THEOPHILUS 835AD Constantinople Follis Ancient Medieval Byzantine Coin i58368

Description

Item:
i58368
Authentic Ancient Coin of:
Byzantine Empire
Theophilus
- Senior Augustus: October 2, 829 - January 20, 842 A.D.
Bronze Follis 26mm (7.32 grams) Constantinople mint: 835-842 A.D.
Reference: Sear 1667
ΘЄOFIL' bASIL' Three-quarter lenth figure facing, wearing loros and crown surmounted by tufa (which is ornamented with varying numbers of pellets); he holds labarum in right hand and globe cross in left.
+ΘЄO / FILЄ AVG / OVSτЄ SV / nICAS in four lines.
This follis of a new type, minted in large quantities in celebration of Theophilos' victories against the Arabs from circa 835 on. On the obverse he is represented in triumphal attire, wearing the toupha, and on the reverse the traditional acclamation "Theophilos Augustus, you conquer".
You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity.
Theophilos
(
Greek
:
Θεόφιλος
; 813 – 20 January 842) was the
Byzantine Emperor
from 829 until his death in 842. He was the second emperor of the
Amorian dynasty
and the last emperor to support
iconoclasm
. Theophilos personally led the armies in his lifelong war against the Arabs, beginning in 831.
Life
Early
Theophilos was the son of the Byzantine Emperor
Michael II
and his wife
Thekla
, and the godson of Emperor
Leo V the Armenian
. Michael II crowned Theophilos co-emperor in 822, shortly after his own accession. Unlike his father, Theophilos received an extensive education from
John Hylilas
, the grammarian, and was a great admirer of music and art. On 2 October 829, Theophilos succeeded his father as sole emperor.
Theophilos continued in his predecessors'
iconoclasm
, though without his father's more conciliatory tone, issuing an edict in 832 forbidding the veneration of
icons
. He also saw himself as the champion of justice, which he served most ostentatiously by executing his father's co-conspirators against Leo V immediately after his accession. His reputation as a judge endured, and in the literary composition
Timarion
Theophilos is featured as one of the judges in the
Netherworld
.
War against the Arabs
The Byzantine embassy of
John the Grammarian
in 829 to Ma'mun (depicted left) from Theophilos (depicted right)
At the time of his accession, Theophilos was obliged to wage wars against the
Arabs
on two fronts.
Sicily
was once again invaded by the Arabs, who took
Palermo
after a year-long siege in 831, established the
Emirate of Sicily
, and gradually continued to expand across the island. The invasion of
Anatolia
by the
Abbasid
Caliph
Al-Ma'mun
in 830 was led by the Emperor himself, but the Byzantines were defeated and lost several fortresses. In 831 Theophilos retaliated by leading a large army into
Cilicia
and capturing
Tarsus
. The Emperor returned to
Constantinople
in triumph, but in the autumn he was defeated in
Cappadocia
. Another defeat in the same province in 833 forced Theophilos to sue for peace (Theophilos offered 100,000 gold
dinars
and the return of 7,000 prisoners), which he obtained the next year, after the death of Al-Ma'mun.
During the respite from the war against the Abbasids, Theophilos arranged for the abduction of the Byzantine captives settled north of the
Danube
by
Krum of Bulgaria
. The rescue operation was carried out with success in c. 836, and the peace between
Bulgaria
and the
Byzantine Empire
was quickly restored. However, it proved impossible to maintain peace in the East. Theophilos had given asylum to a number of refugees from the east in 834, including Nasr, a
Persian
. He baptized
Theophobos
, who married the Emperor's aunt Irene and became one of his generals. As relations with the Abbasids deteriorated, Theophilos prepared for a new war.
In 837 Theophilos led a vast army of 70,000 men towards
Mesopotamia
and captured
Melitene
and
Arsamosata
. The Emperor also took and destroyed Zapetra (Zibatra, Sozopetra), which some sources claim as the birthplace of Caliph
al-Mu'tasim
. Theophilos returned to Constantinople in triumph. Eager for revenge, Al-Mu'tasim assembled a vast army and launched a two-pronged invasion of
Anatolia
in 838. Theophilos decided to strike one division of the caliph's army before they could combine. On 21 July 838 at the
Battle of Anzen
in Dazimon, Theophilos personally led a Byzantine army of 25,000 to 40,000 men against the troops commanded by
al-Afshin
. Afshin withstood the Byzantine attack, counter-attacked, and won the battle. The Byzantine survivors fell back in disorder and did not interfere in the caliph's continuing campaign.
Al-Mu'tasim took
Ancyra
, and al-Afshin joined him there. The full Abbasid army advanced against
Amorium
, the cradle of the dynasty. Initially there was determined resistance. Then a Muslim captive escaped and informed the caliph where there was a section of the wall that had only a front facade. Al-Mu'tasim concentrated his bombardment on this section, and the wall was breached. Having heroically held for fifty-five days, the city now
fell
to al-Mu'tasim on 12 or 15 August 838.
