Jacopo Gattilusio

Jacopo Gattilusio (or Giacomo; died 1428) was the third Lord of Lesbos. He was the eldest son of Francesco II of Lesbos, whom he succeeded as lord of the island on 26 October 1404.

Silver grosseto of Jacopo, with the Lamb of God and the tetragrammatic cross of the Byzantine Emperors
Relief at the Castle of Mytilene, showing the eagle of the Doria family (far left), the family cypher of the Palaiologoi (center left), and the Gattilusi coat of arms (center right)

William Miller summarized Jacopo's motivation as a semi-autonomous ruler was to favor Genoese interests when they conflicted with Venetian ones, but to cooperate with both when they showed signs of uniting against his neighbors, the Ottomans. For example, he aided Centurione II Zaccaria, Prince of Achaea against the Tocchi of Cephalonia and Zante.[1]

He had no sons, so on his death he was succeeded by his younger brother Dorino I Gattilusio.[2]

Marriage

Jacopo was married to Bona Grimaldi. Only one child is known:

Niccolò mentioned Jacopo as his father-in-law in his correspondence from the year 1426. However the name of his wife remains unknown. Niccolò had eleven children but no record exists of their mother or mothers.

An account by Caterino Zeno dated to 1474 names Niccolò as married to an otherwise unknown Eudoksia Valenza, sister of Theodora Megale Komnene, daughter of John IV of Trebizond, but this is debunked, as John had an only daughter.[3]

References

  1. Miller, "The Gattilusj of Lesbos (1355–1462)", Byzantinische Zeitschrift 22 (1913), p. 418
  2. Miller, "The Gattilusj", p. 419
  3. Discussed in Michel Kuršanskis, "La descendance d'Alexis IV, empereur de Trébizonde. Contribution à la prosopographie des Grands Comnènes", Revue des études byzantines, 37 (1979), pp. 239-247. Kuršanskis has argued that Valenza was actually a native of an Italian city, or did not exist at all.
  • Marek, Miroslav. "Gattilusio family". Genealogy.EU.
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