Michael I Rhangabe ( gr, Μιχαὴλ Ῥαγγαβέ; ''c''. 770 – 11 January 844) was

Byzantine emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as ...

from 811 to 813. Michael was the son of the patrician

Theophylact Rhangabe Theophylact Rhangabe or Theophylaktos Rhangabe ( gr, Θεοφύλακτος, ὁ τοῦ Ῥαγγαβέ, ), was a Byzantine Greeks, Greek admiral, and the father of the emperor Michael I Rhangabe (ruled 811–813). Life He is known only from his ...

, the admiral of the Aegean fleet. He married

Prokopia Prokopia ( Greek: Προκοπία; c. 770 – after 813) was the Empress consort of Michael I Rhangabe of the Eastern Roman Empire. She was a daughter of Nikephoros I. The name of her mother is not known. Her only known sibling is Staurakios. M ...

, the daughter of the former Emperor

Nikephoros I Nikephoros I or Nicephorus I ( gr, Νικηφόρος; 750 – 26 July 811) was Byzantine emperor from 802 to 811. Having served Empress Irene as '' genikos logothetēs'', he subsequently ousted her from power and took the throne himself. In r ...

, and received the high court dignity of '' kouropalatēs'' after his father-in-law's accession in 802.

Life

Michael survived Nikephoros' disastrous campaign against Krum of Bulgaria, and was considered a more appropriate candidate for the throne than his severely injured brother-in-law Staurakios. When Michael's wife Prokopia failed to persuade her brother to name Michael as his successor, a group of senior officials (the ''

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 ...

Theoktistos Theoktistos or Theoctistus (; died November 20, 855) was a leading Byzantine official during the second quarter of the 9th century and the ''de facto'' head of the regency for the underage emperor Michael III from 842 until his dismissal and mu ...

, the

Domestic of the Schools The office of the Domestic of the Schools ( gr, δομέστικος τῶν σχολῶν, domestikos tōn scholōn) was a senior military post of the Byzantine Empire, extant from the 8th century until at least the early 14th century. Originally ...

Stephen, and Patriarch Nikephoros) forced Staurakios to abdicate in his favor on 2 October 811. Michael I attempted to carry out a policy of reconciliation, abandoning the exacting taxation instituted by Nikephoros I. While reducing imperial income, Michael generously distributed money to the army, the bureaucracy, and the Church. Elected with the support of the Orthodox party in the Church, Michael diligently persecuted the iconoclasts and forced the Patriarch Nikephoros to back down in his dispute with Theodore of Stoudios, the influential abbot of the monastery of Stoudios. Michael's piety won him a very positive estimation in the work of the chronicler

Theophanes the Confessor Theophanes the Confessor ( el, Θεοφάνης Ὁμολογητής; c. 758/760 – 12 March 817/818) was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy who became a monk and chronicler. He served in the court of Emperor Leo IV the Khazar before taking ...

. In 812 Michael I reopened negotiations with the

Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools ...

, and recognized

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...

as ''

imperator The Latin word ''imperator'' derives from the stem of the verb la, imperare, label=none, meaning 'to order, to command'. It was originally employed as a title roughly equivalent to ''commander'' under the Roman Republic. Later it became a part o ...

'' and ''

basileus ''Basileus'' ( el, ) is a Greek term and title that has signified various types of monarchs in history. In the English-speaking world it is perhaps most widely understood to mean " monarch", referring to either a " king" or an "emperor" and ...

'' (Emperor), but not Emperor of the Romans. In exchange for that recognition,

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

was returned to the Empire. However, under the influence of Theodore, Michael rejected the peace terms offered by Krum and provoked the capture of Mesembria (

Nesebar Nesebar (often transcribed as Nessebar and sometimes as Nesebur, bg, Несебър, pronounced ) is an ancient city and one of the major seaside resorts on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, located in Burgas Province. It is the administrative cen ...

) by the Bulgarians. After an initial success in spring 813, Michael's army prepared for a major engagement at Versinikia near

Adrianople Edirne (, ), formerly known as Adrianople or Hadrianopolis ( Greek: Άδριανούπολις), is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian border ...

in June. The imperial army was defeated, while

Leo the Armenian Leo V the Armenian ( gr, Λέων ὁ ἐξ Ἀρμενίας, ''Leōn ho ex Armenias''; 775 – 25 December 820) was the Byzantine emperor from 813 to 820. A senior general, he forced his predecessor, Michael I Rangabe, to abdicate and assumed ...

fled from the battle. With conspiracy in the air, Michael preempted events by abdicating on 11 July 813 in favor of the general

and becoming a monk (under the name Athanasios). His sons were castrated and relegated into monasteries, one of them, Niketas (renamed Ignatios), eventually becoming

Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

. Michael died on 11 January 844.

Family

By his wife

, Michael I had at least five children: * Georgo, a daughter * Theophylact, crowned co-emperor on Christmas 811, became a monk after 813. * Niketas, later Patriarch

Ignatios of Constantinople St. Ignatius or Ignatios ( el, Ιγνάτιος), (c. 798 – 23 October 877) was a Patriarch of Constantinople from July 4, 847, to October 23, 858, and from November 23, 867, to his death on October 23, 877. In the Catholic Church and East ...

( 798 – 877) * Staurakios, crowned co-emperor on Christmas 811, pre-deceased his father * Theophano, a daughter

Gallery

File:Coronation of a Byzantine co-emperor on a shield, Madrid Skylitzes.jpg, Coronation of Michael I from the 12th-century ''

Madrid Skylitzes The ''Madrid Skylitzes'' is a richly illustrated illuminated manuscript of the ''Synopsis of Histories'' ( el, Σύνοψις Ἱστοριῶν, ), by John Skylitzes, which covers the reigns of the Byzantine emperors from the death of Nicep ...

'', probably drawn from an earlier original source. File:Michael I, Madrid Skylitzes folio 11r.jpg, Second portrait of Michael I Rangabe in the ''Madrid Skylitzes''. File:Michael I and Theophylact.jpg, Solidus of Michael I and his son Staurakios

References

Sources

* * * *. * * * * *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michael 01 9th-century Byzantine emperors Nikephorian dynasty Byzantine people of the Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars Eastern Orthodox monks Year of birth unknown 844 deaths 810s in the Byzantine Empire Kouropalatai Rangabe family