Anastasius I Dicorus (Ancient Greek:Ἀναστάσιος,romanized: Anastásios;c. 431 – 9 July 518) wasRoman emperor from 491 to 518. A career civil servant, he came to the throne at the age of 61 after being chosen byAriadne, the wife of his predecessor,Zeno. His reign was characterized by reforms and improvements in the empire's government, finances, economy and bureaucracy.[3] The resulting stable government, reinvigorated monetary economy and sizeable budget surplus allowed the empire to pursue more ambitious policies under his successors, most notablyJustinian I.[4] Since many of Anastasius' reforms proved long-lasting, his influence over the empire endured for centuries.
Anastasius was aMonophysite Christian and his personal religious tendencies caused tensions throughout his reign in the empire that was becoming increasingly divided along religious lines.[5][6] He was the lastnon-Chalcedonian to rule theRoman Empire.
Anastasius was born atDyrrachium; the date is unknown, but is thought to have been no later than 431. He was born into anIllyro-Roman family.[7][8] Anastasius had one black eye and one blue eye (heterochromia), and for that reason he was nicknamedDicorus (Ancient Greek:Δίκορος,romanized: Díkoros, "two-pupiled").[9] Before becoming emperor, Anastasius was asilentiary.[10][11]
Anastasius is known to have had a brother namedPaulus, who served asconsul in 496.[12] With a woman known as Magna, Paulus was father to Irene, who marriedOlybrius. This Olybrius was the son ofAnicia Juliana andAreobindus Dagalaifus Areobindus.[13] The daughter of Olybrius and Irene was named Proba. She marriedProbus and was mother to a younger Juliana. This younger Juliana married her possible relative another Anastasius, son ofAnastasius and maternal grandson ofTheodora, and was mother of Areobindus, Placidia, and a younger Proba, who married (Flavius) Anastasius, born in 530, and mothered Areobindus, born in 550, and Placidia, born in 552 and wife ofJohn Mystacon.[14][15] Another nephew of Anastasius wasProbus, consul in 502.[16] Anastasius' sister, Caesaria, marriedSecundinus, and gave birth toHypatius andPompeius.[16]Anastasius Paulus Probus Moschianus Probus Magnus, consul in 518, was a great-nephew of Anastasius. His daughter Juliana later marriedMarcellus, a brother ofJustin II.[14] The extensive family may well have included several viable candidates for the throne.[17]
In the weeks following the death ofZeno (491), crowds gathered in theHippodrome of Constantinople and demanded aChalcedonian and properly Roman successor, chanting "Give the Empire an Orthodox emperor! Give the Empire a Roman Emperor!"[11] Under such pressure,Ariadne, Zeno's widow, turned to Anastasius. Anastasius was in his sixties at the time of his ascension to the throne. Ariadne chose Anastasius over Zeno's brotherLonginus,[4] which upset the Isaurians. Once he took office, Anastasius exiled Longinus and purged a number of Isaurian officials from government.[19] Religiously, Anastasius' sympathies were with the Monophysites.[4] Consequently, as a condition of his accession, thepatriarch of Constantinople required that he pledge not to repudiate theCouncil of Chalcedon.[20]
Ariadne married Anastasius on 20 May 491,[21] shortly after his accession on 11 April.[22][23][24] He gained popular favour by a judicious remission of taxation, in particular by abolishing the hated tax on receipts, which was mostly paid by the poor. He displayed great vigour and energy in administering the affairs of the empire.[25][26] His reforms improved the empire's tax base and pulled it from financial depression and bleak morale. By the end of his reign, it is claimed that the treasury had 320,000 lb gold reserve.[27]
Not long after his accession, thecircus factions caused riots and set fires around the Hippodrome. Though its exact cause is unclear, the riot was pacified when Anastasius replaced thecity prefect Julian with his brother-in-law Secundinus.[19]
The Isaurian War (492–497) was instigated by theIsaurian supporters of Longinus, the brother of Zeno, who was passed over for the throne in favour of Anastasius, and local discontents. The banished Isaurian officials, led by the ex-bishopConon and former governorLilingis, gathered in Isauria and mounted a revolt.[30] Their defeat byJohn the Scythian andJohn the Hunchback in theBattle of Cotyaeum in 492 broke the back of the revolt, butguerrilla warfare continued in the Isaurian Mountains for several years.[25][31] The resistance hinged upon the Isaurians' retention of the mountain strongholds.[32] Anastasius passed economic legislations in the mid-490s, which suggests that the war did not absorb all of the energy and resources of the government.[3] After five years, the Isaurian resistance was broken. Large numbers of Isaurians were forcibly relocated to Thrace to ensure that they would not revolt again.[28]
