Carlo I Tocco

Carlo I Toccowas the hereditaryCount Palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthosfrom 1376, and ruled as theDespot of Epirusfrom 1411 until his death on July 4, 1429.

Life

Carlo I was the son of CountLeonardo I ToccoofCephaloniaandLeukasby Maddalena de' Buondelmonti, sister ofEsau de' Buondelmonti,ruler ofIoannina.Leonardo I Tocco, who was count of Cephalonia from 1357 until his death in 1376, as well as duke of Leukas from 1362, was himself the son ofGuglielmo Tocco,governor ofCorfufor theAngevins,and Margherita Orsini,sister ofNicholas OrsiniandJohn II Orsini,rulers of Epirus and counts of Cephalonia. In this way, Carlo Tocco inherited a claim to Epirus from both the Orsini and the Buondelmonti. Carlo I succeeded his father as count of Cephalonia and duke of Leukas on the latter's death in 1376. He shared power with his brotherLeonardo II,who was invested with the island ofZanteasappanagein 1399.

Expansion in the Morea

Carlo I Tocco's territorial expansion on the Greek mainland

His marriage to Francesca, daughter of theDuke of AthensNerio I Acciaioli,gave Carlo a claim onCorinthandMegaraafter Nerio's death, which he seized in 1395.

Carlo's island holdings could not produce a large army, and so he gathered an army of mercenaries from different backgrounds: Franks, Byzantines, Serbs and mostly Albanians. Carlo awarded their leaders with diverse gifts and fiefs on an island nearLefkada,encouraging them to view him as a trusted benefactor. This prompted additional Albanianarchontesto join Carlo with their men.From the beginning of his conquests, Carlo's army was composed mainly ofAlbanians,and they were rewarded with lands held in fee.Even after Carlo's continuous territorial expansion, Albanians who had servedGjin Bua Shpatawere employed by Carlo as mercenaries, and he bolstered his ranks with additional mercenaries from Ioannina and Vlachia, who were described asarchontesandarchontopoulawith their men.

He intermittently became involved with the affairs of thePrincipality of Achaeaas well: in 1407–1408 his brother Leonardo seized and plundered the fortress ofGlarentza,in the northwesternMorea,and in 1421 Carlo bought permanent possession of it from Oliverio Franco, who had seized it from the Achaean princeCenturione II Zaccariathree years earlier.Achaea's main enemy, theByzantinesof theDespotate of the Moreainitially seemed content to leave Tocco alone, given their shared hostility against Zaccaria, but war between the two powers was provoked in late 1426, when Tocco's forces seized the animals ofAlbanianherders during the latter's annual migration from the Byzantine-controlled central uplands to the plain ofElis.In 1427, the Byzantine emperor,John VIII Palaiologosled a campaign against Glarentza, and in theBattle of the Echinades,the Byzantine fleet defeated Tocco's own. This ended Tocco's ability to intervene in the Morea, and his possessions were liquidated in a negotiated settlement, in which John VIII's brother Constantine Palaiologos (later last Byzantine emperor asConstantine XI) marriedCreusa Tocco,Carlo's niece, and received Glarentza and the other Tocco territories as herdowry.

Expansion in Epirus

Coat of arms of Carlo I Tocco as count of Cephalonia and ruler of Epirus

From 1405Carlo controlled several fortresses on the mainland, includingAngelokastro.He was invited as the successor of his uncle Esau de' Buondelmonti inIoanninaafter the rejection of the latter's widow and son in February 1411. Nevertheless, he had to overcome the determined opposition of theAlbanianclans, and in particular of the ruler ofArta,Yaqub Spata.

In spite of a victory over Carlo in 1412, the Albanians failed to take Ioannina. On the contrary, not long after Maurice died, and Yaqub was killed in battle in 1416, Carlo advanced on Arta and obtained its surrender in 1416. Arta was entrusted to Carlo's younger brother Leonardo II, and now the Tocchi controlled all major towns in Epirus. In 1415 he was granted the titledespotesby theByzantine EmperorManuel II Palaiologos.Moreover, as part of the Byzantine tradition he adopted, he signed all his official letters and decrees in Greek.

The privileged military class of thestratiotaiwas found in particular amongst the population of Ioannina.In Carlo's army, the highest-ranking military officer was thekapetanios(plu.kapetanioi), and almost all of the important military and diplomatic actions were entrusted to these officers. The few known names of Tocco'skapetanioibelong mostly to Italian nobles, and the Tocco greatly trusted their compatriots and family members. The second most trustworthy component in Carlo's army were the Byzantine Greeks, particularly those from Ioannina. After this came the Albanian warriors, who despite serving in the army of the Tocco, were commanded by their own archontes. Nonetheless, the archontes of both the Albanians and the Greeks were subordinated to thekapetanioi.The only Albanian officer and vassal of Carlo Tocco who was considered loyal and trustworthy wasDemos Bua,who was entrusted withAngelokastron,Katoche and their surroundings.Carlo would later station Albanians in thePeloponnese,where he needed them as soldiers.

Apart from his conflict with the Byzantine rulers ofMorea(the Peloponnese) over Elis, Carlo spent the remainder of his reign in relative peace.

Although he had several illegitimate children, he was succeeded by his nephewCarlo II Tocco,the son of Leonardo II. His niece Creusa Tocco (not Maddelena Tocco as was previously thought) marriedConstantine XI.

Family

Carlo I Tocco had no children from his marriage toFrancesca Acciaioli,daughter ofNerio I Acciaioli,Duke of Athens.By a relationship with an unnamed mistress, Carlo had five illegitimate sons:

• Memnone ofAcarnania
• Ercole
• Turno
• Antonio
• Orlando of Reniassa

Carlo had an illegitimate daughter who married the Ottoman princeMusa Çelebiin 1412.She was widowed on 5 July 1413.

Chronicle of the Tocco

Significant information about Carlo I Tocco is found inChronicle of the Toccowhich was evidently written by one of his contemporaries, covering 1375–1425, including therefore the period of Carlo's rule.

Sources

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