Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style

Alexius I Comnenus summary

Learn about the rise of Alexius I Comnenus and his role as Byzantine emperor (1048ā€“1118)

Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Alexius I Comnenus.
Alexius I Comnenus, Byzantine emperor 1081ā€“1118, detail of an illumination from a Greek manuscript; in the Vatican Library (Cod. Vat. Gr. 666).
Alexius I Comnenus, Byzantine emperor 1081ā€“1118, detail of an illumination from a Greek manuscript; in the Vatican Library (Cod. Vat. Gr. 666).

Alexius I Comnenus, (born 1048, Constantinopleā€”died Aug. 15, 1118), Byzantine emperor (1081ā€“1118). An experienced military leader, he seized the Byzantine throne in 1081, driving back the invading Normans and Turks and founding the Comnenian dynasty. Alexius increased Byzantine strength in Anatolia and in the eastern Mediterranean but failed to curb the power of the landed magnates who had divided the empire in the past. He protected the Eastern Orthodox church but did not hesitate to seize its assets when in financial need. His appeal for Western support in 1095 was a factor in Pope Urban IIā€™s call for the First Crusade. Alexiusā€™s relations with the Crusaders were difficult, and from 1097 onward the Crusades frustrated his foreign policy.