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Flavius Arcadius Augustus Emperor of Eastern Roman Empire


Preferred Parents:
Father: Theodosius of Gallaecia, b. 11 JAN 347 in Coca, Segovia, Castilla y León, Spain   
Mother: Galla Valentiniana von Rom,   

Family 1: Aelia Eudoxia Augusta of the Eastern Roman Empire,    b. APR 380 in Constantinople, Anatolia, Byzantine Empire    d. 10 JUN 404 in Roma, Roman Empire
  1. Theodosius Emperor of Eastern Roman Empire II, b. 10 APR 401 in Constantinople, Anatolia, Byzantine Empire     d. 28 JUL 450 in Constantinople, Anatolia, Byzantine Empire
Sources:
  1. Title: Roman Emperors - Arcadius part II
    Author: Copyright (C) 1998, Geoffrey S. Nathan. This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents, including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact. Cameron, Alan, and Long, Jacqueline (1993) Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius (Berkeley). Demougeot, Emilienne (1951), De l'unité‚ … la division de l'empire romain, 395-410: Essai sur la government impérial (Paris). Holum, Kenneth (1982), Theodosian Empresses (Berkeley). Jones, A.H.M. et al. (1970), The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 1 (Cambridge). Liebeschuetz, J.H.W.G. (1991), Barbarians and Bishops. Army, Church, and State in the Age of Arcadius and Chrysostom (Oxford). Martindale, J.R. (1980), The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 2 (Cambridge). Seeck, Otto (1896), "Arcadius," in RE, v. 2 (Berlin), 1137-53. Van Ommeslaeghe, F. (1979) "Jean Chrysostome en conflit avec l'impératrice Eudoxie," Analecta Bollandiana 97, 131-59.
    Publication: Name: https://roman-emperors.sites.luc.edu/arcadius.htm;
    Note: The chamberlain took refuge in the Hagia Sophia, and was exiled to Cyprus. But shortly thereafter, in the autumn of 399, Eutropius was recalled, tried and executed in Chalcedon. The Age of Eudoxia (400-404) The death of Eutropius precipitated a serious crisis. Gainas, who had wanted high office for years, now tried to force the hand of Arcadius. Having come to a quick resolution with Tribigild, he moved from Thrace towards Constantinople in 400. With the Germanic troops supporting him, Gainas tried for six months to initiate his own primacy-- including seizing the imperial palace--but which failed. He was forced to withdraw personally from the city to regroup and planned to use his troops remaining there to seize the entire city. But they were slaughtered by the inhabitiants and he fled first to Thrace and then to Asia. Eventually Gainas was killed by the Huns later in that year. His attempted coup ensured that Germanic officers would never again be trusted by the eastern government and would forever be kept out of any important decision-making roles. The likely successor to Eutropius had been the anti-Germanic leader, Aurelianus, who had succeeded to the Prefecture of the East in 399. But Gainas had exiled him, having forced Arcadius to hand him over, and although Aurelianus returned triumphantly after Gainas' departure, he appears to have lost his hold over the emperor. In the meantime, Aelia Eudoxia had done much to forward her own place in the government. In January of 400, she had been named Augusta, a singular distinction offered to only three other women in the previous century. Her position thus gained a semi-official legitimacy afforded to very few Roman empresses. It has been assumed that because of her beauty, her intelligence, and her fecundity (she bore Arcadius five children), she was able to assert her influence to a point where she was the new power behind the throne. That assessment, while held by many scholars, is not entirely accurate. While there were several events in which she played a crucial part, they were not terribly important moments during Arcadius' reign. But because Eudoxia was enormously wealthy, because she delivered a male heir in 401, and because she was involved in a highly publicized and drawn out political fight with John Chrysostom, this belief that there was an assumption of power is based more on the notoriety of her acts than on actual control. The fact that there was no one clearly dominating the government nor the emperor during this time implies perhaps that Arcadius had more power during these five years of his reign than at any other time. There are several indications that he did try to improve and assert his own position. The emperor and his court immediately came to some understanding with the west. The east at the very least gave Honorius and Stilicho moral support in their increasing problems with Alaric. In 402, the feeling of goodwill was sealed by a joint consulship between Arcadius and his brother. The emperor also sought to establish his own military prowess and Christian piety with the erection of a column set up in the Hippodrome of Constantinople in 402/3. The column depicted his military victory over Gainas, crowned with a capital emblazoned with the Greek letters chi-rho, symbolizing his devotion to Christ. Arcadius' son, Theodosius II, was born in 401, and was quickly made Augustus at the age of eight months. The eastern ruler was thus interested in assuring his own dynasty. In all these things, the emperor was largely successful, but they were largely overshadowed by the feud between his empress and the bishop of Constantinople. Eudoxia had already shown herself able in pushing her interests during the baptism of her son. The Bishop of Constantinople, however, was a much tougher opponent than her husband. John Chrysostom, a strong believer in social justice, had boorishly attacked Eudoxia and many of her friends for the conspicuous luxury in which they lived and displayed themselves. At the height of these attacks, John compared the empress to Jezebel. Eudoxia in turn used her considerable influence to inflame hostility among the clergy against the bishop. Working through Bishop Theophilus of Alexandria, in 403 Chrysostom was deposed and forced into exile at a Church council convened by the emperor (the Synod of the Oak at Chalcedon). However, there was soon such turmoil and uproar in the imperial city that the bishop was recalled a few days later. But the public feuding between Eudoxia and Chrysostom continued until at last she had him banished again in 404, this time permanently. Among other things, it caused a breach between Arcadius and his brother, who had, with Pope Innocent I, tried to support Chrysostom. Eudoxia's victory was short-lived, however. In October of 404, the Augusta died of a miscarriage. Her death was seen by some as retribution for dismissing John. Whatever the reason, her end also signaled a complete retreat into the background by the emperor and no further initiatives seem to have been pushed by the 27-year-old Augustus. The Final Years: Anthemius and Death (404-408) The last years of Arcadius' reign were completely dominated by his Praetorian Prefect of the East, Anthemius. It was perhaps