Basil I, as depicted in the 12th century Madrid Skylitzes.
The Macedonian dynasty (Greek: Μακεδονική Δυναστεία) ruled the Byzantine Empire from 867 to 1056, following the Amorian dynasty. During this period, the Byzantine state reached its greatest extent since the Early Muslim conquests, and the Macedonian Renaissance in letters and arts began. The dynasty was named after its founder, Basil I the Macedonian who came from the theme of Macedonia.
Origins
The dynasty's ethnic origin is unknown, and has been a subject of debate. During Basil's reign, an elaborate genealogy was produced that purported that his ancestors were not mere peasants, as everyone believed, but descendants of the Arsacid (Arshakuni) kings of Armenia, Alexander the Great and also of Constantine the Great.[1][2] Some Persian writers such as Hamza al-Isfahani[3] or Al-Tabari, called Basil a Saqlabi, an ethnogeographic term that usually denoted the Slavs, but it can be interpreted as a generic term encompassing the inhabitants of the region between Constantinople and Bulgaria.[4]
Thus, claims have been made for the dynasty's founder (Basil I) being of Armenian,[5][6] Slavonic,[7][8] or "Armeno-Slavonic"[9] descent from his paternal side.
The author of the only dedicated biography of Basil I in English has concluded that it is impossible to be certain what the ethnic origins of the emperor were, though Basil was definitely reliant on the support of Armenians in prominent positions within the Byzantine Empire.[10]
List of rulers
- Basil I the Macedonian (Βασίλειος Α') (811–886, ruled 867–886) – married Eudokia Ingerina, mistress of Michael III; died in hunting accident
- Leo VI the Wise (Λέων Ϛ') (866–912, ruled 886–912) – son of Eudokia Ingerina, legal son and heir of Basil I; possibly the natural son of Michael III; created church crisis with his fourth marriage—Zoe Karbonopsina, who took over as regent for their son, Constantine VII, in 914 and ruled the empire until 919
- Alexander (Αλέξανδρος) (870–913, ruled 912–913) – son of Basil I, regent for nephew
- Constantine VII the Purple-born (Κωνσταντῖνος Ζ') (905–959, ruled 913–920 and 945-959) – son of Leo VI and Zoe Karbonopsina; married Helena, daughter of Romanos Lekapenos
- Romanos I Lekapenos (Ρωμανός A') (c. 870–948, ruled 920–944) – staged a successful coup in 919 and became senior emperor in 920;[11] deposed in 944 and exiled
- Romanos II the Purple-born (Ρωμανός Β') (938–963, ruled 959–963) – son of Constantine VII
- Nikephoros II Phokas (Νικηφόρος Β' Φωκᾶς) (912–969, ruled 963–969) – successful general, married Romanos II's widow, regent for Basil; assassinated (Origin: Cappadocian)
- John I Tzimiskes (Ιωάννης Α')(925-976, ruled 969–976) – successful general, brother-in-law of Romanos II, lover of Nikephoros's wife but banned from marriage, regent for Basil II and Constantine VIII
- Basil II (Βασίλειος Β') the Bulgar-slayer (958–1025, ruled 976–1025) – son of Romanos II
- Constantine VIII (Κωνσταντῖνος Η') (960-1028, ruled 1025–1028) – son of Romanos II; silent co-emperor with Basil II, sole emperor after his brother's death
- Zoe (Ζωή) (c. 978–1050, ruled 1028–1050) – daughter of Constantine VIII
- Romanos III Argyros (Ρωμανός Γ') (968–1034, ruled 1028–1034) – eparch of Constantinople; Zoe's first husband, arranged by Constantine VIII; murdered
- Michael IV the Paphlagonian (Μιχαήλ Δ') (1010–1041, ruled 1034–1041) – Zoe's second husband
- Michael V the Caulker (Μιχαήλ Ε') (1015–1042, ruled 1041–1042) – Michael IV's nephew, Zoe's adopted son
- Theodora (Θεοδώρα) (980–1056, ruled 1042) – daughter of Constantine VIII, co-empress with Zoe
- Constantine IX Monomachos (Κωνσταντῖνος Θ') (1000–1055, ruled 1042–1055) – Zoe's third husband
- Theodora (Θεοδώρα) (ruled 1055–1056) – restored
Non-dynastic
- Michael VI (Μιχαήλ Ϛ') (ruled 1056–1057) – chosen by Theodora; deposed and entered monastery
Family tree
- Basil I the Macedonian (813–886)
- from his marriage to Maria:
- Constantine (865–878), co-emperor with his father
- Anastasia
- from his marriage to empress Eudokia Ingerina:
- Leo VI the Wise (866–912)
- Eudokia (died 892)
- Anna, betrothed and married to Louis the Blind
- Basil (died 900)
- Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos (905–959), married Helena Lekapene, daughter of Romanos I Lekapenos
- Romanos II (938–963) married to Bertha, daughter of Hugh of Italy king of Italy
- childless by his marriage to Bertha of Italy
- from his marriage to Theophano:
- Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer (957–1025)
- Constantine VIII (961–1028) married Helena, daughter of Alypius
- Eudokia
- Zoe (978–1050), married:
- Romanos III Argyros (ca. 968–1034)
- Michael IV the Paphlagonian (1015–1042)
- Constantine IX Monomachos (ca. 1000–1055)
- Theodora (980–1056)
- Anna Porphyrogeneta (963–1011), married Vladimir I of Kiev
- Agathe
- Theodora, married John I Tzimiskes
- Romanos II (938–963) married to Bertha, daughter of Hugh of Italy king of Italy
- Stephen I (867–893), Patriarch of Constantinople
- Alexander (870–913)
- Leo VI the Wise (866–912)
- from his marriage to Maria:
Genealogy
