The Komnenos or Comnenus was a Byzantine Greek noble family and an important ruling Dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, as they are widely considered to have reversed the decline of the Byzantine Empire for over a century, from c.1081 to c.1185. The Komnenoi originated in Thrace. Psellus puts the home of the Comnenus family at Comne near Adrianople. The Komnenos dynasty of Byzantine emperors was founded by Isaac I Komnenos, a Stratopedarch of the East under Michael VI. In 1057 Isaac led a coup against Michael and was proclaimed emperor. However, the dynasty did not come to full power until the accession of Alexios I Komnenos, Isaac I's nephew, in 1081. By this time, descendants of all the previous dynasties of Byzantium seem to have disappeared from the realm, such as the important Sclerus and Argyrus families. Descendants of those emperors lived abroad, having married into the royal families of Russia, France, Germany, Poland, Hungary and Serbia; thus it was easier for the Komnenosfamily to ascend to the throne.