The Theme System; Leo III, Constantine V & Iconoclasm; Pepin & the Papacy

 Leo 3

• Getting Asia Minor back from Arabs

• Law codes Ekloga: practical → mutilation

• Military and theme leadership before coming to power

• Theme revolts → dividing themes up to lower commander power

• Autocracy

Icons and Theory of Icons

• There were oppositions to them

• Trying to connect humans to divine

• More prevalent and important in the 500s

• Expressing personal devotion

Outbreak of Iconoclasm

• Leo III against them

• Schism because papacy liked them

• Struggle with other religions? East and West?

• Probably just due to Leo’s beliefs 

• Against public display and not creators

Constantine 5

• Generally successful, good military

• Philisophical and theological ideas about Iconoclasm

• Council of Hiera: Iconoclasm was orthodox

• Persecuting iconophiles

Leo 4 the Khazar

• Constantine 5 and Khazar wife’s son

• Hereditary succession

• Iconoclast but didn’t persecute, wife Irene was Iconophile

Succession by Cooptation

• Sons as co emperors

• Leo III making sure his son Constantine would later become emperor

• Wife as Augusta to solidify

Ecologa

• Selection of practical laws

• Modified Justinian law codes

• Sexual crimes

Azyma

• Bread

• Later schism

• Tangibility of divine

Greek Opposition to Latin Liturgical Practices

Excommunication threat

Refugees in Southern Italy and Sicily

• Escaping foreign invasions and iconoclasm

• Large Greek Byzantine immigrant population

The Contract of Marriage

• Extended families, carefully selected marriage

• Property was more important than love

• Teenagers (but shorter lifespans)

• Property control…widows could have it

Emperor Charles

• Franks

• Wars against other groups in Italy

• Slavs, Avars

• Describing personality

Constans 2: As Emperor

• Dealing with religious division, monotheletism

• Issuing Tipos forbidding discussion of monotheletism or monoenergy

• Pope opposed this emperor interference

  • Condemned Heraclius and Constans 2 at council

  • Arrested, exiled, died

Constans 2: East

• Trying for stability and anti-muslim in Italy

• New HQ in Sicily

• Excess, lavish

• Officials turned on him and killed him

Constantine 4: With Arabs

• Attacks continued

• Fleets and staying in areas

• Byzantines stood strong

• Greek Fire

  • Pitch and petroleum

  • Stuck to everything, ignited to flame

  • Burning the sea

  • “Lightning from Heaven”

  • Used until end of empire

Constantine 4: 6th Ecumenical Council

• Constantinople

• Condemned monotheletism and Heraclius edict

• Still monophysite issue

• Lingering question: can the emperor control doctrine?

Justinian 2: Council at Trullo / Quinsext

• Dome of Constantinople palace

• Trying to finish up 5th and 6th

• Clerical celibacy?

  • West: Yes, but not implemented

  • Decided priests shouldn’t be celibate, but others should

• Pope Sergios didn’t want to accept a lot of ideas

• More autonomy for monasteries

Justinian 2: As Emperor

• Cruel

• Wanted to be even better than Justinian

• Trying to be all-powerful, taxing especially rich

• Overthrown by coalition, mutilation

  • Opposed by everyone

  • Church was only vaguely happy

• Supposed to not be able to be emperor again

Justinian 2: Post

• Leadidius

• Tiberios 2

• Neither that successful or supportive

Justinian 2: Return to Throne

• Help of Bulgarians

• Gold nose: Rhinoetus

• Pope Constantine trying to fix previous council

• Last pope to go to Constantinople in Byzantine times

• Lots of execution

• Another revolution, executing him and ending dynasty

Justinian 2: Post for Real

• Philipicus

• Anastasios 2

• Theodosius 3

• Generally incompetent and brutal

• Leo 3 from Anatolian theme overthrew for “Isaurian” dynasty

  • Not actually from there

Theme System: Inheriting from Heraclian Dynasty

• Theme system

• Thema: military unit → geographic area

• Soldiers providing service, getting land in exchange

• Using revenues for military materials at the start of fighting

• Idea of soldiers defending their own areas

• Getting taxes from them

  • Mostly for military son

  • Giving women in family too, peasant farmer class arises

Theme System: Theme Roles

• Dux: Duke

• Strategos: Commander/general

• Drongarios: Admiral

Theme System: Opsikion Theme

• Defending capital

• Had a dux

• In present Turkey

Theme System: Anatolikon Theme

• Eastern troops

• Anatolia (Turkey)

• Had a Strategos

Theme System: Armenukan Theme

• In old Armenia

• Armenian settlers

Theme System: Carabisiani Theme

• Asia Minor shore

• Had a drongarios

Theme System: Hellas Theme

• Greek area, european

• Defending from western side of Constantinople

Theme System: Overall

• More militarization over time

• Kept empire afloat with Islamic threat

• Emergence of strong free peasants

• Population transport with conflict

  • Ex: Plopping slavs in Asia Minor

  • Became free peasants owning private property

  • NOT the same as feudalism

• Military service in exchange for land, legal agreement

• Growing autonomy → farmer’s law codes

• Always population to replenish areas (slavs)

• Could transfer ownership, but not sell, hard to move

• Those who left: “fleers”

• For lower classes, not large estates

Theme System: Taxes

• Each family

• Land taxes

• One bill for each village

• If one person defaults, others pay

• Allelenglon: Collective responsibility → Way to use abandoned land until laws went against that

