Greetings all,

 

On this day we reflect with sadness on the Vandal and Alans tribes crossing the Pyrenees mountains to the Roman province of Hispania, which they wrested from Roman control on October 13th in 409 AD:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hispania

 

In 551 AD during the reign of Emperor Justinian I, part of Hispania would later be briefly re-taken from the Visigoths by an army under the command of Petrus Marcellinus Felix Liberius.This reconquest recovered an area along the Mediterranean coast roughly corresponding to the ancient province of Baetica, known as Spania.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hispania_Baetica

-Marcus Cassius Julianus

 

 

 

 

Greetings all,

Today we celebrate the Empress Aelia Eudoxia who passed on October 6th in 404 AD:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aelia_Eudoxia

She was the wife of the Emperor Arcadius and the mother of future Emperor Theodosius II. As Empress Aelia Eudoxia was active and influential in court and in the church. She was depicted on coinage, a statue of her was erected on a column of Imperial Porphyry, and Arcadius renamed the town of Selymbria to Eudoxiopolis in her honor.  She was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles in a porphyry sarcophagus.

-Marcus Cassius Julianus

 

 

 

 Greetings all,

Today we celebrate Heraclius the Younger being crowned as Emperor on October 5th in 610 AD: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraclius

He and his father had been in revolt against the Emperor Phocas. Heraclius was crowned Emperor as he approached Constantinople, and after entering the city the Excutibors (Imperial Guard) deserted Phocas and joined him.

There should be cake!

-Marcus Cassius Julianus 

www.byzantiumnovum.org

 

 

 

Greetings all,

In the news, a nice article about the Varangian Guard:

https://greekreporter.com/2024/09/26/varangian-guard-vikings-byzantine-empire/

Always good to see information out there!

-Marcus Cassius Julianus

 

 

 

 Greetings all,

In the news, a Byzantine Church has been discovered in Israel:

https://www.sci.news/archaeology/byzantine-church-khirbet-tinshemet-israel-13278.html

Interestingly, this church seems to be one of the sites depicted in the Madaba Map mosaic from the 6th century AD, which depicted the Jerusalem area.

The church itself featured a lovely circular mosaic, and interestingly a medallion of the Greek Goddess Tyche. Coins discovered at the church site date

from the 6th to the 8th centuries.

Rather fascinating that archaeology is still going on such a tense part of the world!

-Marcus Cassius Julianus

 www.byzantiumnovum.org

 

 

 

 

Greetings all,

 

Today we commemorate the life of  the Emperor John VII Palaiologos who passed on September 22nd in 1408 AD:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_VII_Palaiologos

He was supposed to become the Eastern Roman Emperor but was deposed by his uncle Manuel II. John VII never gave up claim to the throne and the two had a difficult relationship. 

However, John VII successfully defended Constantinople for over three years against a long Ottoman siege while Manuel II went to Europe for military aid. After the siege ended John VII was given rule over Thessalonica as "Emperor of all the Thessaly" and there John VII proved to be an able and well liked ruler.

 

 -Marcus Cassius Julianus

www.byzantiumnovum.org

 

 

 

 Greetings all,

Today we commemorate Constantine II, Constantius II and Constans (the sons of the Emperor Constantine) becoming co-Emperors on September 9th in 337AD:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_II_(emperor)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantius_II

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constans

The Empire was divided between the three Augustii. Because... what could *possibly* go wrong?  :)

-Marcus Cassius Julianus