Byzantine Kos through the Archival Documents of the Patmos Monastery

BYZANTINE KOS THROUGH THE ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTS OF THE

PATMOS MONASTERY

In the course of Byzantine history the island of Kos was never the focal point

of developments and most sources barely mention it Nevertheless the Archive of the

Patmos Monastery based on its published material constitutes a reliable and

irreplaceable source of information for the condition of the island from the 11th

to the

early 14th

century focusing mainly on the 13th

century A total of thirty documents

refer to the island of Kos1 Based on their date range they can be divided into three

groups The first includes eleven documents that deal with the period and the works

of the monk ndashand later Blessed- Christodoulos dating in the period from 1079 until

10932 Sixteen documents belong to the second group covering the 13th

century and

ranging from 1258 to 1292 while the three remaining documents (third group) are

dated in the period 1329-1331 The documents of the second and third group mainly

refer to the dependencies and the estates of the Patmos Monastery in Kos verifying

the boundaries or being written proofs of imperial intervention in strives always in

favor of the Monastery3 It is also important that a number of these documents have

been judged as forgeries by their commentators Nevertheless even these forged

documents are extremely important since they provide upfront testimony for the time

of their forging being also of interest as to the reasons that led to their production

1 The documents are published in Vranousi 1980 Νystazopoulou-Nystazopoulou 1980 and Miklosich -

Muumlller 6 2 For the life and the travels of monk Christodoulos from mount Latros to Strovilos and from there on

to Kos and Patmos see Vranousi 1980 21ff Vranousi 1966 88 98-99 51 55 Foss 1988 149

Malamut 1988 414 580 For the monastery of Panayia ton Kastrianon [Virgin of the Castle Dwellers]

that Christodoulos founded in Kos see Karpathios 1963a 106ff Theochari 1989 162ff Volanakis

1989 103ff Mastoropoulos 2001 334 Κollias 2001 292ff 3 The documents of the 13

th-14

th century refer to three monasteries in the island namely the monastery

of Spondon [Libations] the monastery of Sotiros Christou [Christ Saviour] and the monastery of

Alsos [Park] (Vranousi 1980 96) All three would ultimately become dependencies of the Patmos

monastery The history of each dependency as well as their present remnants have already been

subject of research For the monastery of Sotiros Christou see Karpathios 1955 48ff Volanakis

1993 84-85 Κollias 2001 296-97 Μastoropoulos 2001 336ff For the monastery of Spondon see

Karpathios 1956 3ff Κollias 2001 297ff Μastoropoulos 2001 334-35 For the monastery of Alsos

see Κarpathios 1963b 133ff Μastoropoulos 2001 335 Κollias 2001 299ff

2

Information for the History of the Island and its Place in Byzantine

Administration

The data contained in the documents of the first group constitute perhaps the

sole direct testimony for the place of Kos in the Byzantine administration during the

11th

century4 They refer to tax exemptions and ratifications of estates received by the

monks Arsenios Skinourios and Christodoulos In the chrysobull [document bearing a

golden bull] of October 10795 emperor Nikephoros III Votaneiatis assigned to the

monks under Arsenios Skinourios a yearly income to be received by the governor of

the Cycladic Islands In the praktikon [act] of August 10886 the kritis kai anagrafeus

[judge and surveyor] of the Cyclades carried on through the diakonos [deacon]

Granatos the counting and delivery of the island of Patmos to the monk

Christodoulos With the praktikon of April 10897 the general and pronoitis

[governor] of Samos delivered to Christodoulos the estates donated to him by emperor

Alexios I Komnenos in Leros With the document of May 10898 the anagrafeus of

Kos relieved from the strateia9 the inhabitants of Patmos and respectively enforced

the strateia on those found in the estates of Christodoulos in Kos that hence belonged

to the state

References to the various dignitaries according to ΔMalamut10 reflect the

hierarchy of the taxing districts which to all probability were identical to the

administrative ones In the larger division of the Cycladic Islands the head was the

kritis which was also eksisotis and anagrafeus of the taxes of his district The island

of Kos along with Patmos belonged to a sub-division of this district The islands

belonged to the Thema [administrativemilitary unit] of Cyclades and were found at

4 For the development of the Byzantine administrative system as a whole including the few mentions

of Kos see Ahrweiler 1966 25 31 51 65 82-83 134-35 273-74 Malamut 1988 296-97 303-04

313 326-27 331-32 5 Vranousi 1980 23ff 6 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 36ff 7 Vranousi 1980 46ff 8 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 76ff 9 In the 11

th century strateia was a tax in kind applied on secular property whose outcome was used

for provincial defense purposes (Malamut 1988 461 476 483) After the last quarter of the 11th

century and following the gradual elimination of the thematic army and navy there was a general

tendency to cash in military obligations attached to landholding This financial burden in favor of the

army and navy known under the term strateia (pleustikai strateiai ploimon for the navy) seems to

ultimately extend over all landholding and land property and to become a regular military tax next to

extraordinary money payments or military services such as mitato kastroktisia eksoplisi ploimon or

toksoton etc which continue to exist and perhaps appear in the documents under the generic term

strateia The same term is met with also in the 13th

century taking on a different meaning (see below in

the text)