• Almost always paid

  • Economic backbone

  • Military and agricultural too

Western Europe

• Different than Byzantium

• Serfdom

• Ethnic slaves → Byzantium did not have this, only military captives who could buy or time way out 

Theme System: Slavs and Etc

• More migration

• Beginnings of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia

• Bulgars ruling Slavs, eventually became Slavs

• “Slavification” in Asia Minor

• Invading Greece, greekified Slavs

• Central issue in foreign policy

• Avars were following them

Leo 3: Locations

• No control of North Africa

• Hardly any territory in Spain area → Visigoths disappeared

• Sicily and Italy under threat

• Defense overall

• Had Asia Minor and Italian coast

• Inheriting worsened empire

Leo 3: Getting Power

• Overthrew Theodosius 3

• Welcomed by empire

Leo 3: Threat

• Arab-Muslim siege on land for Constantinope (180,000)

• 2500 ships surrounding harbor

• Economic and location appeal of Constantinople → bridge to conquer everything

• Walls, storage of food and water → well-prepared

• Preparing for offense

• Land alliance: Bulgars

• Navy was doing well

• Arabs had been weakened → attacked them from all sides

• Byzantine land and sea victory

• Greek Fire

• Last ever Arab-Muslim threat on Constantinople

Leo 3: Importance of Saving Constantinople

• Other battle gets more attention

• Blocking Arab-Muslims from invading Asia Minor and Europe

• Leo’s biggest early success

Leo 3: Iconoclasm

• Dividing into iconoclasts and iconodules/iconophiles

• Argument that Christian icons were not valid — pray to wood?

• Large variety in images and value

• People lighting candles and praying

• “Idol worshippers” like pagans

• Thought Islam was a punishment on Christianity for using icons → wanted to banish to ensure success

Before Iconoclasm: Ecloga

• Most important laws from Codex Justinianus

• Greek

• Physical punishments for the 1st time

  • 140 years

  • Not sure if they’re carried out for regular people

• Constantine 5 (son) also involved as co-emperor

• Impact on Byzantines and slavs in the Balkans

Iconoclasm: Why

• Not real worship

• Being punished by Islam

Iconoclasm: Imposing

• Doctrine by decree

• Only emperor’s authority

• Vulnerability near Asia Minor with monophysites (likely Leo as well)…was he aiming to secure border?

Iconoclasm: Final Battle of Two Sections

• Monophysites: iconoclast, divinity of Christ

• Trying to ensure loyalty to empire in this area

Iconoclasm: Money

• Lack

• Monasteries were rich

• Large production of Icons

• If monks were anti-iconoclast, Leo could seize property/money

Iconoclasm: Movement Against Images

• Taking down large Christ on city gate

• Faced mob, rebellion

• Eventually was able to take down

• Established iconoclasm in empire, legally

• All iconoclasts: no Christ, saints, Virgin Mary

• Extreme: other symbols like animals and nature…no. Cross only

Iconoclasm: Acceptance/Support of It

• More east than west

• Hierarchy of church in east was often against

• Punishing monasteries for rejection, seizing wealth

• Public burning of images

• Papal resistance → all popes

• Bishop of Constantinople pushed back (rare) → Germans to Anastasios who agreed…excommunicated by Pope

• Trying to arrest Pope Gregory for rejection…then tried to take away jurisdiction in territories and give to Constantinople bishop

• Pope had been collecting church donations…now going to Constantinople

• Weakened relationship between Pope and emperor → Charlemagne later

• Major break in Christianity

Iconoclasm: Women

• Opposed it

• Images had given them control over faith when they had less of a role in church

Constantine 5: Rebellion

• Had to put down

• Against iconoclasm

• Emperor was a hardcore iconoclast

Constantine 5: Impelementation

• Ruthless on monasteries

• Public humiliation of monks

Constantine 5: Rome

• Lombards all around

• Emperor would only send troops if Pope agreed with Iconoclasm

• Looking elsewhere for support → Franks with Pepin

• Pepin needed Christian, or papal approval

• Deal: Pepin would get this and help

• Pepin upheld this and defeated Lombards

• Decided to give land he’d conquered to Pope → Donation of Pepin

• Wasn’t for church, just Pope personally

• Pepin wanted Pope to take care of himself…but now always trying for this territory → papal states…Vatican City

• Cemented connection between Papacy and Franks

Constantine 5: Donation of Constantine

• Pope had imperial authority in west

• Could choose a new emperor

• Whether it was legit, Popes continued to use it

• Later learned that its latin was not original to 300s

• Angered Constantine 5

Constantine 5: Council

• Wanted bishop backup for iconoclasm

• Scripture justification

  • 10 commandments

  • Other proof

• Clarifying earthly matter cannot be an image of divine

• Bread and wine

Constantine 5: Demascus’ Opposition

• Chalcedon

• God created all earthly matter…

• People in images were on earth

• Scriptures are matter

Constantine 5: Legitimacy Questions and Iconoclasm

• Idea had weakened

• Byzantine influence in west as well

• More connection to King of Franks for Popes

• Synod: Condemning iconoclasm

• Not talking to or dating acts with emperors

Constantine 5: Succession

• Had married a Khazar princess

• Marriage for political advantage

• Trying to find a Greek wife for son Leo 4

• Iconophiles in Greece, Athens

• Irene: powerful family

• Didn’t care about her views…thought Leo 4 would have all the power