Editing Heraclius

{{Short description|Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641}}
{{Other uses}}
{{distinguish|Heraclitus|Heracles}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Heraclius
| image        = Heraclius solidus.jpg
| caption      = ''[[Solidus (coin)|Solidus]]'' of Heraclius aged 35–38, struck in [[Constantinople]] between 610 and 613
| succession   = [[Roman emperor]]
| reign        = 5 October 610&nbsp;–<br />11 February 641
| predecessor  = [[Phocas]]
| successor    = {{ubl
 | [[Heraclius Constantine]]
 | [[Heraclonas]]
}}
| spouse       = {{ubl
 | [[Fabia Eudokia|Eudokia]]
 | [[Martina (empress)|Martina]]
}}
| issue        = {{ubl
 | [[Eudoxia Epiphania]]
 | Heraclius Constantine
 | Heraclonas
 | [[John Athalarichos]] (illegitimate)
}}
| dynasty      = [[Heraclian]]
| regnal name  = {{langx|la|[[Imperator]] [[Caesar (title)|Caesar]] [[Flavius]] Heraclius [[Augustus (title)|Augustus]]}}<br />{{langx|grc|Αὐτοκράτωρ καῖσαρ Φλάβιος Ἡράκλειος αὐγουστος}}{{efn|His full imperial titulature is attested in Greek as {{lang|grc|Αὐτοκράτωρ καῖσαρ φλάβιος ἡράκλειος πιστὸς ἐν χριστῷ ἡμερότατος μέγιστος εὐεργέτης εἰρηνικὸς ἀλαμαννικὸς γοτθικὸς φραγγικὸς γερμανικὸς ἀντικὸς ἀλανικὸς οὐανδαλικὸς ἀφρικανὸς ἐρουλικὸς γηπεδικὸς εὐσεβὴς εὐτυχὴς ἔνδοξος νικητὴς τροπαιοῦχος ἀεισέβαστος αὔγουστος}} ("Emperor Caesar Flavius Heraclius, faithful in Christ, most mild, greatest benefactor, peaceable; [[victory title|victor over]] the [[Alamanni]], [[Goths]], [[Franks]], [[ancient Germans|Germans]], [[Antes people|Antes]], [[Alans]], [[Vandals]], [[Vandalic War|Africans]]; pious, fortunate, renowned, victorious and triumphant, ever-venerable augustus").{{sfn|Lingenthal|1857|pp=33-34}} Those exact victory titles were used by [[Justinian I]] and his successors.}}
| father       = [[Heraclius the Elder]]
| mother       = Epiphania
| religion     = [[Chalcedonian Christianity]]<br/>[[Monothelitism]]
| birth_date   = {{circa|575}}{{sfnm|Treadgold|1997|1p=308|Kazhdan|1991b|2p=916}}
| birth_place  = [[Cappadocia]], Byzantine Empire
| death_date   = 11 February 641 (aged 65)
| death_place  = [[Constantinople]], Byzantine Empire
| title        = [[List of Byzantine emperors|Emperor of the Romans]]
| reg-type     = {{nowrap|Co-emperors}}
| regent       = {{ubl
 | Heraclius Constantine (613–641)
 | Heraclonas (638–641)
}}
}}
{{Heraclian dynasty}}

'''Heraclius''' ({{langx|grc|Ἡράκλειος|Hērákleios}}; {{Circa|575}}{{snd}}11 February 641) was [[Byzantine emperor]] from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, [[Heraclius the Elder]], the [[Exarch of Africa]], led a revolt against the unpopular emperor [[Phocas]].

Heraclius's reign was marked by several military campaigns. The year Heraclius came to power, the empire was threatened on multiple frontiers. Heraclius immediately took charge of the [[Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628]]. The first battles of the campaign ended in defeat for the Byzantines; the Persian army fought their way to the [[Bosphorus]] but [[Constantinople]] was protected by [[Walls of Constantinople|impenetrable walls]] and a strong navy, and Heraclius was able to avoid total defeat. Soon after, he initiated reforms to rebuild and strengthen the military. Heraclius drove the Persians out of [[Asia Minor]] and pushed deep into their territory, defeating them decisively in 627 at the [[Battle of Nineveh (627)|Battle of Nineveh]]. The Persian Shah [[Khosrow II]] was overthrown and executed by his son [[Kavad II]], who soon sued for a peace treaty, agreeing to withdraw from all occupied territory. This way peaceful relations were restored to the two deeply strained empires.

