The invasion of the Slavs and their settlement in the territory of the Byzantine Empire. The worst enemies of Byzantium

From the beginning of the 6th century on the northern border of the Byzantine Empire, along the lower and middle Danube, the invasions of Slavic tribes began.

The Danube border has always been a particularly turbulent border of the empire. Numerous barbarian tribes that occupied the lands north of the Danube and the Black Sea steppes were a constant threat to Byzantium. However, the destructive waves of barbarian invasions that swept through the empire in the 4th-5th centuries did not linger for a long time within its boundaries or spread so much that they soon disappeared without a trace. Neither the Black Sea Goths - newcomers from the distant Baltic, nor the nomads of the Asian steppes - the Huns could stay on the territory of Byzantium for a long time and, moreover, have a noticeable impact on the course of its internal socio-economic development.

The invasions of the Trans-Danube barbarians acquire a different character when the Slavic tribes become the main and decisive force in them. The stormy events that played out on the Danube border in the first half of the 6th century marked the beginning of a long era of the introduction of the Slavs into the Byzantine Empire.

Mass invasions and settlement of a number of Byzantine districts and regions were a natural stage in the entire previous history of the Slavs.

By the VI century. Slavs as a result of their gradual resettlement from the lands that they occupied in the 1st-2nd centuries. n. NS. east of the Vistula (between the Baltic Sea and the northern spurs of the Carpathian Mountains), became the direct neighbors of Byzantium, firmly settling on the left bank of the Danube. Contemporaries quite clearly indicate the places of settlements of Sklavins and Antes - related Slavic tribes who spoke the same language and had the same customs 1. According to Procopius, they occupied most of the lands on the left bank of the Danube. The territory inhabited by sklavins extended in the north to the Vistula, in the east to the Dniester and in the west to the middle reaches of the Sava 2. The Antes lived in the immediate vicinity of the Sklavins, making up the eastern branch of the Slavic tribes that settled on the northern borders of the Byzantine Empire. Especially densely, apparently, the Antae were inhabited by the lands in the Northern Black Sea region - to the east of the Dniester and in the Dnieper region 3.

The resettlement of the Slavs from their original habitats and their invasion of Byzantium were due to both external factors - the movement of various ethnic masses during the era of the "great migration of peoples", and, in a main way, the development of the socio-economic life of the Slavic tribes.

The transition of the Slavs, thanks to the emergence of new agricultural tools, to arable farming made it possible to cultivate the land by individual families. And although arable land remained by the middle of the 1st millennium, apparently, in the property of the community, the emergence of an individual peasant economy, which provided the opportunity to use the product of labor for personal enrichment, as well as the constant growth of the population, caused the need to expand land convenient for cultivation. The socio-political system of the Slavs, in turn, changed. According to Procopius, the Sklavins and Antes are not ruled by one person, but since ancient times they have lived in the rule of the people, and therefore the tribesmen share happiness and misfortune together 4. However, the testimony of the same Procopius and other Byzantine writers of the 6th century. allow us to see that the Slavs had tribal nobility and primitive slavery existed 5.

Economic and social evolution leads to the formation of military democracy among the Slavs - that form of political organization in which it is war that opens up the greatest opportunities for the tribal nobility to enrich and strengthen their power. The Slavs (both individuals and whole detachments) begin to willingly join the mercenary troops 6. However, service in a foreign army could only partially satisfy their growing needs; the desire to seize new, already cultivated fertile lands, the thirst for prey pushed the Slavic tribes into the Byzantine Empire.

In alliance with other peoples of the Danube-Black Sea basin - carp, bone-carp, Roxolans, Sarmatians, Gepids, Goths, Huns - the Slavs, in all likelihood, participated in raids on the Balkan Peninsula earlier, back in the 2nd-5th centuries. Byzantine chroniclers were often confused in determining the ethnicity of the numerous barbarians who attacked the empire. Perhaps it was the Slavs who were those "Getae horsemen" who, according to the testimony of the Comitus Marcellinus, devastated Macedonia and Thessaly in 517, reaching Thermopylae 7.

Under their own name, the Slavs as enemies of the empire were first mentioned by Procopius of Caesarea. He reports that shortly after the accession to the throne of Emperor Justin, "the Antes ..., having crossed Istria, with a large army invaded the Roman land" 8. A Byzantine army was sent against them, led by a prominent military leader Herman, which inflicted a strong defeat on the Antes. This apparently halted their raids on the territory of the empire for some time. In any case, for the entire subsequent period of Justin's reign, the sources do not note any more invasions of the Antes and Sklavins.

The picture changes dramatically under Justinian. Describing the state of imperial affairs (for the period from the accession of Justinian to the throne and until the middle of the 6th century), Procopius writes with bitterness that “the Huns (Hunno-Bulgars. - Ed.), Sklavins and Antes almost annually raid Illyricum and all of Thrace, i.e., all regions from the Ionian Gulf (Adriatic Sea. - Ed.) up to the outskirts of Constantinople, including Hellas and the region of Chersonesos [Thracian] ... "9. Another contemporary of the events that took place under Justinian - Jordan - also speaks of "a daily stubborn onslaught from the Bulgars, Antes and Sklavins" 10.

At this first stage of the Slavs offensive, their invasions, which followed one after the other and were accompanied by terrible devastation of the Byzantine lands, were, for all that, only short-term raids, after which the Slavs, having captured the prey, returned to their lands on the left bank of the Danube. The Danube border is still the border separating the Byzantine and Slavic possessions; the empire is taking urgent measures to protect and strengthen it.

In 530, Justinian appoints the courageous and energetic Khilvudiy as the strategy of Thrace - judging by his name, a Slav. Having entrusted him with the defense of the northern border of the empire, Justinian hoped, apparently, that Hilwoodius, who had advanced far in the Byzantine military service and was well acquainted with the military tactics of the Slavs, would more successfully fight against them. Hilwoodius really lived up to Justinian's hopes for a while. He repeatedly organized attacks on the left bank of the Danube, "beating up and taking into slavery the barbarians who lived there" 11.

But already three years after Khilvudiy was killed in one of the battles with the Slavs, the Danube “became available for the passage of the barbarians at their request, and the Roman possessions were completely open for their invasion” 12.

Justinian was clearly aware of the danger that threatened the empire. He directly stated that "in order to stop the movement of the barbarians, resistance is needed, and, moreover, serious" 13. In the very first years of his reign, work was begun on a grand scale to strengthen the Danube border. Along the entire bank of the river - from Singidun to the Black Sea - the construction of new and restoration of old fortresses was carried out; the defensive system consisted of several lines of fortifications that reached the Long Walls. Procopius names several hundred fortified posts erected in Dacia, Epirus, Thessaly and Macedonia.

However, all these structures, stretching for many tens of kilometers, could not prevent the Slavic invasions. The empire, waging heavy and bloody wars in North Africa, Italy, Spain, forced to keep its troops in a vast area from the Euphrates to Gibraltar, was not able to equip the fortresses with the necessary garrisons. Talking about the Slavic raid in Illyricum (548), Procopius complains that "even many fortifications that were here and in the past seemed strong, the Slavs were able to take, since no one defended them ..." 14.

The widespread offensive of the Slavs on the Byzantine lands was largely weakened due to the lack of unity between the Sklavins and the Antes. In 540, as a result of the conflict between these two largest Slavic tribes, a war broke out between them, and joint attacks on the empire ceased. The Sklavins entered into an alliance with the Hunno-Bulgars and in 540-542, when the plague raged in Byzantium, they invaded its borders three times. They reach Constantinople and break through the outer wall, causing a terrible panic in the capital. “Nothing of the kind has been seen or heard since the founding of the city,” writes an eyewitness to this event, John of Ephesus 15. However, having plundered the Constantinople suburbs, the barbarians left with the captured booty and prisoners. During one of these attacks, they penetrated as far as the Thracian Chersonesos and even crossed the Hellespont to Avydos. At about the same time (somewhere between 540 and 545) the Antes invaded Thrace.

Justinian was quick to take advantage of the strife of the Ants and Sklavins, which led to the disunity of their actions. In 545, ambassadors were sent to the ants. They announced Justinian's consent to welcome to the Turris fortress, located on the left bank of the lower Danube, and the surrounding lands (most likely, to authorize their settlement in this "ancient Roman" region), as well as to pay them large sums of money, demanding in return to observe peace with the empire and resist the raids of the Hunno-Bulgars.

The negotiations ended, in all likelihood, successfully. Since that time, the sources never mention the actions of the Antes against Byzantium. Moreover, in the documents containing the full title of Justinian, the latter is called "Αντιχος since 533; more than half a century later, in 602, the Antes were also in allied relations with Byzantium 16.

From now on, having lost their closest and natural ally, the Sklavins, both alone and together with the Hunno-Bulgars, are attacking the lands of the Byzantine Empire.

The onslaught of the Sklavins on the empire noticeably increases in the late 40s and especially in the 50s of the 6th century. In 548, their numerous detachments, having crossed the Danube, marched all over Illyricum up to Epidamnes. An idea of ​​the scale of this invasion can be made on the basis of the news of Proconius (even if he slightly exaggerates the number of imperial forces), as if the Slavs were followed by a 15,000-strong Byzantine army, but “they could not dare to come close to the enemy anywhere” 17.

