Staurakios
Staurakios | |
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Nikephorian | |
Father | Nikephoros I |
Nikephorian dynasty | ||
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Chronology | ||
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Succession | ||
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Staurakios (
Staurakios took part in an invasion of the
Biography
Early life and background
Staurakios was born in the early 790s, probably between 791 and 793, to
Treadgold suggests that Nikephoros had witnessed "a good deal of financial mismanagement" before he seized power, but was unable to prevent it at that time. Indeed, one of his first acts as emperor was to seize control of a secret treasury reserve from Irene. Soon after, he took measures to increase the treasury, such as canceling tribute payments to the Abbasid Caliphate, an "exorbitant and humiliating payment", accepting the risk of war. Later, he ended the suspension of urban tariffs and estate taxes that Irene had implemented. Treadgold comments that the suspension of Irene's popular fiscal policies was bold, and risked reducing his own popularity, but that Nikephoros must have considered them too expensive to continue, and was aware that the capital was relatively undertaxed compared to the rest of the empire.[7] He took similar efforts to tackle the issue of corruption, founding a new court where he heard complaints levied by the poor against the elites.[8] While his supporters praised him for championing the poor, opponents declaimed him for his measures against the wealthy. Some of these opponents also alleged greed, but Treadgold comments that this likely referred to the effort Nikephoros put into collecting revenues, as the man himself was famously austere.[9]
Reign as co-emperor
Staurakios was not given an official government position upon his father's accession to the throne, but, in the summer of 803, a general named
Although his revolt was put down by early September, it convinced Nikephoros to consolidate his hold on the throne and secure the succession, by declaring Staurakios co-emperor and heir, which he did on
When Tarasios died in 806, Nikephoros selected a man named Nikephoros, who was residing in a monastery, to succeed him. For the installation ceremony of Nikephoros as patriarch, where the new patriarch was tonsured, Staurakios was sent to represent his father.[18] That same year, the Byzantine Empire faced a massive invasion from the Abbasid Caliphate, which forced Nikephoros to accept humiliating peace terms,[19][20] paying an annual tribute of 30,000 nomismata and six great gold medals,[20] three for Nikephoros and three for Staurakios.[21]
Except for the installation ceremony of Patriarch Nikephoros, Staurakios is not mentioned in the sources until 807,[22][23][18] when his father arrange Staurakios' marriage, and thus held an imperial bride show to select a wife on 20 December 807.[22][23] This was the second recorded Byzantine bride show, after the one held by Constantine VI (r. 780–797) by his mother, Empress Irene.[24] During the bride show, Theophano of Athens was selected, likely due to the fact that she was a kinswoman of Irene,[25] and therefore would help add legitimacy to both Nikephoros' and Staurakios' rule.[1][22][23] According to Theophanes, she was chosen despite the fact that she was already engaged to a man, whom she had slept with premaritally, and was not the most beautiful of the women presented at the bride show.[1][22][b] Staurakios and Theophano married that same month.[3]
After his marriage, Staurakios is not mentioned again until 811, when Nikephoros prepared his invasion of the
Rule as sole emperor
The remaining Byzantine forces, including a severely wounded Staurakios, retreated to
Staurakios gave a speech to the surviving troops, where he insulted Nikephoros' military judgment, before being acclaimed by the army c. 28 July 811.[1][31] Bury conjectures the date was 28 July 811, based upon Theophanes' account that his reign lasted for two months and six days, but other sources give the reign as two months and eight days.[32] The historian Christian Laes comments that it is difficult to assess the condition that Staurakios was in, and how he was able to deliver his virulent speech.[30]
Almost immediately after Staurakios acceded to the throne, Michael was pressured to usurp it, due to the legitimacy granted to him by his marriage to Staurakios' sister Prokopia and his military abilities. Theoktistos and others attempted to convince Michael to take the throne, although he repeatedly refused at this time,[33] citing an oath of loyalty he had made to both Nikephoros and Staurakios, as well as his family ties to Staurakios via his marriage to Prokopia.[34] The historians Edward Foord and George Finlay comment that the army seemed willing to stand by Staurakios, but for his mortal wounds posing a threat to the succession of the empire,[35][36] and the enemies that had been made by the severe fiscal policies of Nikephoros. As Finlay argues, a change in administration implied a change of emperor, causing many who would profit from a change of ruler to support Michael.[37]
Staurakios was brought by
The severity of his injury, and the lack of any children to nominate as heirs led to a debate about who would succeed him, as his impending death was considered a certainty.