3

the borders with the Thema of Samos Leros on the other hand belonged to the

Thema of Samos

The period ranging from 1204 when the byzantine state was demised by the

Crusaders until 1224-1225 when Kos was occupied by the navy of the Empire of

Nicaea remains unknown for the fate of the island However following 1224-1225

and until the end of the 13th

century the byzantine presence is undeniable there was a

constant flow of documents ranging from 1258 up to 1292 that prove the intervention

of the state in the internal affairs of the island Through these documents we also

learn of two pirate raids that afflicted Kos the first prior to 1258 and the second prior

to 126711 while two more in 1283 and 1284 are known through Venetian sources12

As for the Byzantine administration of Kos during the 13th

century the

document of July 128813 reports that the kefali [governor] of Kos was Alexios

Varangopoulos while in October 129014 George Valsamon was Duke of the island

receiving orders by emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos It seems therefore that Kos

was not integrated in a larger Thema or wider administrative unit but constituted a

separate district of the empire under its own governor accountable directly to the

emperor15 It is also stated repeatedly in the documents of the archive dating after

125916 that Kos belonged to the Vestiarion [personal register treasury] of the wife of

Michael VIII Palaiologos (1259-82) empress Theodora Following the death of

Michael the island reverted immediately to the jurisdiction of the next emperor

Andronikos II Palaiologos17

Furthermore in two siyillion [sealed] letters (May and July 1263)18 Leo

Eskammatismenos is reported as apografeus of Rhodes and the rest of the Cyclades

10 Malamut 1988 319 322 11 The dates have been proposed by Vranousi 1980 97ff esp 100-03 The raids were mentioned in

the patriarchal pittakion [letter] of Arsenios Autoreianos (post-May 1259 Miklosich ndash Muumlller 6 205-

06) in the forged letter of Joseph Pangalos dated September 1261 (Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980

239ff) and in the patriarchal siyillion [sealed letter] of September 1267 (Miklosich ndash Muumlller 6 222ff) 12 Kontogiannis 2002 7-8 13 Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 224ff 14 Vranousi 1980 310ff 15 According to M Angold this was a common feature of the fragmentary provincial administration of

the 14th

century (Angold 1975 293) 16 Vranousi 1980 263ff 167-68 271ff 277ff Νystazopoulou 1980 182ff 191ff 17 In the document of July 1288 Theodore Skolaris is called vystiaritis tis krataias kai ayias vasileias

[member of the Vestiarion of the Holy and Mighty Rule] of Andronikos II Palaiologos Nystazopoulou-

Pelekidou 1980 235 concludes that Kos at this point was under the jurisdiction of the emperor and the

change must have occurred after the death of Michael VIII in 1282 18 Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 182ff 191ff See also Angold 1975 140 249 Νystazopoulou-

Pelekidou 1980 164ff

4

This is a distinct function of the byzantine administrative system during the 13th

century when fiscal assignments such as apografi and exisosis19 were entrusted ad-

hoc by the emperor to a single person20

In the letter of July 1263 and also in the forged document of September 1261

the terms strat(e)ia and episkepsis are mentioned21 According to ΔAhrweiler22

these terms show the existence during this period of imperial concessions known

from other sources as pronoia and oikonomia She suggested therefore that Kos was

among the places where soldiers were rewarded with small estates that earned them a

prescribed income On the other hand ΜΑngold23 interpreted these words as

referring to some sort of property for whose possession however it wasn‟t clear

whether their owner were obliged to offer military service in return

The first quarter of the 14th

century has been among the most controversial

and interesting periods for Kos sources are fragmentary perplexed and even

contradictory Knights Hospitallers the Venetian Republic and the Byzantine

Empire alternate as the island‟s overlords24 In 1306 conquest was attempted by

Hospitallers and was cancelled by the Byzantines In the period 1309-10 the island

was under the dominion of the Venice while in 1310 or 1314-15 it came again under

the Hospitallers The latter lost it in 1317-8 to regain it permanently in ηο 1337

Within this time span (131718-1337) the testimony of the Patmian Archive is of

particular interest since in January 1329 a chrysobull was issued by Andronikos III

Palaiologos confirming the estates of the Patmos monastery in Kos25 This could be

interpreted as an indication that the island reverted once again to the Byzantine state

Yet two more forged chrysobulls followed attributed to the same emperor and dated

19 These were inspections with extensive powers and authority as to the redistribution of taxes and

taxable properties Apografi and exisosis were an essential part of the reorganization in areas that had

been recently annexed to the empire (Angold 1975 211 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 167) 20 For further information on the subject see Angold 1975 202ff 21 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 191ff 239ff The term episkepsis was accompanied by a personal

name and not a geographic one which was the case for the lands of the imperial domain 22Ahrweiler 1959 135 23Αngold 1975 195 However the same author (Αngold 1975 129) used the forged document of

September 1261 in order to sustain the view that the Empire of Nicaea gave exemptions and privileges

related to fiscal and administrative liabilities in various parts of the state This process was not in his

view incidental but constituted a central government choice with positive results for the internal

cohesion and strength of the state Nevertheless it led to the extinction of small rural property and the

weakening of the state apparatus 24 Luttrell 2001 402ff Κοntogiannis 2002 10ff 25 Vranousi 1980 146ff This chrysobull was a repetition of the respective chrysobull of Andronikos II

Palaiologos in November 1292 (Vranousi 1980 133ff) without apparent differentiation

