John III Doukas Vatatzes or Ducas Vatatzes (Greek: Ιωάννης Γ΄ Δούκας Βατάτζης, Iōannēs III Doukas Batatzēs) (c. 1192–November 4, 1254) was emperor of Nicaea 1221–1254. // Events The Third Crusade ends in disaster. ... November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 57 days remaining. ... For broader historical context, see 1250s and 13th century. ... This is a list of Byzantine Emperors. ... The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the states founded by refugees from the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople was conquered during the Fourth Crusade. ... // Events May 13 - End of the reign of Emperor Juntoku, emperor of Japan Emperor ChÅ«kyō briefly reigns over Japan Former Emperor Go-Toba leads an unsuccessful rebellion against the Kamakura Shogunate Emperor Go-Horikawa ascends to the throne of Japan January - Mongol Army under Jochi captures the city of... For broader historical context, see 1250s and 13th century. ...

Life

John Doukas Vatatzes was probably the son of the general Basil Vatatzes by an unnamed cousin of the Emperors Isaac II Angelos and Alexios III Angelos. Isaac II Angelos or Angelus (Greek: Ισαάκιος Β’ Άγγελος, Isaakios II Angelos) (September 1156 - January, 1204) was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204. ... Alexios III Angelos or Alexius III Angelus (Greek: Αλέξιος Γ Άγγελος) (c. ...

A successful soldier from a military family, in 1212 John was chosed by Emperor Theodore I Laskaris as husband of his daughter Eirene Laskarina and as heir to the throne. This arrangement excluded members of the Laskarid family from the succession, and when John III Doukas Vatatzes became emperor in mid-December 1221, he had to suppress opposition to his rule. The struggle ended with a battle in 1224, in which his opponents were defeated in spite of the support they had acquired from the Latin Empire of Constantinople. John III's victory led to territorial concessions by the Latin Empire in 1225, but was followed by John's incursion into Europe, where he seized Adrianople. Events The first Great Fire of London burns most of the city to the ground Battle of Navas de Tolosa Childrens crusade Crusaders push the Muslims out of northern Spain In Japan, Kamo no Chōmei writes the Hōjōki, one of the great works of classical Japanese... // Events May 13 - End of the reign of Emperor Juntoku, emperor of Japan Emperor Chūkyō briefly reigns over Japan Former Emperor Go-Toba leads an unsuccessful rebellion against the Kamakura Shogunate Emperor Go-Horikawa ascends to the throne of Japan January - Mongol Army under Jochi captures the city of... // Events Foundation of the University of Naples Livonian Brothers of the Sword conquers Latgallians Last of Arabs expelled from Sicily Births Deaths Cathal Crobdearg Ua Conchobair, King of Connacht (born 1153) Hojo Yoshitoki, regent of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan (born 1163) Monarchs/Presidents Aragon - James I King of Aragon... The Latin Empire, Empire of Nicaea, Empire of Trebizond and the Despotate of Epirus. ... Constantinople[1] was the name of the modern-day city of İstanbul, Turkey over the centuries that it served as the second capital of the unified Roman Empire, and after its division into East and West, of the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as the Byzantine Empire (from the city... Events Births Thomas Aquinas, Christian philosopher and theologian (d. ... World map showing Europe Political map Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... Edirne is a city in (Thrace), the westernmost part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. ...

John III's possession of Adrianople was terminated by Theodore Komnenos Doukas of Epirus and Thessalonica, who drove the Nicaean garrison out of Adrianople and annexed much of Thrace in 1227. The elimination of Theodore by Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria in 1230 put an end to the danger posed by Thessalonica, and John III made an alliance with Bulgaria against the Latin Empire. In 1235 this alliance resulted in the restoration of the Bulgarian patriarchate and the marriage between Ivan Asen II's daughter and John III's son. In the same year the Bulgarians and Nicaeans campaigned against the Latin Empire, and in 1236 they attempted a siege of Constantinople. Subsequently Ivan Asen II adopted an ambivalent policy, effectively becoming neutral, and leaving John III to his own devices. Theodore I Angelus Ducas was ruler of the Despotate of Epirus from 1215. ... The Despotate of Epirus was one of the medieval Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire, founded in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. ... The White Tower The Arch of Galerius Map showing the Thessaloníki prefecture Thessaloníki (Θεσσαλονίκη) is the second-largest city of Greece and is the principal city and the capital of the Greek region of Macedonia. ... Thrace (Greek Θράκη, ThrákÄ“, Bulgarian Тракия, Trakija, Turkish Trakya; Latin: Thracia or Threcia) is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. ... Events Henry III of England declares himself of age and assumes power Births September 30 - Pope Nicholas IV Deaths March 18 - Pope Honorius III (b. ... Ivan Asen II (also archaic Ioan Asen II or English John Asen II) (1218–1241), emperor (tsar) of Bulgaria, was the son of Ivan Asen I, one of the founders of the Second Bulgarian Empire. ... Events Kingdom of Leon unites with the Kingdom of Castile. ... Events Anglo-Norman invasion of Connacht St. ... A patriarchate is the office or jurisdiction of a patriarch. ... // Events May 6 - Roger of Wendover, Benedictine monk and chronicler of St Albanss Abbey dies. ...

