Basil, his son Constantine, and his second wife, emperess Eudoxia Ingerina.

Basil I the Macedonian (Greek: Βασίλειος Α΄ ο Μακεδών , Basileios I o Makedon), (c. 811 – August 29, 886) was perceived by Byzantines as one of their greatest emperors and the founder of the most splendid imperial dynasty of Byzantium, the Makedonoi. The opinion of modern historians is less flattering, however, as it appears that reforms associated with his name were in reality launched by his predecessor, Michael III, whom Basil had assassinated. Basil I AV Solidus. ... Basil I AV Solidus. ... August 29 is the 241st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (242nd in leap years), with 124 days remaining. ... Events The Glagolitic alphabet, devised by Cyril and Methodius, missionairies from Constantinople, is adopted in the Bulgarian Empire. ... Basil I the Macedonian (Βασίλειος Α) (811 - 886, ruled 867 - 886) - married Michael IIIs widow; died in hunting accident Leo VI the Wise (Λέων ΣΤ ο Σοφός) (866 - 912, ruled 886 - 912) – likely either son of Basil I or Michael III; Alexander III (Αλέξανδρος Γ του Βυζαντίου) (870 - 913, ruled 912 - 913) – son of Basil I, regent for nephew... This coin struck during the regency of Theodora shows how Michael was less prominent than his mother, who is represented as ruler alone on the obverse, and even than his sister Thecla, who is depicted together with the young Michael on the reverse of this coin. ...

From peasant to emperor

Basil I's ethnic origin has been a source of numerous controversies ever since his lifetime. According to tradition current in his own reign, Basil was of Armenian descent and supposedly a distant descendant of an Armenian princely family. His parents were probably Armenian peasants who had been settled in the Byzantine theme of Macedonia (an administrative division corresponding to the area of Adrianople in Thrace) according to standard Byzantine practice. Edirne is a city in (Thrace), the westernmost part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. ... Thrace (Greek Θράκη, Thrákē, Latin: Thracia or Threcia, Turkish Trakya, Bulgarian Тракия, Trakiya) is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. ...

He spent a part of his childhood in captivity in Bulgaria, where his family had been carried off as captives of Krum of Bulgaria since 813. Together with much of the resettled captive population, Basil succeeded in escaping in c. 836 and was ultimately lucky enough to enter the service of Theophilitzes, a relative of the Caesar Bardas (the uncle of Emperor Michael III), as groom. Krum gathers his people. ... Events June 22 - Byzantine Emperor Michael I is defeated in a war against the Bulgarians. ... Caesar (p. ... Bardas was the regent (856-866) of Byzantine Emperor Michael III. Bardas was apparently the son of Marinos Mamikonian and the brother of Theodora, the wife of Byzantine Emperor Theophilus. ... This coin struck during the regency of Theodora shows how Michael was less prominent than his mother, who is represented as ruler alone on the obverse, and even than his sister Thecla, who is depicted together with the young Michael on the reverse of this coin. ...

While serving Theophilitzes he visited the city of Patras, where he gained the favour of Danielis, a wealthy woman who took him into her household and endowed him with a fortune. He also earned the notice of Michael III by winning a victory over a Bulgarian champion in a wrestling match, and soon became the emperor's companion and bodyguard (parakoimomenos). A view of Patras in the summmer, at sunset time from the height of an incoming ship. ... Danielis (9th century AD), was a widowed byzantine noblewoman from Patras. ... FILA Greatest Wrestler of 20th Century (Greco-Roman) Alexander Karelin throws Olympian Jeff Blatnick with his Karelin Lift Andrell Durden (top) and Edward Harris grapple for position during the All-Marine Wrestle Offs. ... Painting of Emperor Basil II, exemplifying the Imperial Crown handed down by Angels. ...

On Michael's orders, he divorced his wife Maria and married Eudokia Ingerina, Michael's favorite mistress, in c. 865. It was commonly believed that Leo VI, Basil's successor and reputed son, was really the son of Michael. The issue cannot be settled with certainty, but Basil seems to have shared this belief. The subsequent promotion of Basil to Caesar and then co-emperor provided the child with a legitimate and imperial parent and secured its succession to the throne; this may have been the genius behind Michael's apparent folly. Eudokia Ingerina (Greek: Ευδοκία) (c. ... The Byzantines considered themselves the true Romans. ...

