Editing Theme (Byzantine district) (section)

===Background===
During the late 6th and early 7th centuries, the [[Byzantine Empire]] was under frequent attack from all sides. The [[Sassanid Empire]] was pressing from the east on [[Syria (region)|Syria]], [[Egypt]], and [[Anatolia]]. [[Early Slavs|Slavs]] and [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]] raided Thrace, Macedonia, Illyricum, and southern Greece and settled in the [[Balkans]]. The [[Lombards]] occupied northern [[Italy]], largely unopposed. In order to face the mounting pressure, in the more distant provinces of the West, recently regained by [[Justinian I]] (r. 527–565), Emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]] (r. 582–602) combined supreme civil and military authority in the person of an ''[[exarch]]'', a [[viceroy]], forming the exarchates of [[Exarchate of Ravenna|Ravenna]] and [[Exarchate of Africa|Africa]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Bréhier|2000|pp=98–101}}</ref> These developments overturned the strict division of civil and military offices, which had been one of the cornerstones of the reforms of [[Diocletian]] (r. 284–305). Said administrative restructurings also found a precedent in Justinian's broad reorganization in the western conquests, denoting combined powers to the newly established [[Praetorian prefecture of Africa|Praetorian prefects of Africa]] (''Eparchos tes Afrikís'') and [[Praetorian prefecture of Italy|Italy]] (''Eparchos tes Italías'') respectively.<ref>{{Harvnb|Haldon|1990|p=210}}</ref>

Justinian also endowed governors (''eparchs'', ''stratelates'') of the eastern provinces plagued by brigandage and foreign invasions with military and administrative powers, formally abolishing the empire's [[Roman diocese|dioceses]], Diocletian's main administrative structure, but more importantly, he had also created the exceptional combined military-civilian circumscription of the {{Lang|la|[[quaestura exercitus]]}} and following the norm, abolished the [[Diocese of Egypt (Late Antiquity)|Diocese of Egypt]]  putting a {{Lang|la|[[dux]]}} (Greek: ''[[stratelates]]'') with combined authority at the head of each of its old provinces instead.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bréhier|2000|pp=93–98}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=BURY. |first=J.B |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1193333944 |title=HISTORY OF THE LATER ROMAN EMPIRE from the death of theodosius i to the death of justinian. |date=2018 |publisher=CHARLES RIVER EDITORS |isbn=978-1-61430-462-3 |oclc=1193333944}}</ref> The empire maintained this precedent structure until the 640s, when the eastern part of the Empire faced the [[Early Muslim conquests|onslaught]] of the Muslim [[Caliphate]]. The rapid Muslim conquest of Syria and Egypt and consequent Byzantine losses in manpower and territory meant that the Empire found itself struggling for survival.

In order to respond to this unprecedented crisis, the Empire was drastically reorganized. As established by [[Hellenistic kingdoms|Hellenistic political practice]], [[Hellenistic philosophy|philosophies]] and [[Orthodoxy|Orthodox doctrines]], power had been concentrated in military leaders ''[[Strategos|strategoi]]'' who acted as [[viceroy]]s in their respective "''théma''", being appointed by the emperor alone. Their main function around each was the collection of taxes from the different communities "''chora''", "''komai''" and from the different states "''proasteion''" as well as the management of fast and flexible provincial armies.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Heather |first1=Peter |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/978-0-85323-106-6 |title=Politics, Philosophy, and Empire in the Fourth Century |last2=Moncur |first2=David |date=January 2001 |publisher=Liverpool University Press |isbn=978-0-85323-106-6 |location=Liverpool|doi=10.3828/978-0-85323-106-6 |doi-broken-date=2024-11-11 }}</ref> The remaining imperial territory in [[Asia Minor]] was divided into four large themes, and although some elements of the earlier civil administration survived, they were subordinated to the governing general or {{Lang|la|[[stratēgos]]}}.<ref name="ODB2035">{{Harvnb|Kazhdan|1991|p=2035}}</ref>