Christopher Lekapenos or Lecapenus ( gr, Χριστόφορος Λακαπηνός, Christóphoros Lakapenōs) was the eldest son of Emperor
Romanos I Lekapenos
Romanos I Lekapenos ( el, Ρωμανός Λεκαπηνός; 870 – 15 June 948), Latinized as Romanus I Lecapenus, was Byzantine emperor from 920 until his deposition in 944, serving as regent for the infant Constantine VII.
Origin
Romanos ...
() and
co-emperor of the
Eastern Roman Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...
from 921 until his death in 931. Christopher was given the position of ''
megas hetaireiarches The ( grc-gre, ἑταιρειάρχης), sometimes anglicized as Hetaeriarch, was a high-ranking Byzantine officer, in command of the imperial bodyguard, the . In the 9th–10th centuries there appear to have been several , each for one of the su ...
'' (commander of the palace guard) in spring 919, after Romanos assumed the position of ''
basileopator
( el, βασιλεοπάτωρ, , father of the mperor}) was one of the highest secular titles of the Byzantine Empire. It was an exceptional post (the 899 ''Kletorologion'' of Philotheos lists it as one of the 'special dignities', ), and con ...
''. Romanos, in order to give his family precedence over the
Macedonian line, raised Christopher to co-emperor on 21 May 921. In 928 Christopher's father-in-law, Niketas, unsuccessfully attempted to incite Christopher to usurp his father, resulting in Niketas being banished. Christopher died in August 931, succeeded by his father and two brothers,
Stephen Lekapenos
Stephen Lekapenos or Lecapenus ( grc-gre, Στέφανος Λεκαπηνός, Stéphanos Lekapenós; died 18 April 963) was the second son of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (r. 920–944), and co-emperor from 924 to ...
and
Constantine Lekapenos
Constantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντῖνος Λακαπηνός, Kōnstantínos Lakapenós) was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (), and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his elder brother Steph ...
, and
Constantine VII. In December 944 his brothers overthrew and exiled his father, but they themselves were exiled after attempting to oust Constantine VII.
Life
Christopher was the eldest son and the second-oldest child (after his sister
Helena) of Romanos Lekapenos and his wife
Theodora
Theodora is a given name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift".
Theodora may also refer to:
Historical figures known as Theodora
Byzantine empresses
* Theodora (wife of Justinian I) ( 500 – 548), saint by the Orthodox Church
* Theodora o ...
. His younger siblings were Agatha, who married Romanos Argyros;
Stephen
Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...
and
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
*Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...
(co-emperors from 924 until 945);
Theophylact (
Patriarch of Constantinople in 933–956); and two unnamed younger sisters. Nothing is known of Christopher's early life. He was certainly an adult by 919–920, and had a daughter of marriageable age in 927, hence he was probably born around 890–895. Already before his father's rise to power, he had been married to
Sophia, the daughter of the wealthy ''
patrikios
The patricians (from la, patricius, Greek: πατρίκιος) were originally a group of ruling class families in ancient Rome. The distinction was highly significant in the Roman Kingdom, and the early Republic, but its relevance waned aft ...
'' Niketas, a Slav from the
Peloponnese.
When Romanos succeeded in having his daughter
Helena Lekapene
Helena Lekapene ( grc-x-byzant, Ἑλένη Λεκαπηνή, translit=Lecapena) (c. 910 – 19 September 961) was the empress consort of Constantine VII, known to have acted as his political adviser and ''de facto'' co-regent. She was a daughter ...
married to the young emperor
Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos
Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe K ...
in spring 919 and assumed the role of guardian of the emperor with the title ''
basileopator
( el, βασιλεοπάτωρ, , father of the mperor}) was one of the highest secular titles of the Byzantine Empire. It was an exceptional post (the 899 ''Kletorologion'' of Philotheos lists it as one of the 'special dignities', ), and con ...
'', Christopher succeeded him in his post as ''
megas hetaireiarches The ( grc-gre, ἑταιρειάρχης), sometimes anglicized as Hetaeriarch, was a high-ranking Byzantine officer, in command of the imperial bodyguard, the . In the 9th–10th centuries there appear to have been several , each for one of the su ...
'', commander of the palace guard. Romanos soon
crowned himself emperor (December 920), and eventually advanced himself before the young Constantine in precedence. To further cement his position, and planning to advance his own family over the legitimate
Macedonian line, Romanos crowned Christopher also as co-emperor on 20 May 921. Furthermore, when Christopher's mother, the ''
Augusta''
Theodora
Theodora is a given name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift".
Theodora may also refer to:
Historical figures known as Theodora
Byzantine empresses
* Theodora (wife of Justinian I) ( 500 – 548), saint by the Orthodox Church
* Theodora o ...