During an expedition against the Arabs, Basil convinced Michael III that his uncle Bardas coveted the throne, and murdered Bardas with Michael's approval on April 21, 866. Now Basil became the leading personality at court and was invested in the now vacant dignity of kaisar (Caesar), before being crowned co-emperor on May 26. This promotion may have included Basil's adoption by Michael III, himself a much younger man. For other uses, see Arab (disambiguation). ... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... Events Fujiwara no Yoshifusa becomes regent of Japan, starting the Fujiwara regentship. ...

As Michael III started to favor another courtier, Basil decided that his position was being undermined and preempted events by organizing the assassinated of Michael on the night of September 23/24, 867. Assassination is the deliberate killing of an important person, usually a political figure or other strategically important individual. ... September 23 is the 266th day of the year (267th in leap years). ... Events September - Basil I becomes sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire. ...

Reign

Basil I and his son Leo.

Another miniature representing a scene from Basil's life.

Basil I inaugurated a new age in the history of the empire, associated with the dynasty which he founded. This is called the Macedonian Dynasty. It was a period of territorial expansion, during which the empire was the strongest power in Europe. Image File history File links Emperors Basil I and Leo VI. Illumination from the chronicle of John Scylitzae. ... Image File history File links Emperors Basil I and Leo VI. Illumination from the chronicle of John Scylitzae. ... Image File history File links Basil_I_(867-886)_from_the_Chronikon_of_Ioannis_Skylitzes_1. ... Image File history File links Basil_I_(867-886)_from_the_Chronikon_of_Ioannis_Skylitzes_1. ... World map showing Europe Political map Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ...

To secure his family on the throne, Basil I associated as co-emperors his eldest son Constantine (in 869) and his second son Leo (in 870).

Because of the great legislative work which Basil undertook, and which may be described as a revival of the laws of Justinian I, he is often called the "second Justinian." Basil's laws were collected in the Basilica, consisting of sixty books, and smaller legal manuals known as the Prochiron and the Eisagoge. Leo VI was responsible for completing these legal works. Basil's financial administration was prudent. Justinian I depicted on one of the famous mosaics of the Basilica of San Vitale. ...

His ecclesiastical policy was marked by good relations with Rome. One of his first acts was to exile the patriarch Photios and restore his rival Ignatios, whose claims were supported by Pope Adrian II. However, Basil had no intention of yielding to Rome beyond a certain point. The decision of Boris I of Bulgaria to align the new Bulgarian Church with Constantinople was a great blow to Rome, which had hoped to secure it for herself. But on the death of Ignatios in 877 Photios became patriarch again, and there was a virtual, though not a formal, breach with Rome. This was a watershed event in conflicts that led to the Great Schism that ultimately produced Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church as separate entities. The Patriarch of Constantinople is the Ecumenical Patriarch, ranking as the first among equals in the Eastern Orthodox communion. ... Photius (in Greek Φωτιoς; b. ... Adrian II (also known as Hadrian II), (792–872), pope from 867 to 872, was a member of a noble Roman family, and became pope in 867, at an advanced age. ... This article is about the capital of Italy. ... Boris I Michail or Boris I Michael (Bulgarian Борис I Михаил, known also as Bogoris)(died May 2, 907) was the khan from 852 to 889 and first Christian ruler of Bulgaria. ... Map of Constantinople. ... Great Schism redirects here. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ... Pentecost is considered in Eastern Orthodoxy to be the birth of the Church. ...

Basil's reign was marked by the troublesome ongoing war with the Paulician centered on Tephrike on the upper Euphrates, who rebelled, allied with the Arabs and raided as far as Nicaea, sacking Ephesus. Basil's general Christopher defeated the Paulicians in 872, and the death of their leader Chrysocheir led to the definite subjection of their state. There was the usual frontier warfare with the Arabs in Asia Minor, which led to little concrete gains, but Byzantium's eastern frontier was strengthened. The island of Cyprus was recovered, but retained for only seven years. Bogomils was the name of an ancient Gnostic religious community which is thought to have originated in Bulgaria. ... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name, Arabic: الفرات; Al-Furat, Hebrew: פְּרָת Perath, Kurdish: Firat, Turkish: Fırat, Old Persian: Ufrat, Syriac: ܦܪܘܬ or ܦܪܬ; Frot or Prâth, Akkadian: Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the Tigris). ... Iznik (formerly Nicaea) is a city in Anatolia (now part of Turkey) which is known primarily as the site of two major meetings (or Ecumenical councils) in the early history of the Christian church. ... Ephesus (Greek: Έφεσος see also List of traditional Greek place names, Turkish: Efes) was one of the great cities of the Ionian Greeks in Asia Minor, located in Lydia where the Cayster river flows into the Aegean Sea (in modern day Turkey). ... Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to the Asian portion of Turkey. ...

