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Athanasius (praetorian Prefect)
Athanasius () was a 6th-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine official who served as diplomat, envoy and praetorian prefecture, praetorian prefect of praetorian prefecture of Italy, Italy and praetorian prefecture of Africa, Africa under Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). Nothing is known of Athanasius's origins or early life. The historian Procopius of Caesarea and the African poet Corippus record only that by 545 he was elderly.. Two members of Athanasius's family are known: his brother, the ''comes'' and Byzantine Senate, senator Alexander (comes), Alexander, who led embassy, embassies to Sassanid Persia and Ostrogothic Italy in the early 530s, and his son-in-law Leontius, who led an embassy to the Franks in 551. Athanasius first appears in 536, when he was sent to Italy alongside Peter the Patrician to accept the surrender of Goths, Gothic forces, as Peter and the Ostrogothic king, Theodahad, had agreed in previous embassies. Theodahad, however, upon learning of Byzantine reversa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th centuryAD, it endured until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. The term 'Byzantine Empire' was coined only after its demise; its citizens used the term 'Roman Empire' and called themselves 'Romans'. During the early centuries of the Roman Empire, the western provinces were Romanization (cultural), Latinised, but the eastern parts kept their Hellenistic culture. Constantine the Great, Constantine I () legalised Christianity and moved the capital to Constantinople. Theodosius I, Theodosius I () made Christianity the state religion and Greek gradually replaced Latin for official use. The empire adopted a defensive strategy and, throughout its remaining history, expe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theodahad
Theodahad, also known as Thiudahad (; 480 – December 536), initially ruled the Ostrogothic Kingdom jointly with his cousin Amalasuintha. She elevated him to co-monarch in late 534, following the death of her son, King Athalaric, likely seeking male support to legitimize her regency. However, seeking sole power, Theodahad betrayed Amalasuintha; he had her imprisoned and subsequently murdered around April 30, 535. His tenure as sole ruler proved short and tumultuous, ending with his deposition and death in December 536 while fleeing the forces of his successor, Witiges. Theodahad's reign stands in stark contrast to the long and relatively stable rule of his uncle, Theodoric the Great, the kingdom's founder. Drawing on contemporary accounts (such as those by Procopius) and subsequent historical analysis, Theodahad's leadership is widely assessed as a disastrous failure. Key factors contributing to this view include his treacherous usurpation and murder of Amalasuintha—an ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carthage
Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classical world. It became the capital city of the civilization of Ancient Carthage and later Roman Carthage. The city developed from a Phoenician colony into the capital of a Punic people, Punic empire which dominated large parts of the Southwest Mediterranean during the first millennium BC. The legendary Queen Elissa, Alyssa or Dido, originally from Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, is regarded as the founder of the city, though her historicity has been questioned. In the myth, Dido asked for land from a local tribe, which told her that she could get as much land as an oxhide could cover. She cut the oxhide into strips and laid out the perimeter of the new city. As Carthage prospered at home, the polity sent colonists abroad as well as magistrates to rule t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guntarith
Guntarith ( Vandalic: ''Gontharis''; died 546), sometimes referred to as Guntharic, was an Eastern Roman military officer and rebel of Vandalic descent. Life After the conquest of the Vandal Kingdom by Belisarius in 533/534, the Eastern Roman Empire was faced with numerous Moorish and Vandalic revolts. Only after the defeat of Stotzas's rebellion (545), would Guntarith, the dux of Numidia, play a leading role. With Moorish and Numidian support, he seized the province of Africa proconsularis and killed the imperial governor Areobindus in Carthage. The wife of Areobindus, Praejecta, niece of emperor Justinian I, was however spared. The goal of the rebels was probably the secession of the African provinces from the rule of Constantinople and the restoration of Vandal royal rule. When Guntarith began to consolidate his power with purges and mass executions, the ''strategos'' Artabanes, probably with the approval of the praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect (; ) was a high ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magister Militum
(Latin for "master of soldiers"; : ) was a top-level military command used in the late Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, the emperor remaining the supreme commander) of the empire. The office continued to exist end evolve during the early Byzantine Empire. In Greek language, Greek sources, the term is translated either as ''strategos#Byzantine use, strategos'' or as ''stratelates'' (although these terms were also used non-technically to refer to commanders of different ranks). Establishment and development of the command The office of ''magister militum'' was created in the early 4th century, most likely when the Western Roman emperor Constantine the Great defeated all other contemporary Roman emperors, which gave him control over their respective armies. Because the Praetorian Guards and their leaders, the praetorian prefect, Praetorian Prefects, had suppor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Areobindus (died 546)