| Michael III emperor of the Romans 842–867 AMORIAN DYNASTY | Eudokia Ingerina |  Basil I emperor of the Romans 867–886 | Maria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Romanos I Lekapenos emperor of the Romans 920–944 | 1. Theophano Martinakia 2. Zoe Zaoutzaina 3. Eudokia Baïana 4. Zoe Karbonopsina | Leo VI the Wise emperor of the Romans 886–912 | Stephen I Patriarch of Constantinople 886–893 | Alexander emperor of the Romans 912–913 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Christopher Lekapenos co-emperor 921–931 ∞ Sophia | Agatha ∞ Romanos Argyros | Theophylact Patriarch of Constantinople 933–956 | Helena Lekapene (Lekapenos) | (4) Constantine VII emperor of the Romans 913–959 | (2) Anna ∞ Louis III the Blind king of Provence, king of Lombardy Bosonids | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (Maria) Irene Lekapene ∞ Peter I king of Bulgaria 927–969 | Argyros | Nikephoros II Phokas emperor of the Romans 963–969 Phokas | (Anastasia) Theophano from Laconia | Romanos II emperor of the Romans 959–963 | Theodora Porphyrogenita empress | John I Tzimiskes emperor of the Romans 969–976 Kourkouas | Charles Constantine count of Vienne | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pothos (or Eustathios) Argyros general | Basil II emperor of the Romans 976–1025 | Constantine VIII emperor of the Romans 1025–1028 ∞ Helena of Alypius | Anna Porphyrogenita ∞ Vladimir I the Great grand prince of Kiev Rurik dynasty | Constance of Vienne ∞ Boson II count of Arles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maria Argyre ∞ Giovanni Orseolo duke of Dalmatia | Basil Argyros general of Samos | 1.Romanos III Argyros emperor of the Romans 1028–1034 | Zoë Porphyrogenita empress of the Romans 1028–1050 ∞ 2.Michael IV the Paphlagonian emperor of the Romans 1034–1041 | 3.Constantine IX Monomachos emperor of the Romans 1042–1055 | Helena Skleraina | Theodora empress of the Romans 1055–1056 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (daughter) ∞ Constantine Diogenes | (adopted) Michael V Kalaphates emperor of the Romans 1041–1042 | Anastasia Monomachaina ∞ Vsevolod I of Kiev | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Romanos IV Diogenes emperor of Romans 1068–1071 | Eudokia Makrembolitissa empress | Constantine X Doukas emperor of the Romans 1059–1067 DOUKAS DYNASTY | Vladimir II Monomakh grand prince of Kiev | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
See also
References
- ↑ Treadgold, Warren T. (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford University Press. p. 457. ISBN 978-0-8047-2630-6.
- ↑ Leo VI. Imperium Byzantinum, Imperator 865–912 (1932). Oraison funèbre de Basile I. Pont. Inst. Orientalium Stud. OCLC 1073789498.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Tobias, Norman (2007). Basil I, founder of the Macedonian Dynasty : a study of the political and military history of the Byzantine Empire in the Ninth century. Lewiston, New York: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN 978-0-7734-5405-7. OCLC 166873121.
- ↑ "The Reign of Leo VI (886–912): Politics and People. Shaun Tougher". Speculum. 76 (1): 236–238. January 2001. doi:10.2307/2903773. ISSN 0038-7134. JSTOR 2903773.
- ↑ Treadgold 1997, p. 455
- ↑ Peter Charanis.Studies on the demography of the Byzantine empire: collected studies Variorum Reprints, 1972 p. 223 [360]:"Thus, every emperor who sat on the Byzantine throne the accession of Basil I to the death of Basil II (867–1025) was of Armenian or partially Armenian origin. But besides the emperors there were many others among the military and political leaders of Byzantine during this period who were Armenians or of Armenian descent"
- ↑ Tobias 2007, p. 20. Tobias is referring to the writings of Hamza al-Isfahani, a 10th-century Persian scholar.
- ↑ Finlay 1853, p. 213.
- ↑ Vasiliev 1928–1935, p. 301
- ↑ Tobias 2007, p. 264
- ↑ Chris Wickham, The Inheritance of Rome
Sources
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Macedonian dynasty.
- Fine, John V. A. Jr. (1991) [1983]. The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. ISBN 0-472-08149-7.
- Finlay, George (1853). History of the Byzantine Empire from 716–1057. William Blackwood & Sons.
- Obolensky, Dimitri (1974) [1971]. The Byzantine Commonwealth: Eastern Europe, 500–1453. London: Cardinal. ISBN 978-0351176449.
- Ostrogorsky, George (1956). History of the Byzantine State. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
- Runciman, Steven (1988) [1929]. The Emperor Romanus Lecapenus and His Reign: A Study of Tenth-Century Byzantium. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521357227.
- Stephenson, Paul (2000). Byzantium's Balkan Frontier: A Political Study of the Northern Balkans, 900–1204. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521770170.
- Stephenson, Paul (2003). The Legend of Basil the Bulgar-Slayer. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521815307.
- Thurn, Hans, ed. (1973). Ioannis Scylitzae Synopsis historiarum. Berlin-New York: De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3110022858.
- Treadgold, Warren (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-2630-2.
- Vasiliev, Alexander Alexandrovich (1928–1935). History of the Byzantine Empire. Madison, Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-80925-0.
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