Manuel the Armenian
Encyclopedia
Manuel the Armenian was a prominent Byzantine
general of Armenian
origin, active from ca. 810 until his death in 838. After reaching the highest military ranks, a palace conspiracy forced him to seek refuge in the Abbasid
court in 829. He returned to Byzantine service the next year, receiving the position of Domestic of the Schools
. According to one report, he died on 27 July 838 of wounds received while saving the Emperor Theophilos
from capture during the Battle of Anzen
. Some chronicles however record his survival past this date and report that he died some time around 860. His niece, Theodora
, became empress to Theophilos
and ruled as regent for many years after Theophilos' death.
. Manuel first appears in the reign of Michael I Rangabe
(r. 811–813), when he held the post of protostrator
(head of the imperial stables). At the time, he must have been still young, probably in his twenties. Although he urged Michael to confront Leo the Armenian
, following Michael's deposition by Leo (r. 813–820), Manuel was promoted to the rank of patrikios and entrusted with the post of strategos
of the Armeniac
or the Anatolic Theme
. The latter was the most senior of the Empire's thematic governors and military leaders, and Leo himself had held the office prior to his accession. According to historians J.B. Bury and Warren Treadgold, in early 819 and for about a year, the emperor seems to have appointed Manuel to the exceptional post of monostrategos ("single-general") of the five land themes of Asia Minor
, but this unusual concentration of command authority was apparently directed towards the more effective suppression of iconophile resistance against Leo's reinstatement of Iconoclasm rather than for military purposes. This appointment is however most likely a misreading of the primary source, according to the editors of the Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit. Manuel probably continued serving as strategos of the Anatolics under Michael II the Amorian (r. 820–829), although he is not explicitly mentioned.
(r. 829–842) however, Manuel defected to the Abbasids as a result of machinations at court: the logothetes tou dromou
(foreign minister) Myron had accused him to the emperor of plotting to seize the throne. Theophilos was hesitant to believe the accusations, and was eventually convinced by the protovestiarios
(chamberlain) Leo Chamodrakon and the synkellos John the Grammarian
of his general's innocence. Manuel however did not wait for the emperor's judgement. Using the carriages of the imperial post he crossed Asia Minor in haste and offered his services to Caliph al-Ma'mun
(r. 813–833), on condition that he would not be forced to convert to Islam. Theophilos in turn resolved to get him to return and sent John the Grammarian to Baghdad
on a diplomatic mission, ostensibly in order to announce his accession. John was indeed able to see Manuel in private and offered him the Emperor's pardon, which Manuel seemed to accept.
In the summer of 830 however, Manuel participated in an Arab expedition against the Khurramite rebels of Babak Khorramdin
in Azerbaijan
, alongside a contingent of Byzantine captives. The campaign was nominally led by Ma'mun's own son, al-'Abbas
, but W. Treadgold believes that Manuel was the actual commander. After winning a few modest successes, the army turned back south. Manuel, who by then had probably won the confidence of his Arab minders, suggested that he and 'Abbas take a part of the army and raid over the Pass of Adata into Byzantine Cappadocia
. Once across the mountains, he and the other Byzantine captives escaped, taking with them the arms of 'Abbas and his escort, who were however allowed to get back unmolested.
, commander of the elite tagma
ta regiments. Manuel would remain Theophilos' leading general for the remainder of his life. As the uncle of Theophilos' new wife, the Empress Theodora, his position at court was now unassailable. It is indicative that the emperor later served as godfather for Manuel's children.
