Leo VI and the Transformation of Byzantine Christian Identity

Abstract

the Wise, emperor of the Byzantines 886-912, broke with three centuries of tradition. He was not a general or even a soldier, as his predecessors had been, but a scholar-a second son who became heir apparent through the untimely death of his older brother on the battlefi eld and gained a throne taken by his father Basil I (r. 867-86) after murdering Michael III (r. 842-67). It was the religious education he gained under the tutelage of the famous and infl uential Photios (patriarch from 858-67 and 877-86 ce) that was to distinguish Leo VI as an unusual ruler. Th e argument of this book is that Leo's Christian Orthodox worldview coloured every decision he made; the impact of his religious faith, traced through his extensive literary output, transformed Byzantine cultural identity and infl uenced his successors, establishing the Macedonian dynasty as a 'golden age' in Byzantium until the early eleventh century. Leo's father, Basil I , also known as Basil the Macedonian, was forcibly married in 865 to Eudokia Ingerina , the mistress of the emperor Michael III (r. 842-67). Th us upon Leo's birth in September of 866, his parentage was cast under suspicion, a problem that his older brother Constantine , the son of Basil 's fi rst wife Maria and the original heir to the throne , did not have. 1 Contemporary chronicles record that Leo was likely the son of Michael, but modern scholars are divided. Either way, the truth cannot be known. Th e fact that Leo was born under a cloud of uncertainty is the relevant point, because it meant that this unexpected emperor had to contend with issues of legitimacy , yet was unable to rely upon the tradition of imperial strength through military service. Th e only possibility available to him was the power of religion, and he used it brilliantly to reinforce his authority over the Byzantine oikoumene .

Hagia Sophia, God s Chosen Ruler, and St. Nicholas: New Perspectives on the Macedonian Dynasty

“…In the eulogy for his father, Basil, delivered in 888, he emphasizes belief in the spiritual gifts of kingship as not far removed from those of the priesthood, a means to bolster his own sacerdotal kingship, making him worth of the legacy of Elijah and Solomon. 48 Next to honoring St. Nicholas, Leo VI also developed a strong devotion to St. Demetrios, patron saint of Thessalonike and whose relics started exuding myron around the end of the ninth or the early tenth century. 49 Leo VI acquired myron of the saint and constructed a shrine for him next to the church of the Virgin of the Pharos on the palace grounds.…”