The Exarchate of Africa was a division of the
Byzantine 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 Constantinopl ...
around
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...
that encompassed its possessions on the Western Mediterranean. Ruled by an
exarch (viceroy), it was established by the
Emperor Maurice in the late 580s and survived until the
Muslim conquest of the Maghreb
The Muslim conquest of the Maghreb ( ar, الْفَتْحُ الإسلَامِيُّ لِلْمَغرِب) continued the century of rapid Muslim conquests following the death of Muhammad in 632 and into the Byzantine-controlled territories of ...
in the late 7th century. It was, along with the
Exarchate of Ravenna
The Exarchate of Ravenna ( la, Exarchatus Ravennatis; el, Εξαρχάτο της Ραβέννας) or of Italy was a lordship of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire) in Italy, from 584 to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the ...
, one of two exarchates established following the western reconquests under
Emperor Justinian I to administer the territories more effectively.
History
Background
In the
Vandalic War
The Vandalic War was a conflict fought in North Africa between the forces of the Byzantine Empire and the Vandalic Kingdom of Carthage in 533–534. It was the first of Justinian I's wars of reconquest of the Western Roman Empire.
The Vandal ...
of 533,
Byzantine forces under
Belisarius
Belisarius (; el, Βελισάριος; The exact date of his birth is unknown. – 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under the emperor Justinian I. He was instrumental in the reconquest of much of the Mediterranean terr ...
reconquered the
Maghreb
The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...
along with
Corsica and Sardinia and the
Balearic Islands. Emperor
Justinian I
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renova ...
() organized the recovered territories as the
Praetorian prefecture of Africa, which included the
provinces
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Africa Proconsularis
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
,
Byzacena
Byzacena (or Byzacium) ( grc, Βυζάκιον, ''Byzakion'') was a Late Roman province in the central part of Roman North Africa, which is now roughly Tunisia, split off from Africa Proconsularis.
History
At the end of the 3rd century AD, t ...
,
Tripolitania
Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...
,
Numidia,
Mauretania Caesariensis and
Mauretania Sitifensis
Mauretania Sitifensis was a Roman province in Northwest Africa. The capital was Setifis.
History
In the later division of the Roman Empire under the Emperor Diocletian, the eastern part of Mauretania Caesariensis, from Saldae to the river Ampsag ...
, and was centered at
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...
. In the 550s, a Roman expedition succeeded in regaining parts of southern Spain, which were administered as the new province of
Spania
Spania ( la, Provincia Spaniae) was a province of the Eastern Roman Empire from 552 until 624 in the south of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. It was established by the Emperor Justinian I in an effort to restore the western prov ...
.
After the death of Justinian in 565, the Eastern Roman Empire came increasingly under attack on all fronts, and emperors often left the more remote provinces to themselves to cope as best they could for extended periods, although military officers, such as
Heraclius the Elder
Heraclius the Elder ( el, Ἡράκλειος, ''Herákleios''; died 610) was a Byzantine general and the father of Byzantine emperor Heraclius (r. 610–641). Generally considered to be of Armenian origin Heraclius the Elder distinguished him ...
(Exarch 598–610), continued to rotate between the eastern provinces and Africa. By the 640s and 650s, Byzantium had lost its
province of Mesopotamia to the Muslims, who also extinguished the Byzantines' rival, the
Sassanian Empire
The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...
(651). Constantinople thereby lost an important source of experienced officers seasoned by constant border warfare with the Persians. The
Heraclian dynasty
The Byzantine Empire was ruled by emperors of the dynasty of Heraclius between 610 and 711. The Heraclians presided over a period of cataclysmic events that were a watershed in the history of the Empire and the world.
Heraclius, the founder ...
(610-711) did continue to appoint some competent eastern officers to African posts, such as the Armenian Narseh, who commanded Tripoli, and John, the ''dux'' of
Tigisis.
Walter Kaegi
Walter Emil Kaegi (8 november 1937, New Albany, Indiana - February 24, 2022) was a historian and scholar of Byzantine history, professor of history at the University of Chicago, and a Voting Member of The Oriental Institute. He received his B.A. ...
speculates that some Armenian officers might have asked to transfer back to the east to defend their homes as the Muslims advanced into Armenia, but the sources are silent. Yet the officers who continued to arrive from the east after the loss of Mesopotamia would have been more accustomed to defeats like the
Battle of Yarmouk
The Battle of the Yarmuk (also spelled Yarmouk) was a major battle between the army of the Byzantine Empire and the Muslim forces of the Rashidun Caliphate. The battle consisted of a series of engagements that lasted for six days in August 636, ...
