Thomas Doukas

Thomas Doukas (in Greek: ΄ Κομνηνός Δούκας of Θωμάς Α, of Thōmas I Komnēnos Doukas of ), (1285-1318) was chief of the Despotat d' Épire of 1297 until its death in 1318. Thomas was the son of Nicéphore I Doukas and Anne Cantacuzène, a niece of the emperor Michel VIII Paleologist. In 1290 it received the dignity of despot. The succession of Thomas to the head of the despotat was a time endangered by the marriage of his/her sister Thamar at Philippe I {{er}} of Tarente, wire of the king Charles II of Naples and Marie of Hungary in 1294. When Nicéphore dies between September 1296 and July 1298, Philippe should have succeeded to him but Anne Cantacuzène chooses to put Thomas Doukas at the head of the country.

This irrefutable fact deprived Épire of its main ally and the despotat was suddenly particularly insulated. Charles II of Naples required that Épire be returned to his/her son, but Anne refused, pretexting that the treaty had been broken when Thamar had to give up the orthodoxe faith. To avoid an Italian attack, Anne Maria Thomas with the young Anne Paléologue, girl of the Co-emperor Michel IX Paleologist. The real marriage took place in 1307 or 1313. During this time, Charles sent troops in Épire but they were pushed back by Épirotes which advanced in the grounds angevines Balkans, recovering Butrinto and Naupaktos in 1304 and 1305. A new invasion angevine took place in 1307 and finishes with a compromise by which Philippe de Tarente had to yield several of his fortresses of Balkans which had been taken again by Épirotes at the time of the preceding war. But Épire depended more and more on the Byzantine Empire until a conflict between Épirotes and of the Byzantine commanders caused a war in 1315. The Byzantines then invaded Épire which they plundered until Arta and marries it of Thomas was captured. The despot then decided to start negotiations with Philippe de Tarente having to lead to an alliance anti-Byzantine. But Thomas Doukas was assassinated by his nephew, the tale Nicolas D' Orsini, of Céphalonie.

Source

Fine John V.A. Jr., The Late Medieval Balkans , Ass Arbor, 1987.

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