Saint Basil the Younger [lower-alpha 1] (died 26 March 944/952) was a Byzantine Greek holy man and visionary. He is the subject of a Greek hagiographical biography, the Vita sancti Basilii iunioris, [lower-alpha 2] written by his pupil Gregory. Although the Vita portrays its subject as historical, there is yet no consensus whether Basil or even Gregory were real persons or fabrications. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
The Vita sancti Basilii iunioris is preserved in whole or in part in a total of 24 manuscripts dating from the 12th to the 19th century. [6] The fullest is the 16th-century Greek MS no. 249 of the Synodal (Patriarchal) Library in Moscow and published in François Halkin, Bibliotheca Hagiographica Graeca , 3rd edition (Brussels, 1957). [7] Two 13th-century manuscripts are also known. Parisinus Gr. 1547 is an abridged text that uses less florid language generally. It has been published by François Combefis in the Bollandist Acta Sanctorum , March III (1668). [7] The codex Iviron 478 from Mount Athos contains only the visions and none of the biographical or historical material. It has been published by S. G. Vilinskij in Zapiski Imperatorskogo novorossijskogo universiteta (Odessa, 1911). [7] Despite the publication of parts of these three manuscripts, no critical edition was produced [6] before 2014, when a critical edition with an annotated English translation appeared. [8]
In the 14th-century, the Vita was translated into Middle Bulgarian. This text was only found in 1975 in codex no. 20N from St Catherine's Monastery, Sinai. The translation was made by a certain Father Peter. [9]
Extant manuscripts of the Vita include the following. [8]
The composition of the Vita is usually dated to between 956 and 959. The terminus post quem is provided by the death of the Patriarch Theophylaktos, whom Gregory readily criticizes; the terminus ante quem by the death of Constantine VII, since his joint reign with his son Romanos II is mentioned but there is no reference to Romanos' sole reign. The terminus ante may, however, be pushed back to 961 (the death of Romanos' mother Helena Lekapene) or even 963 (date of composition of the Vision of Kosmas). [7]
The contents of the Vita are organized as follows. [8]
One of the most famous passage's in the Vita concerns the death of Theodora, Basil's servant. Shortly after her death, Gregory asks Basil if Theodora was rewarded in the afterlife and Basil grants Gregory a vision. His vision begins in Basil's house, where Theodora is dying. She is surrounded by Ethiopians (representative of demons), who bear documents recording all her sins. As Theodora's soul exits her body, two angels weigh her good deeds against her sins until Basil arrives to provide a scarlet bag full of gold, his supererogatory good works, to outweigh her sins. The demons leave and Theodora and the angels go up through the air. [10]
The passage through the air towards heaven is interrupted by 21 toll houses ( telonia ), each manned by demons and dedicated to exposing a specific sin: [10]
Theodora's soul runs out of good deeds to outweigh her sins by the fifth toll house and must rely thereafter on Basil's gold. The angels tell her that at baptism each person receives a guardian angel to record her good deeds and a demon to record her sins. If she fails at any toll house, the demons cast her soul into Hades. The angels inform Theodora, who did not practice confession, that only through confession and penance can one erase one's sins while alive. The toll house of fornication, they add, is the most dangerous one. Theodora successfully passes through the toll houses, enters heaven and sees God. [10]
Of the 301 printed pages of the Moscow version of the Vita, 38 cover the vision of the death of Basil's servant Theodora and 162 cover the visions of the Resurrection of the Dead and the Last Judgement. The Vita is as much a piece of visionary literature as it is a standard saint's life. "The author ... is evidently less concerned with [Basil's life] as such than with using him as a pretext for recounting numerous other matters of interest to him." [7]
Chronologically, the Vita is divided into three parts separated by long gaps. Between the first and second parts there is a gap of 17 years and between the second and third one of about 20 years. [7]
At the start of the Vita, Basil is living in Asia Minor as a grass-eating hermit or boskos. Arrested on suspicion of espionage, he is brought to Constantinople, where he is interrogated, tortured and thrown before a lion by the parakoimomenos Samonas. Unbroken, he does not even reveal his name and is thrown into the sea, where he is rescued by dolphins, who take him to Hebdomon. From there he returns to Constantinople, where he is sheltered by a poor husband and wife named John and Helena. This episode is said to take place in the tenth year of the joint reign of Leo VI and Alexander, which would be 896. Samonas, however, did not become parakoimomenos until 907. [lower-alpha 3] [7]
After the death of John and Helena, Basil moves into the house of Constantine Barbaros, Samonas' successor as parakoimomenos, in the Arkadianai quarter. There he spent the rest of his life except for a week he spent in the Great Palace of Constantinople and a short period he spent as a guest in the house of the Paphlagonian brothers Anastasios and Constantine Gongylios near the Harbour of Eleutherios. These brothers, relatives of Barbaros and of the tourmarches of Paphlagonia, are said to have been held in high regard by those reigning at the time, which points to the period of the regency of Empress Zoe Karbonopsina in 914–919 for Basil's stay. All three of Basil's hosts—Barbaros and the Gongylioi—were eunuchs. Barbaros disappears from the historical record after the failed revolt his relative, Leo Phokas, in 919. [7]
