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The Family Strategy for Purple – Comparing the Methods of Andronikos I and Alexios I Komnenos of Constructing Imperial Power

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Lachowicz P.

Studia Ceranea

2019

vol. 9

301-317

In this paper I would like to concentrate on strategies and methods that were guiding Alexios I and Andronikos I of the Komnenos dynasty during the process of gaining and consolidating their power in the Byzantine Empire. Between these two emperors, who belonged to the same family, there exist many analogies in the way of carrying out a coup and constructing the authority based on a group of faithful aristocrats. It is crucial to highlight the active family politics which characterized both the emperors, as it was the main strategy aimed at ensuring the durability of the freshly acquired power. Between Andronikos’ and his grandfather’s coups passed almost exactly one hundred years. The completely different social and political situation of the Byzantine Empire in the late 12th century forced Andronikos to take a different approach. The most striking change was in the way of eliminating potential threats from the circles of Constantinopolitan aristocracy, especially when it comes to his relatives. Such a comparative analysis leads to some important observations concerning the social changes in the late 11th and 12th centuries, as well as mechanisms of seniority and precedence of power in the Komnenos family.

Power and Aristocracy – Transformation and Composition of the Komnenos “Clan” (1081–1200) – A Statistical Approach

86%

Lachowicz P.

Studia Ceranea

2020

vol. 10

141-173

The fall of imperial authority and the decline of the Byzantine state at the end of the 12th century has its cause not only in foreign policy but also, to a large extent, in the family policy of the Komnenoi emperors. The “clan” system introduced during Alexios I’ reign and continued by his successors, connected the aristocratic elites with the imperial family by blood ties. In the 12th century, the composition of this group, linked by a complicated marriage network, underwent a significant transformation, which could be one of the most important factors of the later crisis. The purpose of this paper is twofold. First: distinguishing two groups of aristocrats within the Komnenos “clan” i.e. “core” Komnenos family and affine families. Second: determining their approximate numer during the 12th century. Relatively large amount of data about aristocratic elites of that period allows for statistical approach. Written sources and sigillography of the 12th century Byzantium is rich in information about high ranking persons. In addition, the Komnenos era has been thoroughly described in prosopographical works. This allows for counting the number of aristocrats and thus obtaining reliable results. Such an approach is not free from estimation and probability. However, the amount of information is sufficient enough to show the overall trends visible in the composition of the elites associated with the Komnenoi. The result of this study is a table that shows the tendency of the weakening of the Komnenos family in face of a constantly growing group of affine aristocratic families. This sheds a new light on the progressive collapse of the imperial authority after the death of Manuel I Komnenos, the key role of destructive actions of Andronikos I, and the weakness of the Angelos dynasty.

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2 Studia Ceranea

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The Family Strategy for Purple – Comparing the Methods of Andronikos I and Alexios I Komnenos of Constructing Imperial Power

Power and Aristocracy – Transformation and Composition of the Komnenos “Clan” (1081–1200) – A Statistical Approach