In spite of some reverses against the Latin Empire in 1240, John III was able to take advantage of Ivan Asen II's death in 1241 to impose his own suzerainty over Thessalonica (in 1242), and later to annex this city, as well as much of Bulgarian Thrace in 1246. Immediately afterwards, John III was able to establish an effective stranglehold on Constantinople in 1247. The last years of his reign saw the extension of Nicaean authority far to the west, where John III attempted to contain the expansion of Epirus. Events Batu Khan and the Golden Horde sack the Ruthenian city of Kyiv Births Pope Benedict XI Deaths April 11 - Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, also known as Llywelyn The Great Prince of Gwynedd Monarchs/Presidents Aragon - James I King of Aragon and count of Barcelona (reigned from 1213 to 1276) Castile... Events April 5 - Mongols of Golden Horde under the command of Subotai defeat feudal Polish nobility, including Knights Templar, in the battle of Liegnitz April 27 - Mongols defeat Bela IV of Hungary in the battle of Sajo. ... // Events April 5 - During a battle on the ice of Chudskoye Lake, Russian forces rebuff an invasion attempt by the Teutonic Knights. ... Events End of the reign of Emperor Go-Saga, emperor of Japan. ... Events Shams ad-Din disappears resulting in Jalal Uddin Rumi writing 30,000 verses of poetry about his disappearance. ... The Despotate of Epirus was one of the medieval Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire, founded in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. ...

John III Doukas Vatatzes was a successful ruler who laid the groundwork for Nicaea's recovery of Constantinople. He was successful in maintaining generally peaceful relations with his most powerful neighbors, Bulgaria and the Sultanate of Rüm, and his network of diplomatic relations extended to the Holy Roman Empire and the Papacy, while his armed forces included Frankish mercenaries. The Sultanate of Rûm was a Seljuk sultanate in Anatolia from 1077 to 1307. ... The Holy Roman Empire and from the 16th century on also The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation was a political conglomeration of lands in Central Europe in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. ... The Pope is the Catholic Bishop and patriarch of Rome, and head of the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches. ...

John III effected Nicaean expansion into Europe, where by the end of his reign he had annexed his former rival Thessalonica and had expanded at the expense of Bulgaria and Epirus. He also expanded Nicaean control over much of the Aegean and annexed the important island of Rhodes. The Aegean Sea. ... Rhodes, Greek Ρόδος (pron. ...

Moreover, John III is credited with carefully developing the internal prosperity and economy of his realm, encouraging justice and charity. In spite of his epilepsy, John III had provided active leadership in both peace and war. At some point after his death, John III was canonized as a saint, under the name John the Merciful.

Family

John III Doukas Vatatzes married first Eirene Laskarina, the daughter of his predecessor Theodore I Laskaris in 1212. They had one son, the future Theodore II Doukas Laskaris, but Eirene fell from a horse and was so badly injured that she was unable to have any more children. She retired to a convent, taking the monastic name Eugenia, and died there in 1239. John III married as his second wife Constance (Anna) of Sicily, an illegitimate daughter of Emperor Frederick II by his mistress Bianca Lancia. They had no children. Events The first Great Fire of London burns most of the city to the ground Battle of Navas de Tolosa Childrens crusade Crusaders push the Muslims out of northern Spain In Japan, Kamo no Chōmei writes the Hōjōki, one of the great works of classical Japanese... // Events Births June 17 - King Edward I of England (died 1307) December 17 - Kujo Yoritsugu, Japanese shogun (died 1256) Peter III of Aragon (died 1285) John II, Duke of Brittany (died 1305) Ippen, Japanese monk (died 1289) Deaths March 3 - Vladimir III Rurikovich, Grand Prince of Kiev (born 1187) March... Frederick II (December 26, 1194 – December 13, 1250), Holy Roman Emperor of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was pretender to the title of King of the Romans from 1212, unopposed holder of that monarchy from 1215, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 until his death in 1250. ...

References

• The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991.
• John V.A. Fine Jr., The Late Medieval Balkans, Ann Arbor, 1987.
• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.