Heraclius [[Early Muslim conquests|soon lost]] many of his newly regained lands to the [[Rashidun Caliphate]]. Emerging from the [[Arabian Peninsula]], the Arabs quickly conquered the [[Sasanian Empire]]. In 636, the Arabs marched into [[Roman Syria]], defeating Heraclius's brother [[Theodore (brother of Heraclius)|Theodore]].<!-- Heraclius's brother Theodore and Theodore Trithyrius are separate people--> Within a short period of time, the Arabs conquered [[Mesopotamia]], [[United Armenia|Armenia]] and [[Diocese of Egypt (Late Antiquity)|Egypt]]. Heraclius responded with reforms which allowed his successors to combat the Arabs and avoid total destruction.

Heraclius entered diplomatic relations with the [[Croats]] and [[Serbs]] in the [[Balkans]]. He tried to repair the schism in the Christian church in regard to the [[non-Chalcedonians]], by promoting a compromise doctrine called [[monothelitism]]. The [[Church of the East]] (commonly called Nestorian) was also involved in the process.{{sfn|Seleznev|2012}} Eventually, this project of unity was rejected by all sides of the dispute.

== Origins ==
Heraclius was the eldest son of [[Heraclius the Elder]], who is almost universally recognized as being of [[Armenians|Armenian]] origin.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|pp=21–22}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Evans |first=Helen C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ezNtDwAAQBAJ |title=Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages |date=2018 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |isbn=978-1-58839-660-0 |page=34}}</ref>{{efn|His father is referred to retrospectively as [[Heraclius the Elder]]}} His mother, Epiphania, was probably of [[Cappadocian]] origin.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=36}} [[Walter Kaegi]] considers Heraclius' Armenian origin "probable" and speculates that he was presumably "bilingual (Armenian and Greek) from an early age, but even this is uncertain".{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|pp=21–22}} According to  the 7th century Armenian historian [[Sebeos]], Heraclius was related to the [[Arsacid dynasty of Armenia]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vasiliev |first1=Alexander A. |author-link1=Alexander Vasiliev (historian) |title=History of the Byzantine Empire, 324–1453 |date=1958 |publisher=[[University of Wisconsin Press]] |isbn=978-0-299-80925-6 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=EXiWAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA193]}}</ref> [[Elizabeth Redgate]] considers his Armenian origin likely.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Redgate |first=Anne Elizabeth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RriWQgAACAAJ |title=Armenians |year=2000 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-631-14372-7 |page=237}}</ref> [[Anthony Kaldellis]] argues that there is no primary source that says that Heraclius [the Elder] was an Armenian and that the assertion is based on an erroneous reading of [[Theophylact Simocatta]]. In a letter, [[Priscus (magister militum)|Priscus]], a general who had replaced Heraclius the Elder, wrote to him "to leave the army and return to his own city in Armenia". Kaldellis interprets it as the command headquarters of Heraclius the Elder, and not his hometown.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kaldellis |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ASyFDwAAQBAJ |title=Romanland: Ethnicity and Empire in Byzantium |date=2019 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-98651-0 |page=183}}</ref> Beyond that, there is little specific information known about his origin. His father was a general during Emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice's]] war with Shah [[Bahram Chobin]], usurper of the [[Sasanian Empire]], during 590.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|pp=24–25}} After the war, Maurice appointed Heraclius the Elder to the position of [[Exarch]] of [[Byzantine North Africa|Africa]].{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=24}}