fitting that when the emperor seems to have been most retiring, the most able and energetic of his high ministers came to power. Anthemius worked hard to solve a series of governmental abuses, continue to push for Christianization, and secure the east from attack. Anthemius first seems to have tried to reconcile with the west, so much so that there was a joint consulship between Anthemius and Stilicho in 405. This might have also been meant to symbolize the Prefect's new dominance, however. Additionally, a number of new laws were passed, curtailing paganism, Judaism and heresy. He tried to make use of the continuing problem of incoming Germanic peoples to combat the Isaurian tribes which had been plaguing Asia Minor since 403. While it failed to halt either group's incursions, it was nevertheless a practical and intelligent strategy. As a means of protecting the imperial capital, Anthemius also strengthened the walls around Constantinople. Our records for the last years of Arcadius' rule are quite spotty, but the emperor himself seems to have completely vanished, even symbolically, from the political scene. In May of 408, Flavius Arcadius died at the age of 31 of unknown causes. Our only physical description of Arcadius is heavily influenced by the generally low regard in which he was held. The emperor was supposedly short, thin and dark-complected. A more kindly correspondent described him as good-natured and temperate. His son succeeded him without any controversy and the government remained unchanged. Arcadius thus left the world much as he entered it: without much significance and overshadowed by more powerful forces. Assessment Despite the ineffectual nature of Arcadius and his rule, a number of significant changes occurred during his stewardship of the eastern empire. His inability to forcefully or at least effectively govern meant that there were few consistent or long-range goals of his administration. With the exception of trying to emphasize the emperor's piety, an important development in the history of the Byzantine monarchy, Arcadius and his ministers were for the most part simply reacting to events. The emperor became an even more remote figure to the general public. Even in the capital city itself, he was rarely seen: we read in one account that people came running to see the emperor for the first time when he happened to be praying in a local church. A series of "orientalizing" court practices no doubt continued in order to emphasize the symbolic separation of the emperor from the rest of society. The hieratic, almost semi- divine nature of the imperial person, also became a feature of the eastern ruler. Perhaps of greatest importance was the political and cultural split between east and west. With the death of Theodosius, the two halves of the Roman Empire increasingly went their separate ways. For the most part, the west was thrown back upon its own resources, unable to deal with the problems of the fifth century. The east proved more compact and more resilient: it largely weathered the political storms from without and within. Moreover, Constantinople fully became the imperial capital of the east, a Roma nova. The emperor rarely left the city and the palace officials became more influential than many of the more theoretically important ministers outside the city. Constantinople was also made an archepiscopate and Chrysostom and others started to push strongly for its primacy in the east. Both public and private building projects beautified and enlarged the city. Under Arcadius' reign, it truly became the second city of the Roman Empire. Finally, the hard stance against Germanic officers in Roman government became a central feature in the east. While the reasons for this development were inspired largely out of fear and perhaps racism, the eastern Roman Empire did manage to avoid the largely detrimental succession of Germanic generalissimos who controlled the west in the fifth century. It also encouraged the eastern rulers in the following century to take hard lines against other peoples, including the Isaurians, the Huns and the Persians. Taken in all, the era of Arcadius was far more important than Arcadius himself. He perhaps had his father's pretensions, but none of the skills or powers necessary to leave his mark on the Empire.
  2. Title: Foundation for Medieval Genealogy
    Publication: Name: http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/BYZANTIUM.htm#Arcadiusdied408B;
    Note: ARCADIUS, son of Emperor THEODOSIUS I & his first wife Placilla --- (end 377-1 May 408, bur Constantinople Church of the Holy Apostles). Theophanes names "Arcadius…et Honorius" as the sons of "magnus Theodosius" and his first wife[30]. Iordanes names "Archadium Honoriumque" as the children of Emperor Theodosios and his first wife, recording in a later passage that they later divided the empire, Arcadius ruling in Constantinople for 13 years after the death of their father[31]. His father proclaimed him co-Emperor ARCADIUS at Constantinople 19 Jan 383. The Chronicon Paschale records that "Arcadius" was proclaimed emperor "Constantinopoli a patre suo Theodosio Augusto in Tribunali Hebdomi…XIV Kal Feb"[32]. The Chronicon of Bishop Idatius records that Theodosios installed “Arcadium filium suum” as emperor in 383[33]. He succeeded as Emperor in the East in 395. The Chronicle of Marcellinus records the death in 408 of "Arcadius imperator"[34]. Cedrenus records the death of "Arcadius", aged 31, after ruling for 14 years and seven days, and his burial "in templo Apostolorum…cum Eudoxia uxore"[35]. Emperor Konstantinos VII's De Ceremoniis Aulæ records that "Arcadii et filii eius, Theodosii, et Eudoxiæ…uxor Arcadii et mater Theodosii" were buried in the church of the Holy Apostles[36]. m (27 Apr 395) EUDOXIA, daughter of --- (-6 Oct 404, bur 12 Oct Constantinople Church of the Holy Apostles). The Chronicon of Bishop Idatius records that “Eudoxiam Arcadii uxorem” was converted to Catholicism from Arianism by “Constantinopoli Joannes Episcopus”[37]. The Chronicon Paschale records that "nobilissima Eudoxia" was created augusta "Id Jan" in 400[38]. Cedrenus records the death of "Eudoxia…uxor Arcadii", noting that she was "mulier barbara et ferox"[39]. The Chronicle of Marcellinus records the death in 404 of "Eudoxia uxor Arcadii"[40]. The Chronicon Paschale records the death "pridie Non Oct" in 404 of "Eudoxia Augusta" and her burial "in sede Sanctorum Apostolorum…IV Id Oct"[41]. She died after a miscarriage[42]. Emperor Konstantinos VII's De Ceremoniis Aulæ records that "Arcadii et filii eius, Theodosii, et Eudoxiæ…uxor Arcadii et mater Theodosii" were buried in the church of the Holy Apostles[43]. Emperor Arcadius & his wife had five children: 1. FLACILLA (17 Jun 397-[young]). 2. PULCHERIA (19 Jan 399-Jul 453) 3. ARCADIA (3 Apr 400-444). 4. THEODOSIUS (Constantinople 10 Apr 401-28 Jul 450, bur Constantinople Church of the Holy Apostles). 5. MARINA (12 Feb 403-449).
