Nikephoros Melissenos

Nikephoros Melissenos
Usurper of the Byzantine Empire
2/3 Miliaresion struck by Melissenos during his revolt
Reign	1080–1081
Predecessor	Nikephoros III Botaneiates
Successor	Alexios I Komnenos
Born	c. 1045 Dorylaeum, Byzantine Empire
Died	17 November 1104 (aged 58–59) near Thessalonica, Byzantine Empire
Wife	Eudokia Komnene
Issue	John Komnenos

Nikephoros Melissenos (Greek: Νικηφόρος Μελισσηνός, c. 1045 – 17 November 1104), Latinized as Nicephorus Melissenus, was a Byzantine general and aristocrat. Of distinguished lineage, he served as a governor and general in the Balkans and Asia Minor in the 1060s. In the turbulent period after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, when several generals tried to seize the throne for themselves, Melissenos remained loyal to Michael VII Doukas and was exiled by his successor Nikephoros III Botaneiates. In 1080–1081, with Turkish aid, he seized control of what remained of Byzantine Asia Minor and proclaimed himself emperor against Botaneiates. After the revolt of his brother-in-law Alexios I Komnenos, however, which succeeded in taking Constantinople, he submitted to him, accepting the rank of Caesar and the governance of Thessalonica. He remained loyal to Alexios thereafter, participating in most Byzantine campaigns of the period 1081–1095 in the Balkans at the emperor's side. He died on 17 November 1104.