Nikephoros I
The Byzantine presence in Butrint alarmed Nikephoros I Komnenos Doukas the Despot of Epirus. He contacted Charles of Anjou and his vassal William II of Villehardouin who was at that time the prince of Achaea. Nikephoros I promised to make an oath of homage to Charles of Anjou in return for some land property in Achaia. In 1278 Nikephoros I's troops captured the city of Butrint. In March 1279 Nikephoros I declared himself a vassal of Charles of Anjou and surrendered to him the castles of Sopot and Butrint. As a pledge, Nikephoros I delivered his own son to the Angevin castellan of Vlorë to be held as hostage. Ambassadors were exchanged in this occasion, but Charles did not wait for the formalities to end; instead he ordered his captain and vicar-general at Corfu to capture not only Butrint, but everything that once belonged to Manfred and now were under the Despotate of Epirus.