5

by ΔVranousi to the period 1329-3126 The need to forge counterfeit documents in

the period 1329-31 probably denotes on the one hand that the monks were incapable

to communicate anymore with the Byzantine administration and at the same time

there was no other authority to address themselves totherefore we conclude that

Hospitallers had not yet reconquered the island

Information Concerning the Ecclesiastical Status of Kos

The position of Kos in the ecclesiastical hierarchy starting in the early

Christian period followed the respective state administrative division27 The local

bishop was a suffragant of the metropolitan of Rhodes and despite the fluctuations in

the extent of this diocese (especially in the period between the 9th

and the 13th

century) Kos always remained its inalienable part28 Names of local bishops are

known to us simply because they were commemorated when taking part in the synods

of the Orthodox Church29

In the documents of Patmos especially the second group that of the 13th

century a series of archpriests is mentioned known from no other sources A

patriarchal letter dated slightly after May 1259 is addressed to an anonymous bishop

of Kos30 Bishop Michael is mentioned in September 126731 Gabriel and his

26 Vranousi 1980 166ff (dated December 1326) esp170 174ff (dated July 1331) esp 180-01 27 During the Late Roman period following the administrative reformation of emperor Diocletian (284-

305) Kos was part of the Province of the Islands (Provincia Insularum) with Rhodes as capital (Paton-

Hicks 1891 xli Sherwin-White 1978 152) The new administrative division of the empire initiated

under Diocletian and consolidated in the time of Constantine the Great served as a model for the

organization of the church in its first steps (Fedalto 1973 20-21) The ecclesiastical Province of

Cyclades with its metropolitan seat at Rhodes included the Bishopric of Kos as recorded in the

relevant Episcopal lists (Malamut 1988 337 Κonstantinidis 1968 14-15 117 Darrouzegraves 1981

notitiae nr1-4 7 13) 28 Κonstantinidis 1968 21 120ff130ff 29 Janin 1956 927 Melifron took part in the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (Mansi 1960 2

695D 700C Konstantinidis 1968 27 31 130) Eddesius episcopus a Coo mentioned in the synodal

documents of 344 (first local Council of Sardica 342-43) must be identified with the then bishop of the

island (Mansi 1960 3 139C Konstantinidis 1968 31) Reference to the bishop of Kos was also made

in the Third Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in 431 (Gerola 1915 28) Julian participated in the

Council of Constantinople in 448 as well as in the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451

where he served as one of the Pope Leo‟s legates His signature is also found in an Episcopal letter

addressed to emperor Leo I in 458 (Mansi 1960 6 565D 749-57A 941A 1082 7 583-84

Konstantinidis 1968 31) Dorotheos was present in the Council of Constantinople in 518 (Mansi 1960

8 1047) Georgios in the Sixth Ecumenical Council in 67980 (Mansi 1960 10 212 653 680

Κonstantinidis 1968 32) Constantine in that of 8789 that restituted Photios (Mansi 1960 17a 376

Malamut 1988 342) Athanasios was mentioned in the 11th

century Bishop N in 1140 and Gerasimos

in April 1330 (Μiklosich - Μuumlller 1 157) 30 Μiklosich - Μuumlller 6 205-06 31 Μiklosich - Μuumlller 6 222ff

6

predecessor Isaias in July 127132 while in July 128833 we find the signature of bishop

Niphon The signature of a second Niphon apparently the successor of the previous

one is preserved on a document of November 129234

Of special importance is the reference of an archbishop of Kos in two forged

documents of the third group35 dated in the period 1329-31 This citation brings forth

the question of when the bishopric of Kos was promoted to archbishpric R Janin had

proposed the reign of Andronikos III Palaiologos (1328-41) considering as terminus

ante quem for this change the mention of a titular archbishop of Kos in a document

from the archive of the Patriarchate of Constantinople He dated the document in

April 1340 yet its publishers had attributed it to 134336 The unknown archbishop

was being transferred to Corinth since he could not exercise his duties because of the

Larin rule EKonstantinidis shared Janin‟s view that the promotion of the island‟s

bishop to archbishop took place under the reign of Andronikos III Palaiologos37

However in the Episcopal lists published by J Darrouzegraves the archbishopric of Kos is

mentioned for the first time during the reign of Andronikos II Palaiologos (1282-

1328)38

These references must be interpreted in the light of the historical adventures

and the changes Kos underwent during the first half of the 14th

century First there is

the testimony of the Patmos Archive that until the end of the 13th century the bishop

was resident in the island In the period between 1306 and 1317 when Kos was

found under Latin (Venetian of Hospitaller) rule we can safely assume that the

Orthodox head priest was not able to remain in his post and we can thus explain his

32 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 198ff 33 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 224ff 34 Vranousi 1980 139 35 The first bears the date December 1326 yet the editor attributed it to the period 1329-1331

(Vranousi 1980 166ff) and the second was assigned to July 1331 (Vranousi 1980 174ff) 36 Edited in Μiklosich ndash Μuumlller 1 233ff Konstantinidis 1968 46-47 131 where the date is April 1343

instead of April 1340 I believe that Janin 1956 927 mistakenly cited the date April 1340 instead of

the correct Αpril 1343 for this document since he also referred to the same edition of Miklosich ndash

Muumlller 1 37 Κonstantinidis 1968 71 131 Nevertheless the same author contradicts himself sustaining the view

that the prelate of Kos mentioned in the documents of the patriarchal archive from the first half of the

14th

century (dated August 1317 April 1330 May 1340 May 1341 August 1342) as partaking in the

sessions of the Holy Synod of Constantinople is an Archbishop (Κonstantinidis 1968 48 esp fn 94)

Τhe relevant documents were published in Miklosich ndash Muumlller 1 72 157 197 198 224 230 Τhey

were also quoted in Janin 1956 927 without further comments The fact remains that that in most

cases the prelates are not named Only Gerasimos is cited (April 1330) who ndashaccording to