Areobindus (died 546) was an official and military commander of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. He served as a senator in Constantinople and briefly as ''magister militum'' in Africa in 545/6. Areobindus was sent to Africa by Emperor Justinian I (527–565) following the crisis which had erupted during Sergius's command. Areobindus's retinue included a contingent of Armenian troops led by Artabanes and John, descendants of the royal Armenian Arsacid line. An inexperienced military commander, Areobindus proved unable to deal with the issue. After the Battle of Thacia, Justinian recalled Sergius and made Areobindus "overall commander" but the mutiny had already spread through the ranks. In 546, Areobindus was killed in Carthage by the rebel Guntarith (Guntharis), the '' dux'' of Numidia. Areobindus was married to Praejecta Praejecta or Praiecta (Greek: Πραιέκτα) was sister to Byzantine emperor Justin II and a niece to Justinian I (r. 527–565). Biography Praeject ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belisarius
BelisariusSometimes called Flavia gens#Later use, Flavius Belisarius. The name became a courtesy title by the late 4th century, see (; ; The exact date of his birth is unknown. March 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under Emperor Justinian I. Belisarius was instrumental in the reconquest of much of the Mediterranean territory belonging to the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century prior. He is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history and in Byzantium. One of the defining features of Belisarius' career was his success despite varying levels of available resources. He is frequently cited as being among the "Last of the Romans". He conquered the Vandal Kingdom of North Africa in the Vandalic War in nine months and conquered much of Italy during the Gothic War (535–554), Gothic War. He also defeated the Vandal armies in the battle of Battle of Ad Decimum, Ad Decimum and played an important role at Battle of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magister Officiorum
The (Latin; ; ) was one of the most senior administrative officials in the Later Roman Empire and the early centuries of the Byzantine Empire. In Byzantium, the office was eventually transformed into a senior honorary rank, simply called ''magistros'' (μάγιστρος), until it disappeared in the 12th century. History and functions Late Roman Empire Although some scholars have supported its creation under Emperor Diocletian (), the office can first be definitely traced to the year 320, during the reign of Roman emperor Constantine the Great (), but was probably created sometime soon after 312–13, probably as part of an effort to limit the power of the praetorian prefect (''praefectus praetorio'') the Roman emperor's chief administrative official. The ''magister'' was first given command of the palace guard, the '' Scholae Palatinae''. He was also appointed head of the palatine secretariats, divided into four bureaux, the ''sacra scrinia'', each under a respective ''magist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constantinople
Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empires between its consecration in 330 until 1930, when it was renamed to Istanbul. Initially as New Rome, Constantinople was founded in 324 during the reign of Constantine the Great on the site of the existing settlement of Byzantium, and shortly thereafter in 330 became the capital of the Roman Empire. Following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the late 5th century, Constantinople remained the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (also known as the Byzantine Empire; 330–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922). Following the Turkish War of Independence, the Turkish capital then moved to Ankara. Although the city had been known as Istanbul since 1453, it was officially renamed as Is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sassanid Empire
The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign over ancient Iran was second only to the directly preceding Arsacid dynasty of Parthia. Founded by Ardashir I, whose rise coincided with the decline of Arsacid influence in the face of both internal and external strife, the House of Sasan was highly determined to restore the legacy of the Achaemenid Empire by expanding and consolidating the Iranian nation's dominions. Most notably, after defeating Artabanus IV of Parthia during the Battle of Hormozdgan in 224, it began competing far more zealously with the neighbouring Roman Empire than the Arsacids had, thus sparking a new phase of the Roman–Iranian Wars. This effort by Ardashir's dynasty ultimately re-established Iran as a major power of late antiquity.Norman A. Stillman ''The Jew ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Witigis
Vitiges (also known as Vitigis, Vitigo, Witiges or Wittigis, and in Old Norse as Vigo) (died 542) was king of Ostrogothic Italy from 536 to 540. He succeeded to the throne of Italy in the early stages of the Gothic War of 535–554, as Belisarius had quickly captured Sicily the previous year and was in southern Italy at the head of the forces of Justinian I, the Eastern Roman Emperor. Vitiges was the husband of Queen Amalasuntha's only surviving child, Matasuntha; therefore, his royal legitimacy was based on this marriage. The panegyric upon the wedding in 536 was delivered by Cassiodorus, the praetorian prefect, and survives, a traditionally Roman form of rhetoric that set the Gothic dynasty in a flatteringly Roman light. Soon after he was made king, Vitiges had his predecessor Theodahad murdered. Theodahad had enraged the Goths because he failed to send any assistance to Naples when it was besieged by the Byzantines, led by Belisarius. Belisarius took both Vitiges and M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ravenna
Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which it served as the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom and then the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna. It has 156,444 inhabitants as of 2025.Initially settled by the Umbri people, Ravenna came under Roman Republic control in 89 BC. Augustus, Octavian built the military harbor of Classe, ancient port of Ravenna, Classis at Ravenna, and the city remained an important seaport on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic until the early Middle Ages. The city prospered under imperial rule. In 401, Western Roman emperor Honorius (emperor), Honorius moved his court from Mediolanum to Ravenna; it then served as capital of the empire for most of the 5th century. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Ravenna became the capital of Odoacer until he was defeated by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