== Early life ==
=== Revolt against Phocas and accession ===
{{Main|Heraclian revolt}}
[[File:Revolt of the Heraclii solidus.jpg|thumb|left|Gold ''[[solidus (coin)|solidus]]'' of Heraclius and his father in consular robes, struck during their revolt against Phocas]]
In 608, Heraclius the Elder renounced his loyalty to the Emperor [[Phocas]], who had overthrown Maurice six years earlier. The rebels issued coins showing both Heraclii dressed as [[hypatos]], though neither of them explicitly claimed the imperial title at this time.{{sfn|Mitchell|2007|p=411}} Heraclius's younger cousin [[Nicetas (cousin of Heraclius)|Nicetas]] launched an overland invasion of [[Aegyptus (Roman province)|Egypt]]; by 609, he had defeated Phocas's general [[Bonus (Sirmium)|Bonosus]] and secured the province. Meanwhile, the younger Heraclius sailed eastward with another force via [[Sicily]] and [[Cyprus]].{{sfn|Mitchell|2007|p=411}}

As he approached [[Constantinople]], he made contact with prominent leaders and planned an attack to overthrow [[aristocrats]] in the city. When he reached the capital, the [[Excubitors]], an elite Imperial Guard unit led by Phocas's son-in-law [[Priscus (magister militum)|Priscus]], deserted to Heraclius, and he entered the city without serious resistance. When Heraclius captured Phocas, he asked him "Is this how you have ruled, wretch?" Phocas's reply—"And will you rule better?"—so enraged Heraclius that he beheaded Phocas on the spot.{{sfn|Olster|1993|p=133}} He later had the genitalia removed from the body because Phocas had raped the wife of Photius, a powerful politician in the city.{{sfn|Charles|2007|p=177}}

On 5 October 610, Heraclius [[Coronation of the Byzantine emperor|was crowned]] in the Chapel of St. Stephen within the [[Great Palace]].<ref>''[[Chronicon Paschale]]'' [[iarchive:chronicon-p/page/150/mode/1up|610]]. Heraclius arrived on 3 October, a Saturday. However, the chronicle later states that he entered the city on 6 October, "a Monday". The 5th is clearly intended.</ref> He then married [[Fabia Eudokia|Fabia, who took the name Eudokia]]. After her death in 612, he married his niece [[Martina (empress)|Martina]] in 613; this second marriage was considered [[incest]]uous and was very unpopular.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=106}} In the reign of Heraclius's two sons, the divisive Martina was to become the center of power and political intrigue. Despite widespread hatred for Martina in Constantinople, Heraclius took her on campaigns with him and refused attempts by [[Patriarch]] Sergius to prevent and later dissolve the marriage.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=106}}

== Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 ==

=== Initial Persian advantage ===
{{See also|Byzantine–Sasanian wars|Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628}}
During his [[Maurice's Balkan campaigns|Balkan campaigns]], Emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]] and his family were murdered by [[Phocas]] in November 602 after a mutiny.{{sfn|Gibbon|1994|loc=chap.&nbsp;46, ii.902}} [[Khosrow II]] of the [[Sasanian Empire]] had been restored to his throne by Maurice, and they had remained allies until the latter's death. Thereafter, Khosrow seized the opportunity to attack the Byzantine Empire and reconquer [[Mesopotamia]].{{sfn|Foss|1975|p=722}} Khosrow had at his court a man who claimed to be Maurice's son [[Theodosius (son of Maurice)|Theodosius]], and Khosrow demanded that the Byzantines accept this Theodosius as emperor.

[[File:Heraclius 613-616.jpg|thumb|Heraclius in 613–616 (aged 38–41) with his son [[Heraclius Constantine]]]]

The war initially went the Persians' way, partly because of Phocas's brutal repression and the succession crisis that ensued as the general Heraclius sent his nephew [[Nicetas (cousin of Heraclius)|Nicetas]] to attack [[Egypt]], enabling his son Heraclius the younger to claim the throne in 610.{{sfn|Gibbon|1994|loc=ii.906}} Phocas, an unpopular ruler who is invariably described in historical sources as a "[[tyrant]]" (in its original meaning of the word, i.e. illegitimate king by the rules of succession), was eventually deposed by Heraclius, who sailed to Constantinople from [[Carthage]] with an icon affixed to the prow of his ship.{{sfn|Haldon|1997|p=41}}{{sfn|Speck|1984|p=178}}