From the middle of the VI century. the offensive of the Slavs on Byzantium enters a new stage, qualitatively different from the previous invasions. In 550-551 a real Slavic-Byzantine war is being played out. Slavic detachments, acting according to a predetermined plan, conduct open battles with the Byzantine army and even achieve victory; they siege Byzantine fortresses; some of the Slavs invading the empire remain for the winter in its lands, receiving fresh reinforcements from across the Danube and preparing for new campaigns.

War 550-551 began with the invasion of the Slavs into Illyricum and Thrace (spring 550). Three thousand Slavs crossed the Danube and, without encountering resistance, also crossed the Maritsa. Then they split into two parts (1800 and 1200 people). Although these detachments were much inferior in strength to the Byzantine army sent against them, thanks to a surprise attack they managed to defeat him. Having won a victory, one of the Slavic detachments then entered the battle with the Byzantine commander Asvad. Despite the fact that under his command there were "numerous excellent horsemen ..., and without much difficulty the Slavs put them to flight" 18. Having taken a siege of a number of Byzantine fortresses, they also capture the coastal city of Topir, which was guarded by a Byzantine military garrison. “Before,” notes Procopius, “the Slavs never dared to approach the walls or descend on the plain (for open battle) ...” 19.

In the summer of 550, the Slavs again crossed the Danube in a huge avalanche and invaded Byzantium. This time they appear at the city of Naissa (Nisha). As Slavic captives later showed, the main goal of the campaign was to capture one of the largest cities of the empire, moreover, it was perfectly fortified - Thessalonica. Justinian was forced to give an order to his commander German, who was preparing an army in Sardik (Serdik) for a campaign in Italy against Totila, to immediately abandon all affairs and attack the Slavs. However, the latter, having learned that Herman was directed against them, who, even in the reign of Justin, inflicted a strong defeat on the Antes, and, assuming that his army was a significant force, decided to avoid a clash. Having passed Illyricum, they entered Dalmatia. They were joined by more and more tribesmen who freely crossed the Danube20.

Having overwintered on the territory of Byzantium, “as if in their own land, without fear of the enemy,” 21 the Slavs in the spring of 551 again poured into Thrace and Illyricum. They defeated the Byzantine army in a fierce battle and marched as far as the Long Walls. However, thanks to a surprise attack, the Byzantines managed to capture some of the Slavs, and force the rest to retreat.

In the fall of 551, a new invasion of Illyricum followed. The leaders of the army expelled by Justinian, as in 548, did not dare to engage in battle with the Slavs. After staying within the empire for a long time, ”those with rich booty crossed the Danube back.

The last action of the Slavs against the empire under Justinian was the attack on Constantinople in 559, carried out in alliance with the Kutrigur Huns 22.

Towards the end of Justinian's reign, Byzantium found itself helpless in the face of Slavic invasions; the alarmed emperor did not know "how he could further reflect them" 23. The newly undertaken by Justinian the construction of fortresses in the Balkans had as its purpose not only to repulse the Slavic invasions from across the Danube, but also to counter the Slavs, who managed to gain a foothold in the Byzantine lands, using them as a springboard for further advance into the depths of the empire: strengthening Philippopolis and Plotinople in Thrace were built, according to Procopius, against the barbarians who lived in the areas of these cities; For the same purpose, the Adina fortress in Moesia was restored, around which the "barbarians-Slavs" who raided the neighboring lands, as well as the Ulmiton fortress, completely destroyed by the Slavs who settled in its vicinity, took refuge 24.

The empire, exhausted by wars, did not have the means to organize active resistance to the increasingly intensified Slavic onslaught. In the last years of Justinian's reign, the Byzantine army, according to the testimony of his successor, Justin II, was "so upset that the state was left to incessant invasions and raids of barbarians."

The local population of the empire, especially the ethnically motley one in the northern Balkan provinces, was also a poor defender of their land. The economic life of the Danube regions, which had been repeatedly subjected to barbaric invasions for several centuries, in a number of areas has noticeably died out, and these areas themselves have become depopulated 26. During the reign of Justinian, the situation was further complicated by the increased tax burden. “... Despite the fact that ... all of Europe was plundered by the Huns, Sklavins and Antes, that some of the cities were destroyed to the ground, others were cleanly robbed as a result of monetary contributions, despite the fact that the barbarians took everyone captive with them people with all their property, that as a result of their almost daily raids, all areas became deserted and uncultivated - despite all this, Justinian, nevertheless, did not remove taxes from anyone ... " "Secret History" 27. The severity of taxes forced the inhabitants either to leave the empire altogether, or to go over to the barbarians, who did not yet know developed forms of class oppression and whose social system, therefore, brought relief to the exploited masses of the Byzantine state. Later, settling on the territory of the empire, the barbarians softened the burden of payments that lay on the local population. So, according to John of Ephesus, in 584 the Avars and Pannonian Slavs, addressing the inhabitants of Moesia, said: “Come out, sow and reap, we will take from us only half (taxes or, most likely, the harvest. - Ed.) "28.

The success of the Slavic invasions was also facilitated by the struggle of the masses against the exorbitant oppression of the Byzantine state. The first raids of the Slavs on Byzantium were preceded and, obviously, facilitated by the uprising that broke out in 512 in Constantinople, which in 513-515. spread to the northern Balkan provinces and in which, along with the local population, the barbaric federates took part in 29-30. During the reign of Justinian and under his successors, a favorable environment for Slavic invasions was in Pannonia and especially in Thrace, where the Scamar movement developed widely 31.

The attack of the Slavs against Byzantium, which was growing from year to year, was, however, from the beginning of the 60s of the 6th century. temporarily suspended by the appearance on the Danube of the Turkic horde of Avars. Byzantine diplomacy, which widely practiced a policy of bribery and inciting some tribes against others, did not hesitate to use new newcomers to oppose the Slavs. As a result of negotiations between the embassy of the Avar Khakan Bayan and Justinian, which took place in 558, an agreement was reached, according to which the Avars were obliged, subject to receiving an annual tribute from Byzantium, to protect its Danube border from the invasions of barbarians. The Avars defeated the Utigur Huns and the Kutrigur Huns, who were at odds with each other due to the machinations of Justinian, and then began to attack the Slavs. First of all, the lands of the Antes were subjected to the raids of the Avars, who were advancing from the Trans-Caspian steppes along the Black Sea coast to the lower Danube. “The owners of the ants were put in a plight. The Avars plundered and ravaged their land, ”says Menander the Protector 32. In order to ransom the tribesmen captured by the Avars, the Antes sent an embassy to them in 560, headed by Mezamir. Mezamir behaved in the Avar headquarters very independently and with great audacity. On the advice of one kutrigur, who persuaded the Avars to get rid of this influential person among the Antes, Mesamir was killed. “Since then,” Menander finishes his story, “the Avars began to ravage the land of the Antes even more, they did not cease to plunder it and enslave the inhabitants” 33.

Feeling their strength, the Avars begin to make more and more demands on Byzantium: they ask to provide them with places to settle and increase the annual reward for preserving the union and peace. Disagreements arise between the empire and the Avars, which soon lead to open military action. The Avars enter into an alliance with the Franks, and then, intervening in the strife of the Lombards and Gepids, in alliance with the first, in 567 defeat the Gepids, who were under the auspices of the empire, and settle on their lands in Pannonia along the Tisza and the middle Danube. The Slavic tribes living on the Pannonian Plain had to recognize the supreme power of the Avars. Since that time, they have been attacking Byzantium together with the Avars, taking an active part in their struggle against the empire.

The first news of such combined invasions is contained in the Western chronicler John, the abbot of the Biklyar monastery, of his contemporary. He reports that in 576 and 577. Avars and Slavs attacked Thrace, and in 579 they occupied part of Greece and Pannonia 34, In 584, according to another contemporary of the described events - Evagria, the Avars (no doubt, together with their Slavic allies) capture Singidun, Ankhial and devastate "All Hellas" 35. The Slavs who were in the Avar army, who were generally known for their ability to cross rivers, participated in the construction of a bridge across the Sava in 579 to carry out the seizure of Sirmium planned by the Avars; in 593 the Pannonian Slavs made ships for the Avar Khakan, and then built a bridge from them across the Sava 36.

In the Avar army (as well as in the Avar Khakanate in general), the Slavs were, in all likelihood, the most significant ethnic group: it is indicative that in 601, when the Byzantine army defeated the Avars, a Slavic detachment of 8 thousand people was captured, much outnumbered the Avars themselves and other barbarians under his control 37 who were in the Khakan's army.

However, since the Avars politically dominated the Pan-Nonian Slavs, Byzantine authors, when talking about the Avar attacks on the empire, often do not mention the participation of the Slavs in them, although the presence of the latter in the Avar army is beyond doubt.

The Avars repeatedly tried to subjugate the Slavs who lived on the lower Danube, but all their efforts invariably ended in failure. Menander says that Bayan sent an embassy to the Sklavin leader Davrita and “to those who stood at the head of the Sklavin people”, demanding that they submit to the Avars and undertake to pay tribute to them. A well-known independent answer, full of confidence in their strength, which the Avars received to this: “Was the person born in the world and is warmed by the rays of the sun who would have subjugated our power? Not ours, but we are accustomed to possessing strangers. And we are sure of this as long as there are war and swords in the world ”38.

