Constantine IV

Constantine's father, Constans II, died in 668 while in Sicily, and immediately some Sicilian bishops wanted someone else to take over, even though Constans had made his son co-emperor years before (in 654, when Constantine was four years old), marking his son as the rightful successor. The bishops did so because they considered Constans a heretic for his tacit support of Monothelitism. The bishops' choice—the Armenian Mizizios, a general in the Byzantine army—was not the choice of Pope Vitalian.

Reportedly, Mizizios did not want the position, but he stayed at the head of this rebellion for seven months until Constantine led an expedition to Sicily to suppress the rebels, killing Mizizios and the man who killed Constans. On the other hand, the Liber Pontificalis ("Book of Popes") recorded that it was the Exarchate of Africa (a Byzantine administrative district) that suppressed the revolt and sent Mizizios' head to Constantinople. (Years later, Mizizios' son John also rebelled in Sicily, and we are told Constantine went to Sicily to stop him; this revolt lasted seven months. It is possible that early historical records have conflated these two rebellions.)

With this slightly rocky start, the 18-year-old emperor went on to reign for 17 years. As well as rebellion to the west, he had to focus on danger from the east. There was a desire by an Umayyad Caliph, Muawiyah I, to overthrow the emperor in Constantinople. Carthage and Sicily were attacked in 667. Fleets captured or attacked other coastal cities for the next two years, and by the start of 668, Constantinople was besieged by both a land army and a fleet.

The countryside was ravaged, but the city itself was merely blockaded, not attacked. It became a waiting game. By June of 668, the Arab armies encamped around Constantinople were running out of food and malnourished. Famine followed, and an outbreak of smallpox caused the leaders to lift the siege and retreat to the town Cyzicus across the water. They continued to raid outlying Byzantine territory until they returned to Syria in 669/70.

Although he had done nothing to oppose the invaders except keep the city together, Constantine's popularity rose after the unsuccessful siege. He had other problems, however, including an economic crisis, which we'll talk about tomorrow.

Constans II

Constans continued to do things that were uncommon for other Byzantine Emperors. He was the first Byzantine Emperor to visit Rome (in 663) since the fall of the Western Empire in 476. Pope Vitalian greeted him warmly (since 476, the emperor in Constantinople was also the emperor of the entire Roman Empire, west as well as east, and so the pope's secular lord). Constans, however, did not respect Rome, in that he took treasures from several buildings, including the Pantheon, to be sent back to Constantinople (even though he was making Sicily his new power base).

Three years later, he declared that the pope did not have authority over the Archbishop of Ravenna, since Ravenna was the city of Constans' representative, the Exarch. The Exarchate of Ravenna was an administrative district that owed allegiance to Constantinople. It was the Exarch Theodore I Calliopas in 652 who arrested Pope Martin on Constans' orders, dragging him from the Lateran and putting him on a ship to Constantinople for trial, for daring to get involved in Constans' decree about Monothelitism.

Although much of what I have reported about Constans seems self-serving, he did undertake some larger issues. Concerned about delays of traffic on the Silk Road, he sent emissaries to China to discuss with Emperor Taizong of Tang China how to better manage the tribal conflicts in the Turkic Khaganate that were causing disruption. Chinese histories talk of the meetings in which Constans II sent gifts such as red and green gems (see the illustration).

Very few Byzantine emperors seemed to die of old age, however, and at the age of 37 Constans was assassinated by his chamberlain while taking a bath. His 18-year-old son became Emperor Constantine IV. Constantine was willing to manage the issue of monothelitism, and had better luck than his father against the encroaching Arabs. I'll tell you about him tomorrow, as well as his first challenge, a usurper pushed into place by the Sicilian bishops.

Constans Moves Westward

Yesterday's post mentioned Ebroin, Mayor of the Palace under King Clotaire III, distrusting Adrian of Canterbury because of Adrian's connection to Byzantine Emperor Constans II. Ebroin worried that Adrian was in Gaul to create disruption on behalf of Constans. This raises the question: what would a ruler in Gaul fear from a ruler at the far eastern end of the Mediterranean, in Constantinople?

That was precisely the problem: Constans was no longer in Constantinople; he had moved his seat of power to Syracuse on the island of Sicily, much closer to Gaul. And he brought his military.