By this time, the Persians had conquered Mesopotamia and the [[Caucasus]], and in 611 they overran Syria and entered Anatolia. A major counter-attack led by Heraclius two years later was decisively defeated outside [[Antioch]] by [[Shahrbaraz]] and [[Shahin Vahmanzadegan|Shahin]], and the Roman position collapsed; the Persians devastated parts of Asia Minor and captured [[Chalcedon]] across from Constantinople on the [[Bosporus]].{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|pp=194–195}}

Over the following decade the Persians were able to conquer [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]] and Egypt (by mid-621, the whole province was in their hands){{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=196}} and to devastate Anatolia,{{efn|The mint of [[Nicomedia]] ceased operating in 613, and [[Rhodes]] fell to the invaders in 622/623.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=197}}}} while the [[Avars (Carpathians)|Avars]] and [[Slavs]] took advantage of the situation to overrun the [[Balkans]], bringing the Empire to the brink of destruction. In 613, the Persian army took [[Damascus]] with [[Jewish revolt against Heraclius|the help of the Jews]], seized [[Jerusalem]] in 614, damaging the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] and capturing the [[True Cross]], and afterwards capturing [[Sasanian conquest of Egypt|Egypt]] in 617 or 618.{{sfn|Gibbon|1994|loc=ii.908–909}} When the Sasanians reached [[Chalcedon]] in 615, it was at this point, according to [[Sebeos]], that Heraclius had agreed to stand down and was about ready to allow the Byzantine Empire to become a Persian [[client state]], even permitting Khosrow II to choose the emperor.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2017|p=141}} In a letter delivered by his ambassadors, Heraclius acknowledged the Persian empire as superior, described himself as Khosrow II's "obedient son, one who is eager to perform the services of your serenity in all things", and even called Khosrow II the "supreme emperor".{{sfn|Fidler|2018|p=159}} Khosrow II nevertheless rejected the peace offer, and arrested Heraclius' ambassadors.{{sfn|Fidler|2018|p=159}}

With the Persians at the very gate of Constantinople, Heraclius thought of abandoning the city and moving the capital to Carthage, but the powerful church figure [[Sergius I of Constantinople|Patriarch Sergius]] convinced him to stay. Safe behind the walls of Constantinople, Heraclius was able to sue for peace in exchange for an annual tribute of a thousand talents of gold, a thousand talents of silver, a thousand silk robes, a thousand horses, and a thousand virgins to the Persian King.{{sfn|Gibbon|1994|loc=chap.&nbsp;46, ii.914a}}{{Better source needed|date=February 2025}} The peace allowed him to rebuild the Empire's army by slashing non-military expenditure, devaluing the currency, and melting down, with the backing of Patriarch Sergius, Church treasures to raise the necessary funds to continue the war.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=198}}

=== Byzantine counter-offensive and resurgence ===
On 4 April 622, Heraclius left Constantinople, entrusting the city to Sergius and general [[Bonus (patrician)|Bonus]] as regents of his son. He assembled his forces in Asia Minor, probably in [[Bithynia]], and, after he revived their broken morale, he launched a new counter-offensive, which took on the character of a holy war; an [[acheiropoietos]] image of Christ was carried as a military standard.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=198}}{{sfn|Theophanes|1997|pp=303.12–304.13}}{{sfn|Cameron|1979|p=23}}{{sfn|Grabar|1984|p=37}}

[[File:Cherub plaque Louvre MRR245.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.36|[[Cherub]] and Heraclius receiving the submission of Khosrow II; plaque from a cross ([[Champlevé]] [[Vitreous enamel|enamel]] over gilt copper, 1160–1170, [[Paris]], [[Louvre]]). This is an [[allegory]] as Khosrow never submitted in person.|alt=Medieval style portrait of [[Cherub]] and Heraclius receiving the submission of Khosrow II; plaque from a cross ([[Champlevé]] [[Vitreous enamel|enamel]] over gilt copper).]]

