Catepanate of Italy

The Catepanate of Italy (, Katepaníkion Italías) was a province (theme) of the Byzantine Empire, that existed from c. 965 until 1071. It was headed by a governor (katepano) with both civil and military powers. At its greatest extent, it comprised mainland Italy south of a line drawn from Monte Gargano to the Gulf of Salerno. North of that line, the Tyrrhenian duchies of Amalfi and Naples also maintained a volatile allegiance to Byzantine Emperors through the katepano. The Italian region of Capitanata derives its name from the term katepanikion (a province under the jurisdiction of katepano).

History

Following the fall of the Exarchate of Ravenna in 751, the remaining jurisdictions of Byzantine Italy, from Byzantine Venetia in the north to the Theme of Sicily in the south, entered a period of decline that lasted until the accession of Basil I (reigned 867–886) to the throne of Constantinople. From 868 on, the imperial fleet and Byzantine diplomats were employed in an effort to secure the Adriatic Sea from Saracen raids, re-establish Byzantine dominance over Dalmatia, and extend Byzantine control once more over parts of Italy.

As a result of these efforts, Otranto was taken from the Saracens in 873, and Bari, captured from Arabs by the Holy Roman Emperor Louis II in 871, passed under Byzantine control in 876. The expeditions of the capable general Nikephoros Phokas the Elder in the mid-880s further extended Byzantine control over most of Apulia and Calabria. These victories were followed up by his successors and laid the foundation of a resurgence of Byzantine power in southern Italy, culminating in the establishment of the theme of Longobardia in c. 892. The regions of Apulia, Calabria and Basilicata would remain firmly under Byzantine control until the 11th century. In c. 965, a new theme of Lucania was established, and the stratēgos (military governor) of Bari was raised to the title of katepanō of Italy, usually with the rank of patrikios. The title of katepanō meant "the uppermost" in Greek. This elevation was deemed militarily necessary after the final loss of nearby Sicily, a previously Byzantine possession, to the Arabs.

Some Norman adventurers, on pilgrimage to Monte Sant'Angelo sul Gargano, lent their swords in 1017 to the Lombard cities of Apulia against the Byzantines. From 1016 to 1030 the Normans were pure mercenaries, serving either Byzantine or Lombard, and then Duke Sergius IV of Naples, by installing their leader Ranulf Drengot in the fortress of Aversa in 1030. This gave the Normans their first foothold in southern Italy from which they began an organized conquest of the land. In 1030, William and Drogo, the two eldest sons of Tancred of Hauteville, a noble of Coutances in Normandy arrived in southern Italy. The two joined in the organized attempt to wrest Apulia from the Byzantines, who had lost most of that province by 1040. Bari was captured by the Normans in April 1071, and Byzantine authority was finally terminated in Italy, five centuries after the conquests of Justinian I. In 1154-1156, through a plan hatched by Emperor Manuel I Komnenos, the Byzantines returned briefly to besiege Bari and were moderately successful in inciting a mass revolt which nearly toppled Norman control (potentially handing much of the former Katepanate back to the Byzantine Empire), but the gains were "reversed by misfortune".

The title Catapan of Apulia and Campania was revived briefly in 1166 for Gilbert, Count of Gravina, the cousin of the queen regent Margaret of Navarre. In 1167, with his authority as catapan, Gilbert forced German troops out of the Campania and compelled Frederick Barbarossa to raise the siege of Ancona.

Catepans NumberKatepano of Italy (Birth–Death)Term startTerm endRoman Emperor (Start of reign–End of reign)1Michael Abidelas970975John I Tzimiskes

(969–976)2Romanos (I)before 982Basil II

(976–1025)3Kalokyros Delphinas9829854Romanos (II)9859885John Ammiropoulos9889986Gregory Tarchaneiotes99910067Alexios Xiphias100610088John Kourkouas100810109Basil Mesardonites1010101610Kontoleon TornikiosMay 1017Dec. 101711Basil BoioannesDec. 10171027Constantine VIII

(1025–1028)12Christophoros Burgaris10271029Romanos III Argyros

(1028–1034)13Pothos Argyros1029103114Michael1031103315Constantine Opos10331038Michael IV

(1034–1041)15Constantine Opos1033103816Michael Spondyles1038103917Nikephoros Dokeianos1039104018Michael Dokeianos1040104119Exaugustus Boioannes1041104220SynodianosFeb. 1042Apr. 1042Michael V Kalaphates

(1041–1042)21George Maniakes

(–1043)Apr. 1042Sep. 1042Zoe & Theodora Porphyrogenita

(1042)Constantine IX Monomachos

(1042–1055)22PardosSep. 104223Basil TheodorokanosFeb. 1043Spring 104324Eustathios PalatinosAutumn 1045104625John RaphaelSep. 1046Dec. 104626Argyrus10501058Theodora Porphyrogenita

(1055–1056)Michael VI Bringas

(1056–1057)Isaac I Komnenos

(1057–1059)27Marules10601061Constantine X Doukas

(1059–1067)28Sirianus1061106229Abulchares10621068Romanos IV Diogenes

(1067–1071)30Leo Perenos1068107131Stephen Pateranos107132*Robert Guiscard10741078Michael VII Doukas

(1071–1078)

Catepanate of Italy

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