Andronicus

Andronicus, in the New Testament, apostle at Rome.

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Andronicus 

(also Andrónikos). In the Byzantine Empire: Andronicus I. Born circa 1123/24; died September 1185.

Emperor from 1183. Member of the Comnenus dynasty. During the reign of Manuel I (1143–80), Andronicus organized conspiracies against him several times; as a result, he was forced into exile. After Manuel I’s death, Andronicus, by utilizing the popular movement against the Latins (1181), seized power in 1182 (until 1183 he ruled as regent for Alexius II). Relying upon the wealthy circles of Constantinople, Andronicus I fought against the trend toward feudal disintegration by means of demagoguery and cruel terror, directed for the most part against the aristocracy. He also strove to strengthen the bureaucratic apparatus and to eliminate corruption. The policies of Andronicus caused him to be hated by the aristocracy, which, by utilizing his failure in a war against the Sicilian Normans, raised a revolt. Andronicus 1 was overthrown and executed.

Andronicus II Palaeologus (also Palaiológos). Born 1260; died Feb. 13, 1332. Emperor during the period 1282–1328.

At the end of 1282, Andronicus II abolished the ecclesiastical union that had been introduced by his father, Michael VIII. Andronicus II conducted a policy of reannexing Thes-saly and Epirus, which had been cut off after the Fourth Crusade, as well as Morea. He unsuccessfully intervened in the struggle between Venice and Genoa, which led at the beginning of the 14th century to the strengthening of the Venetian influence within the empire. In striving to repulse the Turks (who had captured almost all of Asia Minor), Andronicus II in 1303 hired Catalan troops (led by Roger de Flor), who rose in revolt after the murder of their leader (1305). They laid waste to Byzantine possessions and captured Thessaly and a number of other Byzantine provinces. The centralizing efforts of Andronicus II’s government evoked the resistance of the feudal aristocracy, which proposed the grandson of Andronicus II for the throne. After a prolonged struggle Andronicus II was compelled to abdicate, and he was imprisoned in a monastery.

M. IA. SIUZIUMOV