Chrysaphius ( el, Χρυσάφιος) was a
eunuch in the
Eastern Roman court who became the chief minister of
Theodosius II (r. 402–450). Having a great influence on the rule of the empire during his ascendancy, he pursued a policy of appeasement towards the
Huns, which cost the empire far more gold than any military campaign, while amassing a vast fortune in bribes himself. He is depicted as a sinister figure in all the ancient accounts.
Life and policies
The Byzantine historians give us a considerable amount of information on Chrysaphius. His real name was Taiouma (
Theophanes 151) or Tumna (
Cedrenus
George Kedrenos, Cedrenus or Cedrinos ( el, Γεώργιος Κεδρηνός, fl. 11th century) was a Byzantine Greek historian. In the 1050s he compiled ''Synopsis historion'' (also known as ''A concise history of the world''), which spanned the ...
I 601) or Tzoumas (Patria II 182;
George Codinus 47) or even Ztommas (
Malalas 363–6). Chrysaphius exercised a considerable influence on Theodosius II at the end of his reign. According to Malalas, Theodosius II loved Chrysaphius for his beauty (Malalas id and 368). He seems to have risen from among the ranks: according to Malalas, he was a mere ''
cubicularius'' (servant of the imperial bedchamber); according to the ''
Chronicon Paschale'', he was a ''
spatharios'' (p. 390).
In 441 the
city prefect
The ''praefectus urbanus'', also called ''praefectus urbi'' or urban prefect in English, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, and ...
in Constantinople was a pagan poet from
Panopolis in Egypt named
Cyrus, who was exceedingly popular in the city. Thus he incurred the envy of Chrysaphius, who engineered his downfall. Cyrus saved himself by converting to Christianity, but the malice of Chrysaphius was not so easily frustrated, and the eunuch arranged for him to be appointed bishop of
Cotyaeum in
Phyrgia, where the population had lynched the previous four incumbents. In the event, Cyrus survived and returned to Constantinople in 451 after the death of Chrysaphius.
In 443, he became chamberlain (''
praepositus sacri cubiculi''), which in practice made him the chief minister of the weak Theodosius II. Chroniclers record that he was all-powerful in the Palace (Theoph. 150; Priscus 227); the later ''Patria'' (II 182; Codinus 47) names him anachronistically as a ''
parakoimomenos
The ''parakoimōmenos'' ( el, παρακοιμώμενος, literally "the one who sleeps beside he emperor's chamber) was a Byzantine court position, usually reserved for eunuchs. The position's proximity to the emperors guaranteed its holders ...
'', after the all-powerful eunuch officials of the 9th-10th centuries. He schemed against the emperor's sister
Pulcheria by exalting the influence of the empress
Eudocia, and succeeded in arranging her withdrawal from the court. Having done this, he intrigued against the empress, accusing her of adultery with Paulinus, a boyhood friend of the emperor. She was then banished in 444. Having removed both the emperor's wife and sister from the court, Chrysaphius was effectively ruler of the empire, and it is said that the emperor signed papers without reading them (Theophanes, A.M. 5942).
In December 447, the Hunnic king
Attila
Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns
The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European traditio ...
arrived before the
walls of Constantinople. Chrysaphius adopted a policy of appeasement, and the imperial government paid Attila a huge tribute to go away, rather than fight.
Chrysaphius had also been involved in the ecclesiastical disputes of the time, and taking bribes from the various parties he amassed a great fortune. He was the godson of the aged Cyrillian abbot
Eutyches, whom he hoped to place on the
episcopal throne of Constantinople and so increase his own political influence. This was prevented by the elevation of
Flavian in 447. Chrysaphius therefore induced the emperor to require a gift from the new bishop. Flavian sent the emperor three loaves of consecrated bread, which Chrysaphius rejected, on the grounds that the emperor demanded gold. Flavian refused to supply this on the ground that churchmen should not hand over church property as bribes (Evagrius II.2). This made Chrysaphius his enemy, but
Pulcheria was still influential and defended Flavian. Chrysaphius did arrange for a violent enemy of Flavian's, Dioscorus, to be appointed Patriarch of Alexandria, and arranged for the exile of
Pulcheria.
