The Gattilusio Lordships and the Aegean World, 1355-1462

487 Pages·2014·2.741 MB·English

by  Christopher Wright

The Gattilusio Lordships and the Aegean World
1355–1462
The Medieval Mediterranean
Peoples, Economies and Cultures, 400–1500
Managing Editor
Frances Andrews
St. Andrews
Editors
David Abulafia, Cambridge
Benjamin Arbel, Tel Aviv
Hugh Kennedy, SOAS, London
Paul Magdalino, Koç University, Istanbul
Olivia Remie Constable, Notre Dame
Larry J. Simon, Western Michigan University
vOLUME 100
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/mmed
The Gattilusio Lordships and the
Aegean World 1355–1462
By
Christopher Wright
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2014
Cover illustration: The castle of Methymna, Lesbos. © Photograph Christopher Wright
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wright, Christopher, Ph.D.
 The Gattilusio lordships and the Aegean world, 1355–1462 / by Christopher Wright.
  pages cm. — (The medieval Mediterranean : peoples, economies and cultures, 400–1500,
ISSN 0928-5520 ; volume 100)
 Includes bibliographical references and index.
 ISBN 978-90-04-26469-4 (hardback : acid-free paper) — ISBN 978-90-04-26481-6 (e-book)
1. Gattilusio, Francesco, 1332-1384—Family. 2. Pirates—Aegean Sea Region—Biography. 
3. Archons—Biography. 4. Aegean Sea Region—History. 5. Aegean Sea Region—Politics
and government. 6. Lesbos Island (Greece)—Biography. 7. Genoa (Italy)—Biography. 
8. Power (Social sciences)—Aegean Sea Region—History—To 1500. 9. Byzantine Empire—
Relations—Aegean Sea Region. 10. Aegean Sea Region—Relations—Byzantine Empire. 
I. Title.
 DF261.A177W75 2014
 949.5’82040922—dc23
2013040580
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ISSN 0928-5520
ISBN 978-90-04-26469-4 (hardback)
ISBN 978-90-04-26481-6 (e-book)
Copyright 2014 by Koninklijke Brill Nv, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgements  ........................................................................................ vii
List of Abbreviations  ...................................................................................... ix
Maps  .................................................................................................................... xi
Family Tree of the Gattilusio Lords  .......................................................... xvii
Introduction  ..................................................................................................... 1
Sources  ........................................................................................................ 7
The Geographical Setting  ...................................................................... 14
Secondary Literature  ............................................................................... 22
Structure  ..................................................................................................... 26
1 Political Context and Development  ................................................... 29
Background  ................................................................................................ 29
The Lordships before the Battle of Ankara  ...................................... 39
From the Battle of Ankara to the Fall of Constantinople  ........... 52
The Last Years  ........................................................................................... 66
2 Byzantium: Sovereignty and Legitimacy  ........................................... 77
The Place of the Lordships in Byzantine Government  ................ 78
Family Relationships and Dynastic Struggles  ................................. 96
Legitimacy and Mutual Advantage ..................................................... 105
The Self-Representation of the Regime  ............................................. 114
The Impact of the Byzantine Connection  ........................................ 124
3 Genoa: Migration and Solidarity  ......................................................... 129
The Place of the Lordships in the Genoese World  ........................ 132
Solidarity with the Genoese Community  ......................................... 144
Physical and Financial Disengagement from the Metropolis  .... 152
Family Connections and Representatives in Genoa  ..................... 162
Conflict Within the Community  ......................................................... 168
The Alum Industry and Genoese Commerce  .................................. 172
4 The Lordships as a Network: Family and Enterprise  .................... 187
Dynastic Policy and the Distribution of Power  .............................. 188
The Role of the Extended Family in the Lordships ....................... 194
vi contents
Commercial Connections  ...................................................................... 201
Divergent Patterns of Trade  ................................................................. 218
Piracy  ........................................................................................................... 234
5 Inside the Lordships: Communities and Government  ................. 245
Inhabitants of the Lordships  ................................................................ 246
Financial Resources  ................................................................................ 254
Latin Settlement  ...................................................................................... 260
Governmental Forms and Functionaries  ......................................... 266
Religious Institutions  .............................................................................. 286
High Culture, Community Relations and the Union  .................... 302
6 Latin Christendom: Common Causes and Compromises  ........... 319
Incentives and Disincentives  ............................................................... 321
Crusading against the Turks  ................................................................. 326
The Pursuit of Goodwill  ........................................................................ 339
Church Union  ........................................................................................... 345
The Attitudes of Others  ......................................................................... 348
7 The Turks: Security and Submission  ................................................. 359
Forces of Attraction and Repulsion  ................................................... 360
Turkish Division and Unification  ....................................................... 366
Ottoman Crisis and Recovery  .............................................................. 374
Failure to Endure  ..................................................................................... 386
The Impetus for Conquest  .................................................................... 393
Conclusion  ........................................................................................................ 399
Appendix 1: Old Phokaia  .............................................................................. 407
Appendix 2: Territorial Acquisitions in the Northern Aegean  ......... 413
Appendix 3: The Alum of Maroneia  ......................................................... 419
Bibliography  ..................................................................................................... 423
Index  ................................................................................................................... 451
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This book began life as my doctoral thesis prepared at Royal Holloway,
University of London, and my deepest thanks are due to the unstinting
help and support of my supervisor, Jonathan Harris, and of my advisor,
the late Julian Chrysostomides, without which the book would never have
seen the light of day. The work has benefited from the recommendations
of Peter Lock, Brenda Bolton, Peregrine Horden and Jonathan Philips,
who read elements of it in earlier forms, as well as to peer reviewers who
remain anonymous to me but have contributed greatly to its development.
It has also been enhanced by the invaluable guidance and advice I have
received at various times over the years from Andreas Mazarakis, Thierry
Ganchou, Enrico Basso, Anthony Luttrell and Catherine Otten-Froux. I am
indebted to the generosity of the Arts and Humanities Research Council,
who fully funded my doctoral research, and of the Royal Historical Society
and the University of London Central Research Fund, who helped to cover
the costs of overseas travel. I wish to thank also the staff of all the libraries
and archives whose collections I have been permitted to consult, but most
particularly those of the Archivio di Stato, Genoa. Last but not least, I am
grateful for the guidance and patience of Julian Deahl, Marcella Mulder,
Rachel Crofut and all at Brill in bringing the work to final fruition.