  3. Title: Wikipedia - Arcadius part II
    Author: Primary sources Zosimus, "Historia Nova", Book 5 Secondary sources McEvoy, Meaghan, An imperial jellyfish? The emperor Arcadius and imperial leadership in the late fourth century A.D.', in Erika Manders, Daniëlle Slootjes (eds), Leadership, ideology and crowds in the Roman empire of the fourth century AD. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag (2020). Nicholson, O. ed. (2018). "Arcadius, Flavius". The Oxford Dictionary of Late Antiquity. Lee, A. D. (2013). From Rome to Byzantium AD 363 to 565, Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 0-748-66835-7 Liebeschuetz, J. H. W. G. (2011). Ambrose and John Chrysostom: Clerics Between Desert and Empire. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-199-59664-
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcadius;
    Note: Later reign With Eutropius' fall from power, Gainas sought to take advantage of Arcadius's current predicament.[36] He joined the rebel Ostrogoths, and, in a face to face meeting with Arcadius, forced the emperor to make him magister militum praesentalis and Consul designate for 401.[37] Arcadius also acquiesced when Gainas asked for the dismissal of further officials, such as the urban prefect Aurelianus, as well as a place for settlement for his troops in Thrace.[38] However, Arcadius refused to agree to Gainas's demand for an Arian church in Constantinople for his Gothic mercenaries, following the advice of John Chrysostom, the Archbishop of Constantinople.[39] By July 400, the actions of Gainas had irritated a significant portion of the population of Constantinople to the point that a general riot broke out in the capital.[40] Although Gainas had stationed his troops outside of the capital walls, he was either unable or unwilling to bring them into the capital when many Goths in the city were hunted down and attacked.[41] As many as 7,000 Goths were killed in the rioting; those who took refuge in a church were stoned and burned to death, after they received the emperor's permission, nor was it condemned by the Archbishop of Constantinople, John Chrysostom.[42] Although initially staying his hand (probably through the intervention of the new Praetorian Prefect of the East Caesarius),[43] Gainas eventually withdrew with his Gothic mercenaries into Thrace and rebelled against Arcadius. He attempted to take his forces across the Hellespont into Asia, but was intercepted and defeated by Fravitta, another Goth who held the position of magister militum praesentalis. Following his defeat, Gainas fled to the Danube with his remaining followers, but was ultimately defeated and killed by Uldin the Hun in Thrace.[44] With the fall of Gainas, the next conflict emerged between Eudoxia and John Chrysostom. The Archbishop was a stern, ascetic individual, who was a vocal critic of all displays of extravagant wealth. But his ire tended to focus especially on wealthy women, and their use of clothing, jewellery and makeup as being vain and frivolous.[45] Eudoxia assumed that Chrysostom's denunciations of extravagance in feminine dress were aimed at her.[46] As the tensions between the two escalated, Chrysostom, who felt that Eudoxia had used her imperial connections to obtain the possessions of the wife of a condemned senator, preached a sermon in 401 in which Eudoxia was openly called Jezebel, the infamous wife of the Israelite king Ahab.[47] Eudoxia retaliated by supporting Bishop Severian of Gabala in his conflict with Chrysostom. As Chrysostom was very popular in the capital, riots erupted in favour of the Archbishop, forcing Arcadius and Eudoxia to publicly back down and beg Chrysostom to revoke Severian's excommunication.[48] Then in 403, Eudoxia saw another chance to strike against the Archbishop, when she threw her support behind Theophilus of Alexandria who presided over a synod in 403 (the Synod of the Oak) to charge Chrysostom with heresy. Although Arcadius originally supported Chrysostom, the Archbishop's decision not to participate caused Arcadius to change his mind and support Theophilus, resulting in Chrysostom's deposition and banishment.[49] He was called back by Arcadius almost immediately, as the people started rioting over his departure, even threatening to burn the imperial palace.[50] There was an earthquake the night of his arrest, which Eudoxia took for a sign of God's anger, prompting her to ask Arcadius for John's reinstatement.[51] Peace was short-lived. In September 403 a silver statue of Eudoxia was erected in the Augustaion, near the Magna Ecclesia church. Chrysostom, who was conducting a mass at the time, denounced the noisy dedication ceremonies as pagan and spoke against the Empress in harsh terms: "Again Herodias raves; again she is troubled; she dances again; and again desires to receive John's head in a charger",[52] an allusion to the events surrounding the death of John the Baptist. This time Arcadius was unwilling to overlook the insult to his wife; a new synod was called in early 404 where Chrysostom was condemned. Arcadius hesitated until Easter to enforce the sentence, but Chrysostom refused to go, even after Arcadius sent in a squad of soldiers to escort him into exile. Arcadius procrastinated, but by 20 June 404, the emperor finally managed to get the Archbishop to submit, and he was taken away to his place of banishment, this time to Abkhazia in the Caucasus.[53] Eudoxia did not get to enjoy her victory for long, dying later that year.[54] Death[edit] With the passing of Eudoxia, Arcadius once again fell under the domination of a member of his court, this time the competent Anthemius, the Praetorian Prefect. He would rule in Arcadius's name for the final four years of his reign, seeking to repair the harm done by his predecessors. He attempted to heal the divisions of the past decade by trying to make peace with Stilicho in the West. Stilicho, however, had lost patience with the eastern court, and in 407 encouraged Alaric and the Visigoths to seize the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum and hand it over to the western empire.