In 831, Manuel accompanied Theophilos in an expedition against a raid by the Cilicia
n Arabs. The Byzantines caught up with the Arabs near the fort of Charsianon
, and inflicted a heavy defeat upon them, killing 1,600 and taking some seven thousand prisoner. Manuel is also recorded as accompanying Theophilos on his great expedition in 837 against the Arab cities of northern Mesopotamia, which led to the sack of Zapetra and Arsamosata
. This campaign however, and the atrocities committed by the Byzantines after the fall of Zapetra, provoked a large-scale retaliatory campaign by Caliph al-Mu'tasim
(r. 833–842). Manuel again accompanied the emperor as his senior general, along with Theophobos
, the commander of the large "Persian" corps, composed of Khurramite refugees. He participated in the disastrous Battle of Anzen
on 22 July 838, where Theophilos confronted the army of general al-Afshin. During that battle, the imperial army broke and fled, and Theophilos with his retinue was surrounded by the Arabs on a hill with some 2,000 "Persians". When some of the latter reportedly began planning to surrender the emperor to the Arabs, Manuel seized the emperor's horse by the bridle and forcibly led him away. With a few other officers he managed to break through the Arab lines, and brought Theophilos to safety in the nearby village of Chiliokomon. During this he received heavy wounds, and according to the chronicle of Symeon Logothetes, he died of them soon after, likely on 27 July. He was buried in his palace in Constantinople, which lay near the cistern of Aspar and which became a monastery named after him, now traditionally identified with the Kefeli Mosque
.
(and following them Skylitzes and Zonaras) however report that he survived his wounds, allegedly after renouncing iconoclasm at the behest of some monks. He is further said to have been appointed a member of the regency council for Michael III
(r. 842–867) along with Theoktistos
and Bardas
, and to have refused the position of emperor when the populace acclaimed him thus at the Hippodrome
. The same writers report that he played an important role in the restoration of the icons, and that he became a protomagistros before falling out with Theoktistos and retiring. According to the same sources, in the late 850s, he saved the emperor's life in another battle at Anzen and died shortly after. Older scholars largely accepted this account, but modern historians have expressed doubts as to its veracity. Henri Grégoire
was the first to highlight its incompatibility with the narrative of Symeon Logothetes, speculating that it was a later invention, possibly carried out by the monks of the Monastery of Manuel, who venerated him as a saint and tried to mitigate his iconoclast past. Warren Treadgold, who considers Symeon Logothetes more reliable, also dismissed the reports of Manuel's post-838 survival as invented.
Other historians support the possibility of his continued life after 838, especially given the existence of a seal, dated to the mid-9th century, which names "Manuel patrikios, imperial protospatharios
, magistros and bagulos of the emperor", which seems to confirm both his survival into at least the early years of Michael III's reign, and his reported role as a member of the regency. Even so, the stories about his activities, and in particular his role in the restoration of the icons and the alleged second battle at Anzen (which is clearly inspired by the events of 838), are regarded as almost certainly fictitious. However, it may be that the story of his death after Theoktistos' downfall is reliable, which would probably place it sometime between 855 and 863.
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...
general of Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
origin, active from ca. 810 until his death in 838. After reaching the highest military ranks, a palace conspiracy forced him to seek refuge in the Abbasid
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate or, more simply, the Abbasids , was the third of the Islamic caliphates. It was ruled by the Abbasid dynasty of caliphs, who built their capital in Baghdad after overthrowing the Umayyad caliphate from all but the al-Andalus region....
court in 829. He returned to Byzantine service the next year, receiving the position of Domestic of the Schools
Domestic of the Schools
The Domestic of the Schools was a senior Byzantine military office, extant from the 8th century until at least the early 14th century. Originally simply the commander of the Scholai, the senior of the elite tagmata regiments, the Domestic quickly rose in prominence: by the mid-9th century, its...
. According to one report, he died on 27 July 838 of wounds received while saving the Emperor Theophilos
Theophilos (emperor)
Theophilos was the Byzantine emperor from 829 until his death in 842. He was the second emperor of the Phrygian dynasty, and the last emperor supporting iconoclasm...
from capture during the Battle of Anzen
Battle of Anzen
The Battle of Anzen or Dazimon was fought on July 22, 838 at Anzen or Dazimon between the Byzantine Empire and the forces of the Abbasid Caliphate...
. Some chronicles however record his survival past this date and report that he died some time around 860. His niece, Theodora
Theodora (9th century)
Theodora was a Byzantine Empress as the spouse of the Byzantine emperor Theophilos, and regent of her son, Michael III, from Theophilos' death in 842 to 855...
, became empress to Theophilos
Theophilos (emperor)
Theophilos was the Byzantine emperor from 829 until his death in 842. He was the second emperor of the Phrygian dynasty, and the last emperor supporting iconoclasm...
and ruled as regent for many years after Theophilos' death.
