Greco-Thraco-Illyrian Region 1
Greco-Thraco-Illyrian Region 1
In April 1204 AD, during the Fourth Crusade, Western European Crusaders captured Constantinople. They overthrew Alexios V and crowned Baldwin of Flanders as Emperor of Constantinople. Byzantium may have lasted much longer, if it was not for the Crusaders. It was not the Ottomans but the Crusaders that caused the demise of Byzantium. It was weakened and Ottomans seized the opportunity. If it was not the Ottomans, it may have been some others that would have taken advantage of the opportunity.
WESTERN EUROPEAN CRUSADERS STOLE an UNFOTHOMABLE WEALTH from BYZANTINES that had been accumulated in nine centuries. At that time, Byzantine Empire was prosperous and wealthy, relatively to other parts of the world. If we calculate price level increases and interest, it is probably many times the World's GDP. Perhaps, one reason they are much richer in Western Europe, compared to Balkans, is all the wealth they stole from Constantinople. This money is owed by Western European Group 3 to Balkan countries that originate from Byzantine Empire.
Western Europeans owe an astronomical amount to Greco-Thraco-Illyrian Region A2 of Eastern European Group 4, since Byzantine countries will be in that. It is unlikely that descendants of Crusaders will pay back many times the World's GDP to descendants of Byzantines, after eight centuries. But it should be very clear to Western European politicians and citizens that they owe an immeasurable amount of money to Greco-Thraco-Illyrian Region A2 in which Byzantine countries will be.
Western European Crusaders were not only Byzantines' enemies but also stole all the enormous wealth they had accumulated. Crusaders had a significant part in the demise of Byzantine Empire. After the sack of Constantinople, three Hellenic successor states emerged to claim the imperial throne. Emprire of Nicaea was the largest, founded by the aristocracy of Byzantine Empire, lead by the Laskaris family. Trapezuntine Empire was formed with the assistance of Queen Tamar of Georgia, under the rule of Komnenos family. The third successor rump state was Despotate of Epirus, lead by Angelos family.
Although it seemed that Despotate of Epirus would be the one to recapture Constantinople, it was eventually Empire of Nicaea that succeeded. In 1261 AD, fifty seven (57) years after the sack of Constantinople, Michael VIII Palaiologos defeated Crusaders and became Emperor. Byzantine Empire lasted for two more centuries. The Palaiologos dynasty, originating from Asia Minor, ruled until 1453 AD, during the weakest point in Byzantium's history.
Constantine XI Dragases Palaiologos (1404–1453 AD) was the last Byzantine Emperor and died defending the city. His father was Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos. His second last name comes from his mother who was a Serbian noblewoman, Helena Dragas or Dejanovic. Byzantium's first Emperor was Constantine the Great (272 – 337 AD). His father was Illyrian and his mother Helena was Greek from Asia Minor.
In AntiNWO's superb plan, Region A2 of Eastern European Group 4 is Greco-Thraco-Illyrian territory. There is an area in this territory that is outside Byzantine Empire's boundaries but people have Greco-Thraco-Illyrian ancestry like those who descend from Byzantines. Initially, ONLY HELLENES, THRACIANS and ILLYRIANS, dwelled in the vast area from CYPRUS and CRETE to SLOVAKIA and SOUTHERN UKRAINE. Some sources, place them even further til Poland and Czech Republic.
According to one theory, they were racially related, originating from the same branch of Caucasian people. Hellenes were in the southern part, Thracians in the eastern and northern part and Illyrians in the western part. Since ancient times they have been mingling and mixing. During Byzantine Empire, they mingled and mixed even more because they were in the same state.
When Slavs migrated in Greco-Thraco-Illyrian territory, Hellenes, Thracians and Illyrians had already mixed considerably. Southern Thracians, Paeonians and some Illyrians were assimilated into Hellenes before Roman conquest. At first, Slavs mingled and mixed with Greco-Thraco-Illyrians. To these, Ural-Altaic tribes were added, Bulgars, Hungarians, Tatars, Avars, Khazars, Oghuz Turks, Ottoman Turks, Huns etc.
The lines of ancestry in the vast area from Cyprus and Crete to Slovakia and southern Ukraine are; a) Greco-Thraco-Illyrian b) Slavic c) Ural-Altaic d) Other. Judging by the way people look, Ural-altaic ancestry is small. If it was significant, they would look more Asian, since Ural-Altaic tribes belonged in Asian race. Other is also small and includes Romans, Celts, Germanic tribes, Arabs etc.
Hellenic, Thracian and Illyrian portions of Greco-Thraco-Illyrian ancestry vary according to the area. In the southern part Hellenic is more, in the eastern and northern part Thracian is more and in the western part, Illyrian is more. Jacob Fallmerayer (1790-1861 AD) was an Austrian traveler, journalist, historian, politician. He is known for his controversial theories regarding Greeks' ancestry.
He was born in a village in South Tyrol. At that time, the area was in Hasburg Empire (Austrian Monarchy). Today, it is in northern Italy. In 1824 AD, he learned about a price from Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters for a study on the Empire of Trebizond. It was one of the three Hellenic successor rump states that emerged after the sack of Constantinople in 1204 AD.
Fallmerayer did a research, submitted his study and earned the price. That started his interest in what followed Byzantine Empire. So, he made a research study on Moreas which is another name for Peloponnese, the southern peninsula in mainland Greece. He developed a theory that Hellenic population had been replaced by Slavic, Arvanitic, Aromanian and Turkic people.
In th first volume of "Geschichte der Halbinsel Morea während des Mittelalters" he claims that "not the slightest drop of undiluted Hellenic blood flows in the veins of the Christian population of present-day Greece". Fallmerayrer's study received mostly negative response, despite the fact that it was partially correct. He had made some important mistakes though.
Ancient Hellenic population was only partially replaced. And this was not done only during Byzantine era but had started in ancient times, when ancient Hellenes mixed with Thracians mostly and Illyrians as well. In present day Hellas, ancient Hellenic ancestry has the highest percentage but could be below 50%. Contemporary Hellenes have also Thracian, Illyrian, Slavic, Ural-Altaic and Other ancestry.
During Byzantine era, in addition to Slavs, Vlachs (Aromanians) and Arvanites migrated in large numbers in the territory that is present day's Hellas. Slavs came first, Vlachs followed and Arvanites were last. But Vlachs and Arvanites were most likely Thracians and Illyrians. So Hellenes mixing with them, was not anything new, it had been going on since ancient times.
Vlachs originated from the Vlachia (Wallachia) in today's Romania and Arvanites from Arbanon in today's Albania. According to one theory, Arvanites were Dorians (Hellenes) because there was a Dorian colony in Illyria. Most likely, Vlachs had mainly Thracian (Dacian) ancestry and Arvanites Illyrian. Probably they were mixed with Slavs, since Slavic migration started much earlier.
Also Vlachs may have some Illyrian and Hellenic ancestry and Arvanites some Thracian and Hellenic ancestry, since mixing between Hellenes, Thracians and Illyrians had been going on since ancient times. The irony with Fallmerayer's theory is that Austrians are racially close to Eastern Europe. Their ancestry is more Slavic than Hellenes' and is a little Greco-Thraco-Illyrian as well. Fallmerayer should have studied Austrian ancestry, first of all.
Arvanites' migration concerns only Greeks' ancestry. On the contrary, Vlachs' migration concerns all Region A2 of Eastern European Group 4 and even countries that are northern of that. Vlachs spread all over Greco-Thraco-Illyrian territory and reached even Poland and Czech Republic. So we will elaborate a little more on Vlachs' movements.