Justinian II

Justinian II (; ; 668/69 – 4 November 711), nicknamed "the Slit-Nosed" (), Consequently, he generated enormous opposition to his reign, resulting in his deposition in 695 in a popular uprising. He only returned to the throne in 705 with the help of a Bulgarian army. His second reign was even more despotic than the first, and in 711 he was killed by mutinous soldiers.

First reign

Justinian II was the eldest son of Emperor Constantine IV and Anastasia.

As a result of Constantine IV's victories, the political situation in the Eastern provinces of the Empire was stable when Justinian ascended the throne. After a preliminary strike against the Arabs in Armenia, Justinian managed to augment the sum paid by the Umayyad Caliphs as an annual tribute, and to regain control of part of Cyprus. Additional resettlement efforts, aimed at the Mardaites and inhabitants of Cyprus, allowed Justinian to reinforce naval forces depleted by earlier conflicts.

This enabled Justinian to turn his attention to the Balkans, where much imperial territory had been lost to Slavic tribes. winning a battle in Armenia in 693. The Arabs met the challenge by bribing the new army to revolt. Most of the Slavic troops defected during the subsequent Battle of Sebastopolis, where Justinian was comprehensively defeated and compelled to flee to the Propontis. he vented his frustration by slaughtering as many of the Slavs in and around Opsikion as he could lay his hands on. Meanwhile, a Patrician named Symbatius rebelled in Armenia The Council expanded and clarified the rulings of the Fifth and Sixth ecumenical councils, but by highlighting differences between the Eastern and Western observances (such as the marriage of priests and the Catholic practice of fasting on Saturdays) it also compromised Byzantine relations with the Catholic Church. The emperor ordered Pope Sergius I arrested, but the militias of Rome and Ravenna sided with the Pope and rebelled. Justinian became a liability to Cherson and the authorities decided to return him to Constantinople in 702 or 703. They were given a home in the town of Phanagoria, at the entrance to the sea of Azov. Busir was offered a bribe by Tiberius to kill his brother-in-law, and dispatched two Khazar officials, Papatzys and Balgitzin, to do the deed. Warned by his wife, Justinian executed Papatzys and Balgitzin. He sailed in a fishing boat to Cherson, summoned his supporters, and they all sailed westwards across the Black Sea.

As the ship bearing Justinian sailed along the northern coast of the Black Sea, he and his crew became caught up in a storm somewhere between the mouths of the Dniester and the Dnieper Rivers. Unable to take the city by force, he and some companions entered through an unused water conduit under the walls of the city, roused their supporters, and seized control of the city in a midnight coup d'état. placed his feet on the necks of Tiberius and Leontius in a symbolic gesture of subjugation before ordering their execution by beheading, followed by many of their partisans, as well as deposing, blinding and exiling Patriarch Callinicus I to Rome.

Second reign

thumb|left|upright=1.5|A map of the Byzantine Empire during the 20 Years' Anarchy|alt=A colored map showing the extent of the Byzantine Empire in 717

thumb|Justinian and his son [[Tiberius (son of Justinian II)|Tiberius, whom he crowned co-emperor in 706.]]

Justinian's second reign was marked by unsuccessful warfare against Bulgaria and the Caliphate, and by cruel suppression of opposition at home. In 708 Justinian turned on Bulgarian Khan Tervel, whom he had earlier crowned caesar, and invaded Bulgaria, apparently seeking to recover the territories ceded to Tervel as a reward for his support in 705. The expedition was led to reinstate the Western Church's authority over Ravenna, which was taken as a sign of disobedience to the emperor, and revolutionary sentiment. The repression succeeded, and the new Pope Constantine visited Constantinople in 710. Justinian, after receiving Holy Communion at the hands of the pope, renewed all the privileges of the Roman Church. Exactly what passed between them on the subject of the Quinisext Council is not known. It would appear, however, that Constantine approved most of the canons. This would be the last time a Pope visited the city until the visit of Pope Paul VI to Istanbul in 1967. Cherson revolted, and under the leadership of the exiled general Bardanes the city held out against a counter-attack. Soon, the forces sent to suppress the rebellion joined it. Justinian had been on his way to Armenia, and was unable to return to Constantinople in time to defend it. He was arrested and executed in November 711, his head being exhibited in Rome and Ravenna. This was linked to Justinian's decision to unify the office of consul with that of emperor, thus making the Emperor the head of state not only de facto but also de jure. Although the office of the consulate continued to exist until Emperor Leo VI the Wise formally abolished it with Novel 94, it was Justinian who effectively ended its status as a separate political entity. He was formally appointed as Consul in 686, subsequently adopting the title for all the Julian years of his reign, consecutively numbered.

Though at times undermined by his own despotic tendencies, Justinian was a talented and perceptive ruler who succeeded in improving the standing of the Byzantine Empire.

Veneration

The veneration of Justinian II in the Orthodox Church is the subject of debate and confusion, as there are discrepancies in different Synaxarions. The Synaxarion of Constantinople from the 10th century lists the commemoration of the "Emperor Justinian", giving no reference of the emperor's life or whether it is Justinian I or II. Contemporary footnotes comment that this must be Justinian II, since Justinian I died in heresy, a position not held by the Orthodox Church today. Saint Nicodemus the Hagiorite rejects the possibility that Justinian II, a bad man who is not recorded to have died in repentance, can have been made a saint; accordingly he says that the entry in the Synaxarion must refer to Justinian I, who is also celebrated on the 15th of November with his wife Theodora.

Modern English translations and some Greek Synaxarions now list either Justinian I on August 2 or make no reference to either Justinian I or II. However, there are some Greek Synaxarions that list Justinian II.

Family

With his first wife Eudokia, Justinian II had at least one daughter, Anastasia, who was betrothed to the Bulgarian ruler Tervel. With his second wife, Theodora of Khazaria, Justinian II had a son, Tiberius, co-emperor from 706 to 711.

Fictional account

Justinian, a 1998 novel by Byzantine scholar Harry Turtledove, writing under the name H. N. Turteltaub, gives a fictionalized version of Justinian's life as retold by a fictionalized lifelong companion, the soldier Myakes. In the novel, Turtledove speculates that while in exile Justinian had reconstructive surgery done by an itinerant Indian plastic surgeon to repair his damaged nose.

First reign

Second reign

Veneration

Family

Fictional account

See also

Notes

References

Sources

Primary sources

Secondary sources

Further reading

External links