On 1 October 811, Staurakios summoned Stephanos, whom he trusted likely because Stephanos was the first to proclaim Staurakios emperor. He proposed
Staurakios lived another three months before dying of gangrene on 11 January 812. He was buried in the Monastery of Braka, which was given to Theophano by Prokopia.[1][50][51] There were allegations that he was poisoned by his sister Prokopia, rather than dying of gangrene, reported by the Syriac sources—the Chronicle of 813 and Michael the Syrian—and the chronicle of the Petros of Alexandria. Theophanes considered these rumors possible and mentions that Theophano herself considered these rumors to be true.[3] According to the De Ceremoniis, a 10th-century book describing Byzantine courtly protocol and history written by Constantine VII, Staurakios was buried in a white marble sarcophagus that would later be shared with Theophano.[3][52]
Historiography
Because of the brevity of Staurakios' reign, and the shortcomings and bias of the sources, much of his life is unknown.[1][53] The main source for the reigns of both Nikephoros I and Staurakios is Theophanes' Chronographia, which was tainted by Theophanes' dislike of the former, although it does hint that Staurakios possessed a talent for military strategy.[1] Although many historians believe that both Nikephoros and Staurakios have been falsely portrayed as malevolent, few other sources exist for their reign. Most other sources take the form of short references, which provide little insight, and include many errors, especially the Syriac Chronicle of 813. While Michael the Syrian, Bar Hebraeus, Michael Psellos, and the Chronicle of 813 all record the events immediately before the death of Staurakios, the death itself, and ascribe a cause, they are generally inaccurate. Indeed, the Chronicle of 813 even mistakes the time of death of Staurakios, giving it as two months into his reign, rather than nearly six months after the battle.[1] Petros of Alexandria, in his A Brief Survey of Years, which in most areas merely gives the length of reigns for the Byzantine emperors, mentions the alleged poisoning of Staurakios by Prokopia.[26]
Numismatics
The
Legacy
Staurakios largely existed in the shadow of Nikephoros; little is known about him. Staurakios only reigned for just over two months, and was therefore unable to leave a mark on the empire as his father had done. Hints from the Chronographia suggest that Staurakios wielded strategic understanding, and perhaps that Staurakios was as strong-willed as his father, but his character is otherwise unknown. For these reasons, historian Matthew Marsh comments that "he remains a brief and shadowy figure in the history of the Empire".[1] Both Nikephoros and Staurakios were generally successful in maintaining the borders of the Byzantine Empire, although they did not achieve much military success, occasionally being forced to make humiliating concessions to powerful enemies, such as the Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid.[22]
References
Notes
- ^ Staurakios' mother is often referred to as Prokopia due to confusion with her daughter, Prokopia.[1][2][3]
- ^ The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium states that Staurakios "raped two beautiful girls",[26] but this is a misreading of Theophanes, who asserts that Nikephoros selected the two most beautiful girls from the bride show, and engaged in open debauchery with them.[1]
Primary sources
- Bar Hebraeus, Makhtbhanuth Zabhne
- Chronicle of 813
- John Skylitzes, Synopsis of Histories
- Joseph Genesius, On the Reigns of the Emperors
- Michael the Syrian, Chronicle
- Michael Psellos, Historia syntomos
- Nikephoros I of Constantinople, Breviarium Historicum
- Petros of Alexandria, A Brief Survey of Years
- Theophanes the Confessor, Chronicle
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af Marsh 2013.
- ^ a b c d Bury 1912, p. 14.
- ^ a b c d e PmbZ, Staurakios (#6866/corr.).
- ^ a b c d Treadgold 1988, p. 129.
- ^ a b c d e Treadgold 1988, p. 119.
- ^ a b c Bury 1912, p. 9 & 15.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, p. 130.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, pp. 130–131.
- ^ a b Treadgold 1988, p. 131.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, pp. 131–132.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, p. 132.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, pp. 132–133.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, p. 133.
- ^ a b c Treadgold 1988, p. 134.
- ^ Martindale 2001, Staurakios 2.
- ^ Martindale 2001, Nikephoros.
- ^ Kazhdan 1991, p. 1945.
- ^ a b Finlay 1854, pp. 112–113.
- ^ Treadgold 1988, pp. 144–146.
- ^ a b Foord 1911, p. 215.
- ^ Finlay 1854, p. 121.
- ^ a b c d e f Bury 1912, p. 15.
