Romanos I
Encyclopedia
Romanos I Lekapenos (Greek
: Ρωμανός Α΄ Λακαπήνος, Rōmanos I Lakapēnos; ) (circa 870 – June 15, 948) was Byzantine Emperor from 920 until his deposition on December 16, 944.
. In 911 he was general of the naval theme of Samos
and later served as admiral of the fleet (droungarios tou ploimou). In this capacity he was supposed to participate in the Byzantine operations against Bulgaria
on the Danube
in 917, but he was unable to carry out his mission. In the aftermath of the disastrous Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Acheloos in 917 by the Bulgarians, Romanos sailed to Constantinople
, where he gradually overcame the discredited regency of Empress Zoe Karvounopsina and her supporter Leo Phokas.
. In May 919 he married his daughter Helena Lekapene
to Constantine and was proclaimed basileopator
("father of the emperor"). On September 14, 920, Romanos was invested as kaisar (Caesar
), and finally on December 17 of the same year he was crowned co-emperor, becoming the effective head of the Byzantine Empire
.
In subsequent years Romanos crowned his own sons co-emperors, Christopher
in 921, Stephen
and Constantine
in 924, although, for the time being, Constantine VII was regarded as first in rank after Romanos himself. It is notable that, as he left Constantine untouched, he was called 'the gentle usurper'. Romanos strengthened his position by marrying his daughters to members of the powerful aristocratic families of Argyros and Mouseles, by recalling the deposed patriarch Nicholas Mystikos
, and by putting an end to the conflict with the Papacy over the four marriages of Emperor Leo VI.
's plans for a marital alliance with Constantine VII, and Romanos was determined to deny the unpopular concession of imperial recognition to Simeon, which had already toppled two imperial governments. Consequently, the first four years of Romanos' reign were spent in warfare against Bulgaria. Although Simeon generally had the upper hand, he was unable to gain a decisive advantage because of the impregnability of Constantinople's walls. In 924, when Simeon had once again blockaded the capital by land, Romanos succeeded in opening negotiations. Meeting Simeon in person at Kosmidion, Romanos criticized Simeon's disregard for tradition and Orthodox Christian brotherhood and supposedly shamed him into coming to terms and lifting the siege. In reality, this was accomplished by Romanos' tacit recognition of Simeon as emperor of Bulgaria. Relations were subsequently marred by continued wrangling over titles (Simeon called himself emperor of the Romans as well), but peace had been effectively established.
On the death of Simeon in May 927, Bulgaria's new emperor Peter I
made a show of force by invading Byzantine Thrace
, but showed himself ready to negotiate for a more permanent peace. Romanos seized the occasion and proposed a marriage alliance between the imperial houses of Byzantium and Bulgaria, at the same time renewing the Serbian-Byzantine alliance with Časlav of Serbia
returning independence the same year. In September 927 Peter arrived before Constantinople and married Maria
(renamed Eirene, "Peace"), the daughter of his eldest son and co-emperor Christopher, and thus Romanos' granddaughter. On this occasion Christopher received precedence in rank over his brother-in-law Constantine VII, something which compounded the latter's resentment towards the Lekapenoi, the Bulgarians, and imperial marriages to outsiders (as documented in his composition De Administrando Imperio
). From this point on, Romanos' government was free from direct military confrontation with Bulgaria. Although Byzantium would tacitly support a Serbian revolt against Bulgaria in 931, and the Bulgarians would allow Magyar raids across their territory into Byzantine possessions, Byzantium and Bulgaria remained at peace for 40 years, until Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
.
commander of the field armies (domestikos ton scholon) in the East. John Kourkouas subdued a rebellion in the theme of Chaldia
and intervened in Armenia in 924. From 926 Kourkouas campaigned across the eastern frontier against the Abbasids and their vassals, and won an important victory at Melitene in 934. The capture of this city is often considered the first major Byzantine territorial recovery from the Muslims.
