Catalan Company

In this episode, we dive into the dramatic rise and turbulent legacy of the Catalan Company, a formidable band of almogavar mercenaries who shaped the political landscape of the fourteenth-century eastern Mediterranean. Initially hired by the Byzantine Empire to counter Turkish expansion in Anatolia, the Company achieved notable battlefield successes but quickly became infamous for its brutality, discipline, and shifting loyalties. After the assassination of their charismatic leader Roger de Flor, the group unleashed a devastating campaign of vengeance across the Balkans, transforming from hired soldiers into autonomous warlords. We trace how their military prowess ultimately enabled them to seize and rule the Duchies of Athens and Neopatras, leaving a lasting imprint on the history of medieval Greece and the wider dynamics of mercenary warfare.