Year 1205 (MCCV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire Spring – Theodore I (Laskaris) is proclaimed Byzantine emperor (or basileus), formally founding the Empire of Nicaea, after repelling the invasions of rivals David Komnenos and Manuel Maurozomes into his domains. His appointment is an open challenge to the legitimacy of the Latin emperor Baldwin I, who rules over large parts of the former Byzantine Empire and regards Theodore as a usurper. March 19 – Battle of Adramyttion: The Byzantine army under Constantine Laskaris (brother of Theodore I) appears before the walls of Adramyttium – surprising the Latin garrison. Meanwhile, Henry of Flanders not wanting to remain trapped within the city, opens the gates and charges out with his heavy cavalry. He and his knights defeat the Byzantine forces, who are scattered and forced to retreat. March – Byzantine officials in Adrianople revolt and expel Latin administrators, requesting Bulgarian support from Kaloyan, ruler (tsar) of the Bulgarian Empire, against Baldwin I who assembles an army (some 40,000 men) and marches to aid the Byzantines. Meanwhile, Baldwin sets out from Constantinople in force, he arrives at Adrianople and promptly begins to siege the city by the end of March. April 14 – Battle of Adrianople: Latin forces under Baldwin I are defeated and eliminated in a successful ambush by Bulgarians, Vlachs and Cumans. Baldwin is captured and taken as prisoner to Veliko Tarnovo – where he is locked up at the top of a tower in the Tsarevets fortress. Later, Baldwin is possibly executed by orders of Kaloyan (this according to the Byzantine historian George Akropolites). Summer – Battle of Koundouros: Byzantine forces (some 5,000 men) under Michael Doukas, governor of the Theme of the Peloponnese (and later Despot of Epirus), tries to stop the Latin army (some 700 knights and foot soldiers) at the Olive Grove of Koundouros. The Byzantines are defeated by William of Champlitte, who later founds the Principality of Achaea (a vassal state of the Latin Empire). Othon de la Roche, a Burgundian nobleman, founds the Duchy of Athens (one of the Crusader states set up in Greece) and takes the title of "Grand Lord" (Megaskyr) in Athens. Europe January 6 – Philip of Swabia becomes King of the Romans and is crowned again with great ceremony at Aachen by Archbishop Adolf