In 941, while most of the army under Kourkouas was absent in the East, a fleet of 15 old ships under the protovestiarios
Theophanes
had to defend Constantinople from a Kievan
raid. The invaders were defeated
at sea, through the use of Greek fire
, and again at land, when they landed in Bithynia
, by the returning army under Kourkouas. In 944 Romanos concluded a treaty
with Prince Igor of Kiev. This crisis having passed, Kourkouas was free to return to the eastern frontier.
In 943 Kourkouas invaded northern Mesopotamia
and besieged the important city of Edessa
in 944. As the price for his withdrawal, Kourkouas obtained one of Byzantium's most prised relics, the mandylion, the holy towel allegedly sent by Jesus
Christ
to King Abgar V of Edessa
. John Kourkouas, although considered by some of his contemporaries "a second Trajan
or Belisarius
," was dismissed after the fall of the Lekapenoi in 945. Nevertheless, his campaigns in the East paved the way for the even more dramatic reconquests in the middle and the second half of the 10th century.
Romanos I Lekapenos attempted to strengthen the Byzantine Empire by seeking peace everywhere where that was possible. His dealings with Bulgaria and Kievan Rus' have been described above. To protect Byzantine Thrace from Magyar incursions (such as the ones in 934 and 943), Romanos paid them protection money and pursued diplomatic venues.
The Khazars
were the allies of the Byzantines until the reign of Romanos, when he started persecuting the Jews of the empire. According to the Schechter Letter
, the Khazar ruler Joseph
responded to the persecution of Jews by "doing away with many Christian
s" and Romanos retaliated by inciting Oleg of Novgorod
(called Helgu in the letter) against Khazaria.
Similarly, he had re-established peace within the church and overcome the new conflict between Rome and Constantinople by promulgating the Tomos of Union in 920. In 933 Romanos took advantage of a vacancy on the patriarchal throne to name his young son Theophylaktos
patriarch of Constantinople
. The new patriarch did not achieve renown for his piety and spirituality, but added theatrical elements to the Byzantine liturgy and was an avid horse-breeder, allegedly leaving mass to tend to one of his favorite mares when she was giving birth.
Romanos was active as a legislator, promulgating a series of laws to protect small landowners from being swallowed up by the estates of the nobility (dynatoi). The legislative reform may have been partly inspired by hardship caused by the famine of 927 and the subsequent semi-popular revolt of Basil the Copperhand. The emperor also managed to increase the taxes levied on the aristocracy and established the state on a more secure financial footing. Romanos was also able to effectively subdue revolts in several provinces of the empire, most notably in Chaldia, the Peloponnese
, and Southern Italy.
In Constantinople, he built his palace in the place called Myrelaion, near the Sea of Marmara
. Beside it he built a shrine
which became the first example of a private burial church of a Byzantine emperor.
. When they threatened the position of Constantine VII, however, the people of Constantinople revolted, and Stephen and Constantine were likewise stripped of their imperial rank and sent into exile to their father. Romanos died in June 948, and was buried as the other members of his family in the church of Myrelaion. Having lived long under constant threat of deposition -or worse- by the Lekapenoi family, Constantine VII
was extremely resentful of them. In his De Administrando Imperio
manual written for his son and successor, Romanus II, he minces no words about his late father-in-law: "the lord Romanus the Emperor was an idiot and an illiterate man, neither bred in the high imperial manner, nor following Roman custom from the beginning, nor of imperial or noble descent, and therefore the more rude and authoritarian in doing most things ... for his beliefs were uncouth, obstinate, ignorant of what is good, and unwilling to adhere to what is right and proper."
(who died in 922), Romanos had six children, including:
Romanos also had an illegitimate son, the eunuch Basil
, who remained influential at court, particularly during the period 976–985.
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
: Ρωμανός Α΄ Λακαπήνος, Rōmanos I Lakapēnos; ) (circa 870 – June 15, 948) was Byzantine Emperor from 920 until his deposition on December 16, 944.
Origin
Romanos was the son of an imperial guardsman named Theophylaktos Abstartos or Abastaktos ("the Unbearable"). Although he did not receive any refined education (for which he was later abused by his son-in-law Constantine VII), Romanos advanced through the ranks of the army during the reign of Emperor Leo VI the WiseLeo 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...
