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Byzantine - Justin I - Emperor: July 10, 518 A.D. - August
1, 527 A.D. -
Bronze Follis 32mm (13.20 grams) Constantinople mint: 518-527 A.D.
Reference: Sear 62
D . N . IVSTINVS PP . AVG . - Diademed draped and cuirassed bust right.
Large M between two stars; above, cross; beneath, officina letter, in exergue,
CON.
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item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime
Guarantee of Authenticity.
Flavius Iustinus (c. 450 – August 1, 527), known in English as
Justin I, was a
Byzantine Emperor (518–527), who rose through the ranks of the Byzantine
army and ultimately became its emperor, in spite of the fact he was illiterate
and almost 70 years old at the time of accession. His reign is significant for
the founding of the
Justinian Dynasty
that included his eminent nephew
Justinian
I and for the enactment of
laws that de-emphasized the influence of the old Byzantine nobility. His
consort was Empress
Euphemia.
Early
career
Justin was a peasant and a swineherd by occupation from the
Latinophone
region of
Dardania, which is part of the province of
Illyricum. He was born in a
hamlet near
Bederiana in
Naissus (modern Niš,
South Serbia).
He was of
Thraco-Roman
stock, and who bore, like his companions and members of his family (Zimarchus,
Dityvistus, Boraides, Bigleniza, Sabatius, etc.) a Thracian name, and who never
learned to speak more than rudimentary Greek. His sister Vigilantia (b. ca 455)
married Sabbatius and had three children:
Vigilantia
(b. ca 490), married to Dulcissimus and had
Praejecta
(b. ca 520), married to
Artabanos (ca 515 - aft. 554), a
Magister Militum of
Armenian
origin, and
Justin II (b. ca 520);
Justinian
I; and a son (b. ca 485) who was the father of
General
Germanus Justinus.
As a teenager, he and two companions fled from a barbaric invasion, taking
refuge in
Constantinople possessing nothing more than barefeet, the ragged clothes on
their backs and a sack of bread between them. Justin soon joined the army and,
because of his ability, rose through the ranks to become a general and commander
of the palace guard under the Emperor
Anastasius I decades later. He held the rank of
comes excubitorum at one time.
Emperor
Thanks to his position commanding the only troops in the city and making
gifts of money, Justin was able to secure election as emperor in 518.
A career soldier with little knowledge of statecraft, Justin wisely
surrounded himself with trusted advisors. The most prominent of these, of
course, was his nephew Flavius Petrus Sabbatius, whom he adopted as his son and
invested with the name Iustinianus (Justinian).
Relying upon the accounts of the historian
Procopius,
it often has been said that Justinian ruled the empire in his uncle's name
during the reign of Justin, however, there is much evidence to the contrary. The
information from the
Secret History of Procopius was published posthumously. Critics of Procopius
(whose work reveals a man seriously disillusioned with his rulers) have
dismissed his work as a severely biased source, being vitriolic and
pornographic, but without other sources, critics have been unable to discredit
some of the assertions in the publication. However, contrary to the secret
history, Justinian was not named as successor until less than a year before
Justin's death and he spent 3,700 pounds of gold during a celebration in 520.
In 525, Justin repealed a law that effectively prohibited a member of the
senatorial class from marrying a woman from a lower class of society, including
the theatre, which was considered scandalous at the time. This edict paved the
way for Justinian to marry
Theodora, a former
mime actress, and
eventually resulted in a major change to the old class distinctions at the
Imperial court. She became an equal to Justinian, participating in the
governance with significant influence.
Later
years
The latter years of the reign of Justin were marked by strife among the
empire, the
Ostrogoths, and the
Persians. In 526, Justin's health began to decline and he formally named
Justinian as co-emperor and, on April 1, 527 as his successor. On August 1 of
that year, Justin died and was succeeded by
Justinian.
Legacy
The town of
Anazarbus
was re-named Justinopolis in 525, in honour of Justin I. |