The Sklavins from the lower Danube retained their independence in the future. They fought against both Byzantium and the Avars.

With renewed vigor, the incursions of the Sklavins into the empire were resumed in the late 70s - early 80s of the 6th century. In 578, 100 thousand Sklavins, having crossed the Danube, devastated Thrace and other Balkan provinces, including Greece itself - Hellas 39. Emperor Tiberius, who was unable to resist the Slavic invasions on his own because of the war with Persia, invited the Avar Khakan, who was at that time in peaceful relations with the empire, to attack the possessions of the Sklavins. Bayan, "harboring a secret enmity towards the Sklavins ... because they did not submit to him," willingly agreed to Tiberius' proposal. According to Menander, the Khakan hoped to find a rich country, "since the Sklavins plundered the Roman land, while their land was not subjected to ruin by any other people." A huge Avar army (according to Menander - 60 thousand horsemen) was transferred on Byzantine ships across the Sava, led through the territory of the empire to the east to some place on the Danube, and here it was transported to its left bank, where it began “without delay to burn the villages sklavins, ruin them and devastate the fields ”40.

The cruel devastation carried out by the Avars on the lands of the Sklavins, however, did not lead to their submission to the power of the Khakan. When in 579 Bayan tried, referring to the upcoming campaign against the Sklavins, to build a bridge across the Sava and capture the strategically important Byzantine city of Sirmium, as the reason for this campaign he put forward before Tiberius the fact that the Sklavins “did not want to pay him the established annual tribute "41.

The Avar attack on the Sklavins provoked by the empire did not save Byzantium from their new incursions. On the contrary, they are becoming even more formidable and are now entering their last, final stage - the mass settlement of the Slavs on its territory. In 581, the Sklavins made a successful campaign in the Byzantine lands, after which they no longer returned across the Danube, but settled within the empire. An exceptional in its value description of this invasion of the Sklavins is given by John of Ephesus, a direct witness to the events he portrayed. “In the third year after the death of Tsar Justin and the accession of the victor Tiberius,” he says, “the accursed people of the Sklavina attacked. They swiftly passed all of Hellas, the region of Thessalonica [Thessaly?] And all of Thrace, and conquered many cities and fortresses. They devastated and burned them, took prisoners and became masters of the earth. They settled on her masters, as on their own, without fear. For four years and until now, due to the fact that the king is busy with the Persian war and sent all his troops to the East, because of this, they spread over the earth, settled on it and expanded on it now, as long as God allows them. They wreak havoc and fires and capture prisoners, so that at the outermost wall they captured all the royal herds, many ”thousands (heads) and other miscellaneous (booty). So to this day, that is, until 895 42, they remain, live and live quietly in the countries of the Romans - people who did not dare (before) to appear from the dense forests and (places) protected by trees and did not know that such a weapon, except for two or three lonchidia, that is, darts ”43.

In 584 the Sklavins attack Thessalonica. And although this attack, like the subsequent attempts of the Slavs to seize the city, ended in failure, the fact that the Slavic detachment of 5 thousand people, consisting of "experienced in military affairs" people and included "all the chosen color of the Slavic tribes", decided for such an enterprise is in itself very indicative. The Slavs "would not have attacked such a city if they did not feel their superiority in strength and courage over all those who have ever fought with them," 44 - the Miracles of St. Demetrius "- a remarkable hagiographic work of this era, dedicated to the description of the" miracles "that during the siege of the city by the Slavs his patron, Demetrius, allegedly performed, and containing important historical data about the Slavs.

The ups and downs of the Slavic-Avar-Vizayatzh struggle of that time were very difficult. As a rule, the Avars acted in alliance with the Pannonian Slavs. Sometimes the latter acted independently, but with the approval of the Khakan. Not having achieved the submission of the Lower Danube Sklavins, the Avar Khakan, nevertheless, on occasion, claimed that Byzantium would recognize their lands for him. This was the case, for example, in 594, after the emperor's campaign against the Sklavins: the Khakan demanded his share of the booty, claiming that the Byzantine army had invaded "his land." However, not only Byzantium considered these Slavic lands as independent, but even those close to Bayan considered his claims to them "unjust" 45. Bayan himself, if it was beneficial to him, in his relations with Byzantium also proceeded from the fact that the Sklavins on the lower Danube were not dependent on him: when in 585 the Sklavins, at the instigation of the Khakan, invaded Thrace, breaking even through the Long Walls, the peace between the Avars and Byzantium was not officially violated, and the Khakan received a stipulated tribute from the empire, although his intrigues were known to the Constantinople court 46.

A new invasion of the Avars and Slavs into Byzantium followed at the end of 585-586, after the emperor Mauritius rejected the Khakan's demand to increase the tribute paid to him by the empire. During this largest Avar-Slavic attack (in the fall of 586), another attempt was made to take, Thessalonica. A huge Slavic army, capturing the surrounding fortifications, began to siege the city. A detailed description of this siege in The Miracles of St. Demetrius ”shows how far ahead the military equipment of the Slavs had gone by this time: they used siege engines, rams, stone-throwing weapons - everything that knew the art of sieging cities at that time.

In 587-588, as evidenced by the sources, in particular the anonymous "Monemvasian Chronicle", compiled, probably in the IX century. 46a, the Slavs take possession of Thessaly, Epirus, Attica, Euboea and settle in the Peloponnese, where for the next two hundred years they live completely independently, not obeying the Byzantine emperor.

The successful offensive of the Slavs to Byzantium in the late 70s - 80s of the 6th century. was to a certain extent relieved by the fact that up to 591 she waged a difficult twenty-year war with Persia. But even after the conclusion of peace, when the Byzantine army was transferred from the East to Europe, the persistent attempts of Mauritius to resist further Slavic invasions (the emperor even first takes command personally - a precedent that has not taken place since the time of Theodosius I) did not give any significant results.

Mauritius decided to transfer the struggle against the Slavs directly to the Slavic lands on the left bank of the Danube. In the spring of 594, he gave an order to his commander Priscus to go to the border in order to prevent the Slavs from crossing it. In Lower Moesia, Priscus attacked the Slavic leader Ardagast, and then devastated the lands under his rule. Moving on, the Byzantine army invaded the possessions of the Slavic leader Musokiy; thanks to the betrayal of the Gepid who had defected from the Slavs, Priscus managed to capture Musokiy and plunder his country. Wanting to consolidate the gains made, Mauritius ordered Priscus to spend the winter on the left bank of the Danube. But the Byzantine soldiers, who had recently won victories over the Slavs, rebelled, declaring that "countless crowds of barbarians are invincible" 47.

The following year, Mauritius appointed his brother Peter as commander-in-chief instead of Priscus. However, the new campaign brought even less results. While Mauritius was making every effort to move the war over the Danube, the Slavs continued their attacks on the imperial lands: in the region of Marcianopol, the forward detachment of Peter's army collided with 600 Slavs, "carrying large booty captured from the Romans." By order of Mauritius, Peter in general had to stop his campaign in the Slavic lands and remain in Thrace: it became known that "large crowds of Slavs are preparing an attack on Byzantium." Peter set out, not having time to receive this order, and, faced with the Slavic leader Piragast, defeated him. When Peter returned to the camp, the Slavs attacked him and put the Byzantine army to flight.

In 602, during the renewed hostilities between Byzantium and the Avars, Mauritius, seeking to secure the empire from the invasions of the Slavs, again ordered Peter to move to the Slavic lands. In turn, the Khakan gives an order to his commander Apsikh "to exterminate the tribe of Antes, who were allies of the Romans" 50. Having received this order, part of the Khakan's army (in all likelihood, the Slavs, who did not want to fight against their fellow tribesmen) went over to the side of the emperor. But the campaign against the Ants, nevertheless, obviously took place and led to the defeat of this Slavic tribe. From now on, the Antes disappear forever from the pages of Byzantine sources.

With the onset of autumn, Mauritius demanded from Peter that he spend the winter in the lands of the Slavs on the left bank of the Danube. And again, as in 594, the Byzantine soldiers, realizing the whole pointlessness of the struggle against "the countless multitude of barbarians who, like waves, flooded the whole country on the other side of Istria" 51, raised a mutiny. Moving to Constantinople and taking possession of it, they overthrew Mauritius from the throne and proclaimed the emperor the centurion Phoca, half a barbarian in origin.

Such was the inglorious result of Byzantium's attempt to carry out an active struggle against the Slavs. The Byzantine army, which had just victoriously ended the war with Persia, the strongest power of that time, was powerless to close the empire's Danube border for Slavic invasions. Even winning victories, the soldiers did not feel like victors. These were not battles with a properly organized army, which were usually fought by Byzantine soldiers. The defeated Slavic detachments were immediately replaced by new ones. In the Slavic land beyond the Danube, every inhabitant was a warrior, an enemy of the empire. On its territory, the Byzantine army, due to the very system of its organization, also could not always count on the support of the local population. Since military operations against the Slavs were usually conducted in the warm season, the army was disbanded for the winter, and the soldiers had to take care of their own food. “With the onset of late autumn, the stratigus dismissed his camp and returned to Byzantium, - says Theophylact Simokatta about the campaign of 594 - Romei, not engaged in military service, scattered across Thrace, obtaining food for themselves in the villages” 52.