Life
Manuel was of Armenian origin, and the brother of Marinos, the father of the future empress TheodoraTheodora (9th century)
Theodora was a Byzantine Empress as the spouse of the Byzantine emperor Theophilos, and regent of her son, Michael III, from Theophilos' death in 842 to 855...
. Manuel first appears in the reign of Michael I Rangabe
Michael I Rangabe
Michael I Rangabes was Byzantine Emperor from 811 to 813.Michael was the son of the patrician Theophylaktos Rangabes, the admiral of the Aegean fleet...
(r. 811–813), when he held the post of protostrator
Protostrator
Prōtostratōr was a Byzantine court office, originating as the imperial stable master, which in the last centuries of the Empire evolved into one of the senior military offices...
(head of the imperial stables). At the time, he must have been still young, probably in his twenties. Although he urged Michael to confront Leo the Armenian
Leo V the Armenian
Leo V the Armenian was emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 813 to 820. A senior general, he forced his predecessor, Michael I Rangabe, to abdicate and assumed the throne. He ended the decade-long war with the Bulgars, and initiated the second period of Byzantine Iconoclasm...
, following Michael's deposition by Leo (r. 813–820), Manuel was promoted to the rank of patrikios and entrusted with the post of strategos
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
of the Armeniac
Armeniac Theme
The Armeniac Theme , more properly the Theme of the Armeniacs was a Byzantine theme located in northeastern Asia Minor .-History:...
or the Anatolic Theme
Anatolic Theme
The Anatolic Theme , more properly known as the Theme of the Anatolics was a Byzantine theme in central Asia Minor...
. The latter was the most senior of the Empire's thematic governors and military leaders, and Leo himself had held the office prior to his accession. According to historians J.B. Bury and Warren Treadgold, in early 819 and for about a year, the emperor seems to have appointed Manuel to the exceptional post of monostrategos ("single-general") of the five land themes of Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
, but this unusual concentration of command authority was apparently directed towards the more effective suppression of iconophile resistance against Leo's reinstatement of Iconoclasm rather than for military purposes. This appointment is however most likely a misreading of the primary source, according to the editors of the Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit. Manuel probably continued serving as strategos of the Anatolics under Michael II the Amorian (r. 820–829), although he is not explicitly mentioned.
Escape to the Caliphate
Shortly after the accession of Michael II's son and successor, TheophilosTheophilos (emperor)
Theophilos was the Byzantine emperor from 829 until his death in 842. He was the second emperor of the Phrygian dynasty, and the last emperor supporting iconoclasm...
(r. 829–842) however, Manuel defected to the Abbasids as a result of machinations at court: the logothetes tou dromou
Logothetes tou dromou
The logothetēs tou dromou , in English usually rendered as Logothete of the Course/Drome/Dromos or Postal Logothete, was the head of the department of the Dromos, the Public Post , and one of the most senior ministers of the Byzantine Empire.- History and functions :The exact origin and date of...
(foreign minister) Myron had accused him to the emperor of plotting to seize the throne. Theophilos was hesitant to believe the accusations, and was eventually convinced by the protovestiarios
Protovestiarios
Protovestiarios was a high Byzantine court position, originally reserved for eunuchs.-History and functions:The title is first attested in 412, as the comes sacrae vestis, an official in charge of the Byzantine emperor's "sacred wardrobe" , coming under the praepositus sacri cubiculi...
(chamberlain) Leo Chamodrakon and the synkellos John the Grammarian
Patriarch John VII of Constantinople
John VII Grammatikos or Grammaticus, i.e., "the Grammarian" , Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from January 21, 837 to March 4, 843, died before 867. He is not to be confused with the much earlier philosopher John Philoponos.-Life:John was born to an aristocratic family of Armenian origin...
of his general's innocence. Manuel however did not wait for the emperor's judgement. Using the carriages of the imperial post he crossed Asia Minor in haste and offered his services to Caliph al-Ma'mun
Al-Ma'mun
Abū Jaʿfar Abdullāh al-Māʾmūn ibn Harūn was an Abbasid caliph who reigned from 813 until his death in 833...