, died in February 922, his wife Sophia was raised to the dignity of ''Augusta'' alongside Helena Lekapene.
In 927, as part of a peace agreement, Christopher's daughter Maria, renamed
Irene
Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), the Greek for "peace".
Irene, and related names, may refer to:
* Irene (given name)
Places
* Irene, Gauteng, South Africa
* Irene, South Dakota, United States
* Irene, Texas, United Stat ...
(meaning "peace") for the occasion, was married to the
Bulgarian
Bulgarian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria
* Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group
* Bulgarian language, a Slavic language
* Bulgarian alphabet
* A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria
* Bul ...
emperor
Peter I Peter I may refer to:
Religious hierarchs
* Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus
* Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint
* Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
().
Romanos used the occasion to advance Christopher before Constantine Porphyrogennetos, making him first among the rather large group of co-emperors (in 924, Christopher's younger brothers Stephen and Constantine had also been crowned as co-emperors).
In 928, his father-in-law Niketas unsuccessfully tried to incite Christopher to depose his father, but was banished. The motive behind this was perhaps Christopher's poor health, and fears by his wife and her father that, should he die prematurely, they would lose their status. In any event, Christopher died three years later in August 931. As Romanos' favourite son, he was much mourned by his father, who shed tears "
like the Egyptians" and thereafter increasingly became devoted to religious pursuits. Soon after Christopher's death, Sophia too retired from the court and entered a
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...
, where she died. Christopher's death resulted in the weakening of the alliance between the Byzantine and Bulgarian empires. Irene, the
empress of Bulgaria, ceased making her frequent visits to her homeland in the years following her father's passing, only returning once during that time.
After Christopher's death, he was succeeded by his father and his two brothers,
Stephen Lekapenos
Stephen Lekapenos or Lecapenus ( grc-gre, Στέφανος Λεκαπηνός, Stéphanos Lekapenós; died 18 April 963) was the second son of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (r. 920–944), and co-emperor from 924 to ...
and
Constantine Lekapenos
Constantine Lekapenos or Lecapenus ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντῖνος Λακαπηνός, Kōnstantínos Lakapenós) was the third son of the Byzantine emperor Romanos I Lekapenos (), and co-emperor from 924 to 945. With his elder brother Steph ...
, and
Constantine VII. In December 944 Stephen and Constantine deposed their father, forcing him to live in a monastery on
Prince's Islands
The Princes' Islands ( tr, Prens Adaları; the word "princes" is plural, because the name means "Islands of the Princes", el, Πριγκηπονήσια, ''Pringiponisia''), officially just Adalar ( en, Islands); alternatively the Princes' Arch ...
, but when they attempted to also depose Constantine VII, the people of Constantinople revolted and overthrew them, resulting in them being likewise exiled. Romanos died in June 948, Stephen on
Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
963, and Constantine sometime between 946 and 948, while trying to escape.
Family
Through his marriage to Sophia, Christopher had three children:
#
Maria-Eirene, the Empress-consort of
Peter I Peter I may refer to:
Religious hierarchs
* Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus
* Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint
* Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
of Bulgaria.
[
# Romanos, still a child at the time of Christopher's death. According to the chronicler ]Zonaras
Joannes or John Zonaras ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Ζωναρᾶς ; 1070 – 1140) was a Byzantine Greek historian, chronicler and theologian who lived in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey). Under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos he held th ...
, he was favoured by his grandfather, who considered promoting him to his father's place as senior co-emperor, which ultimately failed due to his death shortly thereafter.
# Michael, an infant at the time of Christopher's death, he was made a cleric at the time of the family's fall from power in 945. He eventually reached the high dignities of ''magistros
The ''magister officiorum'' (Latin literally for "Master of Offices", in gr, μάγιστρος τῶν ὀφφικίων, magistros tōn offikiōn) was one of the most senior administrative officials in the Later Roman Empire and the early cent ...
'' and ''rhaiktor
The ( grc-x-byzantine, ῥαίκτωρ, the Hellenized form of la, rector) was a high-ranking court position of the middle Byzantine Empire.
History and functions
J. B. Bury assumed that the post was created either under Leo VI the Wise () or ...
'', but nothing further is known of his later life.
References
Sources
*
*
*
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lekapenos, Christopher
Macedonian dynasty
931 deaths
Armenian Byzantine emperors
Christopher
Christopher
Byzantine junior emperors
Year of birth unknown
Burials at Myrelaion Monastery (Constantinople)
Constantine VII
Sons of Byzantine emperors
Sons of emperors
Megaloi hetaireiarchai