Byzantium understood well the difficulties of the struggle against the Slavs, the need to use special tactics in the war with them. A special section of the "Strategicon" consists of advice on how best to carry out short-term raids on their villages, with what caution should enter their lands; Pseudo-Mauritius recommends plundering Slavic villages and removing food supplies from them, spreading false rumors, bribing princes and rebuilding them against each other. “Since they (Slavs - Ed.) Have many princes (ρηγων),” he writes, “and they disagree with each other, it is advantageous to win some of them to their side - either through promises or rich gifts, especially those who are in our neighborhood ”53. However, as the Slavs grow in consciousness of their ethnic integrity and unity of goals, as they further unite, this policy brings less and less success. Justinian, as already noted, managed to split the Antes from the joint struggle of the Slavs against the empire 54. Having lost the support of their fellow tribesmen, the Antes, whose tribes, according to Procopius, were "innumerable" 55, were first subjected to devastating raids, and then to defeat by the Avars. But already at that time, to which the work of Pseudo-Mauritius directly relates, one can see that the leaders of individual Slavic tribes, despite the danger, go to the rescue of each other. When in 594 the Byzantine army defeated Ardagast, Musokiy immediately allocated a whole flotilla of single-tree boats and rowers to ferry his people. And, although the sources do not directly say about this, it was the Slavic soldiers who apparently refused to participate in 602 in the campaign of the Avar Khakan against the Ants.

The civil war that broke out in the Byzantine Empire after the overthrow of the emperor of Mauritius, and the newly begun war with Persia allowed the Slavs to lead the story in the first quarter of the 7th century. the onset of the largest scale. The scope of their invasions is expanding significantly. They acquire a fleet of single-tree boats and organize sea expeditions. George Pisida reports on Slavic robberies in the Aegean Sea in the early years of the 7th century, and the anonymous author of The Miracles of St. Demetrius "says that the Slavs" devastated the whole of Thessaly, the adjacent islands, Hellas from the sea. The Cyclades, all of Achaia and Epirus, most of Illyricum and part of Asia ”56. Feeling their strength at sea, the Slavs again made an attempt in 616 to take Thessalonica, surrounding it from land and sea. The siege of Thessalonica is carried out this time by the tribes that have already firmly settled the territory of Macedonia and the Byzantine regions adjacent to it: the author of "The Miracles of St. Demetrius ”notes that the Slavs approached the city with their families and“ wanted to settle them there after the capture of the city ”57.

During the siege, as in other maritime enterprises of this period, the empire was opposed by a large alliance of Slavic tribes, including the Draguvites, Sagudats, Beleezites, Vayunits, Verzits and others; at the head of the Slavs besieging Thessalonica is their common leader - Hatzon.

After the death of Hatzon, the Slavs were forced to lift the siege of Thessalonica. But two years later, having enlisted the support of the Avar Khakan, the Macedonian Slavs, together with the army brought by the Khakan (a significant part of which were the Slavs who were under his supreme power) again subjected the city to a siege that lasted for a whole month.

The general picture created in the empire by this time as a result of the Slavic invasions and the development of Byzantine lands by them is quite clear from the motivation with which the Slavs turned to the Avar Khakan, asking him to help them c. mastering Thessalonica: "It should not be that," said the Slavic ambassadors, "so that when all the cities and regions are devastated, this city alone would remain intact and receive fugitives from the Danube, Pannonia, Dacia, Dardania and other regions and cities." ...

The plight of Byzantium was well known in the West: Pope Gregory I wrote in 600 that he was very worried about the Slavs threatening the Greeks; he was especially worried by the fact that they had already begun to approach Italy through Istria 59. Bishop Isidore of Seville notes in his chronicle that “in the fifth year of the reign of Emperor Heraclius, the Slavs took Greece from the Romans” 60. According to the Jacobite writer of the 7th century. Thomas the Presbyter, in 623 the Slavs attacked Crete and other islands 61; Paul the Deacon speaks of the attacks of the Slavs in 642 on southern Italy 62.

Finally, in 626, the Avars and Slavs entered into an alliance with the Persians ”and undertook a siege of Constantinople. The city was besieged by land and sea. For the assault on the walls of the Byzantine capital, many siege weapons were assembled. Countless Slavic one-tree boats, arriving from the Danube, entered the Golden Horn. However, the outcome of this siege was determined by the superiority of Byzantium at sea. After the death of the Slavic fleet, the Avar-Slavic army was defeated on land and was forced to retreat from Constantinople.

The sieges of Constantinople and Thessalonica, attacks on the Byzantine seaside cities and islands were carried out primarily by the Slavs, who were firmly settled on the territory of the empire. Most densely they populated Macedonia and Thrace. To the west of Thessaloniki (up to the city of Verroia), as well as along the Vardara River and in the Rhodope Mountains, the draguvites settled. To the west of Thessalonica, as well as in Halkidiki and Thrace, the Sagudates settled. The Vayunits settled along the upper reaches of the Bystritsa. Smolens lived to the northeast of Thessalonica, along the river Meste. On the river Strimone (Struma), along its lower and middle reaches, they extended, reaching in the west to the lake. Langazy, settlements of the Strimonians (strumians); on the lands adjacent to Thessalonica from the east, in Halkidiki, the Rinchians settled. In the Ohrid region, sources indicate the place of residence of the verzits. In Thessaly, on the coast around Thebes and Demetrias, the Beleesites (Beelsites) settled. In the Peloponnese, the slopes of Taygetus were occupied by the Millingi and Ezerites. Seven Slavic tribes, unknown by name, settled on the territory of Moesia. Unknown Slavic tribes by name also settled, as the narrative and toponymic data show, in other regions of Greece and the Peloponnese. Numerous Slavic settlers appeared in the 7th century. in Asia Minor, especially in Bithynia.

The very fact of the mass settlement of the Slavs at the end of the 6th and 7th centuries of Macedonia and Thrace, as well as other, more distant regions of the Byzantine Empire - Thessaly, Epirus, Peloponnese, does not currently raise any serious objections. Numerous and indisputable evidence from written sources, as well as toponymic and archaeological data, leave no doubt about it. Linguistic studies show that even in the very south of the Balkan Peninsula - in the Peloponnese - there were several hundred names of localities of Slavic origin63. The author of a large work on the Byzantine Peloponnese A. Bon notes that toponymy data indicate the predominance of the Slavic population in certain parts of the Peloponnese 64. P. Lemerl, who penned the fundamental work on Eastern Macedonia, states that “Macedonia in the 7th-8th centuries. was more Slavic than Greek ”65. Rejecting the attempt of D. Georgakas to study the word σχλαβος again and interpret εσδλαβωδη in the famous phrase of Constantine Porphyrogenitus: εσδλαβωδη δε πασα η χωρχχαι γεγονε βαρβλαρος (the country became barbarous. 67, P. Lemerl wittily asks, who, if not the Slavs, were, in this case, the masters of these slaves? 68 The term σχλαβος, as F. Delger finally established, could at that time only be an ethnikon 69.

The settlement of free Slavs-communes on the territory of Byzantium strengthened the local rural communities, increased the weight of small free property, and accelerated the elimination of slave-owning forms of exploitation. Already during their invasions, plundering and destroying the Byzantine cities - the centers of the slave economy and the main stronghold of the slave system of the Byzantine state - smashing the palaces and estates of the nobility, exterminating and capturing many of their representatives with whole families, the Slavs contributed to the transition of the forced population of the empire - slaves and columns - to the position of free peasants and artisans. With the end of the invasions and the accompanying devastation of cities, villages, fields, new settlers in many ways contribute to increasing the viability of Byzantium, significantly increasing the productive agricultural stratum of the population of the Byzantine Empire. The Slavs - primordial farmers - continue to cultivate and in the imperial areas inhabited by them: in the "Miracles of St. Demetrius ”tells that Thessalonica during its blockade in 675 and 676. By the Macedonian Slavs, she bought food from the Beleezites, and the Draguvites supplied food for the litany of the former captives of the Avar Khakan who had moved from Pannonia to Macedonia (between 680-685) 70.

The Slavic agricultural population replenishes the ranks of the bulk of the Byzantine taxpayers, provides combat-ready personnel for the Byzantine army. In Byzantine sources there are very definite indications that the main concern of the empire in relation to the Slavs was to ensure the correct receipt of taxes and the fulfillment of military service. It is also known that from the Slavs whom Justinian II resettled from Macedonia to Asia Minor, he formed a whole army, numbering 30 thousand people.

However, it was far from immediately and not everywhere that Byzantium succeeded in turning the new settlers into obedient subjects. Since the middle of the 7th century, the Byzantine government has been waging a long struggle against them, seeking to achieve recognition of its supreme power - the payment of taxes and the supply of military units. Especially a lot of efforts of the empire had to be used to conquer the Slavic population of Macedonia and the Peloponnese, where entire regions were formed, completely inhabited by Slavs and directly called "Sklavinia" in the sources. In the Peloponnese, such a "Sklavinia" arose in the region of Monemvasia, in Macedonia - in the region of Thessaloniki. In 658, the emperor Constant II was forced to make a campaign in the Macedonian "Sklavinia", as a result of which some of the Slavs who lived there were subdued.