The Roman army proceeded to Armenia, inflicted a defeat on an army led by a Persian-allied Arab chief, and then won a victory over the Persians under Shahrbaraz.{{sfn|Treadgold|1997|p=294}} Heraclius would stay on campaign for several years.{{sfn|Theophanes|1997|pp=304.25–306.7}}{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=199}} On 25 March 624,<ref>''[[Chronicon Paschale]]'' [https://archive.org/details/chronicon-p/page/166 624].</ref> he again left Constantinople with his wife, [[Martina (empress)|Martina]], and his two children; after he celebrated [[Easter]] in Nicomedia on 15 April, he campaigned in the Caucasus, winning a series of victories in Armenia against Khosrow and his generals Shahrbaraz, Shahin, and [[Shahraplakan]].{{sfn|Theophanes|1997|pp=307.19–308.25}}{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|pp=202–205}} In the same year the [[Visigoths]] succeeded in recapturing [[Cartagena, Spain|Cartagena]], capital of the western Byzantine province of [[Spania]], resulting in the loss of one of the few minor provinces that had been conquered by the armies of [[Justinian&nbsp;I]].{{sfn|Hitchner|1991|loc=[https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195046526.001.0001/acref-9780195046526-e-0916?rskey=hEJqvS&result=901 "Cartagena"]|p=384}} In 626 the Avars and Slavs supported by a Persian army commanded by Shahrbaraz, [[Siege of Constantinople (626)|besieged Constantinople]], but the siege ended in failure (the victory was attributed to the icons of the Virgin which were led in procession by Sergius about the walls of the city),{{sfn|Cameron|1979|pp=5–6, 20–22}} while a second Persian army under Shahin suffered another crushing defeat at the hands of Heraclius's brother Theodore.
[[File:43-manasses-chronicle.jpg|thumb|Heraclius (center) venerating the icon of Mary before campaigning against the Persians. Scene from the 12th century [[Manasses Chronicle]].]]
With the Persian war effort disintegrating, Heraclius was able to bring the [[Gokturks]] of the [[Western Turkic Khaganate]], under [[Ziebel]], who [[Perso-Turkic war of 627–629|invaded Persian Transcaucasia]]. Heraclius exploited divisions within the Persian Empire, keeping Shahrbaraz neutral by convincing him that Khosrow had grown jealous of him and had ordered his execution. Late in 627 he launched a winter offensive into Mesopotamia, where, despite the desertion of his Turkish allies, he defeated the Persians under [[Rhahzadh]] at the [[Battle of Nineveh (627)|Battle of Nineveh]].{{sfn|Treadgold|1997|p=298}} Continuing south along the Tigris he sacked Khosrow's great palace at [[Dastagird]] and was only prevented from attacking Ctesiphon by the destruction of the bridges on the Nahrawan Canal. Discredited by this series of disasters, Khosrow was overthrown and killed in a coup led by his son [[Kavad II]], who at once sued for peace, agreeing to withdraw from all occupied territories.{{sfn|Baynes|1912|p=288}} In 629 Heraclius restored the [[True Cross]] to [[Jerusalem]] in a majestic ceremony.{{sfn|Speck|1984|p=178}}{{sfn|Baynes|1912|p=288}}{{sfn|Haldon|1997|p=46}}

Heraclius took for himself the ancient Persian title of "[[King of Kings]]" after his victory. Later on, starting in 629, he styled himself as ''[[Basileus]]'', the Greek word for "sovereign", and that title was used by the Byzantine emperors for the next 800 years. The reason Heraclius chose this title over previous Roman terms such as [[Augustus (honorific)|''Augustus'']] has been attributed by some scholars to his [[Armenians|Armenian]] origins.{{sfn|Kouymjian|1983|pp=635–642}}

Heraclius's defeat of the Persians ended a war that had been going on intermittently for almost 400 years and led to instability in the Persian Empire. [[Kavad II]] died only months after assuming the throne, plunging Persia into several years of dynastic turmoil and civil war. [[Ardashir III]], Heraclius's ally [[Shahrbaraz]], and Khosrow's daughters [[Boran]] and [[Azarmidokht]] all succeeded to the throne within months of each other. Only when [[Yazdegerd III]], a grandson of Khosrow II, succeeded to the throne in 632 was there stability. But by then the Sasanid Empire was severely disorganised, having been weakened by [[Sasanian civil war of 628–632|years of war and civil strife]] over the succession to the throne.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=227}}{{sfn|Beckwith|2009|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=uLARyWXlhDYC&pg=PA121 121]}}
The war had been devastating, and left the Byzantines in a much-weakened state. Within a few years both empires were overwhelmed by the onslaught of the Arabs,{{sfn|Foss|1975|pp=746–747}} ultimately leading to the [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Arab conquest of Persia]] and the [[Fall of the Sasanian Empire|fall of the Sasanian dynasty]] in 651.{{sfn|Milani|2004|p=15}}

