Part XXXVII: The Second Pax Romana
There are three periods that historians look back on and call the Pax Romanas. From Octavianus to Antoninus, from Leo V to John II, and from Manuel II to Andronikos III. Each period was marked by general peace across the known world, while Rome was supreme in its power compared to its neighbors, and ruled by Emperors who were not expansionist. Trajan excepted of course. Each period was marked by increased economic productivity, general increases in wealth (though as noted, much was concentrated in the hands of the already wealthy elites), and an interest in arts and learning.
I will start by noting, I have perhaps been giving Constantine VI too little credit, because in Constantinople he actually did a number of things. To begin with, he began a full remodel of the Hagia Sophia. The building was now 300 years old and had often been neglected during times of crisis and monetary shortfall. That was no longer the case and the Emperor felt the great church’s decorations needed updating and repair. The rework began in 865, and would last for the next twelve years. Longer than the initial construction of the great basilica. In addition to the repairs and reworks done to the building Constantine also commissioned a number of paintings that would decorate the redone building. Mostly these were just retouches on the existing works, but large numbers were entirely new, including a massive gallery featuring portraits of all the saints, leading up to a large illustration covering an entire wall of the Apostles, Mary, and above them all Christ and God the Father. Additionally, golden statues were erected bearing famous scenes from the Bible, as well as from the Torah.
As for what scenes were depicted, and what the paintings and statues looked like? We don’t knew beyond these descritpions. Because when Manuel’s Council ratified the doctrine of iconoatheism they were all destroyed. Today the room has been redesigned, with scenes from one of the four seasons upon each wall, and a stylized depiction of the Gates of Heaven painted upon the ceiling.
In conjunction with this project Constantine began a major expansion to the University of Constantinople. The ancient facility nearly doubled in size over the next eight years. In addition to the already existing 31 chairs nineteen more were added, with a focus on mathematics and Aristotelian philosophy. Interestingly, we can pinpoint this expansion to the adoption of Indian numerals by the Roman court. These are the numbers we still use today of course, and had been adopted in the East already when trading with the Orient, and had slowly drifted West. The Church in Rome had officially adopted the numerals for their own use in 832, and the Imperial Court seems to have begun using them about a decade after that.
But the adoption was ad hoc. The majority of the populace didn’t know the system, but in 870 Constantine issued an order that from now on Indian numerals were to be used for all government business. The chaos from the switchover lasted a few years, but soon bureaucrats were being trained who had used the new system for virtually all their lives.
Three of the chairs were also reserved for military training. Officers looking to serve in the Imperial army were expected to attend classes where they studied the history of warfare, with emphasis on the campaigns of Alexander and the Caesars. This I should also note is the flip-side of the Tagmata’s decline. While generally weakened over the course of the coming century the army did retain one key advantage, it had a core of highly trained and competent officers. Some of these officers would return to their home provinces, but those who didn’t already have posts in the provinces stayed in the Tagmata, where the pay was good and the duty was easy. If nothing else then the Tagmata retained a core of the best trained officers in the Empire.
Finally, the Emperor turned his eye toward a long-neglected project. The Aqueduct of Valens had long stood damaged and ignored, but Constantine ordered it repaired for two reasons. First, supplying the city with fresh water was always important, and the cisterns could not be expected to always be full. Second, the destroyed Aqueduct was a weakness of the city’s defenses. Andronikos had snuck into the city through the system, and another enemy could do the same, regardless of how many guards might be posted.
The repairs lasted until 890, more due to lack of funds because of the Emperor’s other projects than significant difficulty, but when they were finished fresh water flowed into the city once again.
Construction and education were not the only ongoing events however. For in 880 the bishop of Antioch published the first volume of his eventual twelve book epic poem the Constantinius, a clear follow-up to the poems of the ancients but framed in a Christian outlook rather than a pagan one. The poem follows the life of Constantine as he is converted to Christianity early in life and sets out to change the Empire he is destined to rule so that his own faith can be instituted across the Empire. Its not a particularly accurate version of Constantine’s life; for example the Emperor Maxentius is changed to be one of the key proponents behind the Great Persecution, while Constantius is held up as the only man to refuse its implementation, and is forced to stand firm against the attacks on him from his three co-rulers; but it is certainly an entertaining read, and anyone interested in the history of literature in Europe should do so at least once.
