John Phocas, a direct descendant of the emperor who freed Crete from the Arabs, was considered to be the most senior member of the twelve "archondopoula". His territory was one of the largest, which covered the greater part of today's province of Rethymno, all the way south to the coast and westward up to the valley of Askyfou, where the border of the Skordilis' territory was located (the name of the family changed a few years later under the Venetians to Kallergis and families that today claim to be direct descendants of the Phocas-Kallergis dynasty are one of the largest family groups in Crete, including a number from Sfakia).