(636) than the previously winning strategies used against the Sassanians, and new tactics and strategies developed slowly.
Establishment of the Exarchate
The late Roman administrative system, as established by
Diocletian, provided for a clear distinction between civil and military offices, primarily to lessen the possibility of rebellion by over-powerful provincial governors. Under Justinian I, the process was partially reversed for provinces that were judged to be especially vulnerable or in internal disorder. Capitalizing upon this precedent and taking it one step further, the emperor
Maurice Maurice may refer to:
People
* Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr
* Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor
*Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and ...
sometime between 585 and 590 created the office of exarch, which combined the supreme civil authority of a
praetorian prefect and the military authority of a ''
magister militum
(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, ...
'', and enjoyed considerable autonomy from Constantinople. Two exarchates were established, one in Italy, with its seat at
Ravenna
Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the ca ...
(hence known as the
Exarchate of Ravenna
The Exarchate of Ravenna ( la, Exarchatus Ravennatis; el, Εξαρχάτο της Ραβέννας) or of Italy was a lordship of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire) in Italy, from 584 to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the ...
), and one in Africa, based in Carthage and including all imperial possessions in the western Mediterranean. The first African exarch was the
''patricius'' Gennadius Gennadius or Gennadios may refer to:
People
* Gennadius of Constantinople (died 471), Patriarch of Constantinople from 458 to 471
* Gennadius of Massilia (5th century) Roman historian, best known for his work ''De Viris Illustribus''
* Gennadius ( ...
.
Among the provincial changes, Tripolitania was detached from the province of Africa and placed under the province of Egypt,
Mauretania Caesariensis and Mauretania Sitifensis were merged to form the new province of "Mauretania Prima", while Mauretania Tingitana, effectively reduced to the city of Septum (
Ceuta
Ceuta (, , ; ar, سَبْتَة, Sabtah) is a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa.
Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of several Spanish territorie ...
), was combined with the citadels of the Spanish coast (
Spania
Spania ( la, Provincia Spaniae) was a province of the Eastern Roman Empire from 552 until 624 in the south of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. It was established by the Emperor Justinian I in an effort to restore the western prov ...
) and the
Balearic Islands to form "
Mauretania Secunda".
The
Visigothic Kingdom
The Visigothic Kingdom, officially the Kingdom of the Goths ( la, Regnum Gothorum), was a kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic successor states to ...
was a continuous threat to the exarchate. The African exarch was in possession of Mauretania II, which was little more than a tiny outpost in southern Spain. The conflict continued until the final conquest of the last Spanish strongholds in c. 624 by the Visigoths. The Byzantines retained only the fort of Septum (modern
Ceuta
Ceuta (, , ; ar, سَبْتَة, Sabtah) is a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa.
Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of several Spanish territorie ...
), across the
Strait of Gibraltar.
During the successful revolt of the exarch of Carthage,
Heraclius the Elder
Heraclius the Elder ( el, Ἡράκλειος, ''Herákleios''; died 610) was a Byzantine general and the father of Byzantine emperor Heraclius (r. 610–641). Generally considered to be of Armenian origin Heraclius the Elder distinguished him ...
, and his namesake son
Heraclius in 608, the
Berbers comprised a large portion of the fleet that transported Heraclius to Constantinople. Due to religious and political ambitions, the Exarch
Gregory the Patrician
Gregory the Patrician ( el, Γρηγόριος, Grēgórios; la, Flavius Gregorius, died 647) was a Byzantine Exarch of Africa (modern Tunisia, eastern Algeria and western Libya). A relative of the ruling Heraclian dynasty, Gregory was fiercely ...
(who was related by blood to the imperial family, through the emperor's cousin
Nicetas) declared himself independent of Constantinople in 647. At this time the influence and power of the exarchate was exemplified in the forces gathered by Gregory in the
battle of Sufetula also in that year where more than 100,000 men of Amazigh origin fought for Gregory.
The Arab Muslim conquest
In 647, the first Islamic expeditions began with an initiative from Egypt under the emir
Amr ibn al-As
( ar, عمرو بن العاص السهمي; 664) was the Arab commander who led the Muslim conquest of Egypt and served as its governor in 640–646 and 658–664. The son of a wealthy Qurayshite, Amr embraced Islam in and was assigned impo ...
and his nephew
Uqba ibn Nafi
ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī al-Qurashī ( ar, عقبة بن نافع بن عبد القيس الفهري القرشي, ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī), also simply known as Uqba ibn Nafi, was an Arab general ser ...