Konstantinidis 1968 47-48 131 - could possibly be the first archbishop of Kos and the one that was in

the archbishopric of Corinth in 1343 38 Darrouzegraves 1981 notitia 18 186 408

7

presence in Constantinople in August 1317 In the period 1318-1337 the Hospitallers

lost Kos and the byzantine administration was reinstated the archive of Patmos

reference of an archbishop of Kos residing in the island during the period 1329-31

points to his return along with the byzantine officials The same event should also be

linked to his elevation to the rank of archbishop which coincides with the reign of

Andronikos II in accordance with the Episcopal lists and not with Andronikos III It

should be taken into account that the seat of the metropolis whose suffragant the

bishop of Kos was Rhodes remained in the hands of the Hospitallers throughout the

period and therefore lay headless The elevation of Kos to the rank of archbishopric

served precisely the practical need of governing a ndashhenceforth- isolated domain The

patriarchate naturally continued to nominally give the title of Metropolitan of Rhodes

to the heads of nearby Metropolitan seats a practice attested in the Patriarchate

Archive for the second half of the 14th

century39 Following the conquest of Kos by

the Hospitallers in 1337 the archbishop left the island to be finally assigned to

Corinth in 1343 when all hope of a byzantine recuperation of his diocese had

eclipsed

Information for the Agricultural Economy and the Toponyms of Kos

Kos has one of the highest percentages of cultivated land among the Aegean

islands40 Wide sedimentary territories are spread along its north shores and

combined with water from the sources of mount Dikaios41 they create suitable

conditions for agricultural production It belongs to those islands whose inhabitants

barely occupied themselves with navigation safe for small scale commerce with the

opposite Asia Minor shores despite the fact that Kos has been a stepping point in the

medieval naval routes of the Mediterranean42

39 In January 1387 the Patriarchal Synod of Constantinople handed over the diocese of Rhodes and Kos

to the Metropolitan of Perge and Attaleia Earlier however it had been given to the Metropolitan of

Myra which led to a conflict among the two prelates Finally it seems that the right to officiate and

ordain priests for Kos (and Rhodes) was retained by the Metropolitan of Myra It was further stated in

a synodical act of patriarch Neilos dated the same year (November 1387) that Rhodes and Kos would

be handed over to the Metropolitan of Stauroupolis after the death of the Metropolitan of Myra that

was confirmed and applied if we are to believe an undated document from the time of patriarch

Antonios (1389-1390 1391-1397) See the relevant documents in Miklosich-Muumlller 2 92ff 94-95

106ff 197ff republished and annotated in Konstantinidis 1968 48ff 40 Κοlodny 1974 65 41 Savorianakis 1991 22 Malamut 1988 54 42 Kos was a stop along the important naval itinerary that connected Constantinople with Alexandria in

Egypt and Palestine both during the Byzantine and the Ottoman periods (Malamut 1988 560

8

This image is confirmed through the documents of the Patmos archive

Despite the fact that a large part of its content concerns the ownership of mercantile

vessels the resale of commodities and naval commerce those documents that refer to

Kos are strictly concerned with land holding What emerges is a purely agricultural

economy The disputes that constantly erupt ndash and consequently lead to the need for a

documentation and confirmation of the titles held by the monastery of Patmos- always

concerned the possession of arable land boundaries that were violated irrigation

rights or holdings of tree-covered estates The Blessed Christodoulos himself in his

Hypotyposis [text with instructions to his fellow monks compiled shortly before his

death] referred to confrontations over land holdings as the primary reason that finally

led him to abandon the island43

The monks acquired either through donations or purchases proasteia44 ie

small independent rural estates These proasteia could comprise arable land but also

fruit-bearing trees In a document of 1259-63 it is specifically mentioned that the

proasteio known as Anavasidion included bdquomediocre olive trees and some others‟45

while in another document of the same period the monastery of Christ Saviour is

claimed to possess vineyards olive groves as well as bdquobare land‟46 In a forged

document of 126147 it is invoked that the monastery of Spondon did not hold enough

olive trees to sustain the monks who therefore petitioned to the passing military

commander Michael Phokas ndashthrough the mediation of Joseph Pangalos- and received

as a donation a proasteio that had remained without owner The same monastery

owned also a grinding mill that lay in ndashpresently unknown- area of Δvdromariou48

By far the most important document concerning the land holdings and the

agricultural production of Kos is the siyillion letter of Leo Eskammatismenos in July

Ahrweiler 1974 18) ΔAhrweiler called it the maritime pilgrim route In 1102-1103 Saewulf passed

through Kos on his way to Jerusalem (Malamut 1988 547ff) 43 Μiklosich - Μuumlller 6 59ff Malamut 1988 147 280 44 For the meaning of the term proasteio see also Doumllger 1927 8 115 45 Vranousi 1980 133ff It should be noted that using this document as well as that of July 1271

(Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 198ff) the monks succeeded to confirm their hold over Anavasidion

by claiming the existence of bdquoancient rights and chrysobulls‟ (palaigeni dikaiomata kai chrysovoulla)

obviously referring to older documents from the time of Alexios I Komnenos (Vranousi 1980 268-69)

However this was not true since the monk Christodoulos had bestowed all his lands in Kos to the

State We can therefore assume that the monks managed to take ownership of properties they did not

own possibly because their true owners (perhaps the Constantinopolitan monastery of Pantokratoros to

whom the State granted the lands of Christodoulos in Kos see Gautier 1974 1 21 123 Malamut

