Nikephoros Balšić ( el, Νικηφόρος Βασιλάκης), frequently encountered simply as Balšić (Βασιλάκιος), Latinized as Nicephorus Basilacius, was a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...

general and aristocrat of the late 11th century, who in 1078/79 tried to overthrow the Emperor

Nikephoros III Botaneiates Nikephoros III Botaneiates, Latinized as Nicephorus III Botaniates ( el, Νικηφόρος Βοτανειάτης, 1002–1081), was Byzantine emperor from 7 January 1078 to 1 April 1081. He was born in 1002, and became a general du ...

and was defeated by

Alexios Komnenos Alexios I Komnenos ( grc-gre, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός, 1057 – 15 August 1118; Latinized Alexius I Comnenus) was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during ...

. In the chaos that surrounded the dethronement of

Michael VII Michael VII Doukas or Ducas ( gr, Μιχαήλ Δούκας), nicknamed Parapinakes ( gr, Παραπινάκης, lit. "minus a quarter", with reference to the devaluation of the Byzantine currency under his rule), was the senior Byzantine e ...

, Nikephoros Basilakes, at the time '' doux'' of Dyrrhachium decided that his time had arrived. Moving into position at

Thessalonica Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region ...

, he waited for the outcome of the clash between two other claimants to the throne,

Nikephoros III Nikephoros III Botaneiates, Latinized as Nicephorus III Botaniates ( el, Νικηφόρος Βοτανειάτης, 1002–1081), was Byzantine emperor from 7 January 1078 to 1 April 1081. He was born in 1002, and became a general du ...

and Nikephoros Bryennios, in order that he might quickly crush the exhausted victor. His forces consisted of veteran Frankish,

Sclaveni The ' (in Latin) or ' (various forms in Greek, see below) were early Slavic tribes that raided, invaded and settled the Balkans in the Early Middle Ages and eventually became the progenitors of modern South Slavs. They were mentioned by early Byz ...

an, Albanian and Greek soldiers, and his confidence in his own abilities and courage convinced him that victory would easily be his. Nikephoros III sent his best general,

to deal with him, and Alexios managed to entrap Basilakes in a night attack on the imperial camp, on the banks of the

Vardar River The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...

, some eighteen miles distant from Thessalonica.Finlay, pg. 58 Defeated, Basilakes fled to Thessalonica where he attempted to defend the city, but was seized by his own soldiers and delivered to Nikephoros III who ordered that Basilakes be blinded.

References

Sources

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George Finlay George Finlay (21 December 1799 – 26 January 1875) was a Scottish historian. Biography Finlay was born in Faversham, Kent, where his Scottish father, Captain John Finlay FRS, an officer in the Royal Engineers, was inspector of government pow ...

, ''History of the Byzantine and Greek Empires from 1057 - 1453'', Volume 2,

William Blackwood & Sons William Blackwood and Sons was a Scottish publishing house and printer founded by William Blackwood in 1804. It played a key role in literary history, publishing many important authors, for example John Buchan, George Tomkyns Chesney, Joseph Con ...

, 1854 {{DEFAULTSORT:Basilakes, Nikephoros 11th-century Byzantine people Byzantine governors of Dyrrhachium Byzantine usurpers

Nikephoros Nicephorus, Nikephoros, or Nikiforos ( el, Νικηφόρος) is a Greek male name, meaning "Bringer of Victory", which was commonly used among the Byzantine Empire's aristocracy. It may refer to: People Rulers * Nikephoros I Logothetes, Byzanti ...