[54] Stilicho's plan failed, and soon after, on 1 May 408, Arcadius died.[55] He was succeeded by his young son, Theodosius.[56] Like Constantine the Great and several of his successors, he was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, in a porphyry sarcophagus that was described in the 10th century by Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus in the De Ceremoniis.[57] Solidus of Arcadius. Character and achievements In noting the character of Arcadius, the historian J. B. Bury described him and his abilities thus: He was of short stature, of dark complexion, thin and inactive, and the dullness of his wit was betrayed by his speech and by his sleepy, drooping eyes. His mental deficiency and the weakness of his character made it inevitable that he should be governed by the strong personalities of his court.[58] Traditional interpretations of the reign of Arcadius have revolved around his weakness as an Emperor, and the formulation of policy by prominent individuals (and the court parties that formed and regrouped round them) towards curtailing the increasing influence of barbarians in the military, which in Constantinople at this period meant the Goths. Scholars such as the historian J. B. Bury spoke of a group in Arcadius's court with Germanic interests and, opposed to them, a Roman faction.[59] So when interpreting the revolt of Gainas and the massacre of the Goths in Constantinople in 400, the episode has been traditionally interpreted by scholars such as Otto Seeck as a violent anti-barbarian reaction that functioned to stabilize the East and prevent the rise of all powerful Romanised barbarian military leaders such as Stilicho in the West - what has been termed the victory of anti-Germanism in the eastern empire.[60][61] The main source of this interpretation has been the works Synesius of Cyrene, specifically Aegyptus sive de providentia and De regno. Both works have traditionally been interpreted to support the thesis that there were anti-barbarian and pro-barbarian groups, with the Praetorian Prefect Aurelianus being the leader of the anti-barbarian faction.[62] Recent scholarly research has revised this interpretation, and has instead favoured the interaction of personal ambition and enmities among the principal participants as being the leading cause for the court intrigue throughout Arcadius's reign.[2] The gradual decline of the use of Gothic mercenaries in the eastern empire's armies that began in the reign of Arcadius was driven by recruitment issues, as the regions beyond the Danube were made inaccessible by the Huns, forcing the empire to seek recruitment in Asia Minor.[63] The current consensus can be summarised by the historian Thomas S. Burns: "Despite much civilian distrust and outright hatred of the army and the barbarians in it, there were no anti-barbarian or pro-barbarian parties at the court."[64] With respect to Arcadius himself, as emperor was more concerned with appearing to be a pious Christian than he was with political or military matters. Not being a military leader, he began to promote a new type of imperial victory through images, not via the traditional military achievements, but focusing on his piety.[9] Arcadius's reign saw the growing push towards the outright abolishment of paganism.[65] On 13 July 399, Arcadius issued an edict ordering that all remaining non-Christian temples should be immediately demolished. In terms of buildings and monuments, a new forum was built in the name of Arcadius, on the seventh hill of Constantinople, the Xērolophos, in which a column was begun to commemorate his 'victory' over Gainas (although the column was only completed after Arcadius' death by Theodosius II). The Pentelic marble portrait head of Arcadius (now in the Istanbul Archaeology Museum) was discovered in Istanbul close to the Forum Tauri, in June 1949, in excavating foundations for new buildings of the university at Beyazit.[66] The neck was designed to be inserted in a torso, but no statue, base or inscription was found. The diadem is a fillet with rows of pearls along its edges and a rectangular stone set about with pearls over the young Emperor's forehead. A more nuanced assessment of Arcadius's reign was provided by Warren Treadgold: By failing to reign, Arcadius had allowed a good deal of maladministration. But by continuing to reign - so harmlessly that nobody had taken the trouble to depose him - he had maintained legal continuity during a troubled time.[67] Arcadius had four children with Eudoxia: three daughters, Pulcheria, Arcadia and Marina, and one son, Theodosius, the future Emperor Theodosius II.
  4. Title: Roman Emperors - Arcadius
    Author: Copyright (C) 1998, Geoffrey S. Nathan. This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents, including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact. Cameron, Alan, and Long, Jacqueline (1993) Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius (Berkeley). Demougeot, Emilienne (1951), De l'unité‚ … la division de l'empire romain, 395-410: Essai sur la government impérial (Paris). Holum, Kenneth (1982), Theodosian Empresses (Berkeley). Jones, A.H.M. et al. (1970), The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 1 (Cambridge). Liebeschuetz, J.H.W.G. (1991), Barbarians and Bishops. Army, Church, and State in the Age of Arcadius and Chrysostom (Oxford). Martindale, J.R. (1980), The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 2 (Cambridge). Seeck, Otto (1896), "Arcadius," in RE, v. 2 (Berlin), 1137-53. Van Ommeslaeghe, F. (1979) "Jean Chrysostome en conflit avec l'impératrice Eudoxie," Analecta Bollandiana 97, 131-59.