== Byzantine–Arab wars ==
{{Main|Arab–Byzantine wars|List of battles of Muhammad}}
[[File:Muslim-Byzantine troop movement (635-636).svg|thumb|Arab-Byzantine troop movement from September 635 to just before the event of the Battle of the Yarmouk|alt=A map with Muslim-Byzantine troop movements from September 365 to just before the event of the Battle of the Yarmouk]]
By 630, the Arabs had unified all the tribes of the [[Hijaz]], previously too divided to pose a serious military challenge to the Byzantines or the Persians. They composed one of the most powerful states in the region.{{sfn|Lewis|2002|pp=43–44}} The first conflict between the Byzantines and the Arabs was the [[Battle of Mu'tah]] in September 629. A small Arabs skirmishing force attacked the province of [[Arabia Petraea|Arabia]] in response to the Arab ambassador's death at the hands of the [[Ghassanid]] Roman governor, but were repulsed. Since the engagement was a Byzantine victory, there was no apparent reason to make changes to the military organization of the region.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=231}} The Roman military wasn't accustomed to fighting Arab armies at scale, much like the Islamic forces of Hijaz who had no prior experience in their engagements against the Romans. Even the [[Strategicon of Maurice]], a [[Byzantine military manuals|manual of war]] praised for the variety of enemies it covers, does not mention warfare against [[Arabs]] at any length.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=230}} The religious zeal of the Arab army, which was a recent development following the [[rise of Islam]], ultimately contributed to the latter's success in its campaigns against the Romans.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=230}}

The following year, the Arabs launched an offensive into the [[Arabah]] south of [[Lake Tiberias]], taking [[al-Karak]]. Other raids penetrated into the [[Negev]], reaching as far as [[Gaza City|Gaza]].{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=233}} The [[Battle of Yarmouk]] in 636 resulted in a crushing defeat for the larger Byzantine army; within three years, the [[Levant]] had been lost again. Heraclius died of an illness on 11 February 641;{{efn|This is the date as given by the calculations of [[Nikephoros I of Constantinople]] (758–828): "So he died of this (disease) at the age of sixty-six after a reign of thirty years, four months, and six days".{{sfn|Nicephorus|1990|p=77}} Other authors give only the month.<ref>[[John of Nikiû]], [https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/nikiu2_chronicle.htm ''Chronicle'' CXVI:] "Heraclius fell ill with fever, and died in the thirty-first year of his reign in the month Yakâtît of the Egyptians, that is, February of the Roman months."</ref><ref>[[Theophanes Confessor]], [https://archive.org/details/chronicle-of-theophanes-the-confessor/page/474/mode/1up AM 6132]: "In the month of March, indiction 14, the emperor Herakleios died of dropsy after a reign of 30 years and 10 months."</ref> The 13th century ''[[Chronicon Altinate]]'' gives 11 January, a date that could be accepted if not for the corrupted and erroneous dates in the rest of the book.<ref>The [[Chronicon Altinate]] [http://asa.archiviostudiadriatici.it/islandora/object/libria%3A209776 107, 21–25:] "Mense ianuarii, xi die, defunctus est Eraclius imperator in infirmitate briky, hoc est disenteria".</ref>}} and most of Egypt had fallen by that time as well.{{sfn|Franzius}}

== Legacy ==
{{See also|Byzantine Empire under the Heraclian dynasty}}

[[File:Piero della Francesca 021.jpg|thumb|upright=1.36|Battle between Heraclius's army and Persians under [[Khosrow II]]. Fresco by [[Piero della Francesca]], ca. 1452|alt=Idealized painting of a battle between Heraclius's army and Persians under [[Khosrow II]] ca. 1452]]

