# Nikulitsa

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{{Short description|Greek noble}}
[[Image:Nikulitsa capture.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Capture and imprisonment of Nikulitsa by the [Byzantines](/source/Byzantine_Empire).]]
'''Nikulitsa''' ({{langx|bg|Никулица}}; {{langx|el|Νικουλίτσας}}) was a noble from [Larissa](/source/Larissa) and governor of [Servia](/source/Servia%2C_Greece) during the reign of [Samuil](/source/Samuil_of_Bulgaria) ({{reign|997|1014}}). Nikulitzas belonged to a prominent family in the city. In 980, Emperor Basil II had appointed his grandfather as leader ([archon](/source/Archon)) of the Vlachs; a local ethnic group that was also at the center of the rebellion of 1066–1067. The leaders of that rebellion were all prominent men of Larissa, two of whom are specifically mentioned by Kekaumenos as being Vlachs; Slavota Karmalakis and a certain Beriboes (Berivoi).<ref name=S280>{{harvnb|Curta|2006|p=280}}</ref>

==Biography==
Nikulitsa received his name ("little Nicholas") because of his short height. In 1001, the [Byzantines](/source/Byzantine_Empire) led by [Basil II](/source/Basil_II) ({{reign|976|1025}}) besieged the city of Servia and after a long siege they managed to break through despite the garrison's desperate defence. To secure the fortress, the entire Bulgarian population was deported in the area called [Boleron](/source/Boleron) between the rivers [Nestos](/source/Nestos_(river)) and ([Hebros](/source/Maritsa)).<ref name=Skylitzes>{{cite web|author=[John Skylitzes](/source/John_Skylitzes) |translator=Paul Stephenson |title=Synopsis Historion: ''The Battle of Kleidion''|access-date=18 October 2013|url=http://homepage.mac.com/paulstephenson/trans/scyl1.html}}</ref>

Nikulitsa was taken to [Constantinople](/source/Constantinople) and given the title ''[patrikios](/source/patrikios)''. Soon, however, he fled Constantinople and rejoined Samuel's forces, who were trying to take back Servia. Basil II reacted quickly, heading to the town with an army and repulsing the Bulgarians. Samuel and Nikulitsa retreated but soon after the latter was ambushed and captured again. He was taken back to the Byzantine capital where he was imprisoned.<ref name=Skylitzes/>

He managed to escape once more and continued to fight. Nikulitsa was among the few nobles who continued the resistance in the mountainous areas of the country after the death of Emperor [Ivan Vladislav](/source/Ivan_Vladislav_of_Bulgaria) in 1018. After his troops were surrounded by a Byzantine army, he understood that further resistance was pointless and surrendered to Basil II with the rest of his troops. Basil II sent him in [Thessalonica](/source/Thessalonica) under arrest.<ref name=Skylitzes/> In an effort to defend the political legacy of his relative (Nikulitsa), Kekaumenos placed the blame entirely on the Vlachs.<ref> Kekaumenos, Strategikon XII, 3.3 and 4, Spanish translation by Signes Codoner. pp.113 and 115.</ref> 

Nikulitsa's grandson, [Nikoulitzas Delphinas](/source/Nikoulitzas_Delphinas), led an unsuccessful [Vlach](/source/Vlach) ([Aromanian](/source/Aromanians)) rebellion in [Thessaly](/source/Thessaly) in 1066.<ref name=S280/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
*{{Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500–1250}}
{{refend}}

Category:Medieval Bulgarian nobility
Category:10th-century births
Category:11th-century deaths
Category:10th-century Bulgarian people
Category:11th-century Bulgarian people
Category:Patricii
Category:Bulgarian people of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars
Category:Medieval Bulgarian military personnel
Category:Military personnel from Larissa
Category:Prisoners of war held by the Byzantine Empire

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Nikulitsa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikulitsa) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikulitsa?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.