During his stay in the Great Palace, Basil rebukes Romanos I for his greediness and lechery, a reproach that the emperor, indulgent towards monks, did not mind. Basil also convinces a certain Kosmas, who had ambitions of becoming emperor, to abandon his worldly pursuits and become a hermit near Nicomedeia. This story seems to be based on that of Kosmas the Monk, who had a famous vision in 933. [7]
The second part of the Vita recounts in detail the rebellion of Constantine Doukas in 913, which Basil is said to have predicted. Gregory admits that this part of the work is little concerned with Basil. It may be included because Doukas's widow was forced to retire to an estate in Paphlagonia or as an excuse to criticize the Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos. [7]
The third part of the Vita begins in the reign of Romanos I, specifically after the death of his son Christopher (931) and at a time when there were seven persons of imperial rank in the palace. This is probably a reference to the widowed Romanos I, and his sons Stephen and Constantine and their wives, as well as Romanos' daughter Helena Lekapene and her husband, Constantine VII. The date of the marriages of Stephen and Constantine are not known with certainty, but Stephen's wife, Anna Gabalas, was only crowned in 933 and Constantine's first wife is not recorded before 939. Basil, however, prophesies that Helena will give birth to another daughter and then a son named Romanos, Since Romanos II was born in 938, this prophecy could only have been made in the mid-930s. [7]
In this part, Basil also predicts the Rus' attack on Constantinople in 941 four months in advance. God also gives him foreknowledge of the planned coup d'état of Romanos I's son-in-law Romanos Saronites. Basil tries to talk Saronites out of it, but is treated cruelly. Saronites then falls ill and dies. This is contradicted by John Skylitzes, who says that Saronites entered a monastery during the reign of Romanos II. Skylitzes does link his retirement to a rebellion, but does not implicate Saronites in it. [7]
Basil is said to have died on 26 March during Lent, which corresponds to either 944 or 952. [6] The earlier date is more likely. [7] According to Gregory, he was buried by Constantine Barbaros in the private church of the Theotokos on the Asian side of the strait across from the capital. This is chronologically implausible, given that Barbaros is not heard of after 919. The likely source for this story is Pseudo-Symeon, who records that Barbaros' father owned "a small suburban estate by the sea" near the capital and that Leo VI turned it into a monastery. The chronological inconsistencies and creative use of sources tell against the general historicity of the Vita. [7]
Constantine VIII Porphyrogenitus was de jure Byzantine emperor from 962 until his death. He was the younger son of Emperor Romanos II and Empress Theophano. He was nominal co-emperor since 962, successively with his father; stepfather, Nikephoros II Phokas; uncle, John I Tzimiskes; and brother, Basil II. Basil's death in 1025 left Constantine as the sole emperor. He occupied the throne for 66 years in total, making him de jure the longest-reigning amongst all Roman emperors since Augustus.
Basil I, nicknamed "the Macedonian", was Byzantine emperor from 867 to 886. Born a lowly peasant in the theme of Macedonia, he rose to prominence in the imperial court after entering into the service of Theophilitzes, a relative of Emperor Michael III. He was given a fortune by the wealthy Danielis and gained Michael's favour, whose mistress he married on his emperor's orders. In 866, Michael proclaimed him co-emperor, but Basil ordered his assassination the next year, thus installing himself as sole ruler of the empire. Despite his humble origins, he showed great ability in running the affairs of state, and founded the Macedonian dynasty. He was succeeded upon his death by his son Leo VI.
Romanos I Lekapenos, Latinized as Romanus I Lecapenus, was Byzantine emperor from 920 until his deposition in 944, serving as regent for the young Constantine VII.
Theodora Porphyrogenita was Byzantine Empress from 21 April 1042 to her death on 31 August 1056, and sole ruler from 11 January 1055. She was the last sovereign of the Macedonian dynasty, that ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for almost 200 years.
Zoë Porphyrogenita was a member of the Macedonian dynasty who briefly reigned as Byzantine empress in 1042, alongside her sister Theodora. Before that she was enthroned as empress consort or empress mother to a series of co-rulers, two of whom were married to her.
Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus was the fourth Byzantine emperor of the Macedonian dynasty, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe Karbonopsina, and the nephew of his predecessor Alexander.
This is an alphabetical index of people, places, things, and concepts related to or originating from the Byzantine Empire. Feel free to add more, and create missing pages. You can track changes to the articles included in this list from here.
The Macedonian dynasty ruled the Byzantine Empire from 867 to 1056, following the Amorian dynasty. During this period, the Byzantine state reached its greatest extent since the Early Muslim conquests, and the Macedonian Renaissance in letters and arts began. The dynasty was named after its founder, Basil I the Macedonian who came from the theme of Macedonia.