. In 911 he was general of the naval theme of Samos
Samos (theme)
The Theme of Samos was a Byzantine military-civilian province, located in the eastern Aegean Sea, established in the late 9th century. As one of the Byzantine Empire's three dedicated naval themes , it served chiefly to provide ships and troops for the Byzantine navy.-History:The dates of...
and later served as admiral of the fleet (droungarios tou ploimou). In this capacity he was supposed to participate in the Byzantine operations against 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...
on the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
in 917, but he was unable to carry out his mission. In the aftermath of the disastrous Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Acheloos in 917 by the Bulgarians, Romanos sailed to Constantinople
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:...
, where he gradually overcame the discredited regency of Empress Zoe Karvounopsina and her supporter Leo Phokas.
Rise to power
Becoming increasingly influential at court, Romanos exiled his rivals and strengthened his links with the underage Emperor 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...
. In May 919 he married his daughter 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:...
to Constantine and was proclaimed basileopator
Basileopator
Basileopatōr was one of the highest secular titles of the Byzantine Empire. It was an exceptional post , and conferred only twice in the Empire's history...
("father of the emperor"). On September 14, 920, Romanos was invested as kaisar (Caesar
Caesar (title)
Caesar is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
), and finally on December 17 of the same year he was crowned co-emperor, becoming the effective head of the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
.
In subsequent years Romanos crowned his own sons co-emperors, Christopher
Christopher Lekapenos
Christopher Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the eldest son of Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos and co-emperor from 921 until his death in 931.- Life :...
in 921, Stephen
Stephen Lekapenos
Stephen Lekapenos was the second son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos , and co-emperor from 924 to 945. Along with his younger brother Constantine he deposed Romanos I in December 944, only to be themselves overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a few weeks...
and Constantine
Constantine Lekapenos
Constantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos , and co-emperor from 924 to 945. Along with his elder brother Stephen he deposed Romanos I in December 944, only to be themselves overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a...
in 924, although, for the time being, Constantine VII was regarded as first in rank after Romanos himself. It is notable that, as he left Constantine untouched, he was called 'the gentle usurper'. Romanos strengthened his position by marrying his daughters to members of the powerful aristocratic families of Argyros and Mouseles, by recalling the deposed patriarch Nicholas Mystikos
Nicholas Mystikos
Nicholas I Mystikos or Nicholas I Mysticus was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from March 901 to February 906 and from May 912 to his death in 925. His feast day in the Orthodox Church is May 16.Nicholas was born in the Italian Peninsula and had become a friend of the Patriarch Photios...
, and by putting an end to the conflict with the Papacy over the four marriages of Emperor Leo VI.
War and peace with Bulgaria
The first major challenge faced by the new emperor was the war with Bulgaria, which had been re-ignited by the regency of Zoe. Romanos' rise to power had cut off Simeon I of BulgariaSimeon 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...
's plans for a marital alliance with Constantine VII, and Romanos was determined to deny the unpopular concession of imperial recognition to Simeon, which had already toppled two imperial governments. Consequently, the first four years of Romanos' reign were spent in warfare against Bulgaria. Although Simeon generally had the upper hand, he was unable to gain a decisive advantage because of the impregnability of Constantinople's walls. In 924, when Simeon had once again blockaded the capital by land, Romanos succeeded in opening negotiations. Meeting Simeon in person at Kosmidion, Romanos criticized Simeon's disregard for tradition and Orthodox Christian brotherhood and supposedly shamed him into coming to terms and lifting the siege. In reality, this was accomplished by Romanos' tacit recognition of Simeon as emperor of Bulgaria. Relations were subsequently marred by continued wrangling over titles (Simeon called himself emperor of the Romans as well), but peace had been effectively established.
On the death of Simeon in May 927, Bulgaria's new emperor Peter I
Peter I of Bulgaria
Peter I was emperor of Bulgaria from 27 May 927 to 969.-Early reign:Peter I was the son of Simeon I of Bulgaria by his second marriage to Maria Sursuvul, the sister of George Sursuvul. Peter had been born early in the 10th century, but it appears that his maternal uncle was very influential at...
made a show of force by invading Byzantine 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...
