Iustiniānus
1.
Flavius Anicius. A Roman emperor of the East, born in Illyria
A.D. 482 or 483, of servile parentage. He was nephew on his mother's side to Iustinus,
afterwards emperor. His original name was Uprauda. The elevation of his uncle to the throne,
A.D. 518, decided the fortune of Justinian, who, having been educated at Constantinople, had
given proofs of considerable capacity and application. Iustinus was ignorant and old, and the
advice and exertions of his nephew were of great service to him during the nine years of his
reign. He adopted Justinian as his colleague, and at length a few months before his death,
feeling that his end was approaching, crowned him in presence of the patriarch and senators,
and made over the imperial authority to him, in April, 527. Justinian was then in his
forty-fifth year, and he ruled more than thirty-eight years, till
November, 565, when he died. His long reign forms a remarkable epoch in the history of the
world. Although himself unwarlike, by means of his able generals, Belisarius and the eunuch
Narses, he completely defeated the Vandals and the Goths, and restored Italy and Africa to
the Empire. Justinian was the last emperor of Constantinople who, by his dominion over the
whole of Italy, reunited in some measure the two principal portions of the ancient Empire of
the Caesars. In the East, his arms repelled the inroads of Chosroës and conquered
Colchis; and the Negus, or king of Abyssinia, entered into an alliance with him. On the
Danubian frontier, the Gepidae, Langobardi, Bulgarians, and other hordes were either kept in
check or wholly routed. The wars of his reign are related by Procopius and Agathias.
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Iustinianus. (From a medal.)
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Justinian must be viewed also as the administrator and legislator of a vast empire. In the
first capacity he did much good and considerable harm. He was both profuse and penurious.
Personally inclined to justice, he often overlooked, through weakness, the injustice of
subordinates. He established monopolies of certain branches of industry and commerce, and
increased the taxes; but he introduced the culture of silkworms into Europe, and the numerous
edifices which he raised, and the towns which he repaired or fortified, attest his love for
the arts, and his anxiety for the security and welfare of his dominions. Procopius gives a
notice of the towns, churches (St. Sophia among the rest), convents, bridges, roads, walls,
and fortifications constructed or repaired during his reign. The same Procopius, however,
wrote a secret history (
Ἀνέκδοτα) of the court and reign
of Justinian and his wife Theodora, both of whom he paints in the darkest colours. Theodora,
previous to her marriage, indeed, had been a dissolute woman, but one of some ability, and
she exercised till her death in 548, a great influence over the mind of Justinian. Many acts
of oppression and cruelty were committed by her orders. At the same time the
Anecdota of Procopius cannot be implicitly trusted, as many of his charges are
evidently misrepresentations or malignant exaggerations.
Justinian was easy of access, patient of bearing, courteous and affable in discourse, and
perfect master of his temper. In the conspiracies against his authority and person he
often showed both justice and clemency. He was chaste and temperate, frequently fasting, and
allowing himself little time for sleep. His restless application to business and to study, as
well as the extent of his learning, have been attested even by his enemies (
Procop.viii. 13). He adorned Constantinople with many magnificent
structures, among them the great church (now mosque) of St. Sophia. He was, or professed to
be, a poet and philosopher, a lawyer and theologian, a musician and architect; but the
greatest act of his reign is the codification of the Roman law, which has immortalized his
name, and an account of which will be found under the articles Corpus
Iuris and
Tribonianus. He was, however,
much more than a codifier, for the following fundamental changes were introduced by him:
(
a) a great amelioration of the condition of slaves (see
Servus); (
b) a change in the law of
intestate succession by which
cognati or relations on the mother's side
inherited equally with
agnati or relations on the father's side; (
c) the introduction of a system of small-debt courts. Unfortunately, his
love of theological controversy led him to interfere with the consciences of his subjects;
and his penal enactments against Jews and heretics displayed a spirit of intolerance. He was
succeeded by his nephew, Iustinus IV. See the biographies by Isambert
(1856) and
Body
(6th ed. 1889); also
Roby's Introduction to the Digest
(1884).
2.
The second of the name, the son of Constantine III., and lineal descendant of the emperor
Heraclius. He succeeded his father on the throne of Constantinople, A.D. 685, but his reign,
which lasted ten years, was marked chiefly by wars with the Saracens, and by the exactions
and oppressions of his ministers. At last, his general Leontius drove him from the throne,
and, having caused his nose to be cut off, banished him to the Crimea, A.D. 695. Leontius,
however, was soon after himself deposed and banished by Tiberius Apsimerus, who reigned for
seven years. Meantime Justinian had escaped from the Crimea and married the daughter of chief
of the Gazari, a tribe of Turks; and he afterwards, with the assistance of the Bulgarians,
entered Constantinople, and put to death both Leontius and Tiberius, along with many others.
He ordered also many of the principal people of Ravenna to be killed. Justinian was finally
dethroned and slain by Philippus Bardanes, A.D. 711.
