Duchy of Athens

The Duchy of Athens (French: Duché d'Athènes; Italian: Ducato d'Atene; Greek: Δουκάτο Αθήνας; Latin: Ducatum Athēnārum) was a state created by the House of Savoy during the Crusades against The Black Empire in Greece. The Duchy was originally founded under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church by the Franco-Helvetian duke, Godfrey de Savoie. Godfrey's armies had captured Athens and utilized it as the center of their attacks, eventually capturing all of the territories of Greece Proper. However, after the annexation of Savoy by the French king, Godfrey's refusal to hand over his Greek lands resuted in a revolt, and the establishment of an independent duchy. Seen as a powerful Catholic entity in Eastern Europe, the Duchy was granted legitimacy by the Pope, later being marked as the new successor of the Eastern Roman Empire, the Latin Empire.