, but showed himself ready to negotiate for a more permanent peace. Romanos seized the occasion and proposed a marriage alliance between the imperial houses of Byzantium and Bulgaria, at the same time renewing the Serbian-Byzantine alliance with Časlav of Serbia
Caslav Klonimirovic
Časlav Klonimirović or Časlav of Serbia was Prince of the Serbs from ca. 927 until his death in 960. He significantly expanded the Serbian Principality when he managed to unite several Slavic tribes, stretching his realm over the shores of the Adriatic Sea, the Sava river and the Morava valley...
returning independence the same year. In September 927 Peter arrived before Constantinople and married Maria
Eirene Lakapena
Irene Lekapene was the Empress consort of Peter I of Bulgaria. She was а daughter of Christopher Lekapenos, son and co-emperor of Romanus I, and his wife Augusta Sophia....
(renamed Eirene, "Peace"), the daughter of his eldest son and co-emperor Christopher, and thus Romanos' granddaughter. On this occasion Christopher received precedence in rank over his brother-in-law Constantine VII, something which compounded the latter's resentment towards the Lekapenoi, the Bulgarians, and imperial marriages to outsiders (as documented in his composition De Administrando Imperio
De Administrando Imperio
De Administrando Imperio is the Latin title of a Greek work written by the 10th-century Eastern Roman Emperor Constantine VII. The Greek title of the work is...
). From this point on, Romanos' government was free from direct military confrontation with Bulgaria. Although Byzantium would tacitly support a Serbian revolt against Bulgaria in 931, and the Bulgarians would allow Magyar raids across their territory into Byzantine possessions, Byzantium and Bulgaria remained at peace for 40 years, until Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria refers to a conflict beginning in 967/968 and ending in 971, carried out in the eastern Balkans and involving the Kievan Rus', Bulgaria, and the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantines instigated the Rus' ruler Sviatoslav to attack Bulgaria, leading to the collapse of the...
.
Campaigns in the East
Romanos appointed the brilliant general John KourkouasJohn Kourkouas
John Kourkouas , also transliterated as Kurkuas or Curcuas, was one of the most important generals of the Byzantine Empire. His successes in battle against the Muslim states in the East definitively reversed the course of the centuries-long Byzantine–Arab Wars and began Byzantium's 10th-century...
commander of the field armies (domestikos ton scholon) in the East. John Kourkouas subdued a rebellion in the theme of Chaldia
Chaldia
Chaldia was a historical region located in the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor . Its name was derived from a people called the Chaldoi that inhabited the region in Antiquity. Chaldia was used throughout the Byzantine period and was established as a formal theme, known as the Theme of Chaldia , in...
and intervened in Armenia in 924. From 926 Kourkouas campaigned across the eastern frontier against the Abbasids and their vassals, and won an important victory at Melitene in 934. The capture of this city is often considered the first major Byzantine territorial recovery from the Muslims.
In 941, while most of the army under Kourkouas was absent in the East, a fleet of 15 old ships under 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...
Theophanes
Theophanes (chamberlain)
Theophanes was a Byzantine palace official and the chief adviser of Emperor Romanos Lekapenos during most of his reign. He was also an active and able diplomat, and led the naval defense of Constantinople against the Rus' invasion of 941....
had to defend Constantinople from a Kievan
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
raid. The invaders were defeated
Rus'-Byzantine War (941)
The Rus'–Byzantine War of 941 took place during the reign of Igor of Kiev. The Khazar Correspondence reveals that the campaign was instigated by the Khazars, who wished revenge on the Byzantines after the persecutions of the Jews undertaken by Emperor Romanus I Lecapenus.The Rus' and their allies,...
at sea, through the use of Greek fire
Greek fire
Greek fire was an incendiary weapon used by the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantines typically used it in naval battles to great effect as it could continue burning while floating on water....
, and again at land, when they landed in Bithynia
Bithynia
Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
, by the returning army under Kourkouas. In 944 Romanos concluded a treaty
Rus'-Byzantine Treaty (945)
The Rus'–Byzantine Treaty between the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII and Igor I of Kiev was concluded either in 944 or 945 as a result of a naval expedition undertaken by Kievan Rus against Constantinople in the early 940s...
with Prince Igor of Kiev. This crisis having passed, Kourkouas was free to return to the eastern frontier.