LIST OF ABBREvIATIONS
Periodicals
AALSL Atti dell’Accademia Ligure di Scienze e Lettere
ABSA Annual of the British School at Athens
ASLSP Atti della Società Ligure di Storia Patria
BF Byzantinische Forschungen
BZ Byzantinische Zeitschrift
DOP Dumbarton Oaks Papers
REB Revue des Etudes Byzantines
SG La Storia dei Genovesi
n.s. new series
Series
AA Archives de l’Athos
CFHB Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzantinae
CSHB Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae
CICO Pontifica Commissio ad Redigendum Codicem Iuris Canonici
Orientalis, Fontes, 3rd series
RIS Rerum Italicarum Scriptores
Archives
ADCO Archives Départementales de la Côte d’Or
ADN Archives Départementales du Nord
AOM Archives of the Order of Malta (National Library of Malta)
ASG Archivio di Stato di Genova
ASv Archivio di Stato di venezia
ASvat A rchivio Segreto vaticano
Archival Collections
AC Antico Comune
AS Archivio Segreto
x list of abbreviations
CAOS Camera Apostolica Obligationes et Solutiones
CM Compere e Mutui
DC Duca di Candia
NA Notai Antichi
NCan Notai di Candia
NCol Notatorio del Collegio
NI Notai Ignoti
RL Registri Laterani
Rv Registri vaticani
SGCanc Archivio di San Giorgio, Cancelleria
SGCol Archivio di San Giorgio, Colonne
SGGab Archivio di San Giorgio, Gabelle
SMar Senato Mar
SMisti Senato Misti
SS Senato Secreta