- ^ a b c Garland 1999, pp. 90–91.
- ^ Garland 1999, p. 81.
- ^ Herrin 2002, p. 134.
- ^ a b Kazhdan 1991, p. 1638.
- ^ Treadgold 1997, p. 429.
- ^ Bury 1912, p. 16.
- ^ Ostrogorsky 1956, p. 196.
- ^ a b c Laes 2019, p. 224.
- ^ Bury 1912, p. 16f.
- ^ a b Grierson 1973, p. 362.
- ^ a b Bury 1912, p. 17.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Martindale 2001, Michael 7.
- ^ Foord 1911, p. 217.
- ^ Finlay 1854, p. 127.
- ^ Finlay 1854, pp. 127–128.
- ^ Jenkins 1993, p. 126.
- ^ a b c Ostrogorsky 1956, p. 197.
- ^ Herrin 2002, p. 149.
- ^ a b Bury 1912, p. 19.
- ^ Christophilopoulou 1993, pp. 215–216.
- ^ Kazhdan 1991, p. 1946.
- ^ a b Garland 1999, p. 94.
- ^ Bury 1912, p. 18.
- ^ a b c Bury 1912, pp. 18–19.
- ^ Kazhdan 1991, p. 1362.
- ^ Bury 1912, p. 20.
- ^ Jenkins 1993, p. 127.
- ^ Bury 1912, pp. 16, 21.
- ^ Lawler 2004, Staurakios (p. 240).
- ^ Grierson 1962, p. 35.
- ^ Bury 1912, p. 9.
- ^ a b Grierson 1973, p. 353.
- ^ Grierson 1973, p. 178.
- ^ Grierson 1973, p. 352.
- ^ Grierson 1973, p. 8.
- ^ Vrij 2021, p. 10.
Bibliography
- ISBN 978-1-60520-421-5.
- Christophilopoulou, Aikaterina (1993). Byzantine History. Vol. 2. Amsterdam: A.M. Hakkert. ISBN 978-9025610449.
- Finlay, George (1854). History of the Byzantine and Greek Empires from 716 to 1453. Edinburgh: Blackwood. OCLC 1040899831.
- Foord, Edward (1911). The Byzantine Empire. London: A. and C. Black. OCLC 567936732.
- Garland, Lynda (1999), Byzantine Empresses: Women and Power in Byzantium, AD 527–1204, New York; London: Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-14688-3
- ISBN 978-0884020455.
- Grierson, Philip (1962). "The Tombs and Obits of the Byzantine Emperors (337–1042)". JSTOR 1291157.
- ISBN 1-56619-176-9.
- ISBN 1-84212-529-X.
- ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
- Laes, Christian (2019). "Power, Infirmity and 'Disability'. Five Case Stories on Byzantine Emperors and Their Impairments". Euroslavica. LXXVII (1–2). ISSN 0007-7712. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
- Lawler, Jennifer (2004). Encyclopedia of the Byzantine Empire. Jefferson: McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-0929-4.
- Lilie, Ralph-Johannes; Ludwig, Claudia; Pratsch, Thomas; Zielke, Beate (2013). "Staurakios". Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit Online. Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften. Nach Vorarbeiten F. Winkelmanns erstellt (in German). Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter.
- ISBN 978-0754606130.
- Marsh, Matthew (2013). "Staurakios (A. D. 811)". De Imperatoribus Romanis. Newport. Archived from the original on 1 August 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ISBN 978-0-813-51198-6.
- ISBN 978-0-8047-2630-6.
- Treadgold, Warren (1988). The Byzantine Revival, 780–842. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-1462-4.
- Vrij, Maria (7 December 2021). "Dropping the Base: Why Does Follis Production at Constantinople Appear to Cease for 24 Years between 842–866?". Eurasian Studies. 19 (1): 5–28. . Retrieved 14 September 2022.
Further reading
- ISBN 978-0-88706-564-4.
- Brooks, E. W. (1923). "Chapter V. (A) The Struggle with the Saracens (717–867)". The Cambridge Medieval History, Vol. IV: The Eastern Roman Empire (717–1453). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 119–138.
- Mango, Cyril; Scott, Roger (1997). The Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor. Byzantine and Near Eastern History, AD 284–813. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-822568-7.
- Venning, Timothy; Harris, Jonathan (2006). A Chronology of the Byzantine Empire. Basingstoke: ISBN 978-0-230-50586-5.
External links
- Media related to Stauracius at Wikimedia Commons