778 



BYZANTINE EMP1UE. 



severity nnd parsimony, ami now hy timid indulgence. 

 They finally proclaimed Phocas, one of iheir officers, 

 emperor. Mauritius was taken in his flight, and 

 put to death (603?). The vices of Phocas, nnd his 

 incapacity for government, produced the greatest 

 disorder in the empire. Heraclius, son of the go- 

 vernor of Africa, took up arms, conquered Constan- 

 tinople, and caused 1'liocas to be executed (610). He 

 distinguished himselt only in the short period of the 

 Persian war. During the first twelve years of his 

 reign, the Avziri, anil other nations of the Danube, 

 plundered the European provinces, and the Persians 

 conquered the coasts of Syria and Egypt. Having 

 finally succeeded in pacifying the Avari, he marched 

 ;ii;;iiii-t the l>er>iuns (622), and defeated them; but, 

 during this time, the Avari, who had renewed the war, 

 made an unsuccessful attack on Constantinople, in 626. 

 Taking advantage of an insurrection of the subjects of 

 Chosroes, he penetrated into the centre of Persia. By 

 the peace concluded with Siroes (628), he recovered 

 the lost provinces and the holy cross. But the Ara- 

 liiim*. \\iio, meanwhile, had become powerful under 

 Mohammed and the caliphs, conquered Phoenicia, the 

 countries on the Euphrates, Judea, Syria, and all 

 Egypt (631 61 1). Among his descendants there was 

 not one able prince. He was succeeded by his son 

 Constantine III., probably in conjunction with his 

 step-brother Heracleonas (641). The former soon 

 died, and the latter lost his crown in a rebellion, and 

 was mutilated. After him, Constans, son of Constan- 

 tine, obtained the throne (642). His sanguinary spirit 

 of persecution, and the murder of his brother Theodo- 

 sius (650), made him odious to the nation. The Ara- 

 bians, pursuing their conquests, took from him part of 

 Africa, Cyprus, and Rhodes, and defeated him even at 

 sea (653). Internal disturbances obliged him to make 

 peace. After this he left Constantinople (659), and, 

 in the following year, carried on an unsuccessful war 

 against the Lombards in , Italy, in which he lost his 

 life, at Syracuse (660). CoTistantine IV., Pogon- 

 ntus, son of Constans, vanquished his Syracusan com- 

 petitor, Mezizius, and, in the beginning of his reign, 

 shared the government with his brothers Tiberius and 

 Heraclius. The Arabians inundated all Africa and 

 Sicily, penetrated through Asia Minor into Thrace, 

 and attacked Constantinople, for several successive 

 years, by sea (G69). Nevertheless, he made peace 

 with them on favourable terms. But, on the other 

 hand, the Bulgarians obliged him to pay a tribute 

 (680). Justinian II., his son and successor, weakened 

 the power of the Maronites (685), but fought without 

 success r.gainst the Bulgarians (688), and against the 

 Arabians (692). Leontius dethroned this cruel prince, 

 had him mutilated and sent to the Tauric Chersonese 

 (695). Leontius was dethroned by Apsimar, or Ti- 

 berius III. (698), who was himself dethroned by Tre- 

 belius, king of the Bulgarians, who restored Justinian 

 to the throne (705) ; but Philippicus Bardanes rebelled 

 anew against him. With Justinian II. the race of 

 Heraclius was extinguished. The only care of Phil- 

 ippicus was the spreading of monotheism, whilst the 

 Arabians wasted Asia Minor and Thrace. In opposi- 

 tion to this prince, who was universally hated, the dif- 

 ferent armies proclaimed their leaders emperors, 

 among whom Leo the Isaurian obtained the superi- 

 ority (713, 714). Leo repelled the Arabians from 

 Constantinople, which they had attacked for almost 

 two years, ami suppressed the rebellion excited by 

 Basilius and the former emperor Anastasius. From 

 726 the abolition of the worship of images absorbed 

 his attention, and the Italian provinces were allowed 

 to become a prey to the Lombards, while the Arabi- 

 ans plundered the eastern provinces. After his death 

 (741), his son Constantine V. ascended the throne a 