1988 419 420) could no longer lay claim to them 46 Miklosich-Muumlller 6 205-06 47 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 239ff

9

126349 where there is an analytical register of all the lands of the monastery of

Patmos along with the various dependencies and their own properties It is in fact a

wide view for the state of land property in the byzantine countryside of the 13th

century with fragmented small patches of land in various parts of the island The

reason promulgated for the need to draw the documents were specifically the

confrontations and disputes raised by other landowners over the rights of the

monastery The various lands are referred to as stratai proasteia or simply chorafia

[fields] with their value estimated in modii50 Properties are distinguished among

those containing fig olive or other fruit-bearing trees and those simply mentioned as

arable land (yi voidatidi) The monastery owns also oak trees which are further

mentioned in a document of 127151 and which are to be shared with the bishop of the

island Many of these properties are named after the area in which they are found

while others are recorded by the name of the owner who obviously donated or sold

them to the monastery Finally a number of them are designated as formerly

belonging to Filanthropos and Pantokratoros (pote apo tou merous tou Finanthropou

kai tou Pantokratoros) probably invoking the namesake monasteries of

Constantinople which would hold properties in the island prior to the dismantlement

of the byzantine state by the crusaders in 1204

In a document of 126752 the patriarch mentioned the chorafiana topia

[cultivated lands] the ypampela [wineyards] and the ydromylika ergastiria [watermill

installations] of the Spondon monastery while he refers extensively to the water of

the source which runs from the monastery and was used for the irrigation of the local

cultivations He also invokes the bdquomediocre animals and the beehives‟ an indication

for the simultaneous practice of husbandry and apiculture In the orismo [decree] of

129053 emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos reported that the bishop of Kos

encroached upon the lands of the Alsos monastery among which was a lake while he

also withheld the water destined for the monastic orchards

48 Vranousi 1980 124ff 133ff 49 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 191ff 50 For modius a metrical unit of production and consequently of land see the relevant entry in Oxford

Dictionary of Byzantium Ι 1388 with previous bibliography 51 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 198ff 52 Μiklosich-Μuumlller 6 222ff 53 Vranousi 1980 310ff

10

In the archive of Patmos a total of thirty three toponyms (land names) are

recorded54 A handful of these are known or can be located with any degree of

certainty basically due to the fact that they were not extinct but survived to our day

We may refer to the monasteries of Alsos Kastrianon Spondon the castle at Palio

Pyli the mount Dikaios the areas of Antimacheia Peripatos and Kephalos The rest

however cannot be identified and the treatment of this issue in its entirety remains

desideratum of future research

Information on the Society and the Population of the Island

The documents of the archive of Patmos remain a precious source of

information on the island‟s prosopography during the middle and the late byzantine

period55 Through them the insular community is vividly represented often with the

disputes that arose or the problems it faced

In the first group of the 11th

century documents apart from the government

official the anagrafeus Christopher Kopsinos various donators and landholders are

recorded namely the ones from which the monk Christodoulos acquired estates A

number of them (the vestarchis[honorary title] Constantine Kavallouris his sister

Maria the monk Arsenios Skinourios) held lands also in other places like the island

of Leros or the opposite Asia Minor coast therefore they probably belonged to a

local provincial aristocratic class56 As for the monk Nikon Askepis the individuals

Limnitis and Vergotis nothing is known except their donation or sell of properties to

Christodoulos57 We also find collective references to the inhabitants or people

(oikitores or epoikoi) of Kos These people are recorded as donators of the monastery

the Blessed Christodoulos had founded in Palio Pyli or as owners of lands adjacent to

the estates of the monastery with who the monks were in constant disputes Finally

one shouldn‟t forget the serfs that worked in Christodoulos‟ lands exempted from the

tax of strateia

For the 13th

century information is both more plentiful and diverse Apart

from the local bishops and governors already mentioned above a series of donators

or sellers of properties is recorded in the documents These are obviously small

54 See also Malamut 1988 241 55 A first catalogue of all the key figures mentioned in the documents of the first group is compiled in

Malamut 1988 503-04 56 Malamut 1988 423 524-25 57 See Μiklosich-Μuumlller 6 85ff

11

landowners Diogenis is recorded in May 1259 and again in November 1292

Maroullis in September 1261 Paflagonas in May 1263 Mamoutis and Vavoulas in

July 126358

In a number of documents59 the serfs that resided in the monastery‟s estates

are mentioned again exempted from public tax payments Of special interest and

vividness is the testimony of the forged letter of September 1261 in which Joseph

Pangalos dedicated to the monastery of Spondon among other things two serfs

(misthious) who paid their levies and provided forced labour (corvees) Both are

recorded in detail with their family status and the levies they were expected to pay

Disputes and conflicts over land ownership was once again the object for

drawing up a substantial number of documents The need the monks felt to protect

themselves from harassments of their neighbors over the monastery properties poses

as the main reason for recording them in the document of July 126360 The patriarch

in the siyillion of September 126761 when he dictates the injustices the monastery of

Spondon should not endure he certainly records the actual conditions Local

inhabitants were trying to abstract lands with the excuse either that the documents

proving the monastery‟s ownership had been lost or because they were descendants

and heirs of the former owners who had dedicated them to the monastery Some were

denying paying levies for using the monastery water to irrigate their lands bdquoGleeful

people‟ (chairekakoi anthropoi) were trying to robe off the animals and the beehives

of the monastery Nevertheless the bulk of land disputes as well as monetary

controversies were incurred upon the monks of Patmos by the island‟s bishop a fact

that is often overtly mentioned even in an openly hostile style62

Two are the most important documents when it comes to the population‟s

distribution and the social structure of the island The first is dated in July 127163 and

constitutes a direct testimony to the administering of justice in late byzantine Kos

