Flavius Theodosius was born in April of 401, the son of the eastern emperor Arcadius and Eudoxia. He was proclaimed co-Augustus when 8 months old, and was only 7 when his father died and he was the sole ruler of the east. Like his father and uncle before him, he started out being dominated by powerful factions in his court. He does deem to have been more interested in religious piety and theology than in leading his government.
Anthemius, the Praetorian Prefect who had dominated Arcadius towards the end of his reign, was the first regent for the young Theodosius. He seems to have ruled quite well; peace was kept with the Persians, and after the execution of Stilicho Anthemius worked to improve relations between the eastern and western empires. He also embarked on a building project - expanding the wall around Constantinople, which dated to the days of Constantine. The eastern army also defeated the Huns, who had launched an attack on areas of Thrace. Unfortunately, around 414 Anthemius seems to disappear from history.
Arcadius, now 13 years old, came heavily under the influence of his 17-year old sister Pulcheria. Almost immediately she had herself proclaimed Augusta. She was strongly Orthodox, and had laws passed against Jews, heretics, and pagans. She also seems to have been behind the murder popular pagan philosopher Hypatia, which occurred in Alexandria at the hands of a mob encouraged by the archbishop Cyril. Pulcheria chose a bride for her brother, a young girl originally named Athenais. Athenais was instructed in Christianity (she had previously followed the traditional religions) and took a new name: Aelia Eudocia. She and Theodosius were married in June of 421. There was much competition between the two women - both battled for dominance over Theodosius, with Pulcheria eventually winning.
The huns continued to be a problem for Theodosius. A nomadic Mongol people from central Asia, they were made up of numerous, semi-independant groups. The government o Theodosius preferred to pay for peace, and around 425 agreed to pay 350 pound of gold per year to a charismatic Hunnic leader, Rugila, who had united many of the tribes. Around 434 Rugilla was succeeded by two nephews, Bleda and Atilla, and Theodosius agreed to double the annual tribute to 700 pounds of gold. By 441 the western Roman empire was fighting the Vandals, the east was fighting a brief war against the Persians, and the Huns saw their chance. They began attacking settlements along the Danube frontier, but were bought off at a heavy cost: immediate payment of 6000 pound of gold, and the annual tribute increased to 2100 pounds. In 444 Bleda died and Atilla was left as the sole ruler of the united Hunnic tribes. The eastern government continued to pay him until Theodosius' death in 450.
One bright spot of the reign of Theodosius II was the compilation and arrangement of all laws since the rule of Constantine. The end result was the Codex Theodosianus, presented to the eastern and western governments in 438. This formed the basis of later Byzantine works, and stood as laws (with minor additions) until the reforms of Justinian in the next century.
On the religious front, there were two major ecclesiastic councils held during the reign of Theodosius, centering around Nestorianism and Monophysitism. Nestorianism, the concept that the person of Christ was fully human, yet conjoined with divinity, and that it was only the human part of Christ that died on the cross, was popular in Antioch. This was also the only form of Christianity toleratied in the Persian empire, and eventually spread into Asia. Monophysitism argued that the divine element of Christ completely supplanted the hunam portion, and was popular in Alexandria. The patriarch of Alexandria, Cyril, intrigued against Nestor and was able to have him exiled. In the two Councils of Ephesus (431 & 449) Nestorianism was stamped out in the eastern empire, and the Monophysites won the day. This is surprising considering that Pulcheria was opposed to the Monophysite cause. This also represented the first major split between the churches of Rome and Constantinople, as the idea of monophysitism was alien to the Orthodox proto-Catholic idea.
Theodosius died in 450 from a back injury suffered while hunting. At 48 years, he had ruled longer than any other Roman emperor, though most of this was as a figurehead for others. His reign left the eastern empire in better political and military relations with the west, though strained religious relations. It also left the eastern finances in dire straights, through the paying off of the Huns. These would be reversed under the next emperor, Marcian.
Bronze AE4 (11mm) minted in Cyzicus 425-450Flavius Valerius Marcianus was an Illyrian, born around 396. He had risen to the rank of general and senator, and had been a friend of Aspar, the powerful Arian general-in-chief of the east. After the death of Theodosius II, his sister Pulcheria, who had been the dominant force behind the weak emperor, married Marcian to legitimize his claim to the throne. Marcian was crowned by the patriarch of Constantinople, beginning the religious ceremony of coronation, which continues to this day in places such as England.
One of his first acts was the trial and exection of Chrysaphius, a court favorite under Theodosius who had conspired to kill Attila. Though the empire might have been better off if Chrysaphius had been successful, the failure resulted in huge payments to the Huns, and financial crisis for the empire. Marcian then ended the series of tribute payments to Attila. Perhaps Attila felt these might be restored at some time, but in any event he chose to begin attacking Gaul and Italy in the western empire.
Marcian's daughter married the western Roman emperor, Valentinian III. Though there were still diplomatic and religious ties between the two halves of the empire, when Valentinian was murdered and the Vandals sacked Rome, Marcian did not send troops - merely a delegation to request the return of his daughter and grand-daughters.
In religious matters, Marcian convened the Council at Chalcedon in 451, which set the patriarch of Constantinople as primary among the eastern bishops, and second to Rome in authority. Marcian continued to have troubles by Monophysite factions, especially in Syria and Egypt. However, he and his wife strictly enforced the Orthodox faith and laws.
Marcian died in January of 457. By marriage he was the last of the house of Theodosius. He and his wife were both given sainthood after their deaths. Attila, the long standing enemy of Rome, died in 453 and with him the Hun empire disintegrated. Thanks to Marcian's wise financial reforms, he built the wealth of the eastern Roman/Byzantine empire back up.
Bronze AE4 minted 454-455 at Antioch
Bronze AE4 (11mm)If you have an comments, questions, or corrections, please email me.
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