Theophylact (son of Michael I)
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Theophylact, also called Theophylaktos ( el, Θεοφύλακτος; – 15 January 849), was the eldest son of the
Byzantine emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, to Fall of Constantinople, its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. On ...
Michael I Rangabe () and grandson, on his mother's side, of Nikephoros I (). He was junior co-emperor alongside his father for the duration of the latter's reign, and was
tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice i ...
d,
castrated Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which an individual loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical castration uses pharmac ...
, and exiled to Plate Island after his overthrow, under the
monastic name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for a religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should not be "foreign ...
Eustratius.


Biography

Theophylact was born to Michael Rhangabe and Prokopia . He was the couple's oldest child, but the list of his siblings given in the hagiography of Patriarch Ignatius I of Constantinople, who was Theophylact's youngest brother, is unclear on whether he was the eldest child or was born after his oldest sister Gorgo.. The same source also states that he was crowned alongside his brother Staurakios. He was named after his paternal grandfather, the ''
droungarios A ''droungarios'', also spelled ''drungarios'' ( el, δρουγγάριος, la, drungarius) and sometimes anglicized as Drungary, was a military rank of the late Roman and Byzantine empires, signifying the commander of a formation known as '' dr ...
'' of the '' Dodekanesos''
Theophylact Rhangabe Theophylact Rhangabe or Theophylaktos Rhangabe ( gr, Θεοφύλακτος, ὁ τοῦ Ῥαγγαβέ, ), was a Byzantine Greeks, Greek admiral, and the father of the emperor Michael I Rhangabe (ruled 811–813). Life He is known only from his ...
, who had participated in a failed
conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agre ...
to wrest the throne from Empress-
regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
Irene of Athens Irene of Athens ( el, Εἰρήνη, ; 750/756 – 9 August 803), surname Sarantapechaina (), was Byzantine empress consort to Emperor Leo IV from 775 to 780, regent during the childhood of their son Constantine VI from 780 until 790, co-ruler ...
in 780. Nevertheless his maternal grandfather, the emperor Nikephoros I (), rose to become General Logothete (finance minister) under Empress Irene before eventually deposing her in October 802. Following the death of Nikephoros in the Battle of Pliska on 26 July 811 and the crippling of his only son and heir Staurakios in the same battle, on 2 October the Byzantine Senate and the '' tagmata'' guard units acclaimed Nikephoros's son-in-law Michael Rhangabe as emperor and forced Staurakios to abdicate. Michael immediately set about to consolidate his rule, distributing lavish gifts, crowning his wife as '' Augusta'' on 12 October, and finally, crowning Theophylact – then aged eighteen – as co-emperor in the
Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia ( 'Holy Wisdom'; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque ( tr, Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi), is a mosque and major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The cathedral was originally built as a Greek Ortho ...
on Christmas Day, 25 December 811. At about the same time, Michael sent an embassy under Bishop
Michael of Synnada Michael of Synnada or Michael the Confessor ( gr, Μιχαὴλ ὁ ὁμολογητής; died 23 May 826) was a metropolitan bishop of Synnada from 784/7 to 815. He represented Byzantium in diplomatic missions to Harun al-Rashid and Charlemagne. ...
to the
Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...
court, which among other issues raised the prospect of an imperial marriage between Theophylact and one of
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 ...
's daughters. Despite a warm reception at Aachen and the ratification of 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 ...
between the two realms, Charlemagne, perhaps wary after the repeated failures of successive efforts to that effect over the previous decades, hesitated to agree to such a match. Nothing further is known of Theophylact until 11 July 813, when Michael, faced with a military revolt under Leo the Armenian, abdicated the throne. Michael and his family sought refuge in the
Church of the Virgin of the Pharos The Church of the Virgin of the Pharos ( el, Θεοτόκος τοῦ Φάρου, ''Theotokos tou Pharou'') was a Byzantine chapel built in the southern part of the Great Palace of Constantinople, and named after the tower of the lighthouse (''pha ...
, where they were
tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice i ...
d as monks and nuns. Michael and his sons were
castrated Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which an individual loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical castration uses pharmac ...
to make them incapable of claiming the throne in the future, and exiled to
Plate Plate may refer to: Cooking * Plate (dishware), a broad, mainly flat vessel commonly used to serve food * Plates, tableware, dishes or dishware used for setting a table, serving food and dining * Plate, the content of such a plate (for example: ...
, one of the
Princes' Islands The Princes' Islands ( tr, Prens Adaları; the word "princes" is plural, because the name means "Islands of the Princes", el, Πριγκηπονήσια, ''Pringiponisia''), officially just Adalar ( en, Islands); alternatively the Princes' Arch ...
in the
Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara,; grc, Προποντίς, Προποντίδα, Propontís, Propontída also known as the Marmara Sea, is an inland sea located entirely within the borders of Turkey. It connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea via t ...
(though the later historians
John Skylitzes John Skylitzes, commonly Latinized as Ioannes, la, Johannes, label=none, la, Iōannēs, label=none Scylitzes ( el, Ἰωάννης Σκυλίτζης, ''Iōánnēs Skylítzēs'', or el, Σκυλίτση, ''Skylítsē'', label=none ; la, ...
and
Zonaras Joannes or John Zonaras ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Ζωναρᾶς ; 1070 – 1140) was a Byzantine Greek historian, chronicler and theologian who lived in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey). Under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos he held th ...
mention the island of Prote instead). Leo accorded them an annual stipend. According to
Theophanes Continuatus ''Theophanes Continuatus'' ( el, συνεχισταί Θεοφάνους) or ''Scriptores post Theophanem'' (, "those after Theophanes") is the Latin name commonly applied to a collection of historical writings preserved in the 11th-century Vat. g ...
, Theophylact, who adopted the
monastic name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for a religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should not be "foreign ...
Eustratius (Εὐστράτιος), died five years after his father, on 15 January 849, and was buried alongside him in a church on Plate Island. Theophanes Continuatus also reports that his body (or perhaps that of his father) was later transferred by his brother, Patriarch Ignatios, to the monastery known as "''tou Satyrou''".


References


Sources

* * * {{authority control 790s births 849 deaths 9th-century Byzantine emperors 9th-century Byzantine monks Byzantine eunuchs Byzantine junior emperors Byzantine prisoners and detainees Castrated people Nikephorian dynasty Prisoners and detainees of the Byzantine Empire Sons of Byzantine emperors