Enciclopedia Cattolica Vol. I, 1948 History & biography

Andronikos I Komnenos, Emperor of Byzantium

ANDRONICO I CONNENO, IMPERATORE DI BISANZIO

Italian original Cite

Also known as: Italian: Andronico Comneno; Latin: Andronicus I Comnenus

ANDRONIKOS I KOMNENOS, Emperor of Byzantium. - He belonged to a cadet branch of the Comnenian dynasty, being the son of Isaac, the second-born son of Alexius I. Like his father, he was hostile to the reigning branch, and, after having been held in prison for a long time by Manuel I Comnenus, he went into exile in the East at the courts of Turkish princes, returning to his homeland shortly before the death of Manuel (1180). During the regency for the young Alexius II (1180-82), taking advantage of the clashes that arose between the Byzantine population of xenophobic tendencies and the Latin element influential in the imperial court, A. seized power, having himself proclaimed co-emperor with Alexius II, of whom he then soon rid himself, in order to remain sole master of the empire (1182). Then, after allowing xenophobia to rage cruelly against the Latins, he sought to strengthen his power by persecuting to death the aristocracy bound to the memories of Manuel I, but he stirred up ever more serious unrest and rebellions, and when in 1185 the attack on Thessalonica occurred, on the part of a Norman-Sicilian expedition, his position became untenable. He fell victim to popular fury, after the proclamation as emperor of Isaac II (12 Sept. 1185). A. is depicted as a cultured, shrewd man, and a politician; but devoid of moral sense, instead of saving the Byzantine empire, he aggravated its ills, hastening its ruin.

Bibliography6 works
BIBL.: C. Diehl, Andronic Comnène, in Figures byzantines, 2nd series, Paris 1908; F. Cognasso, Partiti politici e lotte dinastiche in Bisanzio alla morte di Manuele I Comneno, in Memorie della R. Accademia delle Scienze di Torino, 1911-12; L. Bréhier, s. v. in DHG, II, coll. 1792-98; A. Vasiliev, Histoire de l'empire byzantin, French ed., Paris 1932; C. Diehl, L'Europe orientale, Paris 1945; L. Bréhier, Vie et mort de Byzance, Paris 1947.

Francesco Cognasso

About this entry

By Francesco Cognasso

How we know signed in print

Translated from the Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I (1948), col. 1214.

Printed pages Open in the page viewer
Page 741
vol. 1, coll. 1213–1214

More by Francesco Cognasso: Andronikos II Palaiologos, Emperor of Byzantium · Andronikos III Palaiologos, Emperor of Byzantium · Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy · Amadeus VII, Count of Savoy, known as the Red Count · Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy, known as the Green Count

Cite this article

Chicago

Cognasso, Francesco. “Andronico I Conneno, imperatore di bisanzio.” In Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I, col. 1214. Città del Vaticano: Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1948. https://azioneromana.com/article/andronico-i-conneno-imperatore-di-bisanzio.

MLA

Cognasso, Francesco. “Andronico I Conneno, imperatore di bisanzio.” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. I, Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1948, col. 1214. Azione Romana, https://azioneromana.com/article/andronico-i-conneno-imperatore-di-bisanzio.

BibTeX

@incollection{ec1_andronico_i_conneno_imperatore,
  author    = {Cognasso, Francesco},
  title     = {Andronico I Conneno, imperatore di bisanzio},
  booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica},
  volume    = {I},
  pages     = {1214},
  note      = {Cited by column},
  publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico},
  address   = {Città del Vaticano},
  year      = {1948},
  url       = {https://azioneromana.com/article/andronico-i-conneno-imperatore-di-bisanzio}
}

One of some 20,000 entries brought back from the twelve printed volumes (1948–54). Spotted something? Help us improve it.

Save for later

Enter your email and we will send you a sign-in link. No password. What you save (articles, verses, chapters, documents) follows you to any device.