In 838, in order to impress the Caliph of
Baghdad
, Theophilus had John the Grammarian distribute 36,000
nomismata
to the citizens of Baghdad. Around 841, the
Republic of Venice
sent a fleet of 60 galleys (each carrying 200 men) to assist the Byzantines in driving the Arabs from
Crotone
, but it failed.
During this campaign Al-Mu'tasim discovered that some of his top generals were plotting against him. Many of these leading commanders were arrested and some executed before he arrived home. Al-Afshin seems not to have been involved in this, but he was detected in other intrigues and died in prison in the spring of 841. Caliph al-Mu'tasim fell sick in October 841 and died on 5 January 842.
Relations with Bulgaria and Serbia
In 836, following the expiration of the
20-year peace treaty
between the Empire and Bulgaria, Theophilos ravaged the Bulgarian frontier. The Bulgarians retaliated, and under the leadership of
Isbul
they reached
Adrianople
. At this time, if not earlier, the Bulgarians annexed Philippopolis (
Plovdiv
) and its environs.
Khan
Malamir
died in 836.
The peace between the
Serbs
, Byzantine
foederati
, and the
Bulgars
lasted until 839.
Vlastimir of Serbia
united several tribes, and Theophilos granted the Serbs independence; Vlastimir acknowledged nominal overlordship of the Emperor. The annexation of western Macedonia by the Bulgars changed the political situation. Malamir or his successor may have seen a threat in the Serb consolidation and opted to subjugate them in the midst of the conquest of Slav lands. Another cause might have been that the Byzantines wanted to divert attention so that they could cope with the Slavic uprising in the
Peloponnese
, meaning they sent the Serbs to instigate the war. It is thought that the rapid extension of Bulgars over Slavs prompted the Serbs to unite into a state.
Khan
Presian I
(r. 836–852) invaded
Serbian
territory in 839 (see
Bulgarian–Serbian Wars
). The invasion led to a three-year war, in which Vlastimir was victorious; Presian was heavily defeated, made no territorial gains, and lost many of his men. The Serbs had a tactical advantage in the hills, and the Bulgars were driven out by the
army of Vlastimir
. The war ended with the death of Theophilos, which released Vlastimir from his obligations to the Byzantine Empire.
Death and legacy
The health of Theophilos gradually failed, and he died on 20 January 842. Theophilos strengthened the
Walls of Constantinople
and built a hospital, which continued in existence until the twilight of the Byzantine Empire.
Family
By his marriage with
Theodora
, Theophilos had seven children:
Constantine
, co-emperor from c. 833 until his death in c. 835.
Michael III
, who succeeded as emperor.
Maria, who married the
Caesar
Alexios Mousele
.
Thekla, who was a mistress of Emperor
Basil I the Macedonian
.
Anna
Anastasia
Pulcheria
Byzantium
, later known as
Constantinople
("City of Constantine") and
Nova Roma
("New Rome"). Under
Theodosius I
(r. 379–395),
Christianity
became the Empire's official
state religion
and others such as
Roman polytheism
were
proscribed
. And finally, under the reign of
Heraclius
(r. 610–641), the Empire's military and administration were restructured and adopted Greek for official use instead of Latin. Thus, although it continued the Roman state and maintained Roman state traditions, modern historians distinguish
Byzantium
from
ancient Rome
insofar as it was oriented towards Greek rather than Latin culture, and characterised by
Orthodox Christianity
rather than
Roman polytheism
.
The borders of the Empire evolved significantly over its existence, as it went through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of
Justinian I
(r. 527–565), the Empire reached its greatest extent after reconquering much of the historically Roman western
Mediterranean
coast, including north Africa, Italy, and Rome itself, which it held for two more centuries. During the reign of
Maurice
(r. 582–602), the Empire's eastern frontier was expanded and the north stabilised. However, his assassination caused a
two-decade-long war
with
Sassanid Persia
which exhausted the Empire's resources and contributed to major territorial losses during the
Muslim conquests
of the 7th century. In a matter of years the Empire lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arabs.
During the
Macedonian dynasty
(10th–11th centuries), the Empire again expanded and experienced a two-century long
renaissance
, which came to an end with the loss of much of Asia Minor to the
Seljuk Turks
after the
Battle of Manzikert
in 1071. This battle opened the way for the Turks to settle in
Anatolia
as a homeland.
The final centuries of the Empire exhibited a general trend of decline. It struggled to
recover during the 12th century
, but was delivered a mortal blow during the
Fourth Crusade
, when Constantinople was sacked and the Empire
dissolved and divided
into competing Byzantine Greek and
Latin realms
. Despite the eventual recovery of Constantinople and
re-establishment of the Empire in 1261
, Byzantium remained only one of several small rival states in the area for the final two centuries of its existence. Its remaining territories were
progressively annexed by the Ottomans
over the 15th century. The
Fall of Constantinople
to the
Ottoman Empire
in 1453 finally ended the Byzantine Empire
.
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