Manuel Komnenos Doukas

Manuel Komnenos Doukas Angelos († 1241 ) was from 1230 to 1237 Regent in Thessaloniki and Thessaly. Without real political power he claimed to compete with John Vatatzes at Nicaea for some time the Greek title of emperor.

Life

About Manuel's life before the seizure of power in Thessaloniki, little is known. He was a son of Johannes Dukas Angelos Sebastocrator. His brothers Michael and Theodore were successively ruler of Epirus, a Greek successor state of the Byzantine Empire, which had collapsed due to the conquest of Constantinople by the Crusaders in 1204.

In his first marriage Manuel was married to Euphemia, daughter of the Serbian prince Stefan Nemanjić. The marriage remained childless presumably, Eufemia died 1225th Then married Manuel Maria, the daughter of the Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Asen II This connection brought him in 1230 the rule of Thessaloniki and Thessaly. When his brother Theodore had attacked in the same year, Bulgaria, suffered a crushing defeat by Ivan in March at Klokotnitsa, captured and blinded the Emperor Manuel continued to succeed in the remaining areas of the Despotate of Epirus, a. However, Manuel could only take possession of the West, while interspersed his nephew Michael II as ruler of the actual Epirus.

As Theodor before him as Manuel put in the imperial insignia and claimed the imperial title, though he acted as completely dependent vassal of his father. Just as this the church of Thessaloniki wanted to make the Bulgarian Patriarchate, Manuel made ​​with the help of his bishops resistance and imputed 1233 the bishoprics of its territory to the Greek Patriarch in Nicaea.

1237 his brother Theodore was released by the Tsar. Together with his sons John and Demetrios, he returned to Thessaloniki and continued from Manuel. This realized that he had no support in the Bulgarian court, and he repudiated his wife Maria, who returned to Veliko Tarnovo. Manuel turned to Nicaea and sought the support of the Emperor John Vatatzes, in return he renounced the title of Emperor. John gave him a ship, took the Manuel 1239 to Thessaly. He was able to quickly gain followers and set up an army against Theodore and his sons. Theodore and John offered to negotiations, before there was serious fighting. They agreed to share the rule: Theodor and his descendants retained Thessaloniki and Thessaly Manuel got. There he reigned until his death two years later made ​​. Manuel had no children, his possessions were given to Michael II of Epirus.