The conflicting parties were the monastery of Christ Saviour on the one hand a

dependency of the Patmos monastery and the bishop of Kos Gabriel on the other

hand The dispute was over the olive groves and the oak trees of the monastery The

58 See the relevant documents respectively in Vranousi 1980 124ff 133ff Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou

1980 239ff 182ff 191ff 59 Vranousi 1980 243ff 124ff 133ff Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 182ff 60 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 191ff 61 Μiklosich-Μuumlller 6 222ff 62 See the relevant documents in Μiklosich-Μuumlller 6 205-06 Vranousi 1980 310ff 166ff 174ff

12

matter was adjudicated by the representative of the empress Michael Vasilikiotis

who summoned and examined witnesses from all the parts of the island Inhabitants

are recorded as coming from three districts (enories) a testimony to the

administrative divisions of the population fifteen came from the district of Vorinon

[northeners] who as noted shared borders with the disputed area five came from the

district of Strovilos and three from that of Kephalos A fourth district the one of

Antimachia is later interjected in the document Among the witnesses there are four

churchmen a monk-deacon acting as secretary (chartophylax) a priest an archpriest

(protopapas) and the abbot of the Alsos monastery The catalogue includes also the

castellan of the ndashcurrently unknown- castle at Pardobouno The names of the

churchmen the castellan and one more person are not recorded only by their first and

last names as is the case with the others but are preceded by the title

lordsirexcellency (kyrou) This should be perceived as an indication of social

superiority or in any case of discerning the most important members of the local

community

The second document was composed in July 128864 and contains the petition

of the island‟s inhabitants to the emperor relating the history of the Spondon

monastery 66 islanders sign the petition with a cross while further 17 ndashall

churchmen- with their names All the names are recorded in the beginning of the

document while it is stressed that this is the petition of bdquoall the land churchmen

soldiers and the common people‟ The importance of this catalogue for the

prosopography of the island is obvious Its utilization however requires an extensive

research gathering of comparative data and comparison with similar cases from other

parts of the empire Some of these people are also noted in the document of July

1271 Apart from the importance of the document for the history of the monasteries

and the monks to which it refers two more elements should be noted the first is the

mention of the castellan and the guards of the castle at Palio Pyli who are almost the

last to sign the document (the members of the guard only with a cross) following the

common people of the island the second is that in this document only the governor of

Kos member of the personal treasury of the emperor (vystiaritis) is noted down as

lord (kyris)

63 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 198ff

13

The documents of the Patmos Archive are a direct testimony for the island‟s

history However they are only fragments of a wider picture They contain

indications and information only for particular cases and at specific moments To use

this information we should put it into the broader historic frame combine it with other

sources which however are scarce Many points are left unanswered or create doubts

both for those things that are recorded as well as those that are left unsaid One of the

most serious questions regards the namesake capital of Kos whose existence during

the byzantine period is usually taken for granted since it is supposed to have

continued upon the earlier (late roman) substratum and to have been succeeded by the

later (Hospitaller and Ottoman) fortified city This city however is nowhere

mentioned in the archival sources and ndashto the best of my knowledge- the sole vague

find from the site is the shard of an inscription allegedly dated between 892 και 99265

The truth of the archives will once again be verified or rejected by future

archaeological work

Βibliography

Ahrweiler 1959 Η AhrweilerldquoNote additionnelle sur la politique agraire des

empereurs de Niceacuteerdquo Byzantion 28 (1959) 135-136

Ahrweiler 1966 H Ahrweiler Byzance et la mer La marine de Guerre la politique

et les institutions maritimes de Byzance aux VII-XVe siegravecles Paris 1966

Ahrweiler 1974 Η Αhrweiler ldquoInstabul Carrefour des routes continentales et

maritimes aux XVe-XIXe siegraveclesrdquo Bulletin de lrsquoAssociation International

drsquoEacutetudes du Sud-Est Europeacuteen 121 (1974) 9-26=H Ahrweiler Byzanceles

pays et les territoires (collart) London 1976 V

Angold 1975 M Angold A Byzantine Government in Exile Government and Society

under the Laskarids of Nicaea (1204-1261) Oxford 1975

Darrouzegraves 1981 J Darrouzegraves Notitiae episcopatuum Ecclesiae

Constantinopolitanae texte critique introduction et notes Paris 1981

Doumllger 1927 F Doumllger Beitrage zur Geschichte der Byzantinischen

Finanzverwaltung besonders des 10und 11Jahrhunderts Leipzig 1927

64 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 224ff 65Herzog 1899 108 nr167 Gregoire 1922 52 Malamut 1988 241 Concerning the reference of

Michael the Syrian to the citadel of the island during the 7th

century see Κollias 2001 303 For the

distribution of the population and the place of its capital see also the view of Malamut 1988 280-81

14

Fedalto G Fedalto La Chiesa Latina in Oriente (Studi Religiosi 3) Verona

1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)

Foss 1988 C FossldquoStrobilos and Related Sitesrdquo Anatolian Studies 38 (1988) 147-

174 = C Foss History and Archaeology of Byzantine Asia Minor (coll art)

