Maria Komnene (daughter of Alexios IV)

Maria Komnene (born c. 1200/1205, died after 1217) was a Byzantine princess, the daughter of Emperor Alexios IV Angelos and his wife, Irene. Through her father, she was a granddaughter of Emperor Isaac II Angelos and his first wife, Herina.

Relatively little is known about Maria's life. Her father's reign was short and tumultuous, lasting from 1203 to 1204. He was placed on the throne as a result of the Fourth Crusade's intervention in Byzantine politics, but his inability to meet the Crusaders' demands led to his overthrow and eventual execution.

Following Alexios IV's deposition, Maria, along with the rest of her immediate family, likely experienced a period of uncertainty and instability. The exact details of her life after her father's death are not fully documented in extant historical sources. However, she appears in the historical record again in 1217. In that year, she married Theodore Laskaris, the future Emperor of Nicaea. This marriage was likely politically motivated, serving to consolidate Theodore’s power and legitimize his claim to the Byzantine imperial legacy in exile after the Latin conquest of Constantinople.