    Publication: Name: https://roman-emperors.sites.luc.edu/arcadius.htm;
    Note: The ineffectual life and reign of Flavius Arcadius are of considerably less importance than the quite significant developments that occurred during his reign. Born either in 377 or 378 to then general Theodosius and Aelia Flavia Flacilla, he and his younger brother, Honorius, ruled the eastern and western halves of the Roman Empire respectively from 395. Shortly after his birth, his father was raised to the imperial purple in 379. Events in Illyricum with the massive influx of Ostrogothic and Visigothic peoples had resulted in the defeat of the Roman army and the death of the emperor, Valens. Theodosius' first task was to confront the Visigoths who had been ravaging the Balkans. Perhaps in the wake of this difficult and almost insurmountable task, the emperor wanted to insure that his infant son would bear some legitimacy should he die on campaign. Whatever the reason, Arcadius was proclaimed Augustus in January of 383 at the age of five or six. In the following year, his younger brother was born and it seems as if Theodosius initially had been interested in preserving the theoretical position of his elder son. While Arcadius enjoyed the status of Augustus, Honorius only achieved the office of consul posterior in 386. Perhaps the eastern emperor had wanted to avoid the possible conflicts that arose earlier in the century with the family of Constantine. Recent events in the west with the assassination of Gratian by Magnus Maximus may have also played a part: Theodosius initially had to leave the murder of his imperial colleague unavenged and leave the boy- emperor, Valentinian II, largely undefended. The profusion of emperors may well have been seen by Theodosius as kindling for civil war. His own autocratic tendencies may have also meant that he saw only one possible successor for himself. Nevertheless, Theodosius gave Arcadius very little independence in early life. When he went to campaign against Magnus in the late 380's, he placed his son under the Praetorian Prefect of the East, Tatian, who was the de facto emperor in Theodosius' absence. This began a long series of regencies for Arcadius. The strength of Tatian's position with the eastern governing class made the office of Praetorian Prefect all the more powerful in Constantinople, which in turn made it easier to dominate future emperors. When Theodosius replaced Tatian with the more malleable and more ambitious Rufinus in 392, he had appointed a minister who would centralize even greater authority under the prefecture. By 393, the emperor's situation had changed radically. When events in the west demanded his attention again, Theodosius was in a much stronger position. The ascendancy of the general, Arbogast, and his own puppet emperor, Eugenius, in the west provided Theodosius an opportunity and, indeed, the obligation to take full control of the Empire. The chance for having his own two sons ruling both halves of Rome not only seemed practical and feasible, but such an arrangement would establish himself as the head of a new dynasty. With thoughts in that direction, Honorius was made Augustus in 393 and accompanied his father west in the summer of 394. Arcadius, although near his majority, was nevertheless placed again under the guardianship (epitropos) of the Prefect of the East. In January of 395, Theodosius the Great died and his two sons took theoretical control of the two halves of the Roman Empire. Early Reign and the Dominance of Rufinus and Eutropius (395-399) Arcadius was eighteen when he assumed the throne in the east. We do not know whether or not he was ready for the responsibilities. During the mid-380's, the young emperor had been educated in part by Themistius, a famous pagan statesman, philosopher, and speaker. In what way he affected Arcadius is impossible to say, but surely his teachings must have included statecraft. Perhaps because of this influence, the new emperor's attempt to establish himself as an independent force can be seen in a series of laws passed at his accession. In contrast to trying to create a military image for himself, which would not be allowed either by Rufinus or by the eastern court, he attempted to portray himself as a pious Christian emperor. He enacted several comprehensive laws against heresy and paganism. This was not necessarily an ineffectual strategy. By celebrating his religious piety, he expressed his power in the only way available to an emperor largely controlled by his ministers. He also perhaps sought to gain support and power from the local governing and religious hierarchies in Constantinople. Arcadius also perhaps thought that he was carrying on in the tradition of his father and so, by extension, might share in some of his glory. Rufinus in contrast wanted to tie himself to the emperor through a marriage connection to his daughter. But in April of 395, Arcadius had taken advantage of the Prefect's temporary absence to marry Aelia Eudoxia, whose guardian, the general, Promotus, had been a bitter enemy of Rufinus. Arcadius had been aided in this move by his own grand chamberlain (praepositus sacri cubiculi), Eutropius, and it perhaps indicated the degree to which he wanted to be free of any regent. But in reality, Arcadius gained little if any power. Rufinus assumed full control of the east, and the Vandal Stilicho, Theodosius' closest advisor and general, took control of Honorius in the west. The tension between east and west quickly grew when Stilicho, in command of all the eastern and western armies, tried to press his guardianship over Arcadius as well. Moreover, there was considerable resentment against Rufinus in the east for using his office to greatly enrich himself and perhaps, too, because he was a westerner. Rufinus, understanding the perils around him, acted quickly. He had Arcadius demand the return of the eastern armies at once. Stilicho acquiesced, perhaps because the general was basing his claim of guardianship on his own legitimacy: to have taken control of the east and Arcadius by force would have undermined his position there and perhaps in the west. The soldiers returned under the command of the Gothic general, Gainas. With the control of the field army, it seemed as if Rufinus was going to be more thoroughly in control of the east and over Arcadius. He did not long enjoy his victory. When Arcadius and Rufinus came to greet the armies at Hebdoman near Constantinople in November of 395, the soldiers turned on the Praetorian