. Sensing Roman weakness they conquered
Barca, in
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...
, then moved on to
Tripolitania
Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...
, where they encountered resistance.
Due to the unrest caused by theological disputes concerning
Monothelitism
Monothelitism, or monotheletism (from el, μονοθελητισμός, monothelētismós, doctrine of one will), is a theological doctrine in Christianity, that holds Christ as having only one will. The doctrine is thus contrary to dyothelit ...
and
Monoenergism
Monoenergism ( el, μονοενεργητισμός) was a notion in early medieval Christian theology, representing the belief that Christ had only one "energy" (''energeia''). The teaching of one energy was propagated during the first half o ...
, the exarchate under
Gregory the Patrician
Gregory the Patrician ( el, Γρηγόριος, Grēgórios; la, Flavius Gregorius, died 647) was a Byzantine Exarch of Africa (modern Tunisia, eastern Algeria and western Libya). A relative of the ruling Heraclian dynasty, Gregory was fiercely ...
distanced itself from the empire in open revolt. The flood of refugees from Egypt (especially
Melkites), Palestine, and Syria exacerbated religious tensions in Carthage and further raised the alarm to Gregory of the approaching Arab threat.
Sensing that the more immediate danger came from the Muslim forces, Gregory gathered his allies and confronted the Muslims, but was defeated at the
Battle of Sufetula, the new capital of the exarchate, since Gregory had moved to the interior for a better defense against Roman attacks from the sea.
Afterwards, the exarchate became a semi-client state under a new exarch called
Gennadius Gennadius or Gennadios may refer to:
People
* Gennadius of Constantinople (died 471), Patriarch of Constantinople from 458 to 471
* Gennadius of Massilia (5th century) Roman historian, best known for his work ''De Viris Illustribus''
* Gennadius ( ...
. Attempting to maintain tributary status with Constantinople and Damascus strained the resources of the exarchate and caused unrest amongst the population.
The exarchate scored a major victory over the forces of
Uqba ibn Nafi
ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī al-Qurashī ( ar, عقبة بن نافع بن عبد القيس الفهري القرشي, ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī), also simply known as Uqba ibn Nafi, was an Arab general ser ...
at the
Battle of Vescera
The Battle of Vescera (modern Biskra in Algeria) was fought in 682 or 683 between the Berbers of King Caecilius and their Byzantine allies from the Exarchate of Carthage against an Umayyad Arab army under Uqba ibn Nafi (the founder of Kairouan) ...
in 682, aided by the
Berber king,
Kusaila
Kusaila (Arabic: Kusaila Ibn Malzam, Latin: Caecilius) was a 7th-century Berber Christian ruler of the kingdom of Altava and leader of the Awraba tribe, a Christianised sedentary tribe of the Aures of the Imazighen and possibly Christian king o ...
. This victory forced the Muslim forces to retreat to Egypt, giving the exarchate a decade's respite. However, the repeated confrontations took their toll on the dwindling and ever-divided resources of the exarchate.
In 698, the Muslim commander
Hasan ibn al-Nu'man
Hassan ibn al-Nu'man al-Ghassani ( ar, حسان بن النعمان الغساني, Hassān ibn al-Nuʿmān al-Ghassānī) was an Arab general of the Umayyad Caliphate who led the final Muslim conquest of Ifriqiya, firmly establishing Islamic rule ...
and a force of 40,000 men
crushed Carthage. Many of its defenders were Visigoths sent to defend the exarchate by
Wittiza, who also feared Muslim expansion. Many Visigoths fought to the death; in the ensuing battle Carthage was again reduced to rubble, as it had been centuries earlier by the Romans.
The loss of the mainland African exarchate was an enormous blow to the Byzantine Empire in the Western Mediterranean, because Carthage and Egypt were Constantinople's main sources of manpower and grain. The Byzantines never recovered their territories in Africa.
Known and postulated Exarchs of Africa
}
, "Commander of
Septem". According to some scholars, possibly last Exarch of Africa. Historicity disputed by others.
, -
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Exarchate Of Africa
Byzantine North Africa
History of Ceuta
History of Tangier
History of Gibraltar
7th century in the Visigothic Kingdom
States and territories established in the 580s
States and territories disestablished in the 7th century
698 disestablishments
580s establishments
6th-century establishments in the Byzantine Empire
7th-century disestablishments in Africa
Maurice (emperor)