Constans II (630 - 668) was not particularly well-liked. He was crowned co-emperor at the age of 10 in 641 and became sole ruler after his brother Heraclonas was deposed on suspicion that he had poisoned their father to gain the throne. During his time, the Byzantines withdrew from Egypt in the face of Muslim approaches. He also refused to take sides in a ferocious religious debate over the nature of Jesus. He even decreed in 648 that there should be no discussion on the matter, which did not defuse the situation as he had hoped, nor did it endear him to either side.

The Rashidun Caliphate was moving across the eastern Mediterranean: Armenia, Cappadocia, Crete, Rhodes. Constans fought back, leading a fleet in the Battle of the Masts, in which 500 Byzantine ships were destroyed and Constans almost died. He traded clothes with a sailor to disguise himself and escape.

Besides Muslims, he was fearful of his younger brother Theodosius, whom he suspected of wanting to take over the throne. He pushed Theodosius into taking Holy Orders, but then had him killed in 660.

He finally decided to get involved in religious matters after all, because Pope Martin I had condemned Constans publicly for halting the debate. Constans actually had Martin arrested by the Exarch of Ravenna (a Byzantine representative) and brought to Constantinople where he was condemned and exiled to a Greek town on the Crimean peninsula, where he remained until his death.

After having inspired his subjects to hatred of his poor leadership, he decided to abandon Constantinople for Sicily, taking the military and attacking the Lombards who were threatening Rome from the north. Despite his treatment of Pope Martin, current Pope Vitalian was friendly with him. (After all, there was no emperor in Rome, so they had to look to Constantinople for the highest secular authority, and Vitalian knew what had happened to Martin.)

So, as far as Ebroin in Gaul was concerned, Constans' military aspirations and his proximity might have been a threat. To be fair, however, would a Benedictine like Adrian be the likeliest person sent by Constans to be a disruptive element? There was another aspect of Byzantine culture that Ebroin might have feared a Benedictine could be part of: the nature of Jesus that was such a hot topic between the East and West. Tomorrow I'll discuss the hot topic of Monothelitism.

Adrian of Canterbury

Adrian (also called Hadrian) was born in North Africa sometime prior to 637; Bede referred to him as a Berber. He became a well-known teacher and a Benedictine monk. He knew Byzantine Emperor Constans II, who introduced Adrian to Pope Vitalian, who made Adrian his advisor.

While Adrian was abbot of a monastery near Naples, Pope Vitalian twice offered him to go to England and become Archbishop of Canterbury. In each case he declined, suggesting others: first a nearby monk named Andrew, who also declined, then Theodore of Tarsus, who accepted the role. Adrian had been through Gaul before, and Vitalian that Adrian would accompany Theodore to England.

The journey took them awhile. They left Rome on 27 May 668 and went by ship to Marseille, then to meet with Archbishop John of Arles while applying for passports of safe conduct through Gaul. These had to come from Ebroin, the Mayor of the Palace under Clotaire III. By the time they got to the north of France it was winter, and since travel would be more difficult, they waited until spring. Adrian went to stay with Bishop Emmon of Sens, then Bishop Faro of Meaux. (Theodore stayed with Bishop Agilbert of Paris.)

When King Ecgberht of Kent sent a message to Theodore in the spring of 669 to hurry up, he went to England, arriving in May. Adrian was detained on the orders of Ebroin, who suspected that Adrian might be an emissary of the Byzantine emperor, Constans II, intending to disrupt the Franks.

Adrian eventually made it to England and became abbot of Saint Peter's and Saint Paul's in Canterbury, administering the place for 39 years. Adrian and Theodore together made Canterbury a center for learning, teaching Greek as well as Latin and several subjects that were later part of the Trivium and Quadrivium of medieval universities. Writing later, Bede praised the two for their love of teaching and the spread of learning.

After Adrian died in 709, miracles were reported at his tomb.

Why did Ebroin suspect Adrian of being an agent of Emperor Constans? What could the Byzantine emperor do that would threaten Gaul? Let's look at that tomorrow.

Wighard, the Almost Archbishop

When Deusdedit was Archbishop of Canterbury (from 655 to 664), he had in his household a Saxon priest named Wighard. The date of Deusdedit's death is recorded by Bede; twice in fact. Unfortunately, in each of those instances the description of when he died differs significantly. Whatever the case, however, there is no confusion that Wighard was elected as his successor, and sent to Rome to be consecrated and accept the pallium from Pope Vitalian. Sending him to Rome instead of requesting the pallium to be delivered would be a stronger symbol of papal approval.

