Byzantine Empire under the Angelos dynasty

Byzantine Empire
1185–1204
The Byzantine Empire on the eve of the Sack of Constantinople, in 1204 AD.
CapitalConstantinople
Common languagesGreek, Old Albanian, Armenian, Aromanian, Old Bulgarian, Old Anatolian Turkish and other South Slavic languages
Religion
Greek Orthodox Church
GovernmentMonarchy
Emperor 
• 1185–1195; 1203–1204
Isaac II Angelos
• 1195–1203
Alexios III
• 1203–1204
Alexios IV
• 1204
Alexios V
History 
• Deposition of Andronikos I
1185
• Sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade
1204
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Byzantine Empire under the Komnenos dynasty
Latin Empire
Empire of Nicaea
Empire of Trebizond
Despotate of Epirus
Kingdom of Thessalonica
Sultanate of Rum
Principality of Arbanon

The Byzantine Empire was ruled by people from the Angelos dynasty from 1185 to 1204 AD. The Angelos family went into power after Andronikos I Komnenos was deposed. It could not stop invasions from the Turks by the Sultanate of Rum or the uprising and the creation of the Bulgarian Empire. It also lost the Dalmatian coast and many areas in the Balkans to Manuel I Komnenos of the Kingdom of Hungary.

There was much infighting by the elite in the empire. That made it lose much of its stability and military power. The Byzantine Empire was also not liked at the time was because of a massacre of Latins by the earlier dynasty. The empire was very weak which led to the splitting of the empire in 1204, when soldiers from Fourth Crusade overthrew Emperor Alexios V Doukas.

Sources

  • Philip Sherrard, Great Ages of Man Byzantium, Time-Life Books, 1975.
  • Madden, Thomas F. Crusades the Illustrated History. 1st ed. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 2005.
  • Parker, Geoffrey. Compact History of the World, 4th ed. London: Times Books, 2005.
  • Mango, Cyril. The Oxford History of Byzantium, 1st ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2002.
  • Grant, R G. Battle: a Visual Journey Through 5000 Years of Combat. London: Dorling Kindersley, 2005.
  • Haldon, John. Byzantium at War 600 – 1453. New York: Osprey, 2000.
  • Norwich, John Julius (1997). A Short History of Byzantium. New York: Vintage Books.