Byzantine Empire under the Amorian dynasty

Last updated
Byzantine Empire
820–867
4KAMORIAN.png
The Byzantine Empire in 864 AD after the Christianization of Bulgaria.
Capital Constantinople
Common languages Greek
GovernmentBureaucratic semi-elective monarchy
Emperor  
 820–829
Michael II
 829–842
Theophilos
 842–867
Michael III
History 
 accession of Michael II
820
 assassination of
Michael III
867
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Blank.png Byzantine Empire under the Nikephorian dynasty
Byzantine Empire under the Macedonian dynasty Blank.png
First Bulgarian Empire Blank.png
Emirate of Crete Blank.png
Emirate of Sicily Blank.png

The Byzantine Empireunder theAmoriandynasty (or Phrygian dynasty) ruled from 820 to 867. The Amorian dynasty continued the policy of restored iconoclasm (the "Second Iconoclasm") started by the previous non-dynastic emperor Leo V in 813, until its abolition by Empress Theodora with the help of Patriarch Methodios in 842. [1] The continued iconoclasm further worsened relations between the East and the West, which were already bad following the papal coronations of a rival line of "Roman Emperors" beginning with Charlemagne in 800. Relations worsened even further during the so-called Photian Schism, when Pope Nicholas I challenged Photios' elevation to the patriarchate. However, the era also saw a revival in intellectual activity which was marked by the end of iconoclasm under Michael III, which contributed to the upcoming Macedonian Renaissance.

Contents

During the Second Iconoclasm, the Empire began to see systems resembling feudalism being put in place, with large and local landholders becoming increasingly prominent, receiving lands in return for military service to the central government. [2] Similar systems had been in place in the Roman Empire ever since the reign of Severus Alexander during the third century, when Roman soldiers and their heirs were granted lands on the condition of service to the Emperor. [3]

Michael II

Michael was originally a high-ranking soldier serving under Emperor Michael I Rangabe of the Nikephorian dynasty. He aided Leo V in his overthrow of Michael I, but, as relations worsened between Leo and Michael, Leo eventually sentenced Michael to death. In response, Michael led a conspiracy that resulted in the assassination of Leo on Christmas 820. Taking the throne for himself, Michael II was immediately faced with a revolt by Thomas the Slav, which became a civil war that lasted four years and almost cost Michael the throne. Michael continued the practice of iconoclasm, which had been reinvigorated by Leo V.

The reign of Michael II saw two major military disasters that would have permanent effects on the Empire: the beginning of the Muslim conquest of Sicily, and the loss of Crete to the Saracens.

Michael was not popular among the Orthodox clergy, but he would prove himself a competent statesman and administrator, eventually bringing much-needed stability to the Empire following decades of strife and warfare and even restorations of the military. He was succeeded by his only son, Theophilos, upon his death in 829.

Theophilos

Theophilos succeeded Michael II in 829 and was the last Byzantine Emperor to support iconoclasm. [4] Theophilos waged war against the Arabs throughout the entirety of his reign, being forced to war on two fronts as Sicily had been taken and Arab armies continued to march from the East as well. The defence after the invasion of Anatolia by the Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma'mun in 830 was led by the Emperor himself, but the Byzantines were defeated and lost several fortresses. In 831 Theophilos retaliated by leading a large army into Cilicia and capturing Tarsus. The Emperor returned to Constantinople in triumph, but in the autumn he was defeated in Cappadocia. Another defeat in the same province in 833 forced Theophilos to sue for peace, which he obtained the next year, after the death of Al-Ma'mun.

War continued, and Theophilos personally led armies into Mesopotamia in 837, capturing Melitene and Arsamosata with a massive army numbering 70,000. [5] Further battles and attacks would take place until Theophilos died of disease in 842. He was succeeded by his son Michael III.

Michael III

Michael III would play a vital role in the Byzantine resurgence of the 9th century. As Michael was merely two years old when his father died, the Empire was governed by a regency headed by his mother Theodora, her uncle Sergios, and the minister Theoktistos. The empress had iconodule sympathies and deposed the patriarch, John VII, replacing him with the iconodule Methodios I in 843. This put an end to the second spell of iconoclasm. [6] Michael and his supporters overthrew this regency in 857, becoming Emperor proper. [7]

His reign would see continued war against the Arabs and due to his pleasure-loving nature he was nicknamed "the Drunkard" by later chroniclers sympathetic to his murderer and successor Basil I.

