Alexios was the nephew of a previous Emperor, Isaac I, but is considered to be the founder of the imperial Komnenian dynasty. Alexios came to power through a coup against Nikephoros III Boteniates in 1081 with the help of the powerful Doukas family. To cement the alliance, Alexios was married to Eirene Doukaina. Alexios' reign is immortaliased in the Alexiad, a biography that was written by his eldest daughter, Anna Komnene. His reign saw the First Crusade pass through Constantinople after Alexios had written to Pope Urban II requesting aid against the Turks, who had taken much of Anatolia. In 1092 Alexios undertook a major reform of the coinage to reverse the extreme debasement of the gold coinage. He died and was succeeded by his son, John II, in 1118.

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