Prefect and cut him down in front of the emperor. Whether Stilicho instigated the assassination is a matter of some debate, but if he did, he received no benefit from it. The armies remained and Arcadius soon fell under the sway of other ministers. Nevertheless, despite the shock and fear Arcadius may have felt at witnessing such a brutal murder, he probably missed Rufinus' presence not at all and even thought it might provide an opportunity to assert his own authority. For the bureaucracy, the death meant that maintaining civilian control over the army was paramount to their own survival. Soon thereafter, Eutropius assumed Rufinus' place in dominating Arcadius. Since the grand chamberlain could control access to the emperor and commanded the powerful palace bureaucracy, he was well-placed to dictate what and whom the emperor saw and heard. Military officers--frequently Germanic--who dominated the western government, were held suspect by fearful and jealous civil administrators in Constantinople. Eutropius used that fear to his advantage and froze out any access they may have had to the circles of power. His decision to effectively eliminate the military's input in decision-making would eventually lead to his demise. It is difficult to determine how popular Eutropius was either with Arcadius or with the wider population. As a eunuch and a former slave, the sources generally portray him very negatively. He nevertheless seems to have enjoyed some support from the emperor, likely aided by Eudoxia with whom the grand chamberlain had close ties. The emperor happily took annual vacations in Galatia, apparently upon the Eutropius' suggestion. Moreover, the chamberlain showed great personal courage and talent in leading a campaign against invading Huns in 397/8, for which he won the consulship and the rank of patrician in the following year of 399. He also seems to have gained considerable support from the local clergy by procuring the patriarchate of Constantinople in 398 for John Chrysostom. Despite Eutropius' rise to power, however, eastern policy changed little. The religious policies of Theodosius and Arcadius continued, including the forced closure of pagan temples in Gaza. More significantly, tension between the two halves of the empire persisted as Stilicho continued to press for his position as guardian. Although Stilicho led periodic raids into Greece and Thrace to attack the new Visigothic king, Alaric, his victories were incomplete and were more likely meant to keep the Germanic people out of western territory. This meant, among other things, that the Visigoths were an enduring problem for the east. Eutropius in turn supported the revolt of the Count Gildo in Africa, which was under western control, in an attempt to destabilize Stilicho's control and further eastern domains. The failure of the revolt in 398 was the first step in Eutropius' downfall. The decision to exclude the military men of the period, particularly among the growing importance of Germanic officers, created a dangerous situation. By 399, the dissatisfaction with east-west affairs and the Gildo fiasco resulted in a revolt by the Gothic count, Tribigild. He was apparently in collusion with Gainas, who had taken advantage of the crisis to be named chief general in the east (magister utriusque militiae). Gainas quickly reached an agreement with the rebel and part of the settlement was the dismissal of Eutropius, to which Arcadius--at Eudoxia's urging--agreed.
  5. Title: Khan Academy.org - -Evolution of the Eastern Roman Empire into the Byzantine Empire
    Publication: Name: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/medieval-times/byzantine-empire/a/the-rise-of-the-byzantine-empire;
    Note: Overview The Byzantine Empire was the eastern continuation of the Roman Empire after the Western Roman Empire's fall in the fifth century CE. It lasted from the fall of the Roman Empire until the Ottoman conquest in 1453. Continuities: The Byzantine Empire initially maintained many Roman systems of governance and law and aspects of Roman culture. The Byzantines called themselves "Roman". The term "Byzantine Empire" was not used until well after the fall of the Empire. Changes: The Byzantine Empire shifted its capital from Rome to Constantinople, changed the official religion to Christianity, and changed the official language from Latin to Greek. From Rome to Byzantium The fall of the Roman Empire was a pivotal moment in world history. But we sometimes forget that part of the Roman Empire continued on. Even though the Western Roman Empire, which was centered around Rome, collapsed, the Eastern Roman Empire survived as the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire lasted for a millennium after the fall of the Roman Empire, ending with the Ottoman conquests in 1453. While the Roman Empire's capital was Rome (for most of its history), the Byzantine Empire’s capital city was Constantinople, which was previously called Byzantium, and today is Istanbul. The capital was well-positioned near active trade routes connecting east and west. Constantinople was named after Emperor Constantine I, the first Byzantine emperor. In this article, we're going to look at some of the continuities between the Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire. We'll also examine some of the changes that occurred, transforming the Eastern Roman Empire into the Byzantine Empire. The Roman Empire in the east transformed into the Byzantine Empire over time, so it's pretty hard to neatly separate the histories of the two empires, but most scholars agree that Emperor Constantine's reign was the start of the Byzantine Empire. Constantine—who ruled from 324 CE to 337 CE—made some significant changes to the Roman Empire. Two of these changes were the new capital at Byzantium and the new Christian character of the empire (Constantine legalized Christianity and eventually converted himself). These changes eventually created a distinct culture which would characterize the Byzantine Empire after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476. Even so, people living under the Byzantine Empire continued to see themselves as Romans and continued to refer to their empire as the Roman Empire; the terms Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire were created much later. Even though the Byzantine Empire is considered to start with Constantine's moving the capital to Byzantium, it was not considered a separate empire by historians until the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476. Even