From his base at
Arta, Michael proceeded to expand his control over most of the region of Epirus, including much of modern
Albania, quickly establishing an independent domain encompassing the lands between
Dyrrhachium (Durazzo) in the north and
Naupactus in the south, bordering the Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica in the east, the possessions of the
Republic of Venice to the north and west, and the
Bulgarians and
Serbs to the north and east. He maintained good relations with the Albanian and Vlach chieftains in the area, and their men provided able troops for his army. The state Michael established is commonly known in historiography as the "
Despotate of Epirus", and it was long thought that Michael was the first Epirote ruler to claim the title of
despotes, it being surmised that he was granted the title by the deposed emperor Alexios III after his ransoming (see
below). In reality, as modern research has shown, neither Michael nor his half-brother and successor,
Theodore Komnenos Doukas, bore the title. It was Michael's bastard son,
Michael II Komnenos Doukas, who became the first ruler of Epirus to be titled a
despotes in the 1230s, while the designation of the Epirote state as a "despotate" first appears in Western, rather than Byzantine, sources in the 14th century.
Rapprochement with the Latin powers Along with the other major Greek successor state, the
Empire of Nicaea in western Asia Minor, Epirus became the main Greek centre resisting Latin rule. Michael's chief preoccupation therefore was the threat posed by the Latin Crusader states and the Republic of Venice. In the treaty of partition of the Byzantine Empire among the Crusaders, Epirus had been allotted to Venice, but although it had occupied in 1205 Dyrrhachium, the chief port for the Albanian hinterland, and the island of
Corfu in 1207, the maritime-minded Republic had shown little interest in the rest of its mainland. To insure himself against a Latin attack, Michael began negotiations with
Pope Innocent III, hinting at a possible union of the Orthodox Church of his domains with the
Roman Catholic Church. The relationship was not untroubled–in a letter of 17 August 1209, the Pope asked of "Michael Komnenos of Romania" that, if he were truly the Pope's servant, as he claimed in his letters, he should allow the
Latin Archbishop of Dyrrhachium access to the estates owned by the archbishopric in Michael's domains—but it did serve for the moment to earn Michael the Pope's goodwill, as well as precious time. According to Loenertz, it also appears that at some point Michael had paid homage to the Kingdom of Thessalonica as its vassal. Despite these diplomatic manoeuvrings, according to a series of letters of Innocent III dated to autumn 1210, Michael engaged in combat with the
Prince of Achaea Geoffrey I of Villehardouin () and his barons; the letters do not give any further details. Modern researchers have linked this reference either with his supposed leadership in the battle of Kountouras, or, more plausibly, with an abortive campaign in the Peloponnese sometime in 1207–09 in order to aid the beleaguered ruler of
Argos and
Corinth,
Leo Sgouros, who was being besieged by the Crusaders in his citadel on the
Acrocorinth. Traditionally, several scholars, such as
Karl Hopf and
Antoine Bon, have furthermore identified a certain Theodore, who appears as "lord of Argos" and Sgouros' successor in leading the resistance against the Crusaders, with Michael's half-brother Theodore Komnenos Doukas. Loenertz points out, however, that not only is there no evidence for such an assumption, but that Theodore Komnenos Doukas is known to have been in the service of the Nicaean emperor,
Theodore I Laskaris (), at the time. In summer 1209, after the Latin Emperor
Henry of Flanders () quelled a revolt of the Lombard barons of Thessalonica and brought the Kingdom of Thessalonica under his effective control, Michael sent envoys to propose an alliance. Henry distrusted Michael's sincerity, but sent an embassy to Epirus with his terms, which amounted to Michael declaring himself a vassal of the Latin Empire. Michael was able to sidestep an outright declaration of submission by offering the hand of his eldest daughter to the Emperor's brother,
Eustace, and a third of his lands as her dowry. Henry accepted, and the peace agreement was sealed with the marriage of Eustace and Michael's daughter. Finally, in early 1210, Michael's envoys, the Bishop of
Tzernikon Theodore and Symeon Kounales, met with the Venetian
duke of Dyrrhachium, Marino Vallaresso, and negotiated a treaty, confirmed by oath on 20 June. Thereby Michael accepted to become a vassal of Venice, holding his lands in fief from Venice as confirmed in a charter issued by
Doge Pietro Ziani (). Michael granted the Venetians extensive trading privileges and tax exemptions, just as they had enjoyed under the
chrysobulls of Emperor
Manuel I Komnenos (), promised to expedite the grain exports to Venice, and to assist in any shipwreck of a Venetian vessel off the Epirote coast. In addition, as a sign of his vassalage he would pay to the Venetian duke of Dyrrhachium an annual tribute of 42
litrai of gold
hyperpyra in two instalments, and send annually a rich brocade for the altar of
St. Mark's Basilica and one for the Doge.