In 943 Kourkouas invaded northern Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
and besieged the important city of Edessa
Edessa, Mesopotamia
Edessa is the Greek name of an Aramaic town in northern Mesopotamia, as refounded by Seleucus I Nicator. For the modern history of the city, see Şanlıurfa.-Names:...
in 944. As the price for his withdrawal, Kourkouas obtained one of Byzantium's most prised relics, the mandylion, the holy towel allegedly sent by Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
to King Abgar V of Edessa
Abgar V of Edessa
Abgar V the black or Abgarus V of Edessa BC - AD 7 and AD 13 - 50) was a historical Syriac ruler of the Syriac kingdom of Osroene, holding his capital at Edessa....
. John Kourkouas, although considered by some of his contemporaries "a second Trajan
Trajan
Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...
or Belisarius
Belisarius
Flavius Belisarius was a general of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Mediterranean territory of the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century previously....
," was dismissed after the fall of the Lekapenoi in 945. Nevertheless, his campaigns in the East paved the way for the even more dramatic reconquests in the middle and the second half of the 10th century.
Internal policies
The Khazars
Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus , parts of...
were the allies of the Byzantines until the reign of Romanos, when he started persecuting the Jews of the empire. According to the Schechter Letter
Schechter Letter
The "Schechter Letter" was discovered in the Cairo Geniza by Solomon Schechter.-The Letter:The Schechter Letter is a communique from an unnamed Khazar author to an unidentified Jewish dignitary...
, the Khazar ruler Joseph
Joseph (Khazar)
Joseph ben Aaron was king of the Khazars during the 950s and 960s.Joseph was the son of Aaron II, a Khazar ruler who defeated a Byzantine-inspired war against Khazaria on numerous fronts. Joseph's wife was the daughter of the king of the Alans.Whether Joseph was the Khagan or the Bek of the...
responded to the persecution of Jews by "doing away with many Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s" and Romanos retaliated by inciting Oleg of Novgorod
Oleg of Novgorod
Oleg of Novgorod was a Varangian prince who ruled all or part of the Rus' people during the early 10th century....
(called Helgu in the letter) against Khazaria.
Similarly, he had re-established peace within the church and overcome the new conflict between Rome and Constantinople by promulgating the Tomos of Union in 920. In 933 Romanos took advantage of a vacancy on the patriarchal throne to name his young son Theophylaktos
Patriarch Theophylaktos of Constantinople
Theophylact Lekapenos was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 2 February 933 to his death in 956.Theophylact was the youngest son of Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos by Theodora...
patriarch of Constantinople
Patriarch of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarch is the Archbishop of Constantinople – New Rome – ranking as primus inter pares in the Eastern Orthodox communion, which is seen by followers as the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church....
. The new patriarch did not achieve renown for his piety and spirituality, but added theatrical elements to the Byzantine liturgy and was an avid horse-breeder, allegedly leaving mass to tend to one of his favorite mares when she was giving birth.
Romanos was active as a legislator, promulgating a series of laws to protect small landowners from being swallowed up by the estates of the nobility (dynatoi). The legislative reform may have been partly inspired by hardship caused by the famine of 927 and the subsequent semi-popular revolt of Basil the Copperhand. The emperor also managed to increase the taxes levied on the aristocracy and established the state on a more secure financial footing. Romanos was also able to effectively subdue revolts in several provinces of the empire, most notably in Chaldia, the Peloponnese
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...
, and Southern Italy.
In Constantinople, he built his palace in the place called Myrelaion, near the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...
. Beside it he built a shrine
Bodrum Mosque
Bodrum Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The church was known under the Greek name of Myrelaion .-Location:...
which became the first example of a private burial church of a Byzantine emperor.
