Nicetas
Νικήτας
(Νικήτας), Byzantine writers.
1. ACOMINATUS (Ἀκομινάτος), also called CHONIATES, because he was a native of Chonae, formerly Colossae, in Phrygia, one of the most important Byzantine historians, was born about the middle of the twelfth century, and was descended from a noble and distinguished family. The emperor Isaac II. Angelus (1185-1195) appointed him governor of Philippopolis, at a period when the revolt of the Bulgarians, and the approach of the emperor Frederic I. of Germany, with an army of 150,000 men (1189), devolved most important duties upon the governors of the large towns in Thrace. Nicetas also held the offices of logotheta, praefectus sacri cubiculi, and others of importance, and he was honoured with the title of senator. He was present at the capture of Constantinople by the Latins in 1204, of which he has given us a most impressive and, undoubtedly, faithful description. His palace was burnt down during the storm, and after many dangerous adventures he escaped, with his family, to Nicaea, through the assistance of a generous Venetian merchant. There he continued to live at the court of the emperor Theodore Lascaris, and employed his time in writing that great historical work which has brought his name down to posterity. He died at Nicaea in, or perhaps after 1216. Modern travellers have tried, but in vain, to discover his tomb.
Works
Historia
The Historia is a corollary of ten distinct works, each of which contains one or more books, of which there are twenty-one, giving the history of the emperors from 1118 down to 1206: viz. Joannes Comnenus (1118-1143), in one book; Manuel Comnenus (1143-1180), in seven books; Alexis Comnenus (1180-1183), in one book; Andronicus Comnenus (1183-1185) in two books; Isaac Angelus (1185-1195), in three books; Alexis Angelus (1195-1203), in three books; Isaac Angelus and his son Alexis (1203-1204), in one book; Alexis Ducas Murzuplus (1204), in one book; Urbs Capta, or the events during and immediately after the taking of Constantinople (1204), in one book; Baldwin of Flanders (1204-1206), in one book.
The mode of quoting this historical work is thus: Nicetas, Isaac Angelus, 1.3; Urbs Capta, 100.1; Andron. Comnen. 2.5, &c.
Editions
Ed. princeps, by H. Wolf, with a Latin version, Basel, 1557, fol.; reprinted, with an index and a chronology by Simon Goulartius, Geneva, 1593, 4to; by Fabrot, with a most valuable Glossarium Graeco-barbarum, and a revised translation, notes, &c., Paris, 1647, fol. in the Paris collection of the Byzantines; the same badly reprinted, Venice, 1729, fol. The last edition is in the Bonn collection of the Byzantines, edited by J. Bekker, 1835.
Conquest of Constantinople ascribed to Nicetas
A Greek MS. in the Bodleian, divided into two books, and giving an account of the conquest of Constantinople, with special regard to the statues destroyed by the Latins, is ascribed to Nicetas, but it seems to have been altered by a later writer, who made additions. The account of the statues, which is of great interest, is given by Fabricius quoted below, and critical investigations concerning this MS. are given by Harris, in his Philological Enquiries (part 3.100.5). The work itself has been published by Wilken, under the title of Nicetae Narratio de Statuis antiquis, quas Franci, post captam anno 1204 Constantinopolin destruxerunt, Lips 1830. The four splendid brass horses at Venice were taken by the Venetians during the plunder of Constantinople in 1204, and fortunately escaped the barbarous avarice of the Latin soldiery. We cannot wonder at seeing Nicetas deeply incensed against the conquerors; but though very partial in his expressions, he is generally impartial as to facts. His style is bombastic, yet some portions of his work are most expressive and even beautiful. The History of Nicetas, as far as it treats the conquest of Constantinople, ought not to be studied without comparing it with Villehardouin's De la Conqueste de Constantinoble, and Paolo Ramusio's elegant work, De Bello Constantinopolitano, &c., Venice, 1635, fol
Θησαυρὸς ὀρθοδοξίας
Nicetas also wrote: Θησαυρὸς ὀρθοδοξίας, in twenty-seven books.
Editions
The first five of these books were translated into Latin by P. Morel (Morellus), Paris, 1561, 8vo., 1579, 1610; Geneva, 1629. They are also in the 12th vol. of the Bibl. Patr. Colon. But the whole is as yet unpublished.
The complete work is extant in MS. in the Royal Library at Paris; and there is another, but somewhat abridged copy in the Bodleian.
Other Works
Some minor productions of Nicetas, among which a fragment on the ceremonies observed when a Mohammedan adopted the Christian religion, are extant in different libraries in Europe. Michael Choniates, the elder brother of Nicetas, wrote Μονοδία, being the life of Nicetas in bombastic verses, translated into Latin, and published by P. Morel, Paris, 1566, 8vo.; and also in the 25th vol. of the Bibl. Patr. Lugdun.
Further Information
Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. vii. p. 737, &c.; Hankius, Script. Byzant.; Leo Allatius, De Nicetis; Hamberger, Nachrichien von gelehrten Männern; Harris, l.c.
From William Smith (ed.), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Text provided under a CC BY-SA license by Perseus Digital Library, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu, with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Tufts University. Data accessed from https://github.com/PerseusDL/canonical-pdlrefwk/ on 17 October 2026.