During the Anastasian War of 502–505 against theSassanid Persians, the Sassanids captured the cities ofTheodosiopolis andAmida, although the Romans later received Amida in exchange for gold. The Persian provinces also suffered severely, and a peace was concluded in 506. Anastasius afterward built the strong fortress ofDaras, which was named Anastasiopolis, to hold the Persians atNisibis in check.[29] TheBalkan provinces were denuded of troops, however, and were devastated by invasions ofBulgars. To protectConstantinople and its vicinity against them, Anastasius built theAnastasian Wall, extending from thePropontis to theBlack Sea. He converted his birthplace, Dyrrachium, into one of the most fortified cities on theAdriatic with the construction ofDurrës Castle.[1][25]
Once the relationship between the Romans theOstrogoths was restored,Italy was independently governed by the Ostrogothic rulerTheodoric, but under the conditions agreed with Anastasius, Theodoric could not make laws, mint his own coins nor appoint Goths to the consulship and civil offices. However, he had the right to promulgate edicts, and appoint Romans to the consulship and civil offices and Goths to the military offices.[33] Theodoric forged a relationship with theVisigothic kingAlaric II in Gaul. Anastasius became wary of Theodoric's imperial ambition in the West. In the Frankishrex Clovis, the emperor found an ally. Partly thanks to the formermagister militumGundobad,[34] he teamed up with Clovis to overthrow the Gothic hegemony in the West. In theFranco–Gothic War (507–511), Clovis defeated the Visigoths at theBattle of Vouillé. The threat of an invasion by the Roman army had prevented Theodoric from intervening in the battle on time to support the Visigoths in 507.[35][36] In early 508, a Roman attack actually took place in the Italian boot. Anastasius had sent an expedition force of 8,000 soldiers for this attack, but the Roman intervention was not aimed at conquest,[37][38] since it did not seek a confrontation with Theodoric's army and limited itself only to the looting of some cities in the south. The Franks were thus more successful in the war.
Law of Anastasius regulating passage throughDardanelles' customs.
Anastasius was a convincedMonophysite, but his ecclesiastical policy was moderate. He endeavoured to maintain the principle of theHenotikon of Zeno and the peace of the church.[25] Yet, in 512, perhaps emboldened after his military success against the Persians, Anastasius deposed theMetropolitan ofChalcedon and replaced him with a Monophysite. That violated his agreement with the Patriarch of Constantinople and precipitated riots in Chalcedon.[4] The following year, the generalVitalian started a rebellion, quickly defeated an imperial army and marched on Constantinople.[4] With the army closing in, Anastasius gave Vitalian the title ofCommander of the Army of Thrace and began communicating with the Pope on a potential end to theAcacian schism.[4] Two years later, GeneralMarinus attacked Vitalian and forced him and his troops to the northern part of Thrace. After the conclusion of the conflict, Anastasius had undisputed control of the empire until his death in 518.[39]
Goldtremissis (one-third of a solidus) of Anastasius I
TheAnonymous Valesianus gives a (most likely fictional) account of Anastasius attempting to predict his successor. Anastasius did not know which of his three nephews would succeed him and so he put a message under one of three couches and had his nephews take seats in the room. He believed that the nephew who sat on the couch with the message would be his heir. However, two of his nephews sat on the same couch, and the one with the concealed message remained empty. After putting the matter to God in prayer, he determined that the first person to enter his room the next morning would be the next emperor, and that person turned out to beJustin, the commander of theExcubitors (comes excubitorum).[40]
He became the last emperor known to beconsecrated as divus on his death. Anastasius left the Imperial treasury with 23,000,000solidi, which is 320,000 pounds of gold or 420 long tons (430 t).[47] Justin then became the next emperor.[48]
Administrative reform and introduction of new coinage
Copper coins from Anastasius I's reign. Afollis (40nummi) on top and a halffollis (20nummi) on bottom. The value of the coins are indicated withGreek numerals where M = 40 and K = 20.
