Thessalonica (theme)

Province of the Byzantine Empire

Theme of Thessalonica

Θεσσαλονίκη, θέμα Θεσσαλονίκης

Theme of the Byzantine Empire
800s–1204
1242–1392
1403–1423

Map of Byzantine Greece ca. 900 AD, with the themes and major settlements
Capital| Thessalonica
Historical era| Middle Ages

• Established

| 809

• Fourth Crusade

| 1204

• Recovery by Nicaean Empire

| 1242

• Captured by Ottomans

| 1392
Today part of| Greece

The Theme of Thessalonica (Greek: Θέμα Θεσσαλονίκης) was a military-civilian province (thema or theme) of the Byzantine Empire located in the southern Balkans, comprising varying parts of Central and Western Macedonia and centred on Thessalonica, the Empire's second-most important city.

## History

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In Late Antiquity, Thessalonica was the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia and of the Diocese of Macedonia, and the seat of the praetorian prefect of Illyricum. With the loss of most of the Balkan hinterland to the Slavic and Bulgar invasions in the 7th century, however, the authority of the prefect (in Greek eparchos, "eparch") was largely confined to the city and its immediate surroundings. The eparch continued to govern Thessalonica until the early 9th century, when he was replaced by a strategos at the head of the new theme of Thessalonica.[1][2]

The strategos of Thessalonica is attested for the first time in 836, but a letter of Emperor Michael II (r. 820–829) to the Frankish king Louis the Pious (r. 814–840) may indicate the theme's existence already in 824.[3][4] The historian Warren Treadgold dates the theme's creation to c. 809, during the anti-Bulgarian campaigns of Emperor Nikephoros I (r. 802–811) which extended Byzantine rule to the city's hinterland.[5] Treadgold further conjectures that its troops in the 9th century numbered about 2,000 men.[6] To the east, the theme extended to the river Strymon and the theme of the same name. To the south, it bounded the theme of Hellas, somewhere in northern Thessaly. Its western and northern bounds were undetermined, fluctuating with the tide of war between the Byzantines, the local Slavic tribes, and the Bulgarians.[7]

Under Emperor John I Tzimiskes (r. 969–976), a doux who commanded the professional tagmatic troops stationed in the theme was installed in the city, and seems to have co-existed for a while with the strategos, before assuming the latter's duties as well.[4][8][9] In the 11th century, the doukaton of Thessalonica was of such importance that it was often held by members of the imperial family.[4] The city and most of Macedonia were captured by Latins after the Fourth Crusade, and became part of the Kingdom of Thessalonica, which survived until 1224, when it was captured by Epirus. The theme was reconstituted after the city and most of Macedonia fell into the hands of the Empire of Nicaea in 1246, and survived until captured by the Ottoman Turks in 1392; by that time, however, the theme was essentially reduced to the city itself. Regained by Byzantium in 1402, the city became the seat of a despotate, until it was surrendered to Venice in 1423, during another siege by the Ottomans which ended with the city's conquest in 1430.[1][4]

## Autonomous rulers

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The list of the autonomous rulers of Thessalonica in the Byzantine Empire under the Palaiologos dynasty:[10]

* Irene of Montferrat (1303–1317), as empress
* Anna of Savoy (1351–1365), as empress
* Manuel II Palaiologos (1382–1387), as emperor
* John VII Palaiologos (1403–1408), as emperor
* Andronikos V Palaiologos (1403–1407), as co-emperor
* Andronikos Palaiologos (1408–1423), as despot

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b ODB, "Thessalonike" (T. E. Gregory), pp. 2071–2072.
2. ^ Nesbitt & Oikonomides 1991, p. 50.
3. ^ Oikonomides 1972, p. 352.
4. ^ a b c d ODB, "Thessalonike" (T. E. Gregory, A. Kazhdan), p. 2073
5. ^ Treadgold 1995, p. 29.
6. ^ Treadgold 1995, pp. 66–69.
7. ^ Pertusi 1952, pp. 168–169.
8. ^ Nesbitt & Oikonomides 1991, p. 51.
9. ^ Treadgold 1995, pp. 36, 114.
10. ^ Russell, Eugenia (2013-03-28). Literature and Culture in Late Byzantine Thessalonica. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 30\. ISBN 978-1-4411-5584-9.

## Sources

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* Chatziantoniou, Elisavet (2012–2013). "Παρατηρήσεις σχετικά με την οικονομική διοίκηση του θέματος Βολερού, Στρυμόνος και Θεσσαλονίκης (11ος αι.)" [Observations regarding the Fiscal Administration of the theme of Boleros, Strymon, and Thessalonike (11th century)] (PDF). Byzantiaka (in Greek). 30. Thessaloniki: Hellenic Historical Society: 149–193\. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04.
* Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. (1991). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
* Nesbitt, John; Oikonomides, Nicolas, eds. (1991). Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 1: Italy, North of the Balkans, North of the Black Sea. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. ISBN 0-88402-194-7.
* Oikonomides, Nicolas (1972). Les listes de préséance byzantines des IXe et Xe siècles (in French). Paris: Editions du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.
* Pertusi, A. (1952). Constantino Porfirogenito: De Thematibus (in Italian). Rome: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.
* Treadgold, Warren T. (1995). Byzantium and Its Army, 284–1081. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-3163-2.