And for those of you interested in plays, yes those are coming. But it will have to wait until Alexios. Because there is one series of events during Constantine’s reign we need to shift our focus toward.
Those of you who have been waiting patientiy for our talk of events in Italy, your patience is now rewarded. I hear all of you ask, how could there be peace after what happened in Italy in the 870s. Which I’m going to go into now because as I said there are two major black marks on the Second Pax Romana. So we are returning to the first of those, the Varangians.
You will recall there are two geographic areas that the Varangians emerged from. The Notos Varangians, who we’ve already introduced came down the rivers flowing into the Black Sea and we know as the Rus. They will be a nuisance going forward, but it is not them we now need to focus on. But rather the Boreus Varangians, and in particular the Danes. Now those of you familiar with history are already aware that by 875 the Danes had invaded Brittani. They conquered the northern kingdom quickly, and then used it as a base to invade the south. But while large groups of Danes were trying to conquer a new homeland other were simply up for plundering. The northern Frankish Coast was a regular target, but as time went on the Danish fleets began venturing further afield. In the 860s they began making regular raids on the Goths.
Mostly these were initially aimed at Asturi and Lusitani on the West Coast. But as the raids progressed the Danes grew bolder, until in 865 a fleet penetrated the Straight and sacked towns along the Eastern Coast. They also began raiding the African coast, but found the local Roman armies to be a far greater opposition force than they would like, and so pulled back.
But the lure of Roman gold was strong, and while Africa was militarized a second target wasn’t, Italy. Italy was rich, its cities were focused on the coast, and unlike in Africa there was no field army. The Danes gathered under a warlord named Aric Ragnarson gathered fifty ships and penetrated the Straights, and sailed straight for Italy. They avoided detection until arriving near Ostia. The raiders landed and looted the country-side, then learned just how close they were to the near mythical city of Rome, and all the gold the Pope had inside. The fleet sailed up the Tiber, and landed just south of the city. On August 2, 870 Aric led his men against what was once the greatest city in the world.
Rome as I’ve said was a shadow of its former self. The population had plummeted to less than twenty thousand, but as the Varangians approached the populace in the surrounding countryside fled behind the walls. These were the Vitelian Walls, constructed by Pope Vitellius I in the early 700s. They had been built on the remnants of the Aurelian Walls, largely destroyed by the Lombards and the Goths centuries before. The walls had however been extended to also defend the Basilica of Saint Peter upon the Vatican.
While not up to Aurelian’s standards Vitelians walls were still a formidable barrier, and upon seeing them Aric famously despaired of fighting Roman power. How could anyone overcome such a defensive obstacle? He couldn’t give up however, and so the Danes began probing at the defenses. The attacks were unable to penetrate the defenses however, and Aric was forced to retreat after a week of inconclusive fighting, leaving five hundred men dead on the field. His fleet retreated, but as they exited the Tiber the force was set upon by the fleet of Syracuse and the fleet of Naples. A brief skirmish ensued, but the smaller Danish longships were unable to overcome the larger vessels of the Italians. Sixteen longships were destroyed and the rest were scattered.
Aric returned to his homeland in defeat, though not without significant plunder. This plunder would be a key in the far larger attack Aric would organize a decade later.
In the aftermath of Aric’s raid however towns began building their own, smaller, walls and organizing additional militia forces, as well as requesting Imperial garrisons be put in place. The Emperor refused. Small scale attacks, even on Italy, didn’t merit an Imperial response.
While this angered the Italian population it also wasn’t exactly surprising. So instead the great cities strengthened their defenses more, and readied forces that could hold out until Imperial reinforcements could arrive should serious attacks begin.