However, just two decades after the campaign of Constant II, the Macedonian Slavs again opposed the empire. The author of "The Miracles of St. Demetrius ”says that the Slavs who settled near Thessalonica kept the peace only for appearance, and the leader of the Rinchians, Pervud, had evil intentions against the city. Having received a message about this, the emperor ordered the capture of Pervuda. The leader of the Rinchians, who was at that time in Thessalonica, was arrested and taken to Constantinople. Having learned about the fate of Pervuda, the Rinkhin and the Strimonians demanded his release. The emperor, busy with the war with the Arabs, and, apparently, fearing the action of the Slavs, at the same time did not dare to immediately release Pervuda. He promised to return the Rinkhi leader at the end of the war. However, Purwood, not trusting the Greeks, tried to escape. The attempt was unsuccessful, Purwood was caught and executed. Then the Rinchins, Strimonians and Sagudats opposed the empire with united forces. For two years (675-676) they subjected Thessalonica to a blockade: the Strimonians acted in the areas adjacent to the city from the east and north sides, and the Rinchins and Sagudats from the west and in the seaside. In 677 the Slavs besieged Thessalonica, and for some unknown reason the Strimonians refused to participate in this enterprise, while the Draguvites, on the contrary, joined the besiegers. Together with the Sagudats, they approached Thessalonica from the land, and the Rinchins from the sea. Having lost many of their leaders during the siege, the Slavs were forced to retreat. However, they continued to attack the Byzantine villages, and in the fall of the same 677 they again laid siege to Thessalonica, but failed again. Three years later, the Rinchins, this time again in alliance with the Strimonians, embark on a sea robbery along the Hellespont and Propontis. They organize attacks on Byzantine ships, following with food to Constantinople, raiding the islands, taking with them booty and captives. The emperor was finally forced to send an army against them, directing the main blow against the Strimonians. The latter, having occupied gorges and fortified places, called for help from other Slavic leaders. The further course of the war is not entirely clear; apparently, after the battle that took place between the Byzantine army and the Macedonian Slavs, an agreement was reached and peaceful relations were established.

But soon the Macedonian Slavs rebelled again. In 687-688. Emperor Justinian II was confronted with the need to again make a trip to the Macedonian "Sklavinia" in order to bring the Slavs living there to the subordination of Byzantium.

Even less successful were the efforts of the empire to retain the northern Balkan provinces inhabited by the Slavs. Moesia was the first to fall away from Byzantium, where an alliance of "seven Slavic tribes" was formed - a permanent tribal union. The Proto-Bulgarians of Asparukh, who appeared in Moesia, subjugated the Slavic tribes that were part of this union, and later they formed the core of the Bulgarian state that was formed in 681.

The Slavic tribes, which the Byzantine government managed to keep under its rule, continued the struggle for their independence for a long time. In the following centuries, the Byzantine Empire had to make a lot of efforts in order to turn the Slavs who settled within its borders into their subjects.

The lesson on the topic "Byzantine Empire of the 6th-8th centuries" tells about the inheritance that belongs to the eastern and western parts of the empire. The influence of neighbors and the religious crisis within the empire had serious consequences. It tells about the times of Justinian's reign as the most successful for the empire, about the reign of Heraclius, which will be replaced by Leo III.

Theme: Eastern Empire and the Arabs

Lesson:Byzantine Empire inVI- VIIIcenturies

Unlike the Western Roman Empire, Byzantium not only withstood the onslaught of the barbarians, but also existed for over a thousand years. It included rich and cultural areas: the Balkan Peninsula with adjacent islands, part of the Caucasus, Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, Egypt. Agriculture and cattle breeding have been developing here since ancient times. In Byzantium, including on the territory of Egypt, the Middle East, lively, populous cities have survived: Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem. Here were developed such crafts as the production of glassware, silk fabrics, fine jewelry, papyrus.

Constantinople, located on the shores of the Bosphorus, stood at the intersection of two important trade routes: the land route from Europe to Asia and the sea route from the Mediterranean Sea to the Black Sea. Byzantine merchants grew rich in trade with the Northern Black Sea region, where they had their own city-colonies, Iran, India, and China. They were well known in Western Europe, where they brought expensive oriental goods.

Rice. 1. Constantinople ()

Unlike the countries of Western Europe, Byzantium retained a single state with despotic imperial power. The power of the emperor was inherited. He was the supreme judge, appointed military leaders and high officials, received foreign ambassadors. The emperor ruled the country with the help of many officials. They tried with all their might to gain influence at court. The petitioners' cases were resolved with the help of bribes or personal connections.

Byzantium could defend its borders from barbarians and even wage wars of conquest. Disposing of a rich treasury, the emperor maintained a large mercenary army and a strong navy. But there were periods when a major military leader overthrew the emperor himself and became sovereign himself. The empire especially expanded its borders during the reign of Justinian (527-565).

Rice. 2. Emperor Justinian ()

Smart, energetic, well-educated, Justinian skillfully selected and directed his assistants. Under his external availability and courtesy, a merciless and insidious tyrant was hidden. Justinian was afraid of attempts on his life, and therefore easily believed the denunciations and was quick to reprisal. The basic rule of Justinian was: "one state, one law, one religion." The emperor, wishing to enlist the support of the church, bestowed lands and valuable gifts on it, built many temples and monasteries. His reign began with unprecedented persecution of pagans, Jews and apostates from the teachings of the church. They were restricted in their rights, dismissed from service, condemned to death. The famous school in Athens, a major center of pagan culture, was closed. In order to introduce laws uniform for the entire empire, the emperor created a commission of the best lawyers. In a short time, she collected the laws of the Roman emperors, excerpts from the writings of prominent Roman jurists explaining these laws, new laws introduced by Justinian himself, and compiled a short guide to the use of laws. These works were published under the general title "Code of Civil Law"... This set of laws preserved Roman law for future generations. It was studied by lawyers in the Middle Ages and Modern Times, making laws for their states.

Justinian made an attempt to restore the Roman Empire to its former borders. Taking advantage of the strife in the kingdom of the Vandals, the emperor sent an army on 500 ships to conquer North Africa. The Byzantines quickly defeated the Vandals and occupied the capital of the Kingdom of Carthage. Then Justinian set about conquering the kingdom of the Ostrogoths in Italy. His army occupied Sicily, southern Italy and later captured Rome. Another army, advancing from the Balkan Peninsula, entered the capital of the Ostrogoths, Ravenna. The Ostrogoth kingdom fell. But the oppression of officials and the robbery of soldiers caused uprisings of local residents in North Africa and Italy. Justinian was forced to send new armies to suppress the uprisings in the conquered countries. It took 15 years of intense struggle to completely subdue North Africa, and in Italy it took about 20 years. Taking advantage of the internecine struggle for the throne in the kingdom of the Visigoths, Justinian's army conquered the southwestern part of Spain.

Rice. 3. Byzantine Empire under Justinian ()

To protect the borders of the empire, Justinian built fortresses on the outskirts, placed garrisons in them, and laid roads to the borders. Destroyed cities were rebuilt everywhere, water pipelines, hippodromes, and theaters were built. But the population of Byzantium itself was ruined by unbearable taxes. Revolts broke out everywhere, which Justinian brutally suppressed.

In the east, Byzantium had to wage long wars with Iran, even to cede part of the territory to Iran and pay tribute to it. Byzantium did not have a strong knightly army, as in Western Europe, and began to suffer defeat in wars with its neighbors. Soon after the death of Justinian, Byzantium lost almost all the territories it had conquered in the West. The Lombards occupied most of Italy, and the Visigoths took away their former possessions in Spain.

From the beginning of the VI century. Slavs attacked Byzantium. Their detachments even approached Constantinople. In the wars with Byzantium, the Slavs gained combat experience, learned to fight in formation and storm the fortress. From invasions, they moved on to settling the territory of the empire: first they occupied the north of the Balkan Peninsula, then penetrated into Macedonia and Greece. The Slavs became subjects of the empire: they began to pay taxes to the treasury and serve in the imperial army.

From the south to Byzantium in the 7th century. attacked by the Arabs. They captured Palestine, Syria and Egypt, and by the end of the century, all of North Africa. Since the time of Justinian, the territory of the empire has been reduced by almost three times. Byzantium preserved only Asia Minor, the southern part of the Balkan Peninsula and some areas in Italy. In the VIII century. there was a turning point in the wars of Byzantium with the Arabs. The Byzantines themselves began to invade the possessions of the Arabs in Syria and Armenia and later conquered from the Arabs part of Asia Minor, the regions in Syria and the Caucasus, the islands of Cyprus and Crete.

