Death of Agnes of Durazzo, Titular Latin Empress Consort of Constantinople
Agnes of Durazzo (c. 1345–1388) was a noblewoman of the Angevin dynasty who became the titular Latin Empress consort of Constantinople through her marriage to James of Baux, the last Latin Emperor of Constantinople. Born into the powerful Durazzo branch of the Angevins, Agnes was connected to the royal politics of southern Italy and the declining claims of the Latin Empire.
Her marriage to James of Baux in 1382 placed her at the center of a fading imperial tradition that traced its origins to the Fourth Crusade and the establishment of the Latin Empire in Constantinople in 1204. Although the Latin emperors no longer ruled the city, which had returned to Byzantine control in 1261, the title continued to carry symbolic importance among Western European nobles.
Agnes died on July 15, 1388, leaving behind a legacy tied to the final years of the Latin imperial claim. Her life reflected the complex world of medieval dynastic alliances, where titles, marriages, and bloodlines continued to shape political ambitions long after kingdoms and empires had disappeared.