Constantiolus () was a

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

, active early in the reign of

Justinian I Justinian I (, ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 527 to 565. His reign was marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovatio imperii'', or "restoration of the Empire". This ambition was ...

(r. 527–565). He succeeded

Justin Justin may refer to: People and fictional characters * Justin (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Justin (historian), Latin historian who lived under the Roman Empire * Justin I (c. 450–527) ...

in command of Moesia Secunda. A passage of Theophanes the Confessor incorrectly identifies him as "Constantinus" (Constantine).Martindale (1992), pp. 352–353

Biography

Origins and early career: ''dux'' of Moesia

According to

John Malalas John Malalas (; ; – 578) was a Byzantine chronicler from Antioch in Asia Minor. Life Of Syrian descent, Malalas was a native speaker of Syriac who learned how to write in Greek later in his life. The name ''Malalas'' probably derive ...

and Theophanes the Confessor, the father of Constantiolus was named Florentius. No details are given about him, though he could be identified with Florentius,

Roman consul The consuls were the highest elected public officials of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC). Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the ''cursus honorum''an ascending sequence of public offices to which politicians aspire ...

in 515. Constantiolus is first mentioned as "''

stratelates ''Stratēlatēs'' (, "driver/leader of the army") was a Greek term designating a general, which also became an honorary dignity in the Byzantine Empire. In the former sense, it was often applied to military saints, such as Theodore Stratelates. ...

'' of

Moesia Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; ) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River. As a Roman domain Moesia was administered at first by the governor of Noricum as 'Civitates of Moesia and Triballi ...

" in 528, in succession to Justin, who had been killed in battle earlier that year.

and Baduarius, '' dux'' of Scythia Minor, had joined their forces in battle against a force of foreign invaders, who Malalas identifies as "

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th centuries AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was par ...

", while Theophanes as

Bulgars The Bulgars (also Bulghars, Bulgari, Bolgars, Bolghars, Bolgari, Proto-Bulgarians) were Turkic peoples, Turkic Nomad, semi-nomadic warrior tribes that flourished in the Pontic–Caspian steppe and the Volga region between the 5th and 7th centu ...

. It is likely that Constantiolus held the title of ''dux Moesiae Secundae'' and the rank of ''

magister militum (Latin for "master of soldiers"; : ) was a top-level military command used in the late Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, the e ...

'' (often rendered in Greek as ''stratelates''). The newly appointed Constantiolus joined forces with Ascum and Godilas in facing the invaders, who were at the time active in

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

. The

Byzantine army The Byzantine army was the primary military body of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct continuation of the East Roman army, Eastern Roman army, shaping and developing itself on the legac ...

managed to defeat one group of invaders in battle, but they were then ambushed and routed by a second group of Huns/Bulgars. Both Constantiolus and Ascum were captured by their enemies. The victors

ransom Ransom refers to the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release. It also refers to the sum of money paid by the other party to secure a captive's freedom. When ransom means "payment", the word ...

ed Constantiolus back to

in exchange for a large sum. Malalas reports a payment of 10,000 '' solidi'', while Theophanes of 1,000 ''solidi''.

Imperial representative

Constantiolus resurfaces in 531, after

Belisarius BelisariusSometimes called Flavia gens#Later use, Flavius Belisarius. The name became a courtesy title by the late 4th century, see (; ; The exact date of his birth is unknown. March 565) was a military commander of the Byzantine Empire under ...

' defeat by the

Sassanid Persia The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

ns at the

Battle of Callinicum The Battle of Callinicum took place on Easter Saturday, 19 April 531 AD, between an army of the Byzantine Empire under Belisarius and a Sasanian Empire, Sasanian cavalry force commanded by Azarethes. After being defeated at the Battle of Dara, t ...

(19 April 531). Justinian sent Constantiolus to the eastern border, assigning him to investigate the circumstances of the defeat. Constantiolus traveled through

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...

and questioned various Byzantine commanders on the subject. Among them was the ''

magister officiorum The (Latin; ; ) was one of the most senior administrative officials in the Later Roman Empire and the early centuries of the Byzantine Empire. In Byzantium, the office was eventually transformed into a senior honorary rank, simply called ''magist ...

'' Hermogenes, who had served under Belisarius in the battle. Constantiolus returned to

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

with his findings. His report probably contributed to the end of Belisarius' service as ''magister militum per Orientem'' and his replacement by Mundus.

The Nika riots

Constantiolus next appears during the

Nika riots The Nika riots (), Nika revolt or Nika sedition took place against Byzantine emperor Justinian I in Constantinople over the course of a week in 532 AD. They are often regarded as the most violent riots in the city's history, with nearly half of ...

in 532, where he, along with Mundus and

Basilides Basilides ( Greek: Βασιλείδης) was an early Christian Gnostic religious teacher in Alexandria, Egypt who taught from 117 to 138 AD, notes that to prove that the heretical sects were "later than the catholic Church," Clement of Alexandr ...

, served as envoys of Justinian to the rioting crowds. They partly attempted to calm the rioters and partly attempted to understand the causes of their wrath. Their report to the emperor placed the blame for the uprising on the unpopular financial ministers

John the Cappadocian John the Cappadocian () (''Floruit, fl.'' 530s, living 548) was a praetorian prefect of the East (532–541) in the Byzantine Empire under Byzantine Emperor, Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). He was also a Patrikios, patrician and the ''Roman ...

Tribonian Tribonian ( Greek: Τριβωνιανός rivonia'nos – 542) was a Byzantine jurist and advisor. During the reign of the Emperor Justinian I, he supervised the revision of the legal code of the Byzantine Empire. He has been described as one of ...

and Eudaemon, leading to their dismissal from office. The riots did not subside, and Justinian allegedly considered fleeing Constantinople until the Empress Theodora convinced him to stay and defend his throne.Diehl, Charles. ''Theodora, Empress of Byzantium'' (© 1972 by Frederick Ungar Publishing, Inc., transl. by S.R. Rosenbaum from the original French ''Theodora, Imperatice de Byzance''), p.87. Constantiolus and Mundus, who were to have guarded the palace in the emperor's absence, instead joined Belisarius in attacking rioters massed in the

Hippodrome of Constantinople The Hippodrome of Constantinople (; ; ) was a Roman circus, circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. Today it is a square in Istanbul, Turkey, known as Sultanahmet Square (). The word ...

. The event ended the Nika riots and also seems to be the last chronological mention of Constantiolus.

References

Sources

*Diehl, Charles. ''Theodora, Empress of Byzantium'' ((c) 1972 by Frederick Ungar Publishing, Inc., transl. by S.R. Rosenbaum from the original French ''Theodora, Imperatice de Byzance''). Popular account based on the author's extensive scholarly research. * {{Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, volume=3 6th-century Byzantine people Byzantine generals Generals of Justinian I