John Komnenos Asen

John Komnenos Asen[1] was the ruler of the Principality of Valona from c. 1345 to 1363, initially as a vassal of the Serbian Empire, and after 1355 as a largely independent lord.

[5][6] John was installed as ruler of Valona in late 1345, in the wake of the Serbian conquest of south Albania from the Byzantine Empire, which was concluded no later than August 1345.

[7] Besides the Adriatic port of Valona (modern Vlorë), John's appanage included nearby Kanina and the inland castle of Berat to the northeast.

[9] In 1349, John plundered a Venetian commercial ship which had been shipwrecked on the coast he controlled, in accordance with the medieval principle of jus naufragii.

[7] This act necessitated the involvement of Stephen Dušan in order to settle the dispute between Venice and John, as evidenced by an official document from 13 April 1350.

[10] Despite this conflict, under John the Principality of Valona was an active partner of Venice and Ragusa (modern Dubrovnik) in maritime commerce.

Two receipts from 27 April 1350 document John's role as a mediator in cattle, sugar and pepper trade and reveal that he received significant income from the Valona customs.

[12] The threat of Nikephoros II Orsini, who was gaining ground in Thessaly and Epirus, forced John to request the dispatch of a Venetian warship and an administrator from Venice to take control of his domain,[7] to which the republic obliged.

[13] A commercial document from 30 January 1359, which testifies to John's continuing trade relations with Venice, is chronologically the last reference to his activity in contemporary sources.

While the date of his death was not recorded, it is likely that John perished during the plague epidemic which hit Valona and Durazzo (today Durrës) in 1363.