Bibliography

1. Agibalova E. V., Donskoy G. M. History of the Middle Ages. - M., 2012.

2. Atlas of the Middle Ages: History. Traditions. - M., 2000.

3. Illustrated world history: from ancient times to the 17th century. - M., 1999.

4. History of the Middle Ages: Book. for reading / Ed. V.P. Budanova. - M., 1999.

5. Kalashnikov V. Mysteries of history: the Middle Ages / V. Kalashnikov. - M., 2002.

6. Stories on the history of the Middle Ages / Ed. A. A. Svanidze. - M., 1996.

Homework

1. Which states of antiquity you know were part of the Byzantine Empire?

2. How did the power of the Byzantine emperors differ from the power of Western European monarchs?

3. What are the three basic principles that Justinian followed in his policies?

4. Did Justinian manage to restore the Roman Empire within its former borders?

5. What peoples invaded the territory of Byzantium after the death of Justinian?

For over a thousand years, Byzantium was a link between East and West. Born at the end of antiquity, it existed until the end of the European Middle Ages. Until she fell under the onslaught of the Ottomans in 1453.

Did the Byzantines know they were Byzantines?

Officially, the year of the "birth" of Byzantium is 395, when the Roman Empire was divided into two parts. The western part fell in 476. Eastern - with the capital in Constantinople, existed until 1453.

It is important that it was named "Byzantium" later. The inhabitants of the empire themselves and the surrounding peoples called it "Roman". And they had every right to do so - after all, the capital was moved from Rome to Constantinople in 330, even during the time of the united Roman Empire.

After the loss of the western territories, the empire continued to exist in a truncated form with the former capital. Considering that the Roman Empire was born in 753 BC, and died under the roar of Turkish cannons in 1453 AD, it lasted 2206 years.

Shield of Europe

Byzantium was in a permanent state of war: in any century of Byzantine history, there will hardly be 20 years without a war for 100 years, and sometimes there will not be even 10 peaceful years.

Often, Byzantium fought on two fronts, and sometimes the enemies pressed it from all four cardinal directions. And if the rest of the European countries fought, mainly, with an enemy more or less known and understandable, that is, with each other, then Byzantium often had to be the first in Europe to meet unknown conquerors, wild nomads who destroyed everything in their path.

The Slavs who came to the Balkans in the 6th century so exterminated the local population that only a small part of it remained - the modern Albanians.

For many centuries, Byzantine Anatolia (the territory of modern Turkey) supplied the empire with soldiers and food in abundance. In the XI century, the invading Turks devastated this flourishing area, and when the Byzantines managed to recapture part of the territory, they could not collect either soldiers or food there - Anatolia turned into a desert.

About Byzantium, this eastern bastion of Europe, many invasions from the east were broken, the most powerful of which was the Arab one in the 7th century. Could not withstand the "Byzantine shield" blow, and namaz, as the British historian of the 18th century Gibbon noted, would now be heard over the sleeping spiers of Oxford.

Byzantine Crusade

Religious war is not an invention of the Arabs with their jihad or the Catholics with their Crusades. At the beginning of the 7th century, Byzantium was on the verge of death - the enemies were pressing from all sides, and the most formidable of them was Iran.

At the most critical moment - when the enemies approached the capital from both sides - the Byzantine emperor Heraclius makes an extraordinary move: he proclaims a holy war for the Christian faith, for the return of the Life-giving Cross and other relics captured by Iranian troops in Jerusalem (in the pre-Islamic era, the state religion in Iran was Zoroastrianism).

The church donated its treasures to the holy war, thousands of volunteers were equipped and trained with the money of the church. For the first time, the Byzantine army marched against the Persians, carrying icons in front. In a hard struggle, Iran was defeated, Christian relics returned to Jerusalem, and Irakli became a legendary hero, who even in the 12th century was remembered as their great predecessor by the crusaders.

Double-headed eagle

Contrary to popular belief, the double-headed eagle, which became the coat of arms of Russia, was by no means the coat of arms of Byzantium - it was the emblem of the last Byzantine dynasty of the Palaeologus. The niece of the last Byzantine emperor Sophia, having married the Moscow Grand Duke Ivan III, transferred only the family coat of arms, not the state coat of arms.

It is also important to know that many European states (Balkan, Italian, Austria, Spain, Holy Roman Empire) considered themselves the heirs of Byzantium for one reason or another, and had a two-headed eagle on their coats of arms and flags. [

For the first time, the symbol of a two-headed eagle appeared long before Byzantium and the Palaeologus - in the 4th millennium BC, in the first civilization on Earth, Sumeria. Images of a two-headed eagle are also found among the Hittites, an Indo-European people who lived in the II millennium BC in Asia Minor.

Is Russia the successor to Byzantium?

After the fall of Byzantium, the overwhelming majority of Byzantines - from aristocrats and scientists to artisans and warriors - fled from the Turks not to co-religionists, to Orthodox Russia, but to Catholic Italy.

The centuries-old ties between the Mediterranean peoples proved to be stronger than religious divisions. And if Byzantine scientists filled the universities of Italy, and partly even of France and England, then in Russia the Greek scientists had nothing to fill - there were no universities there.

In addition, the heir to the Byzantine crown was not the Byzantine princess Sophia, the wife of the Moscow prince, but the nephew of the last emperor Andrei. He sold his title to the Spanish monarch Ferdinand - the very one for whom Columbus discovered America.
Russia can be considered the successor of Byzantium only in the religious aspect - after all, after the fall of the latter, our country became the main stronghold of Orthodoxy.

Influence of Byzantium on the European Renaissance

Hundreds of Byzantine scholars who fled the Turks who conquered their homeland and took with them their libraries and works of art breathed new energy into the European Renaissance.

Unlike Western Europe, the study of ancient tradition was never interrupted in Byzantium. And all this heritage of their own, Greek, civilization, much larger and better preserved, the Byzantines brought to Western Europe.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that without the Byzantine emigrants, the Renaissance would not have been so powerful and bright. Byzantine scholarship even influenced the Reformation: the original Greek text of the New Testament, propagated by the humanists Lorenzo Valla and Erasmus of Rotterdam, had a great influence on the ideas of Protestantism.

Abundant Byzantium

The wealth of Byzantium is a fairly well-known fact. But how rich the empire was - few know. Just one example: the amount of tribute to the formidable Attila, who held in fear most of Eurasia, was equal to the annual income of only a couple of Byzantine villas.

Sometimes a bribe in Byzantium was equal to a quarter of payments to Attila. Sometimes it was more profitable for the Byzantines to buy off the invasion of barbarians not spoiled by luxury than to equip an expensive professional army and rely on an unknown outcome of a military campaign.

Yes, there were hard times in the empire, but the Byzantine "gold" was always appreciated. Even on the distant island of Taprobana (present-day Sri Lanka), gold Byzantine coins were appreciated by local rulers and merchants. A hoard with Byzantine coins was found even on the Indonesian island of Bali.

In the first centuries of our era, wild warlike Huns moved to the territory of Europe. Moving westward, the Huns set in motion other peoples who roamed the steppes. Among them were the ancestors of the Bulgarians, whom the medieval chroniclers called the Burgars.

European chroniclers, describing the most important events of their time, considered the Huns to be the worst enemies. And no wonder.

Huns - architects of new Europe

The leader of the Huns Attila inflicted a defeat on the Western Roman Empire, from which it could not recover and soon ceased to exist. Coming from the east, the Huns firmly settled on the banks of the Danube and reached the heart of the future France. In their army, Europe was also conquered by other peoples, kindred and unrelated to the Huns themselves. Among these peoples were nomadic tribes, about which some chroniclers wrote that they came from the Huns, while others argued that these nomads had nothing to do with the Huns. Be that as it may, in Byzantium, neighboring Rome, these barbarians were held for the most merciless and bitter enemies.

The first to report these terrible barbarians was the Lombard historian Paul the Deacon. According to him, the accomplices of the Huns killed the king of the Lombards Agelmund and took his daughter prisoner. Actually, the murder of the king was started in order to kidnap the unfortunate girl. The heir to the king hoped to face the enemy in a fair fight, but where there! As soon as he saw the army of the young king, the enemy turned his horses and fled. The royal army could not compete with the barbarians raised in the saddle from an early age ... Many others followed this sad event. And after the fall of the state of Attila, the nomads settled on the shores of the Black Sea. And if the power of Rome was undermined by the invasion of Attila, then the power of Byzantium day after day was undermined by the vile raids of his "minions".

Moreover, at first the relations between Byzantium and the Bulgarian leaders were remarkable.

The cunning politicians of Byzantium thought to use other nomads in the fight against some nomads. When relations with the Goths became strained, Byzantium entered into an alliance with the leaders of the Bulgarians. However, the Goths turned out to be much better warriors. In the very first battle, they utterly defeated the Byzantine defenders, and in the second battle, the leader of the Bulgarians, Buzan, was also killed. Obviously, the complete inability of "their" barbarians to resist the "alien" barbarians angered the Byzantines, and the Bulgarians did not receive any promised gifts or privileges. But literally immediately after the defeat from the Goths, they themselves became enemies of Byzantium. The Byzantine emperors even had to build a wall that was supposed to protect the empire from the raids of the barbarians. This camp stretches from Silimvria to Derkos, that is, from the Sea of ​​Marmara to the Black Sea, and it is not for nothing that it received the name "long", that is, long.

But the “long wall” was not a hindrance for the Bulgarians either. The Bulgarians firmly settled on the banks of the Danube, from where it was very convenient for them to raid Constantinople. Several times they utterly defeated the Byzantine troops and captured the Byzantine generals. True, the Byzantines were poorly versed in the ethnicity of their enemies. The barbarians with whom they either entered into an alliance or entered into mortal combat, they called the Huns. But they were Bulgarians. And to be more precise - kutrigurs.