(r. 813–833), on condition that he would not be forced to convert to Islam. Theophilos in turn resolved to get him to return and sent John the Grammarian to 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...
on a diplomatic mission, ostensibly in order to announce his accession. John was indeed able to see Manuel in private and offered him the Emperor's pardon, which Manuel seemed to accept.
In the summer of 830 however, Manuel participated in an Arab expedition against the Khurramite rebels of Babak Khorramdin
Babak Khorramdin
Bābak Khorram-Din was one of the main Persian revolutionary leaders of the Iranian Khorram-Dinān , which was a local freedom movement fighting the Abbasid Caliphate. Khorramdin appears to be a compound analogous to dorustdin and Behdin "Good Religion" , and are considered an offshoot of...
in Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
, alongside a contingent of Byzantine captives. The campaign was nominally led by Ma'mun's own son, al-'Abbas
Al-Abbas ibn al-Ma'mun
Al-Abbas ibn al-Ma'mun was an Arab prince and general, the son of the Abbasid Caliph al-Ma'mun . A distinguished military leader in the Byzantine–Arab Wars, he was passed over in the succession in favour of his uncle al-Mu'tasim...
, but W. Treadgold believes that Manuel was the actual commander. After winning a few modest successes, the army turned back south. Manuel, who by then had probably won the confidence of his Arab minders, suggested that he and 'Abbas take a part of the army and raid over the Pass of Adata into Byzantine Cappadocia
Cappadocia
Cappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in Nevşehir Province.In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported as occupying the whole region from Mount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine...
. Once across the mountains, he and the other Byzantine captives escaped, taking with them the arms of 'Abbas and his escort, who were however allowed to get back unmolested.
Domestic of the Schools
Theophilos welcomed Manuel with open arms, and named him magistros and Domestic of the SchoolsDomestic of the Schools
The Domestic of the Schools was a senior Byzantine military office, extant from the 8th century until at least the early 14th century. Originally simply the commander of the Scholai, the senior of the elite tagmata regiments, the Domestic quickly rose in prominence: by the mid-9th century, its...
, commander of the elite tagma
Tagma (military)
The tagma is a term for a military unit of battalion or regiment size. The best-known and most technical use of the term however refers to the elite regiments formed by Byzantine emperor Constantine V and comprising the central army of the Byzantine Empire in the 8th–11th centuries.-History and...
ta regiments. Manuel would remain Theophilos' leading general for the remainder of his life. As the uncle of Theophilos' new wife, the Empress Theodora, his position at court was now unassailable. It is indicative that the emperor later served as godfather for Manuel's children.
In 831, Manuel accompanied Theophilos in an expedition against a raid by the Cilicia
Cilicia
In antiquity, Cilicia was the south coastal region of Asia Minor, south of the central Anatolian plateau. It existed as a political entity from Hittite times into the Byzantine empire...
n Arabs. The Byzantines caught up with the Arabs near the fort of Charsianon
Charsianon
Charsianon was the name of a Byzantine fortress and the corresponding theme in the region of Cappadocia in central Anatolia .-History:...
, and inflicted a heavy defeat upon them, killing 1,600 and taking some seven thousand prisoner. Manuel is also recorded as accompanying Theophilos on his great expedition in 837 against the Arab cities of northern Mesopotamia, which led to the sack of Zapetra and Arsamosata
Arsamosata
Arsamosata was a city in Armenian Sophene near the Euphrates. It was founded by King Arsames I of the Orontid Dynasty in 3rd century BC. It was left and destroyed in I century BC. In Middle Ages it was called Ashmushat....
. This campaign however, and the atrocities committed by the Byzantines after the fall of Zapetra, provoked a large-scale retaliatory campaign by Caliph al-Mu'tasim
Al-Mu'tasim
Abu Ishaq 'Abbas al-Mu'tasim ibn Harun was an Abbasid caliph . He succeeded his half-brother al-Ma'mun...
(r. 833–842). Manuel again accompanied the emperor as his senior general, along with Theophobos
Theophobos
Theophobos or Theophobus , originally Nasr, was a Persian or Kurdish commander in Byzantine service under Emperor Theophilos ....
