BYZANTINE
102
BYZANTINE
two renowned and influential Byzantine empresses.
As the world once held its breath at the quarrel
between Eudoxia, the wanton wife of the Emperor
Arcadius, and the great patriarch, John Chrysostom,
and at the rivalry of the sisters-in-law, Pulcheria and
Athenais-Eudoeia, the latter the daughter of an
Athenian philosopher, so Theodora, the dancer of
the Byzantine circus, and her niece Sophia succeeded
in obtaining extraordinary influence by reason of
their genius, wit, and political cleverness. Theodora
died of cancer (548), seventeen years before her hus-
band. No serious discord ever marred this singular
union, from which, however, there was no issue.
The death of this remarkable woman proved an
irreparable loss to her consort, who grieved pro-
foundly for her during the remainder of his life.
Her niece, Sophia, who approached her in ambition
and political cunning, though not in intellect, had a
less fortunate ending. Her life was darkened by a
bitter disappointment. With the help of Tiberius,
commander of the palace guard, a Thracian famed
for his personal attractions, she placed on the throne
her husband, Justin II (565-7S), who suffered from
temporary attacks of insanity. Soon Sophia and Ti-
berius became the real rulers of the empire. In
574 the empress succeeded in inducing her husband
to adopt Tiberius as Caesar and coregent. The death
of Justin (57S), however, did not bring about the
hoped-for consummation of her relations with
Tiberius. Tiberius II (578-82) had a wife in his
native village, and now for the first time presented
her in the capital. After his accession to the throne,
he revered the Empress Sophia as a mother, and
even when the disappointed woman began to place
obstacles in his path, he was forbearing, and treated
her with respect while keeping her a prisoner.
The dynasty of Justin originated in Illyria. At the death of the Emperor Anastasius, Justin I (518- 27), like his successor Tiberius, commander of the palace guard, by shrewdly availing himself of his opportunities succeeded in seizing the reins of power. Even during the reign of Justin, Justinian, his nephew, and heir-presumptive to the throne, played an important role in affairs. He was by nature peculiar and slow. Unlike his uncle, he had received an excellent education. He might justly be called a scholar; at the same time he was a man of boundless activity. As absolute monarch, like Philip II of Spain, he developed an almost, incredible capacity for work. He endeavoured to master all the depart- ments of civil life, to gather in his hands all the reins of government. The number of rescripts drawn up by Justinian is enormous. They deal with all subjects, though towards the end by preference with dogmatic questions, as the emperor fancied that he could put an end to religious quarrels by means of bureaucratic regulations. He certainly took his vo- cation seriously. On sleepless nights he was fre- quently seen pacing his apartments absorbed in thought. His whole concept of life was serious to the point of being pedantic. We might therefore wonder that such a man should choose as his consort a woman of the demi-monde. No doubt Procopius, "a chamberlain removed from the atmosphere of the court, unheeded anil venomous in his sullen old age", is not veracious in all his statements concerning the previous life of Theodora. It is certain, however, that a daughter was born to her before Bhe became
tinted with the crown prince, and it is equally certain that before she married the pedantic mon- arch, she had. led a dissolute life. However she filled her m-,\ r61e admirably. Her subsequent con- duct was faultless, her influence great, but not ob- trusive. Her extravagance ami vindictiveness — for she had enemies, among them John the Cappa- docian, the great financial minister so indispen- sable to Justinian — may well have cost the em-
peror many an uneasy hour, but there was never
any lasting breach.
Theodora, after captivating the Crown-Prince Justinian by her genius and witty conversation, proved herself worthy of her position at the critical moment. It was in the year 532, five years after Justinian's accession. Once more the people of Constantinople, through its circus factions, sought to oppose the despotic rule then beginning. It re- sulted in the frightful uprising which had taken its name from the well-known watchword of the circus parties: Xika — "Conquer". In the palace every- thing was given up for lost, and Belisarius himself, the heroic chief of the mercenaries, advised flight. At this crisis Theodora saved the empire for her husband by her words : "The purple is a good winding- sheet". The Government was firm; the opposing party weakened, the circus factions were shorn of their political influence, and the despotic govern- ment of Justinian remained assured for the future.
It is well known what the reign of Justinian (527- 65) meant for the external and internal develop- ment of the empire. The boundaries of the empire were extended, Africa was reconquered for a century and a half, all Italy for some decades. The Byzantine power was established, for a time, even in some cities of the Spanish coast. Less successful were his Eastern wars. I'nder Justin and the aged Kavadh, war with Persia had again broken out. On the ac- cession of the great Chosroes I, Nushirvan (531-79), in spite of the peace of 532, which Justinian hoped would secure for him liberty of action in the West, Chosroes allowed him no respite. Syria suffered ter- ribly from pillaging incursions, Lazistan (the ancient Colchis) was taken by the Persians, and a road there- by opened to the Black Sea. Only after the Greeks resumed the war more vigorously (549) did they succeed in recapturing Lazistan, and in 562 peace was concluded.
Nevertheless the Persian War was transmitted as an unwelcome legacy to the successors of Justinian In 571 strife broke out anew in Christian Armenia, owing to the activity of the Mazdeistic Persians. While the Romans gained many brilliant victories, their opponents also obtained a few important suc- cesses. Suddenly affairs took an unexpected turn. Hormizdas, the son and successor of Chosroes I (579-90), lost both life and crown in an uprising. His son, Chosroes II, Parvez (590-628), took refuge with the Romans. Mauritius, who was then em- peror (582-602), received the fugitive and by the campaign of 591 re-established him on the throne of his fathers. Thus the relations of the empire with the Persians seemed at last peaceful. Soon, however, Mauritius himself was deposed and murdered on the occasion of a military sedition. The centurion Phocas (602-10) seized the helm of the Byzantine state. Chosroes. ostensibly to avenge his friend, the murdered emperor, forthwith resumed the offensive. The administration of Phocas proved thoroughly in- efficient. The empire seemed to swerve out of its old grooves; the energetic action of some patriots, however, under the leadership of nobles high in the Government, and the call of Heraclius, saved the situation, and after a fearful conflict with tin- DO of the East, lasting over a hundred years, Byzantium rose again to renewed splendour.
It is a noteworthy tact that Lombard and Syrian chroniclers call the Emperor Mauritius the first "Greek" emperor. The transformation of the
Roman State, with Latin as the official language,
into a Greek Stab- had become manifest. 1 hiring the reign of Mauritius the rest of Justinian's conquests in Italy and Africa were placed under the civil admin- istration of military governors or exarchs. This is symptomatic. The separation of civil ami military power, which hail been inaugurated in the happier