And those attacks did come. Over the next several years Danish raiders repeatedly struck the Western Coast of Italy, as well as Sicily and carried off looted wealth. But the populace could retreat into the fortified towns and cities and wait out the attacks. Additionally, ransoms were paid to free captives. These were paid into as an offering given to the Church which soon developed a pattern of sending men to negotiate with raiders, offering to pay them to go away. This normally amounted to a few gold coins per raider. In cases where the Danes refused and captured loot and captives the gold would be paid to get the captives released. Since the gold was easier to carry on the long trip back to the North warlords usually accepted.
And if no raids came to that part of Italy the money was put toward Church causes.
In May 879 though, Aric returned. This time not with fifty ships, but five hundred. And with him were nearly twenty-thousand warriors. Almost none of them would escape alive.
Aric was determined to sack Rome, and loot the city mythical city that was still often thought of in the West as one of the preeminent cities in the world, even as its status within the Empire it had founded had declined precipitously, until only the pope kept the city as anything more than a minor Italian backwater. That said, the city was still rich due to the pope living there, and it was still the recipient of the wealth of Campania, and the primary point of route between southern and northern Italy for travel and trade overland.
Since the earlier raid the pope had maintained a stronger garrison for the city of Rome, of about two thousand men, along with a militia force of about six thousand. These men were mostly volunteers who drilled once a month, when they felt like it, but they could at least man the walls which was all they really needed to do anyway. Once again, the raiders landed their ships south of the city and swarmed out to pillage the countryside. Farmers fled to safety inside the Roman walls, and the city sent messengers north and south to call for help.
The plan was simply to hide behind the Vitelian walls and wait for either the attackers to leave, or for help to arrive. But that plan was strained when it became clear just how huge the attacking force was. The Danes set about construction of siege weapons, and made it quite clear that they were there to stay. The pope sent out emissaries trying to bribe the Danes to leave, but these offers were refused, as the pope could not offer enough treasure to satisfy them.
Ditches were dug around the city, and catapults and mangonels were put into place to bombard Rome, while the ground before the walls was flattened to allow the siege towers forward. On June 7 the Danes made a massive effort against the city. This attack was repelled with heavy losses. During this fighting the pope himself grabbed a spear and heroically led the defense of one of the cities gates after Danish forces succeeded in achieving a foothold on the nearby wall. If you are ever in Rome you can see the famous painting by the Frankian artist Gabriel Couture depicting the pope in battle. Its probably a load of nonsense, but the painting itself is amazing so you should go see it if you are ever in the Eternal City.
Over the course of June the Danes tried twice more to take the city, but each time were thrown back by the defenders. But on the second of July the Danish forces successfully overran the Porta Sanctus Pancratti, and then the entire city west of the Tiber, including the Vatican. In the subsequent destruction the basilica of Saint Peter was burned, the holy relics destroyed, and the treasures looted. The tomb of Saint Peter himself was wrecked. Aric is said to have sworn an oath to sacrifice pope in his own basilica to avenge Christian destruction of pagan sites in northern Europe. In desperation the defenders retreated, tearing down the bridges behind them to prevent the Danes crossing. This was of little matter to the raiders however, who brought their ships up and prepared to sack the entire city. Their initial strikes against the Seven Hills however were thrown back.
Word of the siege meanwhile had flown up and down the Italian peninsula, and then on to Constantinople, where Constantine did actually respond pretty quickly. He ordered the Tagmata to gather at the capital and ready themselves to travel to Italy. He then sent messengers out to Moesia, Anatolia, and Greece ordering soldiers to be sent to the Capital. In total Constantine gathered about twenty-five thousand men. The fifteen thousand strong Tagmata and ten thousand infantry. These soldiers were ferried over to Italy on a large fleet of merchant vessels, landing at Tarentum in early-July 879. They gathered more soldiers from southern Italy, and began marching north.
