Constantine Maleinos () was a prominent

Byzantine 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 the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

general of the mid-10th century.

Biography

Constantine was born in the late 9th or 10th century, probably in his family's estates in

Cappadocia Cappadocia (; , from ) is a historical region in Central Anatolia region, Turkey. It is largely in the provinces of Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. Today, the touristic Cappadocia Region is located in Nevşehir ...

. His father was Eudokimos Maleinos, a member of the powerful aristocratic

Maleinos The Maleinos (Plural, pl. Maleinoi; , pl. ) was a Byzantine Greeks, Byzantine Greek Nobility, noble family, first attested in the 9th century. The family rose to be amongst the most important and powerful members of the Anatolia, Anatolian aristoc ...

clan, and his mother Anastaso Adralestina, a relative to the

Byzantine emperor The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, which Fall of Constantinople, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised s ...

Romanos I Lekapenos Romanos I Lakapenos or Lekapenos (; 870 – 15 June 948), Latinisation of names, Latinized as Romanus I Lacapenus or Romanus I Lecapenus, was Byzantine emperor from 920 until his deposition in 944, serving as regent for and senior co-ruler of ...

(r. 920–944). He had six siblings, amongst whom the

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

and

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

Michael Maleinos Saint Michael Maleinos (, –12 July 961) was a Byzantine Empire, Byzantine monk who commanded great respect among Christians of Asia Minor. He was the brother of general Constantine Maleinos and uncle of Nikephoros II, Nikephoros Phokas, who ...

and an unnamed sister, who married the general Bardas Phokas the Elder and cemented close ties with the powerful Phokas clan... The sources on his career are scant, and come mostly from references in the

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

of his brother Michael. He held the rank of '' patrikios'' and in 955 he succeeded his nephew Leo Phokas as governor (''

strategos ''Strategos'' (), also known by its Linguistic Latinisation, Latinized form ''strategus'', is a Greek language, Greek term to mean 'military General officer, general'. In the Hellenistic world and in the Byzantine Empire, the term was also use ...

'') of the theme of

. Likely due to his experience, but also his connection to the Phokades (his nephew Nikephoros Phokas was emperor in 963–969), he occupied this important post he held for many years, possibly as late as the time of his death in circa 968. During this time, he was active in the campaigns against the Arabs, especially the confrontations with the

Hamdanid The Hamdanid dynasty () was a Shia Muslim Arab dynasty that ruled modern day Northern Mesopotamia and Syria (890–1004). They descended from the ancient Banu Taghlib tribe of Mesopotamia and Arabia. History Origin The Hamdanids hailed ...

emir of

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

, Sayf al-Daula. Thus in November 960 he participated, under the command of Leo Phokas, in the great Byzantine victory over Sayf at the Battle of Andrassos. He is also usually identified with the "ibn al-Mala’ini" of

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

accounts, who was defeated by Sayf at

Iconium Konya is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium. In 19th-century accounts of the city in En ...

in 962. Constantine Maleinos had a son, Eustathios Maleinos, who became a distinguished general and one of the Byzantine Empire's wealthiest men, playing a leading role in the rebellion of Bardas Phokas the Younger against Emperor

Basil II Basil II Porphyrogenitus (; 958 – 15 December 1025), nicknamed the Bulgar Slayer (, ), was the senior Byzantine emperor from 976 to 1025. He and his brother Constantine VIII were crowned before their father Romanos II died in 963, but t ...

(r. 976–1025)..

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maleinos, Constantine 960s deaths 10th-century Byzantine generals Constantine Year of birth unknown