chrysobull
(gold seal) Imperial document of the Byzantine state which was so named because it bore the gold seal of the emperor.
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despotes
Title introduced in the 12th century. In administrative hierarchy, the office of despotes was under the emperor and the co-emperor. From the 14th century onwards, the title was given to the governors of the Byzantine Peloponnese.
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doukas (lat. dux)
Antiquity: Roman military commander who, in some provinces, combined military and civil functions.Buzantium: a higher military officer. From the second half of the 10th c. the title indicates the military comander of a larger district. After the 12th c., doukes were called the governors of small themes.
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praefectus urbi (prefect of the city)
(later referred to as the eparch of the city) Αdministrator and virtual governor of Constantinople in the Early/Middle Byzantine Era. He was responsible for the surveillance and the harmonius life of the Capital. One of his responsibilities was to control the commercial and manufacturing activities of Constantinople. After 1204, however, the office began to diminish, while from the 14th century, his responsibilities were assumed by two officers, the so-called kephalatikeuontai of the capital.
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protosebastos
Ηigh-ranking title usually bestowed upon close relatives of the emperor. The title was introduced by Alexios I Komnenos. In the 12th century it was awarded to close associates of the emperor and to members of aristocratic families, such as the Palaiologos, Tarchaneiotes, Raoul and Metochites families.
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sebastokrator
Honorary title of the Byzantine court. The office was established in 1081 by Alexios I Komnenos for his elder brother Isaac, equivalent to the one of regent
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