* v
* t
* e

Themes of the Byzantine Empire according to De Thematibus (c. 950)

Eastern or Asian themes|

* 1\. Anatolic Theme
* 2\. Armeniac Theme (incl. Cappadocia and Charsianon)
* 3\. Thracesian Theme
* 4\. Opsician Theme
* 5\. Optimates
* 6\. Bucellarian Theme
* 7\. Paphlagonia
* 8\. Chaldia
* 9\. Mesopotamia
* 10\. Koloneia
* 11\. Sebasteia
* 12\. Lykandos
* 13\. Seleucia
* 14\. Cibyrrhaeot Theme
* 15\. Cyprus
* 16\. Samos
* 17\. Aegean Sea

Western or European themes|

* 1\. Thrace§
* 2\. Macedonia§
* 3\. Strymon
* 4\. Thessalonica
* 5\. Hellas
* 6\. Peloponnese
* 7\. Cephallenia
* 8\. Nicopolis
* 9\. Dyrrhachium
* 10\. Sicily
* 11\. Longobardia
* 12\. Cherson/Klimata
* (omitted: Dalmatia)

§ Thrace and Macedonia were counted among the Eastern themes for hierarchical purposes

* v
* t
* e

Byzantine Greece

Provinces and regions|

* Achaea Province
* Theme of the Aegean
* Crete
* Theme of Hellas
* Theme of Samos
* Macedonia Province
* Theme of Macedonia
* Theme of Strymon
* Theme of Thessalonica
* Theme of the Peloponnese
* Theme of Cephallenia
* Theme of Nicopolis
* Sclaviniae
* Melingoi and Ezeritai
* Tsakonia
* Great Vlachia

People|

* Justinian I
* Heraclius
* Justinian II
* Irene of Athens
* Danielis
* Nikephoros I
* Basil I
* Nikephoros II Phokas
* Basil II
* Nikephoros Melissenos
* Michael Choniates
* Leo Sgouros
* Leo Gabalas
* Michael I Komnenos Doukas
* Theodore Komnenos Doukas
* Demetrios Chomatenos
* John Apokaukos
* Michael II Komnenos Doukas
* Michael VIII Palaiologos
* John I Doukas of Thessaly
* Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas
* Thomas I Komnenos Doukas
* Gregory Palamas
* Demetrios Kydones
* Catalan Company
* Nicholas Orsini
* Andronikos Asen
* John II Orsini
* Andronikos III Palaiologos
* Michael Monomachos
* John Angelos
* Stephen Gabrielopoulos
* Nikephoros II Orsini
* Manuel Kantakouzenos
* Simeon Uroš
* Thomas Preljubović
* Esau de' Buondelmonti
* Alexios Angelos Philanthropenos
* Theodore II Palaiologos
* Gemistos Plethon
* Constantine XI Palaiologos
* Demetrios Palaiologos
* Thomas Palaiologos
* Byzantine bureaucracy and aristocracy
* Byzantine scholars in Renaissance
* Historians: Niketas Choniates
* George Akropolites
* Nicephorus Gregoras
* John Scylitzes
* Eustathius of Thessalonica
* Michael Glykas
* Anna Komnene
* Joannes Zonaras
* George Kodinos
* George Sphrantzes

Major centres|

* Thessaloniki
* Athens
* Corinth
* Mystras
* Patras
* Thebes
* Arta
* Ioannina

Greek states after 1204|

* Despotate of Epirus
* Empire of Nicaea
* Empire of Thessalonica
* Despotate of the Morea
* Thessaly

History|

* Persecution of paganism
* Barbarian invasions
* Under the Heraclian dynasty
* Byzantine Iconoclasm
* Siege of Thessalonica (676–678)
* Siege of Patras (805 or 807)
* Arab–Byzantine wars
* Muslim conquest of Crete
* Byzantine reconquest of Crete
* Macedonian Renaissance
* Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria
* East-West Schism
* Byzantine–Norman wars
* Sack of Thessalonica (1185)
* Fourth Crusade
* Battle of the Olive Grove of Kountouras
* Battle of Klokotnitsa
* Battle of Pelagonia
* Under the Palaiologos dynasty
* Reconquest of Constantinople
* Battle of Prinitza
* Battle of Makryplagi
* Battle of Neopatras
* Battle of Pharsalus (1277)
* Battle of Demetrias
* Byzantine civil war of 1321–1328
* Hesychast controversy (Palamism)
* Byzantine–Genoese War (1348–1349)
* Zealots of Thessalonica
* Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347
* Byzantine–Ottoman Wars
* Siege of Thessalonica (1422–1430)
* Battle of the Echinades (1427)
* Morea revolt of 1453–1454
* Ottoman conquest of the Morea

Culture|

* Byzantine art (Macedonian art)
* Byzantine music
* Byzantine literature
* Alexander romance
* Miracles of Saint Demetrius
* Suda
* Greek Anthology
* Acritic songs
* Byzantine architecture
* Byzantine dress
* Byzantine cuisine
* Eastern Orthodox Christianity
* Byzantine law
* Hexabiblos

Monuments|

* Acrocorinth
* Angelokastro (Corfu)
* Athens
* Church of the Holy Apostles
* Daphni Monastery
* Little Metropolis
* Soteira Lykodemou
* Castle of Chios
* Church of the Parigoritissa
* Didymoteicho Fortress
* Feraklos Castle
* Gardiki Castle
* Hexamilion wall
* Hosios Loukas
* Kassiopi Castle
* Meteora
* Mount Athos
* Monastery of Saint John the Theologian
* Monemvasia
* Mystras
* Nea Moni of Chios
* Old Metropolis of Veria
* Panagia Episkopi
* Panagia Kontariotissa
* Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki
* Panagia Ekatontapiliani
* Patras Castle
* Porta Panagia
* Saints Theodoroi, Serres
* Trikala Castle

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