Coutzes or Cutzes was a general of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Coutzes appears in the sources in 528, as joint dux of Phoenice Libanensis together with his brother, Bouzes

Bouzes

Bouzes or Buzes was an East Roman general active in the reign of Justinian I in the wars against the Sassanid Persians.- Family :...

. The dual command had been instituted the year before by Emperor Justinian I

Justinian I

Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...

 (r. 527–565), and Coutzes led the troops stationed at Damascus

Damascus

Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

, while his brother led the troops at Palmyra

Palmyra

Palmyra was an ancient city in Syria. In the age of antiquity, it was an important city of central Syria, located in an oasis 215 km northeast of Damascus and 180 km southwest of the Euphrates at Deir ez-Zor. It had long been a vital caravan city for travellers crossing the Syrian desert...

. Both brothers are described as being young at the time by Procopius

Procopius

Procopius of Caesarea was a prominent Byzantine scholar from Palestine. Accompanying the general Belisarius in the wars of the Emperor Justinian I, he became the principal historian of the 6th century, writing the Wars of Justinian, the Buildings of Justinian and the celebrated Secret History...

. He had another brother, Benilus or Venilus, and was most probably the son of the general and rebel Vitalian

Vitalian (general)

Vitalian was an East Roman general. Rebelling in 513 against Emperor Anastasius I, he won over large parts of the army and people of Thrace. Successive rapprochements with Anastasius failed, and the revolt continued until it was finally defeated in 515. Vitalian then went into hiding until...

.

In 528, a year after the outbreak of the Iberian War

Iberian War

The Iberian War was fought from 526 to 532 between the Eastern Roman Empire and Sassanid Empire over the eastern Georgian kingdom of Iberia.-Origin:After the Anastasian War, a seven-year truce was agreed on, yet it lasted for nearly twenty years...

 against Sassanid Persia, the two brothers were ordered, along with other commanders, to reinforce Belisarius

Belisarius

Flavius Belisarius was a general of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Mediterranean territory of the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century previously....

 (then dux Mesopotamiae) who was protecting the construction of a fort at Thannuris. When the Byzantines attacked a Persian army however, they suffered a heavy defeat in the Battle of Thannuris. Coutzes' fate is uncertain; Procopius writes that he was taken prisoner and never seen again, while Zacharias of Mytilene records that he was killed.