Leo Phokas was an early 10th-century Byzantine general of the noble Phokas clan. As Domestic of the Schools, the Byzantine army's commander-in-chief, he led a large-scale campaign against the Bulgarians in 917, but was heavily defeated at the battles of Acheloos and Katasyrtai. He then plotted to seize the throne from the young Byzantine emperor Constantine VII, but was outmaneuvered by the admiral Romanos Lekapenos, who managed to become guardian and later father-in-law of the Emperor. After Lekapenos seized control of the Byzantine Empire, Leo led an unsuccessful revolt, and was captured and blinded.
Basil Lekapenos, also called the Parakoimomenos or the Nothos, was an illegitimate child of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos. He served as the parakoimomenos and chief minister of the Byzantine Empire for most of the period 947 to 985, under emperors Constantine VII, Romanos II, Nikephoros II Phokas, John I Tzimiskes, and Basil II.
The parakoimōmenos was a Byzantine court position, usually reserved for eunuchs. The position's proximity to the emperors guaranteed its holders influence and power, and many of them, especially in the 9th and 10th centuries, functioned as the Byzantine Empire's chief ministers.
Stylianos Zaoutzes was a high Byzantine official of Armenian origin. Rising to high rank under Byzantine emperor Basil I, he then rose further to prominence under Basil's successor Emperor Leo VI the Wise, who had a close friendship and possibly an affair with Stylianos's daughter Zoe Zaoutzaina. Stylianos Zaoutzes was Leo's leading minister during the first half of his reign, and was awarded the unique title of basileopator. His standing and influence declined after 895, but in 898, he became Leo's father-in-law when the Byzantine emperor married Zoe. He died in 899, in the same year as Zoe. Following an attempted coup by his relatives, the Zaoutzes clan was deprived of the considerable power it had amassed under Stylianos's tutelage.
Constantine Doukas was a prominent Byzantine general. In 904, he stopped the influential eunuch court official Samonas from defecting to the Arabs. In return, Samonas manipulated his father, Andronikos Doukas, into rebelling and fleeing to the Abbasid court in 906/7. Constantine followed his father to Baghdad, but soon escaped and returned to Byzantium, where he was restored by Leo VI the Wise to favour and entrusted with high military offices. Upon the death of the Emperor Alexander, Constantine with the support of several aristocrats unsuccessfully tried to usurp the throne from the young Constantine VII, but was killed in a clash with supporters of the legitimate emperor.
Christopher Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the eldest son of Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos and co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 921 until his death in 931. Christopher was given the position of megas hetaireiarches in spring 919, after Romanos assumed guardianship of the underage Emperor Constantine VII. Romanos, who had made himself emperor in 920, raised Christopher to co-emperor on 21 May 921 in order to give his family precedence over Constantine VII's Macedonian line. In 928 Christopher's father-in-law, Niketas, unsuccessfully attempted to incite Christopher to usurp his father, resulting in Niketas being banished. Christopher died in August 931, succeeded by his father and two brothers, Stephen Lekapenos and Constantine Lekapenos, and Constantine VII. In December 944 his brothers overthrew and exiled their father, but they themselves were exiled after attempting to oust Constantine VII.
Stephen Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the second son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos, and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his younger brother Constantine, he deposed Romanos I in December 944, but was overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a few weeks later. Stephen lived out his life in exile on the island of Lesbos, where he died on Easter 963.
Constantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos, and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his elder brother Stephen, he deposed Romanos I in December 944, but was overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a few weeks later. Constantine Lekapenos was exiled to the island of Samothrace, where he was killed while attempting to escape sometime between 946 and 948.
Constantine Gongyles was a Byzantine eunuch and court official who led a failed expedition against the Emirate of Crete in 949.
Constantine, surnamed Barbaros, was a Byzantine eunuch servant who rose to become parakoimomenos of the Byzantine emperor Leo VI the Wise in 911–912, displacing his own former master, Samonas. He held again the post during the regency of Zoe Karbonopsina in 913–919, where he played an important role in the governance of the state. He lost his post after he supported his relative Leo Phokas the Elder in his unsuccessful rivalry with Romanos I Lekapenos over control of the throne, but he was later appointed to the post of primikerios by Lekapenos.
Lekapenos or Lakapenos (Λακαπηνός), usually Latinized as Lecapenus, feminine form Lekapene (Λεκαπηνή), was the name of a prominent, assumed, Byzantine-Armenian family of humble background which intermarried with and almost managed to usurp the throne from the Macedonian dynasty in the first half of the 10th century.
The Vita Basilii is an anonymous biography of the Emperor Basil I, the first Byzantine emperor of the Macedonian dynasty. It is the second work in the collection known as Theophanes Continuatus. It may have been written around 950 by the emperor's grandson, the Emperor Constantine VII, or perhaps by Theodore Daphnopates.
