Ioannes Kegen was a Pecheneg military commander who served under khan Tyrach in 1048, whose quarrel led to the Pecheneg revolt of 1048-1053. Kegen and his followers took refuge in

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and appealed to Byzantine emperor

Constantine IX Monomachos Constantine IX Monomachos (; 980/ 1000 – 11 January 1055) reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 1042 to January 1055. Empress Zoë Porphyrogenita chose him as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring agai ...

for help. His appeal was warmly accepted, resulting in him being named patrician, converting to Christianity and his tribe getting recognized as

foederati ''Foederati'' ( ; singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the '' socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign ...

. Kegen was to protect a sector of the empire from invasion, but continued to harass Tyrach. Tyrach responded by a massive invasion of Byzantium, but, once defeated, was allowed to keep his army to aid in defending the empire against

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

incursions. Tyrach instead turned to rebellion and was arrested. Kegen was sent to replace him, but upon rumors of insurrection, he was also arrested. The emperor again turned to Tyrach to lead the Pechenegs, but instead Tyrach rebelled and was defeated at a decisive battle at

Adrianople Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...

in 1050. Kegen was sent by the emperor as an emissary to the Pechenegs, but was killed as a traitor.

References

* Kaldellis, Anthony,
Streams of Gold, Rivers of Blood: The Rise and Fall of Byzantium, 955 A.D. to the First Crusade
'. (Onassis Series in Hellenic Culture), Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2017, pp. 193, 199-200 * {{Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, pages=1118-1119, 1613–1614 Pechenegs 1050 deaths People of the Byzantine–Pecheneg wars