Ransoming of Alexios III At about the same time, Michael's rule received a boost in legitimacy through his ransoming of emperor Alexios III. After his deposition by the Crusaders in July 1203, Alexios with his wife
Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamatera had been roaming Greece seeking protection. A marriage alliance with Leo Sgouros failed due to the latter's hasty retreat before the advance of Boniface of Montferrat. Left stranded in
Thessaly, Alexios was captured by Boniface. The former emperor was initially held in comfortable captivity, but at some point he fell foul of Boniface; sources differ on whether he tried to flee to Michael's domains and was captured by Boniface's knights
en route or whether Boniface simply came to distrust him as a potential rival focal point for the loyalties of the Greek population. He and his wife were then imprisoned, either in Thessalonica or, according to other sources, in
Montferrat. Learning of their fate, Michael offered to ransom the former imperial couple and eventually secured their release, welcoming them at Salagora, the port of Arta, where they arrived by ship. Michael treated the couple with every courtesy, but Alexios did not remain long in Arta. The deposed emperor was eager to regain his throne by taking over the Empire of Nicaea with the aid of the Seljuk Sultan
Kaykhusraw I. Leaving his wife behind, and accompanied by Michael's half-brother
Constantine Komnenos Doukas, Alexios took sail for Asia Minor. His attempt ended in complete failure in the
Battle of Antioch on the Maeander in 1211, where Theodore I Laskaris killed Kaykhusraw and took Alexios prisoner. The hagiography of St. Theodora of Arta claims that on his departure, Alexios granted Michael and his descendants hereditary possession of his domain, while the 14th-century
Aragonese version of the
Chronicle of the Morea claims that Alexios left Michael as his lieutenant in the west. From these references some earlier scholars erroneously inferred that Michael received the title of
despotes from Alexios. Lucien Stiernon, followed by Varzos, places the ransoming of Alexios in 1206/7. Loenertz on the other hand considers it a result of Michael's rapprochement with the Latins and places it in 1210, when the interests of the Latin Empire in curbing the growing power of Nicaea coincided with Michael's intention to ransom Alexios.
Territorial expansion Michael seized the opportunity of Henry's focus on his planned campaign against Nicaea to attack Thessalonica. At the head of Latin mercenaries, he captured the constable of the Kingdom of Thessalonica and baron of
Domokos, the Lombard Amé Buffa, and a hundred of his companions. He is alleged to have been excessively cruel to his prisoners, killing or whipping many of them, while Buffa, his confessor, and three other nobles were
crucified. Michael's army proceeded to capture several fortresses and kill the Latin garrisons, including priests. Enraged, Henry sped to Thessalonica's aid, covering the distance from Constantinople in only twelve days. Michael in the meantime had allied himself with the Bulgarian ruler
Strez, but they were defeated by Henry. It is possible that during this campaign, Henry was assisted by his vassals from Achaea, thereby explaining the reference in the Pope's correspondence of Achaean barons fighting against Michael, rather than assuming an Epirote expedition to the Peloponnese. The Latin Emperor wrested lands from both allies, but was forced to cut short his campaign and return to Constantinople, which was being threatened by the Bulgarian emperor
Boril. Henry left Thessalonica in the charge of his brother Eustace and of
Berthold of Katzenelnbogen, who then defeated another invasion by Strez, supported with troops from his brother Boril. Disquieted by the Bulgarian attacks on Thessalonica, Michael switched sides and joined the Latins in defeating the Bulgarians at
