Ezeros, Dobrochouvista, Trikala, Larissa, and Platamon. Sometime in the 12th century, Thessaly reverted to Hellas, with the exception of the northwestern portion around Stagoi and Trikala, which was included in the new theme of Servia. Benjamin of Tudela, who visited the area in 1165, also recorded the presence of Jewish communities at Halmyros, Zetounion, Vesaina, and Gardiki. Both Benjamin and the Arab geographer al-Idrisi describe Greece during the middle of the 12th century as densely populated and prosperous. The situation began to change towards the end of the reign of Manuel I Komnenos (), whose costly military ventures led to a hike in taxation. Coupled with the corruption and autocratic behaviour of officials, this led to a decline in industry and the impoverishment of the peasantry, eloquently lamented by the Metropolitan of Athens, Michael Choniates. This decline was temporarily halted under Andronikos I Komnenos (), who sent the capable Nikephoros Prosouch as governor to Greece, but resumed after Andronikos' fall. In 1199–1201 Manuel Kamytzes, the rebellious son-in-law of Byzantine emperor Alexios III Angelos (), with the support of Dobromir Chrysos, the autonomous ruler of Prosek, established a short-lived principality in northern Thessaly, before he was overcome by an imperial expedition. By the end of the 12th century, the theme of Hellas had been superseded by a collection of smaller districts variously termed horia (sing. horion), chartoularata (sing. chartoularaton), and episkepseis (sing. episkepsis). This division is reflected in the 1198 chrysobull of Alexios III to the Venetians, and in the Partitio Romaniae of 1204. These documents mention the episkepseis (domains of the imperial family) of Platamon, Demetrias, the "two Halmyroi", Krevennika and Pharsalus, Domokos and Vesaina, the horion of Larissa and the "provinces" of Vlachia, Servia, and Velechativa, and the chartoularata of Dobrochouvista and Ezeros (Sthlanitsa in the Partitio), the latter evidently Slavic settlements. Latin and Epirote rule Following the sack of Constantinople and the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade in April 1204, Leo Sgouros, the Greek ruler of Nauplia, marched into central Greece. At Larissa he met the deposed Alexios III, and concluded a marriage alliance with him. Both were soon confronted by the Crusaders under Boniface of Montferrat, who sought to expand his newly established Kingdom of Thessalonica into southern Greece. Unable to challenge the Crusaders in open battle, Sgouros gave up Thessaly without a fight, and withdrew to his bases in the Peloponnese. Boniface