There may be no confusion about Wighard being the successor, but exactly how he was chosen is, again, up for debate because Bede tells two different stories. Bede's Historia Abbatum (a history of the abbots of Wearmouth and Jarrow) stated that he was chosen by King Ecgberht of Kent. Fifteen years later, Bede's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum ("Ecclesiastical History of the English People") stated that he was chosen by Ecgberht and King Oswiu of Northumbria and Bernicia with the consent of all the clergy.

Some historians prefer the second story, because they think Oswiu would have involved himself in the choice in order to avoid the chance of the headstrong and influential Wilfrid being selected. Bede mentions a letter from Pope Vitalian to Oswiu, indicating that a messenger from Oswiu accompanied Wighard. The letter also apologizes to Oswiu that Vitalian had not yet found a replacement for Wighard.

A replacement for Wighard? As it turns out, Wighard died in Rome some time between 664 and 667. Plague was a possible cause, bubonic or otherwise. It is assumed that Wighard never actually got consecrated, and so was not officially an Archbishop of Canterbury, although he often gets mentioned in lists of that position.

Wighard is sufficiently obscure so far as artists go that there is no representation of him to post here as an illustration. I have instead chosen to share a screen shot of a novel written about his death. The author creates a mystery about his death and sets his heroine, a Celtic nun, to solve the murder. Since we know so little about him and his death, the event is ripe for creative elaboration.

So where did Vitalian find a candidate for the position? I told this story almost exactly 10 years ago! I'll quote you the relevant paragraph here:

Bede tells the story of Adrian of Canterbury in his Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum ["Ecclesiastical history of the English people"]. Adrian was born in North Africa—we don't know when, but he died about 710—and was abbot of a monastery when Pope Vitalian ... offered him the position of Archbishop of Canterbury on the death of Archbishop Deusdedit in 664. Adrian turned down the offer, and suggested a nearby monk, who also declined. When the pope asked Adrian a second time, Adrian introduced to the pope another friend who happened to be in Rome, Theodore of Tarsus.

Which brings us back to Theodore of Tarsus. The Adrian mentioned here had been to England, and Vitalian asked him to go with Theodore to help show the way. They set out for England in 668, about four years after the death of the last Archbishop of Canterbury. Tomorrow we'll see what impact on the English Church Theodore had.

Theodore of Tarsus

This blog has covered many men and women from the past who, at a young age, decided to take on a religious lifestyle, whether in a monastery or as a hermit or a parish priest. Some of them came to greater prominence as leaders of orders or monasteries, usually in their home countries. Theodore of Tarsus probably experienced a more radical shift from his origin to his ultimate career than anyone.

He was born in 602CE in Tarsus, a town (now part of Turkey) on the Cydnus (now Berdan) River on the far eastern coast of the Mediterranean. He was of Greek descent, and grew up speaking Greek, the language most common in Tarsus. The Byzantine Empire at the time was frequently warring with the Persian Sassanid Empire, and Tarsus suffered for it. Persian forces captured Tarsus in 613-614; later evidence suggests that Theodore was familiar with Persian culture. He probably studied at Antioch, several days' journey south.

The Persian occupation at the eastern end of the Mediterranean was still amenable to Greeks, but in 637 Tarsus and the surrounding area were conquered by Muslims. Theodore went to Constantinople, where he studied astronomy, astrology, medicine, Roman civil law, Greek rhetoric and philosophy, and how to calculate the date of Easter.

At some point in his 50s, he took the long trip to Rome and stayed with a community of monks, during which time he added Latin language and literature to his repertoire. When the See of Canterbury fell unexpectedly vacant in 667, Theodore was chosen to become the new archbishop by his new friend, Pope Vitalian. Theodore was consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury in Rome on 26 March 668, and arrived in on 27 May 669.

Before we get to his career in England, however, I want to talk briefly about his election and his predecessor. For Theodore, it was an example of being in the right place at the right time. See you tomorrow.

The "Oldest" Benedictines

If, of the members of the Benedictine Confederation, the Camaldolese Congregation was founded in 980, and the Vallombrosians in 1036, how can the English Congregation, founded in 1216, claim to be the oldest member of the Confederation?

Pope Honorius III took a special interest in the monastic orders. He approved the Dominicans in 1216, the Franciscans in 1223, and the Carmelites in 1226. It was his idea that the various abbeys and priories with Benedictine monastic communities in England be united. The first General Chapter of this united congregation was held in Oxford in 1218. The origins of Benedictines in England go back much further than the 13th century, however, thanks principally to three individuals.

