John II Komnenos or Comnenus was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as "John the Beautiful" or "John the Good", he was the eldest son of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and Irene Doukaina and the second emperor to rule during the Komnenian restoration of the Byzantine Empire. As he was born to a reigning emperor, he had the status of a porphyrogennetos. John was a pious and dedicated monarch who was determined to undo the damage his empire had suffered following the Battle of Manzikert, half a century earlier.
Mosaic of John II at the Hagia Sophia
John II (left) and his eldest son Alexios, crowned by Christ. Byzantine manuscript, early 12th century
Isaac Komnenos, mosaic of from the Chora Church
A letter from John II to Pope Innocent II
Alexios I Komnenos, Latinized Alexius I Comnenus, was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118. Although he was not the first emperor of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power and initiated a hereditary succession to the throne. Inheriting a collapsing empire and faced with constant warfare during his reign against both the Seljuq Turks in Asia Minor and the Normans in the western Balkans, Alexios was able to curb the Byzantine decline and begin the military, financial, and territorial recovery known as the Komnenian restoration. His appeals to Western Europe for help against the Turks was the catalyst that sparked the First Crusade.
Portrait of Alexios within the Panoplia Dogmatica written by Euthymios Zigabenos
Seal of Alexios as "Grand Domestic of the West"
Low relief depicting Alexios I, Campiello de Cà Angaran, Venice, early 12th century.
Scyphate (cup-shaped) hyperpyron minted under Manuel I Komnenos