Family tree

Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Nikephoros I
emperor of the Romans
802-811
NIKEPHORIAN DYNASTY
Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Irene of Athens
empress of the Romans
797-802
Theophano of Athens Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Staurakios
emperor of the Romans
811
Prokopia Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Michael I Rangabe
emperor of the Romans
811-813
Bardanes Tourkos Maria of Amnia Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Constantine VI
emperor of the Romans
780-797
Anastasios Martinakios
Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Leo V the Armenian
emperor of the Romans
813-820
Barka1.Thekla Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Michael II
emperor of the Romans
820-829
AMORIAN/PHRYGIAN
DYNASTY
2.Euphrosyne Inger Martinakios
Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
(1) Theophilos
emperor of the Romans
829-842
saint Theodora
from Paphlagonia
(daughter of
Inger Martinakios)
Anna
nun
Constantine
prince
Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Michael III
emperor of the Romans
842-867
Eudokia Ingerina Device of the Palaiologos Dynasty.svg
Basil I
emperor of the Romans
867-886
MACEDONIAN DYNASTY

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael III</span> Byzantine emperor from 842 to 867

Michael III, also known as Michael the Drunkard, was Byzantine emperor from 842 to 867. Michael III was the third and traditionally last member of the Amorian dynasty. He was given the disparaging epithet the Drunkard by the hostile historians of the succeeding Macedonian dynasty, but modern historical research has rehabilitated his reputation to some extent, demonstrating the vital role his reign played in the resurgence of Byzantine power in the 9th century. He was also the youngest person to bear the imperial title, as well as the youngest to succeed as senior emperor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael II</span> Byzantine emperor from 820 to 829

Michael II, called the Amorian and the Stammerer, reigned as Byzantine Emperor from 25 December 820 to his death on 2 October 829, the first ruler of the Amorian dynasty.

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Bardas was a Byzantine noble and high-ranking minister. As the brother of Empress Theodora, he rose to high office under Theophilos. Although sidelined after Theophilos's death by Theodora and Theoktistos, in 855 he engineered Theoktistos's murder and became the de facto regent for his nephew, Michael III. Rising to the rank of Caesar, he was the effective ruler of the Byzantine Empire for ten years, a period which saw military success, renewed diplomatic and missionary activity, and an intellectual revival that heralded the Macedonian Renaissance. He was assassinated in 866 at the instigation of Michael III's new favourite, Basil the Macedonian, who a year later would usurp the throne for himself and install his own dynasty on the Byzantine throne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodora (wife of Theophilos)</span> Byzantine empress (c. 815 – c. 867 CE)

Theodora, sometimes called Theodora the Armenian or Theodora the Blessed, was Byzantine empress as the wife of Byzantine emperor Theophilos from 830 to 842 and regent for the couple's young son Michael III, after the death of Theophilos, from 842 to 856. She is sometimes counted as an empress regnant, who actually ruled in her own right, rather than just a regent. Theodora is most famous for bringing an end to the second Byzantine Iconoclasm (814–843), an act for which she is recognized as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Though her reign saw the loss of most of Sicily and failure to retake Crete, Theodora's foreign policy was otherwise highly successful; by 856, the Byzantine Empire had gained the upper hand over both the Bulgarian Empire and the Abbasid Caliphate, and the Slavic tribes in the Peloponnese had been forced to pay tribute, all without decreasing the imperial gold reserve.

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Manuel the Armenian, was a prominent Byzantine general of Armenian origin, active from c. 810 until his death. After reaching the highest military ranks, a palace conspiracy forced him to seek refuge in the Abbasid court in 829. He returned to Byzantine service the next year, receiving the position of Domestic of the Schools from Emperor Theophilos, who had married his niece Theodora. Manuel remained in the post throughout Theophilos's reign, and reportedly saved the emperor's life in the Battle of Anzen in 838. According to one report, he died on 27 July 838 of wounds received during the battle, but other sources record his survival past this date, ascribing him a major role in the regency that governed the empire after Theophilos's death, and report that he died some time around 860.

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Thekla, latinized as Thecla, was a princess of the Amorian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire. The daughter and eldest child of Byzantine emperor Theophilos and empress Theodora, she was proclaimed augusta in the late 830s. After Theophilos's death in 842 and her mother becoming regent for Thekla's younger brother Michael III, Thekla was associated with the regime as co-empress alongside Theodora and Michael.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantine (son of Theophilos)</span> Byzantine co-emperor in the 830s

Constantine was an infant prince of the Amorian dynasty who briefly ruled as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire sometime in the 830s, alongside his father Theophilos. Most information about Constantine's short life and titular reign is unclear, although it is known that he was born sometime in the 820s or 830s and was installed as co-emperor soon after his birth. He died sometime before 836, possibly after falling into a palace cistern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Council of Constantinople (843)</span> Local Christian Council in Constantinople

The Council of Constantinople of 843 or the Synod of Constantinople of 843 was a local council of Christian bishops that was convened in Constantinople in AD 843 by the Byzantine regent Theodora. This council, convened to refute iconoclasm, is still celebrated on the first Sunday of Great Lent in the Eastern Orthodox Church, as decreed by the council. Attendees under the presidency of Patriarch Methodios I met on 11 March 843 and symbolically processed from the Church Blachernae to the Church of Hagia Sophia bearing an icon of the Mother of God.

References

  1. Parry, Kenneth (1996). Depicting the Word: Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries. Leiden and New York: Brill. pp 11-15. ISBN   90-04-10502-6.
  2. A. A. Vasiliev, History of the Byzantine Empire: 324–1453, p. 564.
  3. A.A. Vasiliev, History of the Byzantine Empire, p. 566.
  4. Timothy E. Gregory, A History of Byzantium, (Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2010), 227.
  5. W. Treadgold, A History of the Byzantine State and Society, 440
  6. Treadgold, p. 447
  7. Treadgold, p. 450