Andrew the Scythian
Andrew the Scythian | |
|---|---|
| Died | After887 |
| Allegiance | Byzantine Empire |
| Years of service | c. 860– after 887 |
| Rank | Domestic of the Schools |
| Wars | Arab–Byzantine wars |
Andrew the Scythian(Greek:Άνδρέας, diedafter887) was a seniorByzantinemilitary officer who distinguished himself in theArab–Byzantine wars.He eventually held the post ofDomestic of the Schoolsduring the last years of the reign ofBasil I the Macedonianand in the early reign ofLeo VI the Wise,until his death. He played a major role in the domestic affairs of Leo's early reign, especially in the dismissal and trial of PatriarchPhotios.
Life
[edit]
According to the chroniclerGenesiosand thecontinuatorsofGeorgios Monachos,Andrew descended from the "westernScythians",whence the sobriquet" the Scythian "given to him by modern scholars. In reality," Scythians "was anarchaizingByzantine term for theSlavs.[1]
Andrew may be identifiable as the man of the same name who commanded the imperial bodyguard, theHetaireia,when the youngBasil the Macedonian(r. 867–886) served there during his swift rise from a simple stable groom to high office in the late 850s and early 860s as a protégé of EmperorMichael III(r. 842–867).[2][3]When Basil came to power after assassinating Michael, Andrew too rose to higher office. In the 870s, ashypostrategos(deputy commander) of theOpsician Theme,he distinguished himself in the constant war of raids and counter-raids with the Muslimborder emiratesofMeliteneandTarsus,on the eastern fringes ofAsia Minor.For his service, he was eventually rewarded with the titles ofpatrikiosand the post ofDomestic of the Schools(commander-in-chief).[1][4]
Theophanes Continuatusreports that he was dismissed due to accusations of timidity, after failing to follow up on a decisive victory against the emir of Tarsus,Abdallah ibn Rashid ibn Kawus,which the Byzantine sources place in the year 878.[1][4]Genesios and the continuators of Georgios Monachos on the other hand don't mention a dismissal, but simply record that on account of his victories, he was raised further to the rank ofmagistros.Andrew is also mentioned as leading, along withChristopher,the sacking ofTephrike,thePauliciancapital, an event dated by modern scholars to 878. This is considered erroneous by modern scholars, since the final campaign against Tephrike was in all likelihood led by Emperor Basil in person.[1]On the other hand, the chronicle ofSymeon Logothetesgives an entirely different background to his dismissal, placing it in 883 and the fall-out between Basil and his son, the futureLeo VI(r. 886–912). According to Symeon, Theodore Santabarenos accused Andrew of being privy to a plot of the circle around Leo to depose his father. Along with other high-ranking officials connected to the heir-apparent, Andrew lost his post, even though he was on campaign at the time.[1][5]Whatever the true course of events, his disgrace did not last long, as his successor,Kesta Styppiotes,was decisively beaten by the Arabs, and Andrew soon regained his post, which he held to the end of his life.[1][6]
When Leo succeeded his father, Andrew quickly emerged as the new emperor's right-hand man.[1][7]Thus it was Andrew who headed the delegation of senior officials and senators sent by Leo immediately after his accession on 29 August 886 toChrysopolisin order to retrieve and bring back to the capital for reburial in theChurch of the Holy Apostlesthe corpse of Michael III, whom Leo believed to have been his real father.[1][3][8]Andrew was also instrumental in the downfall of the PatriarchPhotios,who along with his protégé Theodore Santabarenos was accused by Andrew and themagistrosStephenof plotting to overthrow Leo. As the emperor's trusted agent, it was Andrew who, along with theLogothete of the Course,John Hagiopolites,went to theHagia Sophia,read the charges brought against Photios from the pulpit, and arrested the patriarch. Photios' trial for treason took place in 887, before a tribunal of senior officials presided over by Andrew. Photios and Theodore were found guilty, with the former banished to the monastery of Gordon, where he died, while Theodore was exiled to Athens.[1][3][9]
The trial of Photios is the last mention of Andrew in the sources. He must have died sometime between then and 894, whenNikephoros Phokas the Elderis recorded as having succeeded him as Domestic of the Schools.[1][10]
References
[edit]- ^abcdefghijPmbZ,Andreas “der Skythe” (#20351).
- ^Tougher 1997,p. 28.
- ^abcGuilland 1967,p. 439.
- ^abGuilland 1967,p. 438.
- ^Tougher 1997,p. 58.
- ^Guilland 1967,pp. 438–439.
- ^Tougher 1997,p. 94.
- ^Tougher 1997,p. 62.
- ^Tougher 1997,pp. 73–76.
- ^Tougher 1997,pp. 95, 204.
Sources
[edit]- Guilland, Rodolphe(1967). "Le Domestique des Scholes".Recherches sur les institutions byzantines[Studies on the Byzantine Institutions]. Berliner byzantinische Arbeiten 35 (in French). Vol. I. Berlin and Amsterdam: Akademie-Verlag & Adolf M. Hakkert. pp. 426–468.OCLC878894516.
- Lilie, Ralph-Johannes;Ludwig, Claudia; Pratsch, Thomas; Zielke, Beate (2013).Prosopographie der mittelbyzantinischen Zeit Online. Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften. Nach Vorarbeiten F. Winkelmanns erstellt(in German). Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter.
- Tougher, Shaun (1997).The Reign of Leo VI (886-912): Politics and People.Leiden and New York: BRILL.ISBN978-90-04-10811-0.