during this overlap, the nature of the Eastern and Western halves of the Empire began to diverge. In particular, the Greek language became more and more important in the East relative to Latin. In addition, Constantine legalized Christianity. However, this was still a period of transition. It wasn't until later, under Theodosius I—who ruled from 379 CE to 395 CE—that Christianity became the official state religion of the Roman Empire (both East and West). During Constantine's rule, there was a mix of Christian and pagan elements. Let's look at this passage written by the historian Timothy E. Gregory: There can be no doubt that, from 312 CE onward, Constantine favored the Christian church and that he offered it considerable wealth. He clearly became deeply involved in the religious controversies of the age and he favored Christians in the employ of the state. At the same time, Constantine continued to hold the office of pontifex maximus (chief priest of the state religion), and pagan symbols continued to appear on his coins, at least until 323 CE. The early Byzantine state Once the Western Roman Empire fell to Germanic conquerors in 476 CE, the Eastern Empire continued on as what historians would later refer to as the Byzantine Empire. The first truly strong Byzantine Emperor was Justinian—who ruled the Byzantine Empire from 527 CE to 565 CE. He was able to reclaim much of the Western Empire during his reign. Emperor Justinian also built upon Roman ideas when he put forth a unified Roman legal code. Prior to his reign, Roman laws had differed from region to region and many contradicted one another. It was during Justinian’s reign that many of the most notable buildings and works of art in the Byzantine Empire were completed. In Constantinople, the Hagia Sophia was constructed under Justinian’s orders. At the time, it was the largest church in the world. Justinian also contributed to Constantinople’s growth by creating trade routes linking the capital to major cities to the east and west. article continues - click on link to view in full
  6. Title: Flavius Arcadius, "Find A Grave Index"
    Author: "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVK9-YN8F : 9 September 2022), Flavius Arcadius, ; Burial, Istanbul, , Istanbul, Turkey, Church of the Holy Apostles; citing record ID 37123805, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
    Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVK9-YN8F;
  7. Title: Wikipedia - Arcadius part I
    Author: Goldsworthy, Adrian (2010). The Fall of the West: The Death of the Roman Superpower. Phoenix. Treadgold, Warren (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society, Stanford University Press. Long, Jacqueline (1996). Claudian's In Eutropium, Or, How, When, and why to Slander a Eunuch. University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0-807-82263-9 Burns, Thomas Samuel (1994). Barbarians Within the Gates of Rome: A Study of Roman Military Policy and the Barbarians, Ca. 375-425 A.D. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-31288-4 Cameron, A.; Long, J., Sherry, L., (1993). Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-06550-6 Kazhdan, Alexander ed. (1991). Arkadios. The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, pp. 173–174. Jones, A. H. M., John Robert Martindale, John Morris (1971). Arcadius 5. The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire I. Cambridge University Press, p. 99. ISBN 0-521-07233-6 Bury, J. B. (1889). A History of the Later Roman Empire from Arcadius
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcadius;
    Note: Arcadius Roman emperor in the East Augustus 16 January 383 – 1 May 408 Predecessor Theodosius I Successor Theodosius II Co-rulers Theodosius I (383–395) Honorius (West, 393–408) Theodosius II (402–408) Born c. 377[1] Hispania Died 1 May 408 (aged c. 31) Burial Church of the Holy Apostles, Constantinople Spouse Aelia Eudoxia Issue Flacilla Pulcheria Arcadia Theodosius II Marina Names Flavius Arcadius Dynasty Theodosian Father Theodosius I Mother Aelia Flaccilla Religion Nicene Christianity Arcadius (Greek: Ἀρκάδιος Arkadios; c. 377 – 1 May 408) was Roman emperor from 383 to 408. He was the eldest son of the Augustus Theodosius I (r. 379–395) and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla, and the brother of Honorius (r. 393–423). Arcadius ruled the eastern half of the empire from 395, when their father died, while Honorius ruled the west. A weak ruler, his reign was dominated by a series of powerful ministers and by his wife, Aelia Eudoxia.[2] Early life Birth Arcadius was born in 377 in Hispania, the eldest son of Theodosius I and Aelia Flaccilla, and brother of Honorius, who would become the Western Roman emperor. In 16 January 383,[7] his father declared the five-year-old Arcadius an Augustus and co-ruler for the eastern half of the Empire. Later in the year a corresponding declaration made Honorius Augustus of the western half. Arcadius passed his early years under the tutelage of the rhetorician Themistius and Arsenius Zonaras, a monk.[3] Emperor Early reign Both of Theodosius' sons were young and inexperienced, susceptible to being dominated by ambitious subordinates.[8] In 394 Arcadius briefly exercised independent power with the help of his advisors in Constantinople, when his father Theodosius went west to fight Arbogastes and Eugenius.[9] Theodosius died in 17 January 395, and Arcadius, still aged only 17, fell under the influence of the praetorian prefect of the East, Rufinus. Honorius, aged 10, was consigned to the guardianship of the magister militum Stilicho.[10] Rufinus ambitiously sought to marry his daughter to Arcadius and thereby gain the prestige of being the emperor's father-in-law.[11] However, when the prefect was called away to business in Antioch (where according to Zosimus, Rufinus had Lucianus, the comes orientis, flogged to death with whips loaded with lead),[12] Arcadius was shown a painting of Aelia Eudoxia, the daughter of the deceased Frankish magister militum per orientem, Bauto. Seeing the young emperor's interest in Eudoxia, Eutropius, the eunuch praepositus sacri cubiculi, arranged for the two to meet. Arcadius fell in love and a marriage was quickly arranged, with the ceremony performed on 27 April 395.[13] According to Zosimus, Rufinus assumed that his daughter was still to be the bride, only discovering otherwise when the nuptial procession went to Eudoxia's residence rather than his own.