Meanwhile the Imperial fleet had been dispatched and swept around Italy, and successfully blockaded the entrance to the Tiber. The Danes were trapped. Word of the Imperial army’s arrival was greeted with some hesitation by the Danes, who weren’t actually expecting a significant response yet. But as August began the Imperial army emerged on the Via Appia, and the Danes were forced to leave Rome and move south to meet them. Aric led his men personally, while the Romans were led by a eunuch named Paulos.
The two forces met south of Aricia, among a set of hills. The Danes formed into their standard formation of a shieldwall, against which the Romans deployed ten thousand infantry in a phalanx between two hill. Paulos also deployed three thousand cavalry on each flank, on the two hills. They were slightly outnumbered by the Danes with their eighteen thousand remaining men, against this force, and planned to smash through the Roman phalanx and annihilate their army.
As the Danish shield wall advanced on the Roman phalanx this force was held in reserve, while the Danish line was pelted with darts and arrows from the Roman lines. These were returned of course, and soon the two lines were engaged in the a match to try and push through one another’s lines.
Realistically the Danes were the superior force here, and had these two armies been alone they probably would have won the day. But Paulos didn’t have six thousand cavalry. He had fifteen thousand. His nine thousand remaining horsemen were concealed behind the nearby hills, and a signal was sent out for them to move forward. The hidden Roman cavalry, as well as five thousand light infantry, circled behind the Danish shieldwall, and suddenly emerged from hiding, loosing their own darts and arrows into the rear of the Danish line. As the Danes tried to turn to meet this new threat the Roman cavalry lowered their spears and charged. Panic swept through the Danish ranks as they realized the trap, and men began to flee back north. In the subsequent slaughter twelve thousand Danes were killed, and four thousand taken prisoner. Only about two thousand made it back to their boats and fled back down the Tiber.
But as the Tiber’s mouth they were met by the Imperial fleet. In the subsequent naval battle another eighteen hundred Danes were killed. Of the five hundred ships that had set out to sack Rome only eight returned home. The captured Danes were brought back to Constantinople, where they were forced to kneel before the Emperor, who was impressed with their abilities, and ordered them to serve as solders for a term of ten years before they would be allowed to depart the Empire. Thus, quite accidentally, the Pedinoi Tagma was established. This would be the first proper infantry segment of the Tagmata. The Danes who initially had been conscripted would largely remain in Imperial service the rest of their lives, passing positions on to their children when these men converted to Christianity over the coming years, and settled inside the Empire.
But far more famously, the Pedinoi Tagma would draw in soldiers from across the north, particularly the Rus who eventually put limitations on the number of men who could travel south to seek Imperial service. The Pedinoi Tagma would be a key part of the later Imperial army, though it was sadly destroyed at Tanais along with the rest of the Tagmata when the Emperor Nikephorus III, last of his dynasty, marched out to meet his doom.
Back in Italy meanwhile the citizens of Rome tried to pick up the pieces of their devastated city. Raids would continue, but nothing of similar scale would ever be attempted again. Invoking full Imperial wrath was not something another Danish leader would attempt. Especially not when the far easier fields of Saxeland were ripe for the taking.
Next time we will be turning south, to focus on the other big problem that cropped up during the second Pax Romana, the Nubians. But moving forward to the 890s requires saying farewell to our current Emperor. So, in 893 Consantine V suffered a stroke and died. He was sixty years old, and had been Emperor for thirty-two years. Constantine V, as I hope I’ve made clear was a complete non-entity during his reign. He did some decent construction work, brought about a revitalization of culture and education in the Empire, and even financed major art projects. But in his actual jobs as ruler he was woefully inadequate. The structural problems that would plague the Empire until Manuel went to work with the executioner’s axe really started in the reign of Constantine, and any hope of nipping the problem in the bud was lost when he just couldn’t be bothered.
The Imperial army was in decline, Imperial finances were in decline, and central authority was in decline.
Frankly, the best thing Constantine did for the Empire was die before a major crisis that couldn’t be solved by pointing a better man at the problem and then hoping it went away happened. His son, Alexios I will turn out to be a far more capable ruler than his father, but sadly will spend his entire reign focused on pressing military issues rather than working on the real problems of the state.