Nikephoros Phokas the Elder
| Nikephoros Phokas | |
|---|---|
| Died | 895/6 or ca. 900 |
| Allegiance | Byzantine Empire |
| Years of service | ca. 872–895/6 |
| Rank | Domestic of the Schools |
| Wars | Arab–Byzantine wars in Asia Minor and southern Italy, Byzantine–Bulgarian wars |
| Relations | Bardas Phokas the Elder and Leo Phokas the Elder (sons) |
Nikephoros Phokas (Greek: Νικηφόρος Φωκᾶς, Nikēphoros Phōkas; died 895/6 or ca. 900), usually surnamed the Elder to distinguish him from his grandson, Emperor Nikephoros II Phokas, was one of the most prominent Byzantine generals of the late 9th century, and the first important member of the Phokas family. As a youth he was taken into the personal retinue of Emperor Basil I the Macedonian, rising quickly to the posts of protostrator and then governor of Charsianon, whence he fought with success against the Arabs. In ca. 886 he led a major expedition in southern Italy, where his victories laid the foundation for the Byzantine resurgence in the peninsula. After his return, he was raised to the post of Domestic of the Schools, in effect commander-in-chief of the army, which he led with success against the Arabs in the east and the Bulgarians of Tsar Simeon in the Balkans. He died either in 895/6 or, less likely, sometime ca. 900. Contemporaries and later historians lauded him for his military ability and character. Both of his sons later succeeded him as Domestics of the Schools. His grandsons Nikephoros and Leo were likewise distinguished generals, while the former became emperor in 963–969, spearheading the recovery of several lost provinces from the Arabs.
Nikephoros was the son of the founder of the Phokas family, a man called Phokas, a native of Cappadocia. During one of the campaigns of Emperor Basil I the Macedonian (reigned 867–886) sometime in the 870s (probably ca. 872), Nikephoros' father caught the emperor's attention and was raised to the rank of tourmarches. At the same time Nikephoros, still in his youth, was taken into the imperial retinue, and was soon appointed to the guard corps of the manglabitai. He possibly participated in Basil's 873 campaign against Samosata.
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