Longibardopoulos (, "son of the Lombard"; 1071–1073) was a Byzantine general, a mercenary chief, one of the commanders stationed in

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

during the Uprising of Georgi Voiteh (1072).

Life

A Lombard chief, or possibly

Italo-Norman The Italo-Normans (), or Siculo-Normans (''Siculo-Normanni'') when referring to Sicily and Southern Italy, are the Italian-born descendants of the first Norman conquerors to travel to Southern Italy in the first half of the eleventh century. ...

, he joined the

Byzantine army The Byzantine army was the primary military body of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct continuation of the East Roman army, Eastern Roman army, shaping and developing itself on the legac ...

rather than submit to the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

during their conquest of southern Italy. In 1072, an uprising was prepared by the Bulgarian and Slavic nobility in

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

led by

Georgi Voiteh Georgi Voyteh (, Greek: Γεώργιος Βοιτέχ) was an 11th-century Bulgarian aristocrat from Skopje who started a major uprising in Byzantine Bulgaria against the Byzantine rule.Dennis P. Hupchick, The Bulgarian-Byzantine Wars for Early ...

, known in modern historiography as the Uprising of Georgi Voiteh. The rebels chose

Constantine Bodin Constantine Bodin ( Bulgarian and , ''Konstantin Bodin''; 1072–1101) was a medieval king and the ruler of Duklja, the most powerful Serbian principality of the time, from 1081 to 1101, succeeding his father, Mihailo Vojislavljević ( 10 ...

, a Serbian prince, the son of

Michael I Michael I may refer to: * Pope Michael I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark in 743–767 * Michael I Rangabe, Byzantine Emperor (died in 844) * Michael I Cerularius, Patriarch Michael I of Constantinop ...

Duklja Duklja ( sr-Cyrl, Дукља; ; ) was a medieval South Slavs, South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana river in the east, and to the sou ...

, as their leader, as he was a maternal descendant of the Bulgarian Emperor Samuil; in the autumn of 1072 Constantine Bodin arrived at

Prizren Prizren ( sq-definite, Prizreni, ; sr-cyr, Призрен) is the second List of cities and towns in Kosovo, most populous city and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality of Kosovo and seat of the eponymous municipality and District of Prizren, ...

, where he was proclaimed Emperor of the Bulgarians. A Byzantine army under Damianos Dalassenos was immediately sent from

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

to help the ''

strategos ''Strategos'' (), also known by its Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized form ''strategus'', is a Greek language, Greek term to mean 'military General officer, general'. In the Hellenistic world and in the Byzantine Empire, the term was also use ...

'' of the

Theme of Bulgaria The Theme of Bulgaria () was a theme (province) of the Byzantine Empire established by Emperor Basil II after the conquest of Bulgaria in 1018. Its capital was Skopje and it was governed by a strategos. The theme of Bulgaria did not encompass t ...

Nikephoros Karantenos Nikephoros Karantenos, Latinized as Nicephorus Carantenus (), (''fl.'' 1067–1072) was a Byzantine general known for fighting against the Bulgarians in the Balkans and the Normans in Italy. The main sources for his life is the continuator (''Sky ...

. In the battle that followed the Byzantine army was completely defeated. Dalassenos and several other Byzantine commanders, including Longibardopoulos, were captured and Skopje was taken by the rebel troops.Златарски
II: 142-143
Литаврин, 404-405; Павлов

/ref> Longibardopoulos was subsequently married to a sister of Constantine Bodin, and was put in command of an army consisting mainly of "

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 ...

and

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

".; Scylitzes Continuatus: 163–165 He was dispatched against the Byzantines, whom he had earlier served. Despite some initial success, Bodin was subsequently captured at Taonion or Pauni (in southern Kosovo), in December 1073 and then sent to

, then

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...

, where he spent several years, while Voiteh died ''en route''. When Michael of Duklja heard of the capture of his son, he sent Longibardopoulos to rescue him, but instead, Longibardopoulos defected to the Byzantines.

References

Primary sources

Skylitzes Continuatus John Skylitzes, commonly Latinized as Ioannes Scylitzes (, ; , ; early 1040s – after 1101), was a Byzantine historian of the late 11th century. Life Very little is known about his life. The title of his work records him as a '' kouropalat ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Longibardopoulos Byzantine generals 11th-century Byzantine military personnel 11th-century births 11th-century deaths Lombard warriors Italo-Normans Byzantine mercenaries Byzantine prisoners of war 11th-century Lombard people Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown