Leo Choirosphaktes
Encyclopedia
Leo Choirosphaktes, sometimes Latinized as Choerosphactes and also known as Leo Magistros or Leo Magister, was a Byzantine
official who rose to high office under Basil I the Macedonian (r. 867–886) and served as an envoy under Emperor Leo VI the Wise
(r. 886–912) to Bulgaria
and the Abbasid Caliphate. Choirosphaktes was also a well-educated and prominent scholar and writer, many of whose works and correspondence survive.
The date of Choirosphaktes' birth is not clear; G. Kolias (Léon Choerosphaktès, magistre, proconsul et patrice, 1939) placed it between 845 and 850, Hans Georg Beck (Kirche und theologische Literatur im Byzantinischen Reich, 1959) ca. 824. Paul Magdalino however rejects a birth date in the 820s, for Choirosphaktes was still alive in 913 and probably died after 920. His family was well established in aristocratic circles, and came from the Peloponnese
. Through his wife, he was apparently a relative of Zoe Karbonopsina
, Leo VI's mistress after ca. 903 and eventual fourth wife, and he himself married a lady related to the imperial family, with whom he had two daughters.
Nothing is known of his early life before ca. 865, when he dedicated a major theological work, the Theology in a Thousand Lines (Χιλιόστιχος Θεολογία) to Emperor Michael III
(r. 842–867). Under Michael's successor Basil I the Macedonian, Choirosphaktes rose to high state offices, being named mystikos
(the first attested holder) and kanikleios
, both confidential positions in close proximity to the emperor.
Choirosphaktes continued to be favoured by the Basil's successor, Leo VI, who awarded him the high dignities of anthypatos
, magistros and patrikios by 896. In 895–896, Leo sent Choirosphaktes in a series of embassies to the Bulgarian ruler Symeon
, to conclude the ongoing war. His surviving diplomatic correspondence is a valuable source for these events.
The Bulgarians had been hard pressed due to the successful raids of the Magyars, Byzantium's allies, who had handed over their many prisoners to the Byzantines. Confident of a favourable settlement, Leo stood down the Byzantine forces. Relieved of pressure on two fronts, Symeon immediately imprisoned Choirosphaktes, and carried on negotiations with him in his cell. These Symeon dragged out until his allies, the Pechenegs, attacked the Magyars in the rear. After he defeated the Magyars however, the Bulgarian ruler issued an ultimatum demanding the release of all Bulgarian prisoners as a precondition of peace. As Leo was pressed by the Arabs in the East, his demand was accepted: Choirosphaktes returned to Constantinople
with the Bulgarian envoy Theodore, and the prisoners were released. Soon however hostilities resumed, and after a severe defeat at Bulgarophygon
, Choirosphaktes was sent again to Symeon. He managed to negotiate a treaty (either in late 896 or in 897), which set free a large number of Byzantine prisoners (Choirosphaktes himself speaks in his letters of 120,000, certainly an exaggeration), and secured peace in exchange for the restoration of Bulgaria's trade privileges, the payment of an annual tribute by the Byzantines to Symeon, and some border concessions.
That peace would last until 913, with the exception of a brief moment in 904, when, in the aftermath of a series of Byzantine setbacks at the hands of the Arabs, most notably the sack of Thessalonica, the Empire's second city, Symeon decided to press his advantage: he appeared with his army in front of Thessalonica, and demanded concessions in return for not occupying the defenseless city. Choirosphaktes again was the Byzantine ambassador. Symeon secured much territory in Macedonia
and Thrace
, although Choirosphaktes also managed to recover a belt of about 30 fortresses around the Empire's Adriatic stronghold of Dyrrhachium (although Shaun Tougher considers the latter the result of a separate mission in ca. 902–3).
In 905/906, Leo sent Choirosphaktes as an envoy to the emirs of Tarsos and Malatya
as well as to the Abbasid court in Baghdad
, hoping to achieve a peace treaty, but also to gather grants of economy by the eastern patriarchs for the emperor's fourth marriage, normally forbidden by canon law
. Shortly after his return, ca. 907, he fell into disfavour and was exiled to a location called Petra, possibly indicating some involvement in the revolt of Andronikos Doukas
. During this period of disgrace, he sent repeated letters to the emperor pleading his case. He was also the subject of a vehement attack by the bishop Arethas of Caesarea
in the latter's Choirosphaktes or Wizard-hater (Μισογόης), where he was accused of being a "Hellene" (a pagan). Eventually, he was pardoned and rehabilitated, either by Leo himself or by his brother and successor, Alexander (r. 912–913), for at the time of Alexander's death he was back in Constantinople, and was implicated in the conspiracy and failed coup of the general Constantine Doukas
. Following the coup's suppression, Choirosphaktes sought sanctuary in the Hagia Sophia
. There he was captured, tonsure
d and then confined to the Monastery of Stoudios, where he died shortly after 919.
with Helena Lekapene
in 920, and poems on the deaths of prominent figures of his time, such as Leo the Mathematician
and the patriarchs Photios I and Stephen I.
Throughout is works Leo praises the intellectual qualities of his heroes, especially the Emperor Leo, draws parallels between the absolute rule of God and the imperial autocracy of Byzantium, and notably marginalizes the role of the Church, promoting even elements of the rejected iconoclasm. Paul Magdalino has argued that he was advocating a new "ideology, indeed theology of rulership", where all power is concentrated in the hands of a "small secular elite of court philosophers", in direct contravention of the prevailing model of interrelation between Church and state.
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
official who rose to high office under Basil I the Macedonian (r. 867–886) and served as an envoy under Emperor Leo VI the Wise
Leo VI the Wise
Leo VI, surnamed the Wise or the Philosopher , was Byzantine emperor from 886 to 912. The second ruler of the Macedonian dynasty , he was very well-read, leading to his surname...
(r. 886–912) to Bulgaria
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
and the Abbasid Caliphate. Choirosphaktes was also a well-educated and prominent scholar and writer, many of whose works and correspondence survive.
Life
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
. Through his wife, he was apparently a relative of Zoe Karbonopsina
Zoe Karbonopsina
Zoe Karbonopsina, also Karvounopsina or Carbonopsina, i.e., "with the Coal-Black Eyes" , was fourth wife of the Byzantine Emperor Leo VI the Wise and the mother of Constantine VII....
, Leo VI's mistress after ca. 903 and eventual fourth wife, and he himself married a lady related to the imperial family, with whom he had two daughters.
Nothing is known of his early life before ca. 865, when he dedicated a major theological work, the Theology in a Thousand Lines (Χιλιόστιχος Θεολογία) to Emperor Michael III
Michael III
Michael III , , Byzantine Emperor from 842 to 867. Michael III was the third and traditionally last member of the Amorian-Phrygian Dynasty...
(r. 842–867). Under Michael's successor Basil I the Macedonian, Choirosphaktes rose to high state offices, being named mystikos
Mystikos
The mystikos was an important Byzantine office of the imperial chancery from the 9th through to the 15th centuries. Its initial role is unclear; he was probably the emperor's private secretary. In time, the office also exercised judicial duties...
(the first attested holder) and kanikleios
Kanikleios
The kanikleios , more formally chartoularios tou kanikleiou or epi tou kanikleiou was one of the most senior offices in the Byzantine imperial chancery. Its holder was the keeper of the imperial inkstand, the kanikleion, which was shaped as a little dog and contained the scarlet ink with which...
, both confidential positions in close proximity to the emperor.
Choirosphaktes continued to be favoured by the Basil's successor, Leo VI, who awarded him the high dignities of anthypatos
Anthypatos
Anthypatos is the translation in Greek of the Latin proconsul. In the Greek-speaking East, it was used to denote this office in Roman and early Byzantine times, surviving as an administrative office until the 9th century...
, magistros and patrikios by 896. In 895–896, Leo sent Choirosphaktes in a series of embassies to the Bulgarian ruler Symeon
Simeon I of Bulgaria
Simeon I the Great ruled over Bulgaria from 893 to 927, during the First Bulgarian Empire. Simeon's successful campaigns against the Byzantines, Magyars and Serbs led Bulgaria to its greatest territorial expansion ever, making it the most powerful state in contemporary Eastern Europe...
, to conclude the ongoing war. His surviving diplomatic correspondence is a valuable source for these events.
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
with the Bulgarian envoy Theodore, and the prisoners were released. Soon however hostilities resumed, and after a severe defeat at Bulgarophygon
Battle of Bulgarophygon
The Battle of Boulgarophygon or Battle of Bulgarophygon was fought in the summer of 896 near the town of Bulgarophygon, modern Babaeski in Turkey, between the Byzantine Empire and the First Bulgarian Empire...
, Choirosphaktes was sent again to Symeon. He managed to negotiate a treaty (either in late 896 or in 897), which set free a large number of Byzantine prisoners (Choirosphaktes himself speaks in his letters of 120,000, certainly an exaggeration), and secured peace in exchange for the restoration of Bulgaria's trade privileges, the payment of an annual tribute by the Byzantines to Symeon, and some border concessions.
That peace would last until 913, with the exception of a brief moment in 904, when, in the aftermath of a series of Byzantine setbacks at the hands of the Arabs, most notably the sack of Thessalonica, the Empire's second city, Symeon decided to press his advantage: he appeared with his army in front of Thessalonica, and demanded concessions in return for not occupying the defenseless city. Choirosphaktes again was the Byzantine ambassador. Symeon secured much territory in Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
and Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
, although Choirosphaktes also managed to recover a belt of about 30 fortresses around the Empire's Adriatic stronghold of Dyrrhachium (although Shaun Tougher considers the latter the result of a separate mission in ca. 902–3).
In 905/906, Leo sent Choirosphaktes as an envoy to the emirs of Tarsos and Malatya
Malatya
Malatya ) is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of its eponymous province.-Overview:The city site has been occupied for thousands of years. The Assyrians called the city Meliddu. Following Roman expansion into the east, the city was renamed in Latin as Melitene...
as well as to the Abbasid court in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
, hoping to achieve a peace treaty, but also to gather grants of economy by the eastern patriarchs for the emperor's fourth marriage, normally forbidden by canon law
Canon law
Canon law is the body of laws & regulations made or adopted by ecclesiastical authority, for the government of the Christian organization and its members. It is the internal ecclesiastical law governing the Catholic Church , the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches, and the Anglican Communion of...
. Shortly after his return, ca. 907, he fell into disfavour and was exiled to a location called Petra, possibly indicating some involvement in the revolt of Andronikos Doukas
Andronikos Doukas (general under Leo VI)
Andronikos Doukas or Doux was a Byzantine general and rebel in the reign of Emperor Leo VI the Wise . The first member of the illustrious Doukas line to achieve prominence as a successful general, his rivalry with the powerful eunuch Samonas led to his revolt and eventual defection to the Arabs in...
. During this period of disgrace, he sent repeated letters to the emperor pleading his case. He was also the subject of a vehement attack by the bishop Arethas of Caesarea
Arethas of Caesarea
Arethas of Caesarea became Archbishop of Caesarea early in the 10th century, and is reckoned one of the most scholarly theologians of the Greek Orthodox Church.-Life:He was born at Patrae . He was a disciple of Photius...
in the latter's Choirosphaktes or Wizard-hater (Μισογόης), where he was accused of being a "Hellene" (a pagan). Eventually, he was pardoned and rehabilitated, either by Leo himself or by his brother and successor, Alexander (r. 912–913), for at the time of Alexander's death he was back in Constantinople, and was implicated in the conspiracy and failed coup of the general Constantine Doukas
Constantine Doukas (usurper)
Constantine Doukas was a prominent Byzantine general. In 904, he stopped the influential eunuch court official Samonas from defecting to the Arabs. In return, Samonas manipulated his father, Andronikos Doukas, into rebelling and fleeing to the Abbasid court in 906/907...
. Following the coup's suppression, Choirosphaktes sought sanctuary in the Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...
. There he was captured, tonsure
Tonsure
Tonsure is the traditional practice of Christian churches of cutting or shaving the hair from the scalp of clerics, monastics, and, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, all baptized members...
d and then confined to the Monastery of Stoudios, where he died shortly after 919.
Writings and ideas
Alongside his letters, Choirosphaktes also composed theological works, hymns and epigrams. The attribution of some of the works however is disputed. Among them are many celebratory anacreontic poems: two on one of the marriages (probably the second one) of Leo VI, one on a new palace bath built by Leo VI, one on the marriage of Constantine VIIConstantine VII
Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos or Porphyrogenitus, "the Purple-born" was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 913 to 959...
with Helena Lekapene
Helena Lekapene
Helena Lekapene was the Empress consort of Constantine VII. She was a daughter of Romanos I and his wife Theodora.-Background:...
in 920, and poems on the deaths of prominent figures of his time, such as Leo the Mathematician
Leo the Mathematician
Leo the Mathematician or the Philosopher was a Byzantine philosopher and logician associated with the Macedonian Renaissance and the end of Iconoclasm. His only preserved writings are some notes contained in manuscripts of Plato's dialogues. He has been called a "true Renaissance man" and "the...
and the patriarchs Photios I and Stephen I.
Throughout is works Leo praises the intellectual qualities of his heroes, especially the Emperor Leo, draws parallels between the absolute rule of God and the imperial autocracy of Byzantium, and notably marginalizes the role of the Church, promoting even elements of the rejected iconoclasm. Paul Magdalino has argued that he was advocating a new "ideology, indeed theology of rulership", where all power is concentrated in the hands of a "small secular elite of court philosophers", in direct contravention of the prevailing model of interrelation between Church and state.