John Kourkouas or Curcuas () was the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

catepan of Italy The Catepanate of Italy (, ''Katepaníkion Italías'') was a province ('' theme'') of the Byzantine Empire, that existed from c. 965 until 1071. It was headed by a governor (''katepano'') with both civil and military powers. At its greatest exten ...

from 1008 to 1010. John belonging to the

Kourkouas The Kourkouas family or Curcuas (, from , ''Gurgen'') was, allegedly, one of the many nakharar families from Armenia that migrated to the Byzantine Empire during the period of Arab rule over Armenia (7th–9th centuries) although the latter is mos ...

family of

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

descent. According to a deed of grant to the monastery of San Giovanni in Lamis, he bore the titles of and .. Kourkouas arrived at

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

in May 1008, as a replacement for

Alexios Xiphias Alexios Xiphias (, ) was a Byzantine ''protospatharios'' and catepan of Italy from 1006 to 1007, following the long term of office of Gregory Tarchaneiotes. In March 1007, he promulgated a diploma in favour of Alexander, abbot of San Giovanni in ...

, who had died sometime between April and August of the previous year. He served as catepan of Italy until some time before March 1010, when his successor,

Basil Mesardonites Basil Mesardonites (, died 1016) was the Catapan of Italy, representing the Byzantine Emperor there, from 1010 to 1016 or 1017. He succeeded the catapan John Kourkouas, who died fighting the Lombards, then in rebellion under Melus, early in 1010. ...

, is attested in office. According to the Italian chronicles of

Lupus Protospatharius Lupus Protospatharius Barensis was the reputed author of the ''Chronicon rerum in regno Neapolitano gestarum'' (also called ''Annales Lupi Protospatharii''), a concise history of the Mezzogiorno from 805 to 1102. He has only been named as the aut ...

and Anonymus Barensis, he died in office in 1010. Nothing is known of his tenure, as the only information about him comes from deeds confirmed by his successors, and brief references in Italian sources. John's government coincided with the first revolt of the

Lombards The Lombards () or Longobards () were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who conquered most of the Italian Peninsula between 568 and 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written betwee ...

in Greek

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

, under

Melus of Bari {{Infobox noble , name = Melus , title = Duke of Apulia , image = , caption = {{longitem, Cape given to Holy Roman Emperor Henry II by Melus , alt = , CoA = , ...

. A possible descendant or relative, the notary John Kourkouas, is attested in southern Italy some time before 1054.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kourkouas, John 11th-century catepans of Italy 1010 deaths Byzantine generals

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

Year of birth unknown