London 1990 XII

Gautier 1974 P GautierldquoLe Typikon du Christ Sauveur Pantocratorrdquo REB 32 (1974)

1-145

Gregoire 1922 H Gregoire Recueil des Inscriptions Grecques Chretiennes drsquoAsie

Mineure Paris 1922

Herzog 1899 R Herzog Koische Forschungen und Funde Leipzig 1899

Janin 1956 R JaninldquoCosrdquo Dictionnaire drsquoHistoire et de Geacuteographie Ecclesiastiques

vol13 Paris 1956 927

Κarpathios 1955 ΔΙ Κarpathios Η εν Κφ πάλαι ποηέ διαλάμυαζα Ιερά Μονή ηοσ

Σφηήρος Φριζηού Γωδεθαλεζηαθόλ Αρτείολ 1 (1955) 48-56

Κarpathios 1956 ΔΙ Κarpathios Η εν Κφ πάλαι ποηέ διαλάμυαζα Ιερά Μονή ηφν

Σπονδών Γωδεθαλεζηαθόλ Αρτείολ 2 (1956) 3-25

Κarpathios 1963a ΔΙ Κarpathios Η εν Κφ πάλαι ποηέ διαλάμυαζα Ιερά Μονή ηες

Υπεραγίας Θεοηόκοσ ηες επιλεγομένες ηφν Καζηριανών Γωδεθαλεζηαθόλ

Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33

Κarpathios 1963b ΔΙ Κarpathios Η εν Κφ πάλαι ποηέ διαλάμυαζα Ιερά Μονή ηοσ

Άλζοσς Γωδεθαλεζηαθόλ Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 133-41

Κollias 2001 I Κόλλιας ldquoΟικιζμοί Κάζηρα και Μοναζηήρια ηες Μεζαιφνικής Κφrdquo

in G Kokkorou-Aleura ΑΑ Laimos and Δ Simantoni-Bournia (eds)

Ιζηορία-Τέτλε-Αρταηοιογία ηες Κω Α΄Γηεζλές Δπηζηεκοληθό Σσλέδρηο Κως 2-

4 Μαίοσ 1997 (Γεμοζιεύμαηα Περιοδικού laquoΑρταιογνφζίαraquo 1) Αthens 2001

291-320

Kolodny 1974 EY Kolodny La population des icircles de la Gregravece Essai de

Geacuteographie insulaire en Meacutediterraneacutee orientale vol3 Aix-en-Provence 1974

Κontogiannis 2002 ΝDΚοntogiannis Μεζαηωληθά θάζηρα θαη οτσρώζεης ηες Κω

Αthens 2002

Κonstantinidis 1968 EI Konstantinidis Σσκβοιή εης ηελ Δθθιεζηαζηηθήλ Ιζηορίαλ

ηες Γωδεθαλήζοσ (Δλαίζηκος επί δηδαθηορία δηαηρηβή σποβιεζείζα εης ηελ

Θεοιογηθήλ Στοιήλ ηοσ Παλεπηζηεκίοσ Αζελώλ) Αthens 1968

15

Luttrell 2001 A Luttrell ldquoCos after 1306rdquo in G Kokkorou-Aleura ΑΑ Laimos

and Δ Simantoni-Bournia (eds) Ιζηορία-Τέτλε-Αρταηοιογία ηες Κω

Α΄Γηεζλές Δπηζηεκοληθό Σσλέδρηο Κως 2-4 Μαίοσ 1997 (Γεμοζιεύμαηα

Περιοδικού laquoΑρταιογνφζίαraquo 1) Αthens 2001 401-405

Malamut 1988 E Malamut Les Icircles de lEmpire Byzantin VIII-XIVe siegravecles Paris

1988

Mansi 1960 JD Mansi Sacrorum Conciliorum Nova et Amplissima Collectio Graz

1960

Μastoropoulos 2001 GS Mastoropoulos ldquoΤαύηιζε() ηοσ επί ηοσ όροσς Γικαίοσ ηες

Κφ μονσδρίοσ Αρζενίοσ ηοσ Σκενούρε (11ος αι)rdquo in G Kokkorou-Aleura

ΑΑ Laimos and Δ Simantoni-Bournia (eds) Ιζηορία-Τέτλε-Αρταηοιογία ηες

Κω Α΄Γηεζλές Δπηζηεκοληθό Σσλέδρηο Κως 2-4 Μαίοσ 1997 (Γεμοζιεύμαηα


Μiklosich ndash Μuumlller 1 F Miklosich and J Muumlller Acta et Diplomata Graeca Medii

Aevi Sacra et Profana 1 Acta Patriarchatus Constantinopolitani 1315-1402

Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862


Aevi Sacra et Profana 6 Acta et Diplomata monasteriorum et Ecclesiarum

Orientis Vienna 1890

Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 Μ Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou Βσδαληηλά Έγγραθα