The chroniclers who wrote about the people, which modern historians identify as Proto-Bulgarians, did not distinguish it from the Huns. For the Byzantines, everyone who fought alongside the Huns, or even settled the lands left by the Huns, themselves became Huns. The confusion was also caused by the fact that the Bulgarians were divided into two branches. One concentrated on the banks of the Danube, where later the Bulgarian kingdom arose, and in the Northern Black Sea region, and the other roamed in the steppes from the Sea of ​​Azov to the Caucasus, and in the Volga region. Modern historians believe that the Proto-Bulgarians actually included several related peoples - Savirs, Onogurs, Ugrians. The Syrian chroniclers of that time were more erudite than the European ones. They knew perfectly well what peoples roam in the steppes behind the Derbent Gate, where the army of the Huns, Onogurs, Ugrians, Savirs, Burgars, Kutrigurs, Avars, Khazars, as well as Kulases, Bagrasiks and Abels, about which nothing is known today, passed.

By the 6th century, the Proto-Bulgarians had ceased to be confused with the Huns. The Gothic historian Jordan calls these Bulgarians a tribe sent "for our sins." And Procopius of Caesarea tells about the split among the Proto-Bulgarians such a legend. One of the Hunnic leaders who settled in the country of Eulysia, in the Black Sea steppes, had two sons - Utigur and Kutrigur. After the death of the ruler, they divided their father's lands among themselves. The tribes controlled by the Utiguru began to call themselves Utigurs, and those controlled by the Kutriguru - Kutrigurs. Procopius considered both of them to be Huns. They had one culture, one customs, one language. The Kutrigurs migrated westward and became a headache for Constantinople. And the Goths, Tetraxites and Utigurs occupied the lands east of the Don. This division took place, most likely, at the end of the 5th - beginning of the 6th century.

In the middle of the 6th century, the Kutrigurs entered into a military alliance with the Gepids and attacked Byzantium. The army of the Kutrigurs in Pannonia numbered about 12 thousand people, and was led by the brave and skillful commander Hinialon. The Kutrigurs began to seize Byzantine lands, so that Emperor Justinian also had to look for allies. His choice fell on the closest relatives of the Kutrigurs - the Utigurs. Justinian managed to convince the Utigurs that the Kutrigurs do not behave in a similar way: capturing rich prey, they do not want to share with their fellow tribesmen. The Utigurs succumbed to deception and entered into an alliance with the emperor. They suddenly attacked the Kutrigurs and ravaged their lands in the Black Sea region. The Kutrigurs gathered a new army and tried to resist the brothers, but there were too few of them, the main military forces were in distant Pannonia. The Utrigurs defeated the enemy, captured women and children and took them into slavery. Justinian did not fail to deliver the bad news to the leader of the Kutrigurs, Hinialon. The emperor's advice was simple: leave Pannonia and return home. Moreover, he promised to arrange for the homeless Kutrigurs if they would continue to defend the borders of his empire. So the Kutrigurs settled in Thrace. The Utigurs did not like this very much, who immediately equipped ambassadors to Constantinople and began to bargain for themselves privileges the same as those of the Kutrigurs. This was all the more relevant, since the Kutrigurs now and then raided Byzantium from the territory of Byzantium itself! Sent on military campaigns with the Byzantine army, they immediately began to attack those who organized these campaigns. And the emperor had to use again and again the best remedy against the disobedient Kutrigurs - their relatives and enemies of the Utigurs.

Heritage of Great Bulgaria

At the end of the century, the Kutrigurs preferred the Avar Kaganate to the Byzantine emperor, which they became part of. And then in 632 the Bulgarian Khan Kubrat, a Kutrigur by origin, managed to unite his fellow tribesmen into a state called Great Bulgaria. This state included not only the Kutrigurs, but also the Utigurs, Onogurs and other related peoples. The lands of Great Bulgaria stretched along the southern steppes from the Don to the Caucasus. But Great Bulgaria did not last long. After the death of Khan Kubrat, the lands of Great Bulgaria went to his five sons, who did not want to share power with each other. The Khazar neighbors took advantage of this, and in 671 Great Bulgaria ceased to exist.

However, the peoples mentioned in the Russian chronicles originated from the five children of Kubrat. From Batbayan came the so-called black Bulgarians, with whom Byzantium had to fight and against whom the legendary Prince Igor went on campaigns. Kotrag, who settled on the Volga and Kama, founded the Volga Bulgaria. From these Volga tribes, peoples such as the Tatars and Chuvash were later formed. Coober went to Pannonia, and from there to Macedonia. His fellow tribesmen merged with the local Slavic population and assimilated. Alzek took his tribe to Italy, where he settled on the lands of the Lombards who had accepted him. But the best known is the middle son of Khan Kubrat - Asparukh. He settled on the Danube and in 650 created the Bulgarian kingdom. The Slavs and Thracians already lived here. They mingled with the tribesmen of Asparukh. This is how a new people arose - the Bulgarians. And there were no more Utigurs or Kutrigurs left on earth ...

Historians associate the birth of Byzantine civilization with the founding of its capital, Constantinople. The city of Constantinople was founded by Emperor Constantine in 324. And it was founded on the site of the Roman settlement of Byzantium. At the beginning, Emperor Constantine called this city a Roman city, and in everyday life the population simply called it a city. Then it was named the royal city. And then, due to the fact that this city was founded by Emperor Constantine, it acquired the name by his name.

In fact, the history of Byzantium as an independent state begins in 395. The subjects themselves called their civilization the Romans, and themselves called the Romans. Only in the Renaissance did they come up with the name Byzantine civilization. Constantinople, which was the founding center of the Byzantine civilization, was well located. From one side the Sea of ​​Marmara was approaching, from the other the Golden Horn. Constantinople occupied an important military-strategic position, which ensured Byzantium domination over the straits. Here the main trade routes crossed, which went to Europe from the east. Constantinople stood at the crossroads of trade routes. Traditionally, Byzantine civilization is assessed as the result of a synthesis of ancient institutions and views with the Eastern Christian picture of the world. Byzantium included the territory of the Balkan Peninsula, Asia Minor, Northern Mesopotamia, part of Armenia, Palestine, Egypt, the islands of Crete and Cyprus, Chersonesos in the Crimea, Vladika in the Caucasus and some regions of Arabia. Through Byzantium passed the silk road going from China to Europe and the path of incense through Arabia to the ports of the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean.

The economic development of the regions that were part of Byzantium is not the same. The regions of Greece were in decline at this time, the granary of the empire was Thrace and Egypt. Asia Minor was an area where viticulture, horticulture, and cattle breeding were developed. The seaside regions, river valleys and plains of Byzantium specialized in the cultivation of grain crops, olive and other fruit trees.

By the level of development of handicrafts, Byzantium was ahead of the countries of Western Europe. Mining was especially developed. The Caucasus specialized in the extraction of iron ore. Copper and Silver - Armenia. The luxury goods were produced by Constantinople. In the first place was the production of various fabrics. The internal life of Byzantium was relatively stable. In contrast to Western Europe, the largest cities of Byzantium were Alexandria, Antiophia, Syria, Edessa, Kirt, Hesolonike.

The population of Byzantium was multinational. Most of the population is Greek. But the Byzantine Empire included Syrians, Armenians, Georgians, Jews, jackets, Romans.

Until the 7th century, the Byzantines spoke Latin, after the 7th century in Greek. Greek became the state language. In total, at the early stage before the 10th century, there were approximately 20-25 million people in Byzantium. Considering the fact that the world's population at that time was, according to conventional estimates, 360 million people, then this is not very much.

Byzantine civilization also goes through several stages in its development. The first period - early - is 4-7 centuries. The second period - middle - is 7-12 centuries. The third period - late - is the 13-15th century. In the early period, the Byzantine state was formed, Christianity turned into the dominant religion. In the middle period, a symphony of church and state took shape. The separation of the western and eastern churches took place. The codification of law has been completed. Greek became the official language. This is the heyday of Byzantine civilization. In the later period, features of stagnation are revealed and the decline of civilization begins.

How did the history of Byzantium develop?

Byzantium was formed in the conditions of barbarian invasions. There were two waves of invasions that Byzantium survived. The first is the invasion of the Goths and the Goths. The second wave is the invasion of the Slavs. The invasion of the Slavs ended with the formation of the first Bulgarian kingdom. This happened in the 7th century. And the Bulgarian kingdom for a long time became the first enemy of Byzantium. Emperor Justinian, who ruled in the 6th century, attempted to recreate the Roman Empire. To do this, he conquered the kingdom of the Vandals in Africa. Then the kingdom of the Ostrogoths in Italy. Emperor Justinian built the famous Sophia Cathedral. The new Persian kingdom remained a dangerous enemy of the empire in the east. This kingdom was the only worthy enemy of Byzantium, equal to it in its strength in terms of economic and military development. The new Persian kingdom included the territory of present-day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan. The New Persian kingdom made an attempt to seize the territories of Byzantium (5-6 centuries). As a result of which Byzantium lost part of its lands.