Pelagonia. It is commonly assumed that during these conflicts, Michael terminated his vassalage to the Latin Empire; historian Philip Van Tricht however points out that there are no sources for this, and that this vassalage may have survived until 1217, when Michael's brother Theodore captured Latin Emperor
Peter II of Courtenay near Dyrrhachium. Sometime between 1210 and 1214, according to the
Chronicle of Galaxeidi, Michael came into conflict with the Latin
Lord of Salona,
Thomas I d'Autremencourt. When d'Autremencourt seized a few islands in the
Corinthian Gulf off
Galaxeidi, the inhabitants of the latter called upon Michael for aid, and in the ensuing battle, Thomas was killed and Salona (modern
Amfissa) was occupied. Epirote rule there proved short-lived, however, as d'Autremencourt's son
Thomas II soon recovered his father's lordship. In 1212, his troops invaded Thessaly in force, overrunning the resistance of the local Lombard nobles. The Epirotes took
Larissa, where they deposed the
Latin Archbishop and restored the
local see to an Orthodox metropolitan,
Velestino, the fief of Berthold of Katzenelnbogen, and reached the shores of the
Pagasetic Gulf at
Demetrias. The newly gained Thessalian territories were entrusted to Michael's son-in-law
Constantine Maliasenos as a hereditary appanage. Soon after, probably in 1213, he took Dyrrhachium from Venice, followed in 1214 by Corfu. Very little is known about the details of these successes, as the generally hostile stance of the pro-Nicaean Byzantine historians towards Michael means that his achievements were often ignored. According to local Corfiot tradition, the castle of
Angelokastro was built by Michael. Michael continued to push northward into Albania and
Macedonia, taking
Kruja and ending the independence of the
principality of Arbanon and its ruler,
Dimitri Progoni, but his attempt to seize
Zeta was stopped by the Serbs at
Skadar.
Death and legacy in
Corfu, whose construction is sometimes attributed to Michael Michael himself did not long outlive these successes: in late 1214 or in 1215, he was assassinated in his sleep at
Velegrada by a servant called Rhomaios. According to the historian John V. A Fine, "whether he was hired to do the act, and, if so, by whom is unknown". As his only surviving son was illegitimate and underage, Michael was succeeded by his half-brother Theodore. Theodore had been in the service of Nicaea, and Michael had requested Laskaris to send him to Epirus because his own son's position was weak. In the event, Theodore not only sidelined the young Michael II, but according to the hagiography of St. Theodora of Arta, sent him and his mother to exile in the Peloponnese for the duration of his reign. Theodore proved a powerful and warlike ruler, greatly expanding the Epirote state and capturing Thessalonica in 1224, where he was crowned emperor. The rise of Theodore's
Empire of Thessalonica ended abruptly with his defeat and capture by the Bulgarians at the
Battle of Klokotnitsa in 1230, that allowed the exiled Michael II to return to Epirus and recover his father's domain. Michael laid the foundations of the Epirote state, and initiated a dynasty, the Komnenoi–Doukai, who would rule over Epirus until 1318, when the Italian
Orsini family took over. Members of the family also ruled over Thessaly, and for a while claimed the imperial title as rulers of Thessalonica from 1224 until its capture by the Nicaeans in 1246. It appears that during his lifetime, Michael was a popular ruler with his subjects; the contemporary
metropolitan bishop of
Naupactus,
John Apokaukos, lauded Michael as a "new
Noah", at whose side the refugees of the Latin cataclysm found refuge. The contemporary
Archbishop of Ohrid Demetrios Chomatianos even estimated that at least half, if not most, of those who fled from Constantinople, found refuge in Epirus, including many of the senatorial aristocracy. More still came from the Peloponnese, fleeing Latin rule there. Apokaukos also praises him for his refoundation and
refortification of the city of
Ioannina, where many of the refugees were settled; the city thenceforth chose the
Archangel Michael as its patron saint in his honour. ==Family==