Theodosios Monomachos, Latinized as Theodosius Monomachus , was a usurper who attempted to become emperor on the accession of Michael VI Stratiotikos in 1056.

Career

Theodosios Monomachos was the grandson of Theodosios Monomachos, an important bureaucrat under Basil II

Basil II

Basil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...

 and Constantine VIII

Constantine VIII

Constantine VIII was reigning Byzantine emperor from December 15, 1025 until his death. He was the son of the Emperor Romanos II and Theophano, and the younger brother of the eminent Basil II, who died childless and thus left the rule of the Byzantine Empire in his hands.-Family:As...

, and the nephew of the emperor Constantine IX Monomachos

Constantine IX Monomachos

Constantine IX Monomachos, Latinized as Constantine IX Monomachus , c. 1000 – January 11, 1055, reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 11, 1042 to January 11, 1055. He had been chosen by the Empress Zoe as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring...

. In 1056 he was serving as president of the Senate

Byzantine Senate

The Byzantine Senate or Eastern Roman Senate was the continuation of the Roman Senate, established in the 4th century by Constantine I. It survived for centuries but was increasingly irrelevant until its eventual disappearance in the 13th century....

 when he heard of the results of the election of Michael VI Stratiotikos upon the death of the empress Theodora

Theodora (11th century)

Theodora was a Byzantine Empress. Born into the Macedonian dynasty that had ruled the Byzantine Empire for almost two hundred years, she was co-empress with her sister Zoe for two months in 1042 and sole empress from 11 January 1055 to after 31 August 1056...

. Claiming a link to the throne (his uncle Constantine IX had been married to Theodora's sister, Zoe

Zoe (empress)

Zoe reigned as Byzantine Empress alongside her sister Theodora from April 19 to June 11, 1042...

), he proceeded to arm his household slaves, and with the help of some supporters in the imperial court, he rallied a mob behind him and marched through the streets of 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:...

. To increase his numbers, he threw open some prisons and recruited the prisoners with the hope of successfully storming the palace.

When the Varangian Guard

Varangian Guard

The Varangian Guard was an elite unit of the Byzantine Army in 10th to the 14th centuries, whose members served as personal bodyguards of the Byzantine Emperors....

 heard of the revolt, they marched out to stop him, whereupon all of his armed followers vanished at the sight of the imperial guards. Seeking asylum at Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...

, Theodosios found the church doors locked against him, and he together with his son were captured sitting on the outside steps of the church. Micheal VI banished him to Pergamum while the citizens of the city openly mocked him, composing insulting verses about his failed coup, calling out "The moron Monomachus did whatever he thought of".

Primary Sources

• John Zonaras, Extracts of History
• John Skylitzes, Synopsis of Histories

Secondary Sources

• George Finlay, History of the Byzantine Empire from 716 – 1057, William Blackwood & Sons, 1853