Byzantine Empire Under The Angeloi

Byzantine Empire Under The Angeloi

The Byzantine Empire or Byzantium is the term conventionally used since the 19th century to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire of the Middle Ages, centered around its capital of Constantinople. As the direct continuation of the Roman Empire, Byzantium survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire during Late Antiquity, and continued to function until its conquest by the Ottoman Empire in 1453. During this time, many different imperial dynasties ruled over the empire; in the context of Byzantine history, the period c.1185 – c.1204 AD was under the Angeloi dynasty.

The Angeloi rose to the throne following the deposition of Andronikos I Komnenos, the last male-line Komnenos to rise to the throne. The Angeloi were female-line descendants of the previous dynasty. Whilst in power, the Angeloi failed to stop the invasions of the Turks by the Sultanate of Rum, the successful uprising and resurrection of the Bulgarian Empire, and the loss of the Dalmatian coast and much of the Balkan areas won by Manuel to the Kingdom of Hungary.

A combination of incompetence and bitter infighting amongst the elite saw Byzantium permanently lose her financial capability and substantial military power; her previous policies of openness with Western Europe, followed with the sudden massacre of Latins under Andronikos, had preceded the rule of the Angeloil making enemies amongst the western European states. The weakening of the empire under the Angeloi dynasty invited the end of the Byzantine Empire centered at Constantinople when in 1204 soldiers of the Fourth Crusade overthrew the last Angeloi Emperor, Alexios V Doukas.

The Fourth Crusade is seen by historians today as the death knell of the Byzantine Empire. It is therefore no exaggeration to suggest that the Angeloi led Byzantium to her ultimate demise. Every emperor of the Angeloi dynasty was either deposed or killed, with the exception of Isaac Angelus who was restored for a brief time after his desposement.