Person

Theodore I Laskaris

c. 1174–1221 · 13th century · Also known as Theodore Laskaris

Theodore I Laskaris was the founder of the Empire of Nicaea, ruling from 1205 and as crowned emperor from 1208 until 1221. Son-in-law of the emperor Alexios III Angelos, he gathered Byzantine refugees in Bithynia after the Fourth Crusade took Constantinople in 1204. He resisted the Latin Empire and in 1211 defeated the Seljuks at Antioch on the Meander, where Sultan Kaykhusraw I was killed.

Theodore I Laskaris
Image: Unknown Byzantine scribes · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 profile

Empire of TrebizondFoundation

Mentioned in 1 state history

Empire of Nicaea

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Theodore I Laskaris. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/theodore-i-laskaris
MLA
“Theodore I Laskaris.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/theodore-i-laskaris. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Theodore I Laskaris.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/theodore-i-laskaris.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Theodore I Laskaris’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/theodore-i-laskaris (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