[14] The rise of Eudoxia, facilitated by a general who was a rival of Rufinus, demonstrates the shifting of the centres of power in the eastern court.[15] Such jostling for influence over the malleable emperor would be a recurring feature of Arcadius's reign.[16] The first crisis facing the young Arcadius was the rebellion of the Visigoths in 395, under the command of Alaric I (r. 395–410), who sought to take advantage of the accession of two inexperienced Roman emperors.[17] As Alaric marched towards Constantinople, plundering Macedonia and Thrace, the eastern court could offer no response, as the majority of its army had gone to Italy with Theodosius and was now in the hands of Stilicho.[18] Perhaps sensing an opportunity to exercise power in the eastern half of the empire as well, Stilicho declared that Theodosius had made him guardian over both his sons. He traveled eastward, ostensibly to face Alaric, leading both his own forces and the Gothic mercenaries whom Theodosius had taken west in the civil war with Eugenius. Arcadius and Rufinus felt more threatened by Stilicho than by Alaric;[19] upon landing in Thessaly Stilicho received an imperial order to send along the eastern regiments, but himself to proceed no further. Stilicho complied, falling back to Salona while Gainas led the mercenaries to Constantinople.[20] Arcadius and his entourage received Gainas in the Campus Martius, a parade ground adjacent to the city, on 27 November 395. There Rufinus was suddenly assassinated by the Goths, on the orders of Stilicho and possibly with the support of Eutropius.[21] The murder certainly created an opportunity for Eutropius and for Arcadius' wife, Eudoxia, who took Rufinus' place as advisors and guardians of the emperor.[22] While Eutropius consolidated his hold on power in the capital, the distracted government still failed to react to the presence of Alaric in Greece.[23] At first Eutropius may have coordinated with Stilicho around the defence of Illyricum; by 397, when Stilicho personally led a blockade that compelled Alaric to retreat into Epirus, the atmosphere of the eastern court had changed.[24] As neither Arcadius nor Eutropius was keen to have Stilicho intervening in the affairs of the eastern empire, they provided no further military aid to Stilicho, who then abandoned the blockade of the Visigoths.[25] At Eutropius's urging, Arcadius declared Stilicho to be a hostis publicus, and came to an arrangement with Alaric, making him magister militum per Illyricum.[26] At around the same time, the eastern court persuaded Gildo, the magister utriusque militiae per Africam, to transfer his allegiance from Honorius to Arcadius, causing relations between the two imperial courts to deteriorate further.[27] Eutropius' influence lasted four years, during which time he sought to marginalise the military and promote the civilian offices within the bureaucracy. He brought to trial two prominent military officers, Timasius and Abundantius.[28] He also had Arcadius introduce two administrative innovations: the running of the cursus publicus (office of postmaster general) and the office in charge of manufacturing military equipment was transferred from the praetorian prefects to the magister officiorum (master of offices). Secondly, the role that Eutropius held, the praepositus sacri cubiculi (grand chamberlain) was given the rank of illustris, and therefore equal in rank to the praetorian prefects.[29] In the autumn of 397 he issued a law in Arcadius's name, targeting the Roman military, where any conspiracy involving soldiers or the barbarian regiments against persons holding the rank of illustris was considered to be treason, with the conspirators to be sentenced to death, and their descendants to be deprived of citizenship.[30] In 398, Eutropius led a successful campaign against the Huns in Roman Armenia. The following year he convinced Arcadius to grant him the consulship, triggering protests across the empire. For traditionalists, the granting of the consulship to a eunuch and former slave was an insult to the Roman system and other contemporary Romans, and the western court refused to recognize him as consul.[31] The crisis escalated when the Ostrogoths who had been settled in Asia Minor by Theodosius I revolted, demanding the removal of Eutropius. The emperor sent two forces against Tribigild, the rebel leader; the first, under an officer named Leo, was defeated. The second force was commanded by Gainas, rival of Eutropius in the Eastern court. He returned to Arcadius and argued that the Ostrogoths could not be defeated, and that it would be sensible to accede to their demand.[32] Arcadius viewed this proposal with displeasure, but was convinced to support it by Eudoxia, who wished to take Eutropius’ place as the main influence upon the emperor.[33] Arcadius therefore dismissed Eutropius and sent him into exile (17 August 399), before recalling him to face trial and execution during the autumn of 399.[34] The imperial edict issued by Arcadius detailing Eutropius's banishment survives: The Emperors Arcadius and Honorius, Augusti, to Aurelian, Praetorian Prefect. We have added to our treasury all the property of Eutropius, who was formerly the Praepositus sacri cubiculi, having stripped him of his splendour, and delivered the consulate from the foul stain of his tenure, and from the recollection of his name and the base filth thereof ; so that, all his acts having been repealed, all time may be dumb concerning him ; and that the blot of our age may not appear by the mention of him ; and that those who by their valour and wounds extend the Roman borders or guard the same by equity in the maintenance of law, may not groan over the fact that the divine reward of consulship has been befouled and defiled by a filthy monster. Let him learn that he has been deprived of the rank of the patriciate and all lower dignities that he stained with the perversity of his character. That all the statues, all the images —whether of bronze or marble, or painted in colours, or of any other material used in art—we command to be abolished in all cities, towns, private and public places, that they may not, as a brand of infamy on our age, pollute the gaze of beholders. Accordingly under the conduct of faithful guards let him be taken to the island of Cyprus, whither let your sublimity know that he has been banished ; so that therein guarded with most watchful diligence he may be unable to work confusion with his mad designs.[35]
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