The territories recovered by his defeat of the Persians were relinquished again in the [[Early Muslim conquests|Arab conquests]]. In the wake of those conquests, Heraclius reorganized the military. Ultimately, the reformed army halted the Arabs in [[Asia Minor]] and held on to [[Carthage]] for another 60 years, saving a core from which the empire's strength could be rebuilt.{{sfn|Collins|2004|p=128}}{{Failed verification|date=January 2025}}

The recovery of the eastern areas of the Roman Empire from the Persians once again raised the problem of religious unity centering on the understanding of the true nature of [[Christ]]. Most of the inhabitants of these provinces were [[Miaphysite]]s who rejected the [[Council of Chalcedon]].{{sfn|Bury|2005|p=251}} Heraclius tried to promote a compromise doctrine called [[Monothelitism]] but this philosophy was rejected as [[heretical]] by both sides of the dispute. For this reason, Heraclius was viewed as a heretic and a bad ruler by some later religious writers. After the Miaphysite provinces were finally lost to the Arabs, Monotheletism rather lost its ''raison d'être'' and was eventually abandoned.{{sfn|Bury|2005|p=251}}{{Failed verification|reason=I could not find this reasoning in the appropriate section in Bury's book.|date=February 2025}}

The [[Croats]] and [[Serbs]] of [[Byzantine Dalmatia]] initiated diplomatic relations and dependencies with Heraclius.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=319}} The Serbs, who briefly lived in Macedonia, became ''[[foederati]]'' and were baptized at the request of Heraclius (before 626).{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=319}}{{sfn|''De Administrando Imperio''|loc=ch.&nbsp;32}}  At his request, [[Pope John IV]] (640–642) sent Christian teachers and missionaries to [[Porga of Croatia|Duke Porga and his Croats]], who practiced [[Slavic paganism]].{{sfn|Deanesly|1969|p=491}} He also created the office of [[sakellarios]], a comptroller of the treasury.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=227}}

Up to the 20th century he was credited with establishing the [[Theme (Byzantine administrative unit)|Thematic system]] but modern scholarship now points more to the 660s, under [[Constans II]].{{sfn|Haldon|1997|pp=208ff}}

[[File:Bernat, Martin Saint Helena & Heraclius taking the Holy Cross to Jerusalem.jpg|thumb|upright|Heraclius returns the True Cross to Jerusalem, anachronistically accompanied by [[Helena of Constantinople|Saint Helena]]. 15th century, Spain|alt=15th century, Spanish, a medieval painting showing Heraclius on a horse returning the True Cross to Jerusalem, anachronistically accompanied by [[Helena of Constantinople|Saint Helena]]]]

[[Edward Gibbon]], in ''[[The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire]]'', wrote:{{sfn|Gibbon|1994|loc=chap.&nbsp;46, ii.914, 918}}
{{blockquote|Of the characters conspicuous in history, that of Heraclius is one of the most extraordinary and inconsistent. In the first and last years of a long reign, the emperor appears to be the slave of sloth, of pleasure, or of superstition, the careless and impotent spectator of the public calamities. But the languid mists of the morning and evening are separated by the brightness of the meridian sun; the Arcadius of the palace arose the Caesar of the camp; and the honor of Rome and Heraclius was gloriously retrieved by the exploits and trophies of six adventurous campaigns. [...] Since the days of [[Scipio Africanus|Scipio]] and [[Hannibal]], no bolder enterprise has been attempted than that which Heraclius achieved for the deliverance of the empire.}}

According to Leo Donald Davis and [[Romilly Jenkins|Romilly James Heald Jenkins]], one of the most important legacies of Heraclius was changing the official language of the Empire from [[Latin]] to Greek.{{efn|[[Han Lamers]], professor of classical philology at the [[University of Oslo]], states, ".. Emperor Heraclius (r. 610–41) who introduced Greek as the official language of the Roman Empire.."{{sfn|Lamers|2015|p=154}}}}{{efn|Eugenia Russell, Lecturer in History at [[St Mary's University, Twickenham]], states it was "..on the initiative of Hercaclius, Greek was replacing Latin as the official language of the Eastern Roman Empire."{{sfn|Russell|2013|p=140}}}}{{sfn|Davis|1990|p=260}}{{sfn|Jenkins|1987|p=24}} Although, Anthony Kaldellis states that Heraclius passed no laws formally implementing Greek as an official language, and that usage of Greek was widespread throughout the Empire.{{sfn|Kaldellis|2008|p=65-67}}