In the West, Basil allied with Louis II, Holy Roman Emperor against the Arabs and his fleet cleared the Adriatic Sea from their raids. With Byzantine help, Louis II camptured Bari from the Arabs in 871. The city eventually became Byzantine territory in 876. However, the Byzantine position on Sicily deteriorated and Syracuse fell to the Emirate of Sicily in 878. Although most of Sicily was lost, the general Nikephoros Phokas (the Elder) succeeded in taking Taranto and much of Calabria in 880. The successes in the Italian Peninsula opened a new period of Byzantine domination there. Above all, the Byzantines were beginning to establish a strong presence in the Mediterranean Sea, and especially the Adriatic. Louis II, (825 – 875), Holy Roman Emperor (sole ruler 855 – 875), eldest son of the emperor Lothair I, became the designated king of Italy in 839, and taking up his residence in that country was crowned king at Rome by Pope Sergius II on June 15, 844. ... A satellite image of the Adriatic Sea. ... Location within Italy Bari is the capital of the province of Bari and of the Apulia (or Puglia) region, on the Adriatic sea, in Italy. ... Sicilian redirects here. ... Syracuse (Italian, Siracusa, ancient Syracusa - see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a city on the eastern coast of Sicily and the capital of the province of Syracuse, Italy. ... The Emirate of Sicily (831 - 1072) - Byzantine Sicily was frequently the target of raids by Syrians, Egyptians, and Moors from North Africa. ... Founded 706 BC as Taras () Region Apulia Mayor Rossana Di Bello Area  - City Proper  217 km² Population  - City (2001)  - Density (city proper) 201,349 973/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Latitude Longitude 40°28 N 17°14 E www. ... Calabria, formerly Brutium, is a region in southern Italy which occupies the toe of the Italian peninsula south of Naples. ... The Italian peninsula or the Apennine peninsula is one of the greatest peninsulas of Europe, spanning 1000 km from the Alps in the north, to the central Mediterranean Sea in the south. ... Satellite image The Mediterranean Sea is a part of the Atlantic Ocean almost completely enclosed by land, on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia. ... A satellite image of the Adriatic Sea. ...

Basil's spirits declined in 879, when his eldest and favorite son Constantine died. Basil now associated as co-emperor his youngest son Alexander. Basil got on badly with Leo, whom he probably suspected of being the son of Michael III. Basil died on August 29, 886 from a fever contracted after a serious hunting accident, when his belt was caught in the antlers of a deer and he was dragged from his horse. He was saved by an attendant who cut him loose with a knife, but he suspected the attendant of trying to assassinate him and had the man executed shortly before he himself died. August 29 is the 241st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (242nd in leap years), with 124 days remaining. ... Events The Glagolitic alphabet, devised by Cyril and Methodius, missionairies from Constantinople, is adopted in the Bulgarian Empire. ... Subfamilies Capreolinae Cervinae Hydropotinae Muntiacinae A deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. ...

Family

By his first wife Maria, Basil I had several children, including:

• Symbatios, renamed Constantine, co-emperor from 869 to 879.
• Anastasia, who married the general Christopher.

By his second wife, Eudokia Ingerina, Basil I officially had three sons: Eudokia Ingerina (Greek: Ευδοκία) (c. ...

• Leo VI, who succeeded as emperor and may actually have been the son of Michael III.
• Stephen I, patriarch of Constantinople, who may actually have been the son of Michael III.
• Alexander, who succeeded as emperor in 912.

The Byzantines considered themselves the true Romans. ... This coin struck during the regency of Theodora shows how Michael was less prominent than his mother, who is represented as ruler alone on the obverse, and even than his sister Thecla, who is depicted together with the young Michael on the reverse of this coin. ... Stephen Porphyrogometus (d. ... A Byzantine Mosaic portrait of Emperor Alexander (870 - 913) which was completed in the Emperors short reign. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Basil I

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Wikimedia Commons logo by Reid Beels The Wikimedia Commons (also called Commons or Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ... This coin struck during the regency of Theodora shows how Michael was less prominent than his mother, who is represented as ruler alone on the obverse, and even than his sister Thecla, who is depicted together with the young Michael on the reverse of this coin. ... This is a list of Byzantine Emperors. ... The Byzantines considered themselves the true Romans. ...

References

• The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991.
• Cyril Mango, "Eudocia Ingerina, the Normans, and the Macedonian Dynasty," Zbornik radova Vizantoloskog Instituta, XIV-XV, 1973, 17-27.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...