In the 7th century, the Arabs were serious rivals of Byzantium. Who by this time have created a powerful state. The Arabs conquered Syria and Palestine.

In the 9th century, a long struggle with dolbars begins. The 9-10th centuries for Byzantium are designated as campaigns against Constantinople, which were repeatedly undertaken by the princes of Kievan Rus Oleg, Igor, Svyatoslav and Yaroslav the Wise.

At the end of the 12th century, the Seljuk Turks who came from the Oral region completely ousted Byzantium from Asia Minor.

In the 13th century, as a result of the 4th crusade, Byzantium fell into 4 parts. Latin Empire, Nicene, Trebizond and Etheric Kingdom. The empire was soon restored, but it was already a feudally fragmented state with a weak central government. And economically, Byzantium fell under the rule of the Italian cities of the republics of Venice and Genoa.


In the 15th century, the ring of the Ottoman Turks' possessions was firmly closed around Byzantium. In 1453 the Turks laid siege to Constantinople. The siege lasted 53 days. The entrance to the ships into the bay was blocked off with chains, but the Turks smeared the boards with lard and dragged the ships overland. After the fall of Constantinople, it became the center of the Ottoman Empire and was named Istanbul.

Byzantine model of feudalism

The peculiarity of the Byzantine civilization lies in the combination of the synthesis of ancient institutions and views with the Eastern Christian picture of the world. Byzantium managed to preserve all the basic elements of the inheritance inherited from the Roman Empire. Namely:
* large cities (where handicrafts and trade prevailed)
* slavery combined with communal farming
* developed culture

Byzantium received a strong state with developed Roman law. It included the territory of the once powerful civilizations. The transition of Byzantium to a feudal civilization was less painful than in the West. But the transition took place much more slowly; it was completed only in the 11th century. Basically, it was a long process of eliminating slavery within Byzantine society itself. And the same complex process of developing new relationships.

In the West, the barbarians, which were at the level of early statehood and the decomposition of primitive communal relations, accelerated the decomposition of the old slave-owning orders and contributed to the development of new feudal relations. This path of development of feudalism is called synthesis.

In Byzantium, the transition to feudalism until the 6th century was not synthetic. There was a slow formation of feudal relations. The synthetic development of feudalism began in the 7-9 centuries.

In the 5th-12th centuries, large feudal property began to take shape in Byzantium. The Byzantine feudal lord was not the complete owner of his estates. The state controlled the amount of land, the number of dependent peasants; had the right to confiscate land. The state kept the property of the feudal lord under its supervision. The state itself was the owner of vast lands. And the feudal lords were dependent on state power.

A feature of Byzantine feudalism was that a strong central government held back the growth of large landownership; limited the autonomy of feudal duty. Feudalism in Byzantium was not completely state, since Roman law was preserved in Byzantium, which legalized private property.

Byzantium empire - rommei

The emperor stood at the head of the Byzantine Empire. Vasileus was called the Emperor of Byzantium.

Vasilevs had almost unlimited power. He could publish, he could change laws, but he was not allowed to put himself above the law. The emperor led the army, determined the foreign policy of the empire. He was not the owner of those lands that were part of his possession. The empire was governed from Constantinople. In the subordination of Vasilevs was a huge state apparatus which consisted of numerous judicial military tax departments. Along with the emperor, an important place in the life of Byzantium was occupied by the senate, which was called the simclid. Of course he did not play the same role in Byzantium as the Roman Senate in the Roman Empire. The members of the Senate were called Semclidics. The Senate was an advisory body under the emperor. Officials and simclidics were represented not only by representatives of the nobility, but also by people from commoners distinguished by their talent, they sometimes even found themselves on the imperial throne.

This did not bother the Byzantines for they, like the Romans, believed that all citizens of the empire were equal. And gentility is a private matter for everyone.

The idea of ​​empire was strengthened by Christianity. It was this that gave it a sacred character. In the 4th century, an associate of Emperor Constantine, Eukerny of Caesarea, created political history. According to this theory, the secular and spiritual power of Byzantium merged into one, forming a symphony. The emperor was not only the worldly ruler, but also the head of the church. Not only the imperial power was deified, but also the orders of specific emperors. But the very personality of the emperor was not deified.

Only the position of the emperor was deified. The emperor was a likeness of the heavenly father. He had to imitate God. According to Eustace of Caesarea, Byzantium became a stronghold of Christianity. She was under divine protection and led to the salvation of other peoples. Royal power in Byzantium was not inherited. And despite the fact that the personality of the emperor was considered sacred, he could be removed. In Byzantium, 109 emperors ruled. And only 34 of them died a natural death. The rest were removed or killed. But the imperial power itself remained untouched.

In Byzantium, the emperor ruled, or his name was also an autocrat (autocrat). The imperial idea helped to preserve the integrity of Byzantium, the world idea. However, the imperial idea focused on the preservation of traditions and customs, fettered development. The feudal lords in Byzantium never became an estate. The position of the aristocrats was not stable, and intrigues and conspiracies constantly took place at court.

The role of religion in Byzantine civilization

One of the characteristic features of medieval civilizations is the dominance of world religions. For the first time, ideology in its religious form becomes the dominant factor in the development of society.

In Byzantium, Christianity was the dominant ideology. Which originated in the 1st century. Christianity has given a new understanding of the world. The world consists of two parts:

* earthly world (sinful)
* heavenly world (perfect, clean)

In the 4th century, Byzantium adopted Christianity as its official religion. And we can say that the pagan consciousness gave way to the Christian one. Christian consciousness is directed to the inner world of man. In the entrance of the establishment of Christianity in Byzantium, Srit words appeared (other interpretations of the basic dogmas), And which of them the Church did not allow dissent. She strove to strengthen her position. And the medieval consciousness was oriented towards authorities. The church prescribed to comprehend divine truths, and not to change them. The dogma of the Holy Trinity has long been a subject of controversy. Which included God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. There were controversies especially in the early stages of Byzantine civilization on the nature of Christ.

What erisi arose at this time. The main heresy is Arianism. Many barbarian, Germanic peoples were exposed to it. Ariae believed that Christ is a man. And his divinity was transferred to him by God the Father. Along with the Arians, such heresy as Meccorianism took place in Byzantium. The Meccarians argued that there is a difference between Christ the upper man and the son of God and their connection was only temporary. And finally, there was such an ess as Monophysitism. The Monophysites argued that the nature of Christ is divine. The Byzantine Church claimed that Christ combines in himself 2 essences, both human and divine. This was the basis of the hope of salvation. And the Byzantines got the opportunity to discover the divine principle in themselves.

Not only disputes about the essence of Christ caused fierce debate and caused such heretical movements as Arianism, Meccorianism, Monophysitism. But there were also other very important controversies. The next one is about the relationship between the spiritual and the physical person. These disputes still do not subside in modern society. But for Byzantium, this dispute was very important. Ideas such as Pavlikism in Armenia and Bogomilism in Bulgaria appeared. Both the Pavlekians and the Bogomils argued that the heavens are the dominion of God, and the earth is the dominion of Satan, and that man was created together by God and Satan (God is the soul, and Satan is the body). They called on believers to be faithful to the Yaxikel. The Byzantine Church argued that the body cannot hinder the development of the divine principle in itself. It was created by God for the Apostle Paul asserted that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.

It was Christianity that discovered the disharmony of man (bodily beauty, spiritual beauty).

In the 11th century, two branches of Christianity were finally formed. Catholic in the west and Orthodox in the east. There was a split of churches called schism (1054 - split of churches). The reason was the attempt of the Catholic Church to supplement the Creed. In the west, the church decided its affairs on the salvation of the human soul. She forgave sins, appreciated the virtue and shortcomings of a person. A whole, relatively speaking, code of historical rules and forms of human behavior was developed.

Thus, a kind of regulation of human life took place. The positive moment in this is that the person has developed an inner discipline and inner organization.


Byzantium. Church of the Apostles in Thessaloniki
In Byzantium, the church argued that the path to salvation, the path to God could occur without the participation of the church, a person could directly turn to God through prayer, uniting with him. Thus, in Christianity, the emotional individual principle prevails. Hence the system of values, and behavior, and a slightly different ideal of personality. It began to form in Byzantium, and then it passed this system to Russia, and thus the formation of the Russian type of person, a very emotional person with mystical views, was formed over many centuries. The religion of Byzantium also performed a stabilizing function. She was a single shell of the formation of Byzantine spirituality and culture. The cultural values ​​of pagan antiquity were not denied by the Byzantine Church. The study of antiquity, philosophy, literature was encouraged. The Byzantine school was different from the Western European school. In contrast to the West, teaching in Byzantium was under the influence of the church, but it was not so rigidly attached to the church. Byzantine science developed under the strong influence of antiquity and successes, the achievements of the Byzantines were associated with the needs of the economic development and management of the country.

Thus, Byzantine civilization is Christian civilization. Its main achievements can be considered as follows: religion is becoming the dominant factor in society. Orthodoxy acts as the ideological basis of the Byzantine religion "the exceptional combination of the life of Byzantium with the Christian religion, Hellenistic culture and Roman statehood made Byzantine civilization unlike any other." Byzantine civilization influenced the development of Russians, the formation of the Russian idea. Ideas of all-unity, ideas of statehood.