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''Pax Nicephori'',
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for the "Peace of Nicephorus", is a term used to refer to both a
peace treaty A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring ...
of 803, tentatively concluded between emperors
Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...
, of the
Frankish empire Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks du ...
, and Nikephoros I, of the
Byzantine empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, and the outcome of negotiations that took place between the same parties, but were concluded by successor emperors, between 811 and 814. The whole set of negotiations of the years 802–815 has also been referred to by this name. By its terms, after several years of diplomatic exchanges, the Byzantine emperor's representatives recognized the authority in the West of Charlemagne, and East and West negotiated their boundaries in the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...
.


Failed negotiations of 803

On Christmas Day in 800 AD, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as ''Imperator Romanorum'' (
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for "Emperor of the Romans") in
Saint Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a Church (building), church built in the Renaissance architecture, Renaissanc ...
. Nikephoros I of the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
and Charlemagne tried to settle their imperial boundaries in 803. A first treaty was indeed prepared and sent to the East in 803 by Charlemagne, who had started talks with Empress Irene. The text, however, was never ratified by Nikephoros, as the
Royal Frankish Annals The ''Royal Frankish Annals'' (Latin: ''Annales regni Francorum''), also called the ''Annales Laurissenses maiores'' ('Greater Lorsch Annals'), are a series of annals composed in Latin in the Carolingian Francia, recording year-by-year the state ...
, and Charlemagne in a surviving document, explicitly state. The Franks had already subdued the
March of Istria The March of Istria (or Margraviate of Istria ) was originally a Carolingian frontier march covering the Istrian peninsula and surrounding territory conquered by Charlemagne's son Pepin of Italy in 789. After 1364, it was the name of the Istrian ...
in 788,Fine, John V. A., Jr. (2006). ''When Ethnicity Did Not Matter in the Balkans: A Study of Identity in Pre-Nationalist Croatia, Dalmatia, and Slavonia in the Medieval and Early-Modern Periods'', University of Michigan Press. and after overturning the Avar khaganate, they claimed the rich Pannonian plain and the
Dalmatian coast Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...
; during these events, Slavic prince Vojnomir of Pannonia allied with the Franks. Dalmatian Croatia, located in what was nominally
Byzantine Dalmatia The Theme of Dalmatia ( el, θέμα Δαλματίας/Δελματίας, ''thema Dalmatias/Delmatias'') was a Byzantine theme (a military-civilian province) on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea in Southeastern Europe, headquartered at Jade ...
, peacefully accepted limited Frankish overlordship.


Further talks between 803 and 806

Though Nikephoros always refused to recognize Charlemagne's imperial title, envoys of the East and West made agreements over the possession of disputed Italian territory, namely, the provinces of Venetia and Dalmatian Croatia, during the first decade of the ninth century. These seem to have been advantageous to the Venetians and to have guaranteed Byzantine sovereignty over them.


War and peace, 806–814

Temporary shift of Venetian loyalties toward the
Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...
resulted in somewhat permanent naval conflict in the Adriatic, only interrupted by a truce in 807–808. After Charlemagne's son and king of Italy
Pippin Pippin or Pepin may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Pippin (comics), ''Pippin'' (comics), a children's comic produced from 1966 to 1986 * Pippin (musical), ''Pippin'' (musical), a Broadway musical by Stephen Schwartz loosely based on the life ...
's invasion of Dalmatia tension rose between the two Empires. Political and military instability, however, lasted only until the king's death, in July 810. Then a new treaty came under discussion between Charlemagne, temporarily ruling over Italy, and Nikephoros. Aigone, Count of Forlì, was a member of the delegation sent by Charlemagne to Nikephoros.
Flavio Biondo Flavio Biondo (Latin Flavius Blondus) (1392 – June 4, 1463) was an Italian Renaissance humanist historian. He was one of the first historians to use a three-period division of history (Ancient, Medieval, Modern) and is known as one of the f ...
, ''Historiarum ab inclinatione romanorum imperii'', II, l. II (Basel 1531, p. 167).
The agreement was signed. Thus the name ''pax Nicephori'' may be justifiably applied to this second episode of diplomatic activity. However, only
Michael I Rhangabes Michael I Rhangabe ( gr, Μιχαὴλ Ῥαγγαβέ; ''c''. 770 – 11 January 844) was Byzantine emperor from 811 to 813. Michael was the son of the patrician Theophylact Rhangabe, the admiral of the Aegean fleet. He married Prokopia, the ...
recognized Charlemagne's imperial title, reserving for the East the title "Emperor of the Romans", and the treaty was not definitely ratified until four years later, after both Michael's and Charlemagne's death, by
Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (german: Ludwig der Fromme; french: Louis le Pieux; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aqui ...
and Leo V. Some amendments, more advantageous to Venice, are thought to have been added then. The peace of Aachen in 812 confirmed Dalmatian Croatia, except for the Byzantine cities and islands, as under Frankish domain.Dzino 2010, p. 183 The boundaries in Dalmatia imposed by this treaty were unclear, so in 817 Leo V sent en embassy to Aachen to clarify them. The result was a joint Frankish and Byzantine expedition to Dalmatia to get the input of the local Romans and Slavs and firmly delimit the borders.


Buffer states

The common belief that the negotiations between Byzantium and the Franks that were held in the early ninth century made Venice an 'independent polity' is only based on the late, allusive and biased witness of Venetian chroniclers such as John the Deacon and
Andrea Dandolo Andrea Dandolo (13067 September 1354) was elected the 54th doge of Venice in 1343, replacing Bartolomeo Gradenigo who died in late 1342. Early life Trained in historiography and law, Andrea Dandolo studied at the University of Padua, where ...
and remains therefore highly questionable.


Sources and documents

No text of either the treaty, its draft or the preceding negotiations is preserved, apart from a handful of alleged quotations in a mid-century deliberation of Emperor
Lothar I Lothair I or Lothar I (Dutch and Medieval Latin: ''Lotharius''; German: ''Lothar''; French: ''Lothaire''; Italian: ''Lotario'') (795 – 29 September 855) was emperor (817–855, co-ruling with his father until 840), and the governor of Bavar ...
in favour of one of the earliest certainly attested
Doges of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ; vec, Doxe de Venexia ; it, Doge di Venezia ; all derived from Latin ', "military leader"), sometimes translated as Duke (compare the Italian '), was the chief magistrate and leader of the Republic of Venice between 726 a ...
.


References


Sources

* * Roberto CESSI. Pacta Veneta, 1–2. ''Archivio Veneto'' 4–5 (1928–1929). * John Julius Norwich. A History of Venice. New York 1982.
Translation of letter from Charlemagne to Nikephoros I in 811.
{{Italic title 800s in the Byzantine Empire 803 9th century in Germany 9th century in the Republic of Venice 9th-century treaties Byzantine Empire–Republic of Venice relations Charlemagne Byzantine Empire–Carolingian Empire relations History of Dalmatia Treaties of the Byzantine Empire Byzantine Dalmatia