Anastasius showed an interest in administrative efficiency and issues concerning the economy.[39] Whenever it was possible in governmental transactions, he altered the method of payment from goods to hard currency. This practice decreased the potential for embezzlement and the need for transportation and storage of supplies. It also allowed for easier accounting.[4] He also applied this practice to taxes, mandating that taxes be paid with cash rather than with goods.[4] He eliminated the practice of providing soldiers with their arms and uniforms; instead he allotted each soldier a generous sum of money with which to purchase their own.[4] These changes to imperial policy seemed beneficial; taxpayers often paid smaller tax bills than they had before, while government revenue increased.[4] The increase in revenue allowed the emperor to pay soldiers a higher wage, which attracted native Roman soldiers to the military, as opposed to the barbarian and Isaurian mercenaries which some previous emperors had been forced to rely on.[49] Anastasius is often cited for his "prudent management" of the empire's finances.[50]
Amidst these reforms, though, Anastasius continued the practice of selling official positions.[3] He sold so many that he has been accused of having facilitated the creation of a civilian aristocracy. This claim is strengthened by the growth in influence of families that often held high level positions in the government, such as theApiones from Egypt. This has puzzled historians, given that the emperor seems to have minimised government corruption/inefficiency in other areas.[3] Anastasius I also gave official positions to his close friend GeneralCeler, his brother-in-law, his brother, his nephews, and his grand-nephews.[3]
The complex monetary system of the early Byzantine Empire, which suffered a partial collapse in the mid-5th century, was revived by Anastasius in 498. The new system involved three denominations of gold, thesolidus and its half (semissis) and third (tremissis); and five denominations of copper, thefollis (worth 40nummi) and its fractions down to anummus. It would seem that the new currency quickly became an important part of trade with other regions. A follis coin has been found in the Charjou desert, north of theRiver Oxus.[51] Four solidi from his reign have been recovered as far from the Roman Empire as China. China might seem an unlikely trading partner, but the Romans and the Chinese were probably able to do business via Central Asian merchants travelling along theSilk Roads. Some Roman trading partners attempted to replicate the coins of Anastasius. The currency created by Anastasius stayed in use and circulated widely for long after his reign.[51]
^Focanti, Lorenzo (1988).The fragments of late antique patria(PDF) (Thesis). University of Gottingen. p. 214.Christodorus' flourishing is dated to the reign of Anastasius I Dicorus (491–518 AD). Born circa 431 AD, the Illyrian soldier rose to the throne thanks to his marriage to Ariadne, the widow of the preceding ruler Zeno.
^Christian Settipani,Continuité des élites à Byzance durant les siècles obscurs. Les princes caucasiens et l'Empire du VIe au IXe siècle, Paris, de Boccard, 2006, 26 vii 2014
^The date is based onZonaras'(Book XIV, 3.24) statement that the marriage took place "forty days after Zeno's burial" by assuming that it occurred the day after his death.
^Zacharias Rhetor,Book VI: "And Anastasius, his successor, received the kingdom on the fourth day of the Great Week."Easter Day fell on 7 April.
^Wijendaele (2024), pag. 196 states: "Gundobad as a person is most eligible as a bridge between Clovis and the Roman emperor in Constantinople. His titles and the legal texts show that his domain was still part of the Roman Empire".
^Wijnendaele (2024), pag. 212-213 states:The moment Theodoric had an expedition ready to help Alaric II for help over the Alps in 507, he had to keep the same troops ready because of the Roman threat that apparently appeared out of nowhere in his own Italian backyard.
^Marcellinus Comes518: "The emperor Anastasius died suddenly, aged more than eighty. He reigned for twenty-seven years, two months and twenty-nine days [inclusive]."
^Theophanes Confessor518: "On 9 April of the ninth indiction Anastasios the impious emperor died after ruling for 27 years and 7 months." (partially inaccurate)
^Chronicon Paschale518: "Anastasius fell sick... gave up the spirit, aged 90 years and five months. [Justin] became emperor in the consulship ofMagnus, in the month Panemus, which is also July, on the 9th."
^John MalalasXVI, 22. "He was terrified and breathed his last, at the age of 90 years and five months."
^Laiou, Angeliki (2002).The Economic History of Byzantium. Washington DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collections. p. 940.ISBN978-0-88402-288-6.
^abPyatnitsky, Yuri (1 January 2006). "New Evidence for Byzantine Activity in the Caucasus During the Reign of the Emperor Anastasius I".American Journal of Numismatics.18:113–122.JSTOR43580526.
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