End of the reign
Romanos' later reign was marked by the old emperor's heightened interest in divine judgment and his increasing sense of guilt for his role in the usurpation of the throne from Constantine VII. On the death of Christopher, by far his most competent son, in 931, Romanos did not advance his younger sons in precedence over Constantine VII. Fearing that Romanos would allow Constantine VII to succeed him instead of them, his younger sons Stephen and Constantine arrested their father in December 944, carried him off to the Prince's Islands and compelled him to become a monkMonk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
. When they threatened the position of Constantine VII, however, the people of Constantinople revolted, and Stephen and Constantine were likewise stripped of their imperial rank and sent into exile to their father. Romanos died in June 948, and was buried as the other members of his family in the church of Myrelaion. Having lived long under constant threat of deposition -or worse- by the Lekapenoi family, Constantine VII
Constantine 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...
was extremely resentful of them. In his De Administrando Imperio
De Administrando Imperio
De Administrando Imperio is the Latin title of a Greek work written by the 10th-century Eastern Roman Emperor Constantine VII. The Greek title of the work is...
manual written for his son and successor, Romanus II, he minces no words about his late father-in-law: "the lord Romanus the Emperor was an idiot and an illiterate man, neither bred in the high imperial manner, nor following Roman custom from the beginning, nor of imperial or noble descent, and therefore the more rude and authoritarian in doing most things ... for his beliefs were uncouth, obstinate, ignorant of what is good, and unwilling to adhere to what is right and proper."
Family
By his marriage to TheodoraTheodora, wife of Romanos I
-Empress:Her origins and background are not known. She became the mother-in-law to Constantine VII in May or June, 919 with the marriage of the young Emperor to her daughter Helena Lekapene...
(who died in 922), Romanos had six children, including:
- Christopher LekapenosChristopher LekapenosChristopher Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the eldest son of Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos and co-emperor from 921 until his death in 931.- Life :...
, co-emperor from 921 to 931, who was married to the Augusta Sophia and was the father of Maria (renamed EireneEirene LakapenaIrene Lekapene was the Empress consort of Peter I of Bulgaria. She was а daughter of Christopher Lekapenos, son and co-emperor of Romanus I, and his wife Augusta Sophia....
), who married Emperor Peter I of BulgariaPeter I of BulgariaPeter I was emperor of Bulgaria from 27 May 927 to 969.-Early reign:Peter I was the son of Simeon I of Bulgaria by his second marriage to Maria Sursuvul, the sister of George Sursuvul. Peter had been born early in the 10th century, but it appears that his maternal uncle was very influential at...
; Christopher's son Michael Lekapenos may have been associated as co-emperor by his grandfather. - Stephen LekapenosStephen LekapenosStephen Lekapenos was the second son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos , and co-emperor from 924 to 945. Along with his younger brother Constantine he deposed Romanos I in December 944, only to be themselves overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a few weeks...
, co-emperor from 924 to 945, died 967. - Constantine LekapenosConstantine LekapenosConstantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos , and co-emperor from 924 to 945. Along with his elder brother Stephen he deposed Romanos I in December 944, only to be themselves overthrown and exiled by the legitimate emperor Constantine VII a...
, co-emperor from 924 to 945, died 946. - Theophylaktos LekapenosPatriarch Theophylaktos of ConstantinopleTheophylact Lekapenos was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 2 February 933 to his death in 956.Theophylact was the youngest son of Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos by Theodora...
, patriarch of Constantinople from 933 to 956. - Helena LekapeneHelena LekapeneHelena Lekapene was the Empress consort of Constantine VII. She was a daughter of Romanos I and his wife Theodora.-Background:...
, who married Emperor Constantine VIIConstantine VIIConstantine VII Porphyrogennetos or Porphyrogenitus, "the Purple-born" was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 913 to 959...
. - Agatha Lekapene, who married Romanos Argyros; their grandson was Emperor Romanos IIIRomanos IIIRomanos III Argyros was Byzantine emperor from 15 November 1028 until his death.-Biography:...
.
Romanos also had an illegitimate son, the eunuch Basil
Basil Lekapenos
Basil Lekapenos was the chief administrator of the Byzantine Empire from 945 until 985.An illegitimate son of the emperor Romanos I Lekapenos, he was castrated when young....
, who remained influential at court, particularly during the period 976–985.