in 1228.
After Robert of Courtenay died in 1228, a new regency underJohn of Brienne was set up. After the disastrous Epirote defeat by the Bulgarians at theBattle of Klokotnitsa, the Epirote threat to the Latin Empire was removed, only to be replaced by Nicaea, which started acquiring territories in Greece. EmperorJohn III Doukas Vatatzes of Nicaea concluded an alliance with Bulgaria, which in 1235 resulted in a joint campaign against the Latin Empire, and an unsuccessfulsiege of Constantinople the same year. In 1237,Baldwin II attained majority and took over the reins of a much-diminished state. The empire's precarious situation forced him to travel often to Western Europe seeking aid, but largely without success. In order to raise funds, he was forced to resort to desperate means, from removing the lead roofs of theGreat Palace and selling them, to handing over his only son, Philip, to Venetian merchants as a guarantee for a loan.
By 1247, the Nicaeans had effectively surrounded the main holdings of the Emperor in the new European land system. Following the victory at the Battle of Pelagonia in 1259 Michael VIII Palaiologos of the Nicaean empire had only one obstacle left. The Theodosian walls and the Latin Forces. He had already cut off the Latins from aid from the Latin estates of Greece or the Nicaeans rivals and also a successor state to the Byzantines the Despotate of Epirus.
The first attempt to take Constantinople occurred in 1260 when a Latin knight taken prisoner in Pelagonia, whose house was in the city walls, promised to open a gate for the emperor's troops. He failed to do so, and Palaiologos launched an unsuccessful assault on Galata Instead. In preparation for another attempt, an alliance with Genoa was concluded in March 1261, and in July 1261
As the one-year truce concluded after the failed Nicaean attack was nearing its end, the generalAlexios Strategopoulos was sent with a small advance force of 800 soldiers (most of themCumans) to keep a watch on theBulgarians and spy out the defences of the Latins.
When the Nicaean force reached the village ofSelymbria, some 30 miles (48 km) west of Constantinople, they learned from some independent local farmers (thelematarioi) that the entire Latin garrison, as well as theVenetian fleet, were absent conducting a raid against the Nicaean island ofDaphnousia. Strategopoulos initially hesitated to take advantage of the situation, since his small force might be destroyed if the Latin army returned too soon, and because he would exceed the emperor's orders, but eventually decided he could not squander such a golden opportunity to retake the city.
On the night of 24/25 July 1261, Strategopoulos and his men approached thecity walls and hid at amonastery near the Gate of the Spring. Strategopoulos sent a detachment of his men, led by some of thethelematarioi, to make their way to the city through a secret passage. They attacked the walls from the inside, surprised the guards and opened the gate, giving the Nicaean force entry into the city. The Latins were taken completely unaware, and after a short struggle, the Nicaeans gained control of the land walls. As news of this spread across the city, the Latin inhabitants, from EmperorBaldwin II downwards, hurriedly rushed to the harbours of theGolden Horn, hoping to escape by ship. At the same time, Strategopoulos' men set fire to the Venetian buildings and warehouses along the coast to prevent them from landing there. Thanks to the timely arrival of the returning Venetian fleet, many of the Latins managed to evacuate to the still Latin-held parts of Greece, but the city was lost.
Nicaean generalAlexios Strategopoulos found an unguarded entrance to the city, and entered it with only 800 troops, restoring the Byzantine Empire for his master,Michael VIII Palaiologos.
The remaining Latin states ruled territories of present-dayGreece, some of them until the 18th century, and are known asLatinokratia.
For about a century thereafter, the heirs ofBaldwin II continued to use the title of Emperor of Constantinople, and were seen as the overlords of the various remaining Latin states in theAegean. They exercised effective authority in Greece only when actually ruling asprinces of Achaea, from 1333 to 1383.
James of Baux was the last of these Latin emperors to govern any imperial territory through Achaea. His reign lasted from 1374 until his death on 7 July 1383.[citation needed]
The empire was formed and administered on Western European feudal principles, incorporating some elements of theByzantine bureaucracy. The emperor was assisted by a council, composed of the various barons, the VenetianPodestà of Constantinople and his six-member council. This council had a major voice in the governance of the realm, especially in periods of regency, when the Regent (moderator imperii) was dependent on their consent to rule. The podestà, likewise, was an extremely influential member, being practically independent of the emperor. He exercised authority over the Venetian quarters of Constantinople andPera and the Venetian dominions within the empire, assisted by a separate set of officials. His role was more that of an ambassador andvicegerent of Venice than a vassal to the empire. The podestà was granted the title of Governor of One-Fourth and One-Half of the Empire of Romania, and was entitled to wearing the imperial crimson buskins like the emperor.[17]
The Latins did not trust the professional Greekbureaucracy, and in the immediate aftermath of the conquest completely dismantled the Greek economic administration of the areas they controlled. The result was disastrous, disrupting all forms of production and trade. Almost from its inception the Latin Empire was sending requests back to the papacy for aid. For a few years, the major commodities it exported from the surrounding region of Thrace werewheat andfurs; it also profited from Constantinople's strategic location on major trade routes. While the empire showed some moderate vitality whileHenry of Flanders was alive, after his death in 1216 there was a major deficit in leadership. By the 1230s, Constantinople – even with its drastically reduced population – was facing a major shortage of basicfoodstuffs. In several senses, the only significant export on which the economy of the Latin Empire had any real basis was the sale ofrelics back to Western Europe which had been looted from Greek churches.[citation needed] For example, Emperor Baldwin II sold the relic of theCrown of Thorns while in France trying to raise new funds.[citation needed]
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The elite of the empire were the Frankish and Venetian lords, headed by the emperor, the barons and the lower-ranking vassals and liege lords, including many former Byzantine aristocrats. The bulk of the people wereOrthodoxGreeks, still divided according to the Byzantine system in income classes based on land ownership.
As with all Latin states, the Orthodox hierarchy was replaced byRoman Catholicprelates, but not suppressed.[citation needed] An expansive Catholic hierarchy was established, under the dual supervision of the Latinarchbishop of Constantinople and thePapal legate, until the two offices were merged in 1231. Western Catholic religious orders, such as theCistercians, theDominicans and theFranciscans were established in the empire. The Orthodox clergy retained its rites and customs, including its right to marriage, but was demoted to a subordinate position, subject to the local Latin bishops.[citation needed]
^The Byzantines retook Constantinople under EmperorMichael VIII Palaiologos in 1261. Latin possessions remained in Greece until theOttoman Empire captured the island ofTinos from the Venetians in 1715, and the various surviving Latin states continued to recognize a lineage ofLatin Emperors until the death ofJames of Baux in 1383.
^Pirenne, Henri (1947).Histotia Economica y Social de la Edad Media (in Spanish) (4th ed.). Mexico: Salvador Echavarria. p. 39.
^Jacobi, David (1999), "The Latin empire of Constantinople and the Frankish states in Greece", in Abulafia, David (ed.),The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol. V: c. 1198–c. 1300, Cambridge University Press, pp. 525–542,ISBN0-521-36289-X
^On the long history of "Romania" as a territorial name for the Roman and (later) Byzantine empires, see R.L. Wolff, "Romania: The Latin Empire of Constantinople". In:Speculum, 23 (1948), pp. 1–34.
^Fossier, Robert; Sondheimer, Janet (1997). The Cambridge Illustrated History of the Middle Ages. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.ISBN978-0-521-26644-4. p. 104
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