Augustine of Canterbury's arrival in England at the tail end of the 6th century CE was the start of the first great wave of Christianizing on that island. He was created the first Archbishop of Canterbury and had an enormous impact on bringing Christianity to several kingdoms, along with founding monasteries.

Immediately following Augustine was Wilfrid (c.633 - 709/710), a Northumbrian noble who entered the religious life as a teenager and became the first abbot of a monastery in Ripon dedicated to St. Peter. He later became bishop of York (York did not become an archbishopric until 735 with Paulinus). Wilfrid was the spokesman for Roman Christianity (as opposed to Celtic Christianity) at the Synod of Whitby in 664. His arguments on how the date of Easter should be calculated each year won over the Celtic St. Cuthbert.

The third highly influential figure in the early origins of English Christianity and monasticism was Benedict Biscop (c. 628 – 690). He founded the monastery at Jarrow, where among other influences he was the teacher of Bede. Benedict's given name was "Biscop Baducing"; he was not just a noble, he even served under King Oswiu of Bernicia before traveling to Rome and returning to England with enthusiasm for supporting the Church. On a second trip to Rome, Benedict met Wilfrid. Returning from this second trip, he stopped at an island off the coast of Provence, where a monastery was using the Rule of St. Benedict. He spent two years there, taking vows, learning the Rule, and adopting the name "Benedict." After a third trip to Rome, Pope Vitalian asked him to go back to England with Theodore of Tarsus. After doing so, Theodore appointed Benedict abbot at Canterbury.

The English Congregation now has about 20 houses (Ealing in London is shown above), with a few hundred monks and nuns spread across them.

We have a lot of info about Wilfrid based on those who knew him, especially Bede and a monk who wrote a biography of Wilfrid shortly after his death. I'd like to share some of his life story over the next two days.

Traveling to Canterbury

St. Adrian of Canterbury

Yesterday's post on the Leiden Glossary mentioned its two chief contributors, Adrian of Canterbury and Theodore of Tarsus. Also interesting is their journey to Canterbury—not just their appointment to their positions, but what it took to get to their new jobs—and what it tells us about the Middle Ages.

Bede tells the story of Adrian of Canterbury in his Historia ecclesiastic gentis Anglorum ["Ecclesiastical history of the English people"]. Adrian was born in North Africa—we don't know when, but he died about 710—and was abbot of a monastery when Pope Vitalian (who would send Benedict Biscop to England as well) offered him the position of Archbishop of Canterbury on the death of Archbishop Deusdedit in 664. Adrian turned down the offer, and suggested a nearby monk, who also declined. When the pope asked Adrian a second time, Adrian introduced to the pope another friend who happened to be in Rome, Theodore of Tarsus.

The pope accepted Theodore as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, but asked that Adrian accompany him to England; according to Bede, Adrian had traveled to England twice before, and knew the way. Keep in mind that this is a world without roadmaps, without highways, without public transportation or any regularly scheduled wagons or boats or anything of the kind.

On 27 May 668 (note: 4 years after the death of Deusdedit), Adrian and Theodore left Rome. They traveled by sea to Marseille on the southern coast of France (far preferable to crossing the Alps). In nearby Arles they stayed for a time with its archbishop, John, until they managed to get passports from King Clotaire III's Mayor of the Palace, Ebroin. These passports could be shown to any civil servants along the way to grant them safe passage through Clotaire's domain.

By the time they made their way to the north of France, winter had come, so they needed to stay somewhere. Theodore went to stay with the Bishop of Paris. Adrian stayed first with the Bishop of Sens, then the Bishop of Meaux.

In the spring of 669, King Ecgberht of Kent sent for Theodore, who reached England a whole year after he first set out. Adrian, however, was not so lucky. For some reason, Ebroin decided that Adrian might have been an agent of the Greek emperor.* The Greek emperor that he feared had died in September of 668, but news could travel as slowly as bishops crossing France, so Ebroin (and Clotaire) were probably fearing someone that had been dead for months. They finally allowed Adrian to leave France.

Arriving in England, Adrian was made abbot of the monastery of St. Peter, which was re-named St. Augustine's Abbey. He and Theodore taught and wrote commentaries that, along with the writing of others, were compiled into a collection of glosses in Latin and Anglo-Saxon. At least one copy made its way to the continent and the Abbey of St. Gall, where it was copied in 800. That copy eventually wound up in the Netherlands, where it became known as the Leiden Glossary.

