Michael Palaiologos was an early member of the great family of the Palaiologoi, which later ruled the
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
. He was a general of the emperor
Manuel I KomnenosManuel I Komnenos was a Byzantine Emperor of the 12th century who reigned over a crucial turning point in the history of Byzantium and the Mediterranean....
(1143–1180).
In 1150, he was sent to raise an army among the people of the region of
AnconaAncona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
for an attempt at resurrecting the old
theme of Langobardia. In Spring 1155, Count
Robert III of LoritelloRobert II of Bassunvilla was the count of Conversano and Loritello . His family had a long history in Vassonville, near Dieppe....
, a rebel against the king of Sicily,
William the BadWilliam I , called the Bad or the Wicked, was the second king of Sicily, ruling from his father's death in 1154 to his own...
, negotiated support from Manuel. With an army of Anconans, Palaiologos and John Doukas descended the Italian peninsula into
ApuliaApulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
.
ViesteVieste is a town and comune in the province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southeast Italy.thumb|Cathedral of ViesteA marine resort in Gargano, Vieste has received Blue Flags for the purity of its waters from the Foundation for Environmental Education...
was the first city to fall, but important
TraniTrani is a seaport of Apulia, southern Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, in the new Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani , and 40 km by railway West-Northwest of Bari.- History :...
resisted surrender until
BariBari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
was bribed to open the gates of its citadel a week later. Then, not only Trani, but
GiovinazzoGiovinazzo is a port city situated on the Adriatic coast in the region of Apulia, southern Italy. Giovinazzo lies 18 km WNW of the provincial capital of Bari, and is adjacent to the city ofMolfetta.-History:...
and Ruvo surrendered to the Byzantine forces. Richard, Count of Andria, was killed in battle and
Andria-Places:Italy*Andria, a city in the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani*Roman Catholic Diocese of Andria, a Roman Catholic diocese...
too submitted. The imperial army moved on to besiege
BoscoBosco was an Irish children's television programme produced during the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was produced by the Lambert Puppet Theatre. Designed by Jan Mitchell, Bosco was voiced by Miriam Lambert initially; in later years Paula Lambert took over the character...
, where it defeated a royal army. Montepeloso,
GravinaGravina may refer to:* Gravina in Puglia in Southern Italy* The Gravina, a river in southern Italy* the Duchy of Gravina and the ducal family of Orsini-Gravina* the Bishopric of Gravina and Montepeloso...
, and fifty hamlets surrendered and
MonopoliMonopoli is a town and comune in Italy, in the province of Bari, region of Apulia. The town is roughly in area and lies about 40 km southeast from Bari. It has about 50,000 inhabitants....
signed a truce. It was then, at the height of the campaign, that Palaiologos died at Bari. The general was known as a womanizer and a drunkard; he was rumored to have over fifty mistresses.