 courageous, active, and noble prince. He vanquished 



his rebellious brother-in-law ArlnK-:sdus, wre^ed from 

 the Arabians part of Syria and Armenia, and over- 

 came, at last, the Bulgarians, against whom he had 

 been long unsuccessful. He died (775), ami was suc- 

 ceeded by his son Leo III., who fought successfully 

 against the Arabians, and this latter by his sou Con- 

 stantine VI. (780), whose imperious mother, Irene, his 

 guardian and associate in the government, raised a 

 powerful party by the restoration of the worship of 

 images. He endeavoured, in vain, to free himself 

 from the dependence on her and her favourite, Stau- 

 ratius, and died in 796, after having had his eyes put 

 out. The war against the Arabians and Bulgarians 

 was long continued ; against the first it was unsuc- 

 cessful. The design ofthe empress to marry Charle- 

 magne excited the discontent of the patricians, who 

 placed one of their own order, Nicephorus, upon the 

 throne (802). Irene died in a monastery. Nicepho- 

 rus became tributary to the Arabians, and fell in the 

 war against the Bulgarians (81 1). Stauratius, his son, 

 was deprived of the crown by Michael I., and he, in 

 turn, by Leo IV. (813). Leo was dethroned and put 

 to death by Michael II. (826). During the reign of 

 the latter, the Arabians conquered Sicily, Lower Italy, 

 Crete, and other countries. He prohibited the wor- 

 ship of images, as did also his son Theophilus. Theo- 

 dora, guardian of his son Michael III., put a stop to 

 the dispute about images (841). During a cruel per- 

 secution ofthe Manicnaeans, the Arabians devastated 

 the Asiatic provinces. The dissolute and extravagant 

 Michael confined his mother in a monastery. The 

 government was administered, in his name, by Bar- 

 das, his uncle, and, after the death of Bardas, by Basil, 

 who was put to death by Michael (867). Basil I., 

 who came to the throne in 867, was not altogether a 

 contemptible monarch. He died 886. The reign of 

 his learned son, Leo V., was not very happy. He 

 died 911. His son, Constantine VIII., Porphyrogeni- 

 tus, a minor when he succeeded his father, was 

 placed under the guardianship of his colleague, Al- 

 exander, and, after Alexander's death, in 912, under 

 that of his mother, Zoe. Romanus Lakopenus, his 

 general, obliged him, in 919, to share the throne with 

 him and his children. Constantine subsequently took 

 sole possession of it again, and reigned mildly, but 

 weakly. His son, Romanus II., succeeded him in 

 959, and fought successfully against the Arabians. 

 To him succeeded, in 963, his general Nicephorus, 

 who was put to death by his own general, John Zim- 

 isces (970), who carried on a successful war against 

 the Russians. Basil II., son of Romanus, succeeded 

 this good prince. He vanquished the Bulgarians and 

 the Arabians. His brother, Constantine IX. (1025), 

 was not equal to him. Romanus III. became emperor 

 (1028), by a marriage with Zoe, daughter of Constan- 

 tine. This dissolute but able princess caused her 

 husband to be executed, and successively raised to 

 the throne Michael IV. (1034), Michael V. (1041), 

 and Constantine X. (1042). Russians and Arabians 

 meanwhile devastated the empire. Her sister Theo- 

 dora succeeded her on the throne (1053). Her suc- 

 cessor, Michael VI. (1056), was dethroned by Isaac 

 Comnenus in 1057, who became a monk (1059). His 

 successor, Constantine XL, Ducas, fought success- 

 fully against the Uzes. Eudocia, his wife, guardian 

 of his sons, Michael, Andronicus, and Constantine, 

 was intrusted with the administration (1067), married 

 Romanus IV., and brought him the crown. He car- 

 ried on an unsuccessful war against the Turks, who 

 kept him for some time prisoner. Michael VII., son 

 of Constantine, deprived him of the throne (1071). 

 Michael was dethroned by Nicephorus III. (1078), 

 and the latter by Alexius I., Comnenus (1081). Un- 

 der his reign the crusades commenced. His son, 

 John II., came to the throne (1118), and fought with 



