Роман I Лакапин, 913-959
Romanos Lekapenos, born in Lakape between Melitene and Samosata (hence the name), was the son of an Armenian peasant with the remarkable name of Theophylact the Unbearable. The first four years of Romanos’ reign were spent in warfare against Bulgaria and eventually negotiated a 40 year peace with Bulgaria and established an alliance with the Serbs. Romanos was also able to effectively subdue revolts in several provinces of the empire, most notably in Chaldia, the Peloponnese, and Southern Italy. The capture of Melitene is often considered the first major Byzantine territorial recovery from the Muslims.
The Khazars were the allies of the Byzantines until the reign of Romanos, when he started persecuting the Jews of the empire. According to the Schechter Letter, the Khazar ruler Joseph responded to the persecution of Jews by “doing away with many Christians”, and Romanos retaliated by inciting Oleg of Novgorod against Khazaria.