Longobardia

Longobardia (Greek Λογγοβαρδία, also Λογγιβαρδία, Longibardia or Λαγουβαρδία, Lagoubardia ) was a Byzantine term for the companies controlled by the Lombards areas in Italy. In 9-10. Century, it was also the name of the ' theme Longobardia, which was located in southeast Italy.

History

In his chronicle of Theophanes distinguishes between the "Great Longobardia " (Greek: Μεγάλη Λογγοβαρδία; Latin: Longobardia major), with which the Kingdom of the Lombards in northern Italy is meant, and the "Little Longobardia " ( Latin: Longobardia minor), making the southern Italian Duchy Spoleto, the Principality of Salerno, the Duchy of Capua, the Byzantine possessions, and the city-states of Naples, Gaeta and Amalfi are meant under Byzantine suzerainty.

Longobardia was also the name of a topic that today's Puglia and Basilicata parts included and whose capital was Bari. Its origin is unclear. The issue could have been a Abtailung ( Turma ) of the topic Cephallenia originally, which was 876 established after the reconquest Baris by the Byzantines, from where these larger parts of southern Italy reconquered, they had lost in earlier centuries to the Lombards and Arabs. In the late 9th century, it was apparently administered in personal union with the other themes of the Byzantine Empire: the first known strategos of Longobardia from the year 891, Symbatikios, was also the strategos of the theme of Macedonia, Thrace and of Cephalonia. A private Strategos had the issue until 911 In 938 and 956 it was probably associated with the topic Calabria, resulting in at least 965 a fixed arrangement was, as both topics to Katepanat Italy were pooled based in Bari.