*In 669 the emperor would have been Constantine IV, "The Bearded"; Ebroin probably feared the emperor's predecessor, his father Constans II.

Oswiu of Bernicia

King Oswiu (also Oswy or Oswig), who was a friend of Benedict Biscop, ruled Bernicia, a small section of Northumberland between what is now Edinburgh and Newcastle upon Tyne.

According to Bede's writings, Oswiu would have been born about 612. Unfortunately for him, his father, King Æthelfrith of Bernicia, was killed in battle against the King of the East Angles, and Oswiu and his siblings and their supporters had to flee to exile. They were not able to return to power until 633. Oswiu became king when he succeeded his brother Oswald, who died in battle in 642.

In 655, a military victory temporarily made Oswiu ruler over much of Britain. This position didn't last very long, but Oswiu still remained significant in the larger affairs of Britain. He was especially interested in and supportive of the church. Oswiu had been crucial to the foundation of Melrose Abbey. He had allowed his daughter to become a nun. His interest in relics was supported by Pope Vitalian sending him iron filings from the chains that had been used to imprison St. Peter.

In 664, the Synod of Whitby was held to make choices about how Christianity would be practiced, and Oswiu was asked to choose. He chose the version of Christianity that was being practiced by Rome over the Celtic version. This also meant calculating the date of Easter differently.

This created some awkwardness; Oswiu's son had been raised following Irish-Northumbrian practices but switched to Roman practices at the urging of St. Wilfrid (who was mentioned in a footnote here for his influence on Whitby). Oswiu chose to side with his son and Rome, but not everyone found it so easy to switch. Bede reported for 665 "that Easter was kept twice in one year, so that when the King had ended Lent and was keeping Easter, the Queen and her attendants were still fasting and keeping Palm Sunday."

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus, traveled north to visit Oswiu in 669 and made such an impression that Oswiu was going to make a pilgrimage to Rome. He never made it, dying on 15 February 670. He was buried at Whitby, where his daughter the nun then resided.

Benedict Biscop

The cleric and writer called the Venerable Bede has cropped up many times here; his learning is known to us by his translation of parts of the Bible, his work on the Reckoning of Time, on sciences, and the respect held for him by others. Let's use him again as our lead in to another topic, with the question: "Where did he acquire his learning?" The answer is in the library at the monastery at Jarrow, built by Bede's tutor. [see the illustration]

Benedict was born into Northumbrian aristocracy about 628, and as an adult as a thegn loyal to King Oswy. About 653, Benedict agreed to travel to Rome with his friend, Wilfrid (later to be Saint Wilfrid the Elder). Although Wilfrid was detained at Lyon, Benedict continued to Rome. Already a Christian, the trip to Rome and visits to sites connected to the Apostles made Benedict more fervent than ever about his faith. So when King Oswy's son Ealfrith wanted to go to Rome some years later, Benedict happily accompanied him. This time, he did not return to England, but stopped at Lerins Abbey on what is now the French Riviera, where he undertook to learn the life of a monk.

After two years of this, he boarded a merchant ship that was heading to Rome. On his third trip there, in 668, he was given the job by Pope Vitalian to go to England and be an advisor to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus. Returning to England, Benedict introduced the construction of stone churches with glass church windows. He also became a proponent of Roman styles of Christian ritual, rather than the Celtic style that had developed in England and Ireland.

King Ecgfrith of Northumbria gave Benedict land for a monastery in 674; Benedict would found the Abbey of St. Peter in Monkwearmouth. He traveled to the continent to bring workers and glaziers to make a worthy monastery, and made a trip to Rome in 679 in order to bring back books. Other trips were made as well to provide books for the monastery. The monastery so pleased the king that Benedict was given more land for a second monastery in Jarrow, and this was to be called St. Paul.

These were the first ecclesiastical buildings in England to be made of stone, and together they held an impressive library of several hundred volumes—also unusual for a 7th century monastery. This is where Bede had access to the learning that allowed him to write his works. One of those works was the Lives of the Holy Abbots of Wearmouth and Jarrow, in which he has this passage:

Not long after, Benedict himself was seized by a disease. [...] Benedict died of a palsy, which grew upon him for three whole years; so that when he was dead in all his lower extremities, his upper and vital members, spared to show his patience and virtue, were employed in the midst of his sufferings in giving thanks to the Author of his being, in praises to God, and exhortations to the brethren.

Benedict Biscop (pronounced "bishop") died on 12 January, 690.