ηες Μολής Πάηκοσ ΒΓεκοζίωλ Λεηηοσργώλ Αthens 1980

Paton - Hicks 1891 WR Paton and EL Hicks The Inscriptions of Cos Oxford

1891

Savorianakis 1991 P Savorianakis The Island of Kos 1688-1788 A contribution to

the social history of the Southeastern Aegean (unpublthesis) Birmingham

1991

Sherwin-White 1978 SM Sherwin-White Ancient Cos An historical study from the

Dorian settlement to the Imperial period (Hypomnemata Heft 51) Goumlttingen

1978

Theochari 1989 ΜS Theochari ldquoΗ πρώηε Μονή ηοσ Οζίοσ Φριζηοδούλοσ ζηεν Κφ

και ο οικιζμός ηοσ τώροσ (πρόηαζε αρταιολογικής μελέηες)rdquo in Πραθηηθά

16

Γηεζλούς Σσκποζίοσ ΙΜολή ΑγΙωάλλοσ ηοσ Θεοιόγοσ 900 Χρόληα Ιζηορηθής

Μαρησρίας (1088-1988) Πάηκος 22-24 Σεπηεκβρίοσ 1988 (Δηαιρεία

Βσδανηινών και Μεηαβσδανηινών Μελεηών Γιπηύτφν Παράθσλλα 2) Αthens

1989 161-8

Volanakis 1989 ΙΗ Volanakis ldquoΦριζηιανικά Μνεμεία ηες νήζοσ Κφ

ΙΙΤοιτογραθεμένοι Ναοί Βσδανηινής και Μεηαβσδανηινής Δποτής Α΄Μέροςrdquo

Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118

Volanakis 1993 ΙΗ Volanakis ldquoΦριζηιανικά Μνεμεία ηες νήζοσ Κφ ΙΙ Οι

ηοιτογραθεμένοι ναοί Βσδανηινής και Μεηαβσδανηινής Δποτής Σσμπλήρφμα

Α΄rdquo Τα Κωαθά 4 (1993) 31-88

Vranousi 1966 ΔL Vranousi Τα Αγηοιογηθά Κείκελα ηοσ Οζίοσ Χρηζηοδούιοσ

Φηιοιογηθή Παράδοζης θαη Ιζηορηθαί Μαρησρίαη Athens 1966

Vranousi 1980 EL Vranousi Bσδαληηλά Δγγραθα ηες Μολής Πάηκοσ

ΑΑσηοθραηορηθά Athens 1980

2

Information for the History of the Island and its Place in Byzantine

Administration

The data contained in the documents of the first group constitute perhaps the

sole direct testimony for the place of Kos in the Byzantine administration during the

11th

century4 They refer to tax exemptions and ratifications of estates received by the

monks Arsenios Skinourios and Christodoulos In the chrysobull [document bearing a

golden bull] of October 10795 emperor Nikephoros III Votaneiatis assigned to the

monks under Arsenios Skinourios a yearly income to be received by the governor of

the Cycladic Islands In the praktikon [act] of August 10886 the kritis kai anagrafeus

[judge and surveyor] of the Cyclades carried on through the diakonos [deacon]

Granatos the counting and delivery of the island of Patmos to the monk

Christodoulos With the praktikon of April 10897 the general and pronoitis

[governor] of Samos delivered to Christodoulos the estates donated to him by emperor

Alexios I Komnenos in Leros With the document of May 10898 the anagrafeus of

Kos relieved from the strateia9 the inhabitants of Patmos and respectively enforced

the strateia on those found in the estates of Christodoulos in Kos that hence belonged

to the state

References to the various dignitaries according to ΔMalamut10 reflect the

hierarchy of the taxing districts which to all probability were identical to the

administrative ones In the larger division of the Cycladic Islands the head was the

kritis which was also eksisotis and anagrafeus of the taxes of his district The island

of Kos along with Patmos belonged to a sub-division of this district The islands

belonged to the Thema [administrativemilitary unit] of Cyclades and were found at

4 For the development of the Byzantine administrative system as a whole including the few mentions

of Kos see Ahrweiler 1966 25 31 51 65 82-83 134-35 273-74 Malamut 1988 296-97 303-04

313 326-27 331-32 5 Vranousi 1980 23ff 6 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 36ff 7 Vranousi 1980 46ff 8 Νystazopoulou-Pelekidou 1980 76ff 9 In the 11

th century strateia was a tax in kind applied on secular property whose outcome was used

for provincial defense purposes (Malamut 1988 461 476 483) After the last quarter of the 11th

century and following the gradual elimination of the thematic army and navy there was a general

tendency to cash in military obligations attached to landholding This financial burden in favor of the

army and navy known under the term strateia (pleustikai strateiai ploimon for the navy) seems to

ultimately extend over all landholding and land property and to become a regular military tax next to

extraordinary money payments or military services such as mitato kastroktisia eksoplisi ploimon or

toksoton etc which continue to exist and perhaps appear in the documents under the generic term

strateia The same term is met with also in the 13th

century taking on a different meaning (see below in

the text)

3


Thema of Samos











century the

















the 14th






4



































5











and the 13th





























6
















1328)38














14th








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








3


Thema of Samos











century the

















the 14th






4



































5











and the 13th





























6
















1328)38














14th








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








4



































5











and the 13th





























6
















1328)38














14th








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








5











and the 13th





























6
















1328)38














14th








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








6
















1328)38














14th








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








7

















eclipsed



















8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








8



































9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








9






























10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








10



























tax of strateia

For the 13th






11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








11



July 126358





























12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








12















community
















lord (kyris)


13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








13














archaeological work

Βibliography



















14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








14


1973(vol1) 1976(vol2) 1978(vol3)



London 1990 XII


1-145


Mineure Paris 1922










Αρτείολ 4 (1963) 106-33







291-320




Αthens 2002




15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








15






1988


1960








Vienna 1860



Vienna 1862







1891



1991



1978



16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








16




1989 161-8



Τα Κωαθά 3 (1989) 57-118








Byzantine Kos through the Archival Documents of the Patmos Monastery

Documents

Transcript of Byzantine Kos through the Archival Documents of the Patmos Monastery