In 448 the Eutychian dispute arose, Eutyches bribed Chrysaphius. Flavian was reluctant to be drawn in, but organised a local council in Constantinople, which condemned Eutyches in 448. Chrysaphius, however, was able to use Dioscorus to depose Flavian at the "
Robber-synod" (''
Latrocinium'') of Ephesus in August 449. He used the soldiers and puppet clerics to prevent any discussion of the issues. Flavian died a few days after the closure of the Latrocinium because of the injuries suffered from the mob of Dioscorus' monks, led by the dreaded abbot Barsaumas, "a wild, illiterate Syrian archimandrite".
[Holum, K. G., Theodosian Empresses (Berkeley: 1982), pp. 186-187.]
The Hunnic problem had not gone away. In 449, Chrysaphius, with the approval of Theodosius, suborned
Edecon, the chief of
Attila
Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns
The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European traditio ...
's guards, to assassinate him. But he later betrayed the plot to Attila, who demanded the head of Chrysaphius. Chrysaphius sent an envoy with money, and Attila consented in contemptuous language to forgive him and the emperor provided that he received an annual compensation payment of 700 pounds of gold a year. This burden of taxes on an empire already devastated by the ravages of the Huns made the already unpopular favourite deeply hated. Gibbon remarks that the money involved would have more than financed any war against Attila.
The high-handed behaviour at the ''Latrocinium'' also back-fired. There was general opposition to the decisions of the council, and
Pope Leo I wrote to the emperor and demanded a fresh council.
It seems that Chrysaphius may have fallen out of favour in the last months of Theodosius' reign. He had an enemy in the
Isauria
Isauria ( or ; grc, Ἰσαυρία), in ancient geography, is a rugged, isolated, district in the interior of Asia Minor, of very different extent at different periods, but generally covering what is now the district of Bozkır and its surrou ...
n
Zeno,
Master of Soldiers
(Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...
, who seems to have threatened a revolt in 449. See John Ant. fr. 84 (''De ins.''), and Priscus, fr. 5 (''De leg. Rom.'').
Death
Theodosius II died in 450, and was succeeded by
Marcian
Marcian (; la, Marcianus, link=no; grc-gre, Μαρκιανός, link=no ; 392 – 27 January 457) was Roman emperor of the East from 450 to 457. Very little of his life before becoming emperor is known, other than that he was a (personal as ...
, who married Pulcheria. Both were personal enemies of Chrysaphius.
His fate is described differently in the historians. According to most,
Pulcheria avenged herself against Chrysaphius by handing him over to his mortal enemy
Jordanes, who had him put to death (Theophanes 160; Chronicon Paschale 390; Malalas 368; Zonaras; III 107–109, Cedrenus I 601–1603). However, according to Malalas, Chrysaphius's cause of death was very different. Chrysaphius had been head of the Green faction, whom Theodosius had protected (Malalas 351). Chrysaphius's death sentence was apparently politically motivated. Supported by the Greens, Chrysaphius may have incited some unrest, and it is known that Marcian was a partisan of the Blues (Malalas 368). Some say that Marcian ordered him to appear before a tribunal to enquire into his misdeeds. On the way there, the fallen minister was stoned to death by a mob infuriated by the high taxes needed to pay
Attila
Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns
The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European traditio ...
's tribute. His immense wealth was confiscated.
The political career of Chrysaphius is recorded by the Byzantine historian
Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopoulos, who deals with his actions in the critical years 449–451.
Evagrius Scholasticus also records some of his actions in church matters.
Chrysaphius in fiction
The conspiracy against Attila is a significant plot element in Geza Gardonyi's novel ''
Slave of the Huns
''Slave of the Huns'' is a novel by the Hungarian writer Géza Gárdonyi, published in 1901. The original Hungarian title is ''A láthatatlan ember'', which translates literally as ''The Invisible Man'', but its title was changed in English (pro ...
''. In this account, the head of Chrysaphius really is given to Attila, transported preserved in honey. Chrysaphius also features in Gillian Bradshaw's novel, Imperial Purple, about a conspiracy to usurp the imperial throne.
References
External links
Eudocia
5th-century Byzantine people
Byzantine eunuchs
450 deaths
Year of birth unknown
Byzantine courtiers
Praepositi sacri cubiculi
Ancient slaves
Lynching deaths