, the commander of the large "Persian" corps, composed of Khurramite refugees. He participated in the disastrous Battle of Anzen
Battle of Anzen
The Battle of Anzen or Dazimon was fought on July 22, 838 at Anzen or Dazimon between the Byzantine Empire and the forces of the Abbasid Caliphate...
on 22 July 838, where Theophilos confronted the army of general al-Afshin. During that battle, the imperial army broke and fled, and Theophilos with his retinue was surrounded by the Arabs on a hill with some 2,000 "Persians". When some of the latter reportedly began planning to surrender the emperor to the Arabs, Manuel seized the emperor's horse by the bridle and forcibly led him away. With a few other officers he managed to break through the Arab lines, and brought Theophilos to safety in the nearby village of Chiliokomon. During this he received heavy wounds, and according to the chronicle of Symeon Logothetes, he died of them soon after, likely on 27 July. He was buried in his palace in Constantinople, which lay near the cistern of Aspar and which became a monastery named after him, now traditionally identified with the Kefeli Mosque
Kefeli Mosque
The Kefeli Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church, later jointly officiated by Roman Catholics and Armenians, and finally converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The Catholic Church was dedicated to Saint Nicholas. Its date of dedication as Eastern Orthodox church is unknown...
.
Possible life after 838
The chronicles of Genesios and Theophanes ContinuatusTheophanes Continuatus
Theophanes Continuatus or Scriptores post Theophanem is the Latin name commonly applied to a collection of historical writings preserved in the 11th-century Vat. gr. 167 manuscript. Its name derives from its role as the continuation, covering the years 813–961, of the chronicle of Theophanes the...
(and following them Skylitzes and Zonaras) however report that he survived his wounds, allegedly after renouncing iconoclasm at the behest of some monks. He is further said to have been appointed a member of the regency council for 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) along with Theoktistos
Theoktistos
Theoktistos was an influential senior Byzantine official during the reigns of Michael II and his son Theophilos, and regent for the underage Michael III...
and Bardas
Bardas
Bardas was a Byzantine noble and high-ranking minister. As the brother of Empress Theodora, he rose to high office under Theophilos . Although sidelined after Theophilos' death by Theodora and Theoktistos, in 856 he engineered Theoktistos' fall and became the regent for his nephew, Michael III...
, and to have refused the position of emperor when the populace acclaimed him thus at the Hippodrome
Hippodrome of Constantinople
The Hippodrome of Constantinople was a circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. Today it is a square named Sultanahmet Meydanı in the Turkish city of Istanbul, with only a few fragments of the original structure surviving...
. The same writers report that he played an important role in the restoration of the icons, and that he became a protomagistros before falling out with Theoktistos and retiring. According to the same sources, in the late 850s, he saved the emperor's life in another battle at Anzen and died shortly after. Older scholars largely accepted this account, but modern historians have expressed doubts as to its veracity. Henri Grégoire
Henri Grégoire (historian)
Henri Grégoire was an eminent scholar of the Byzantine Empire, virtually the founder of Byzantine studies in Belgium.Grégoire spent most of his teaching career at the Université libre de Bruxelles...
was the first to highlight its incompatibility with the narrative of Symeon Logothetes, speculating that it was a later invention, possibly carried out by the monks of the Monastery of Manuel, who venerated him as a saint and tried to mitigate his iconoclast past. Warren Treadgold, who considers Symeon Logothetes more reliable, also dismissed the reports of Manuel's post-838 survival as invented.
Other historians support the possibility of his continued life after 838, especially given the existence of a seal, dated to the mid-9th century, which names "Manuel patrikios, imperial protospatharios
Protospatharios
Prōtospatharios was one of the highest court dignities of the middle Byzantine period , awarded to senior generals and provincial governors, as well as to foreign princes.-History:...
, magistros and bagulos of the emperor", which seems to confirm both his survival into at least the early years of Michael III's reign, and his reported role as a member of the regency. Even so, the stories about his activities, and in particular his role in the restoration of the icons and the alleged second battle at Anzen (which is clearly inspired by the events of 838), are regarded as almost certainly fictitious. However, it may be that the story of his death after Theoktistos' downfall is reliable, which would probably place it sometime between 855 and 863.