=== Recovery of the True Cross ===
Heraclius was long remembered favourably by the Western church for his reputed recovery of the [[True Cross]] from the Persians. As Heraclius approached the Persian capital during the final stages of the war, Khosrow fled from his favourite residence—Dastagird near [[Baghdad]]—without offering resistance. Meanwhile, some of the Persian grandees freed Khosrow's eldest son [[Kavad II]], who had been imprisoned by his father, and proclaimed him King on the night of 23–24 February, 628.{{sfn|Thomson|Howard-Johnston|Greenwood|1999|p=221}} Kavad, however, was mortally ill and was anxious that Heraclius should protect his infant son Ardeshir. So, as a goodwill gesture, he sent the True Cross with a negotiator in 628.{{sfn|Baynes|1912|p=288}}

After a tour of the Empire, Heraclius returned the cross to [[Jerusalem]] on 21 March 629 or 630.{{sfn|Frolow|1953|pp=88–105}}{{sfn|Zuckerman|2013}} For Christians of Western Medieval Europe, Heraclius was the "first crusader". The iconography of the emperor appeared in the sanctuary at [[Mont Saint-Michel]] ({{Circa|1060}}),{{sfn|Baert|2008|pp=03–20}} and then it became popular, especially in France, the Italian Peninsula, and the Holy Roman Empire.{{sfn|Souza|2015|pp=27–38}} The story was included in the ''[[Golden Legend]]'', the famous 13th-century compendium of hagiography, and he is sometimes shown in art, as in ''[[The History of the True Cross]]'' sequence of [[fresco]]es painted by [[Piero della Francesca]] in [[Arezzo]], and a similar sequence on a small altarpiece by [[Adam Elsheimer]] ([[Städel]], Frankfurt). Both of these show scenes of Heraclius and [[Constantine I]]'s mother [[Helena of Constantinople|Saint Helena]], traditionally responsible for the excavation of the cross. The scene usually shown is Heraclius carrying the cross; according to the ''Golden Legend'', he insisted on doing this as he entered Jerusalem, against the advice of the Patriarch. At first, when he was on horseback (shown above), the burden was too heavy, but after he dismounted and removed his crown it became miraculously light, and the barred city gate opened of its own accord.{{citation needed|date=October 2020}}

Local tradition suggests that the [[Late Antique]] [[Colossus of Barletta]] depicts Heraclius.{{sfn|Kiilerich|2018|p=55}}

Some scholars disagree with this narrative, Professor [[Constantin Zuckerman]] going as far as to suggest that the True Cross was actually lost, and that the wood contained in the allegedly-still-sealed reliquary brought to Jerusalem by Heraclius in 629 was a fake. In his analysis, the hoax was designed to serve the political purposes of both Heraclius and his former foe, the Persian general [[Shahrbaraz]].{{sfn|Zuckerman|2013}}

=== Islamic view of Heraclius ===
{{Coatrack section|date=May 2025|details=Refer to the [[talk:Heraclius#Islamic view of Heraclius - Coatrack|talk page]]}}

[[File:Muhammad-Letter-To-Heraclius.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Purported letter sent by Muhammad to Heraclius, emperor of Byzantium; reproduction taken from
Majid Ali Khan, ''Muhammad The Final Messenger ''Islamic Book Service, New Delhi (1998).]]
[[File:Resalat.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.3|Purported letter sent by Muhammad to Heraclius, emperor of Byzantium; original version of the letter.]]
{{See also|Diplomatic career of Muhammad#Letter to Heraclius of the Byzantine Empire|Ar-Rum}}
In early Islamic and Arab histories, Heraclius is the most popular Roman emperor, who is discussed at length.{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=7}} Owing to his role as Roman emperor at the time Islam emerged, he is remembered in [[Arabic literature]], such as the Islamic [[hadith]] and [[Prophetic biography|sira]]. He is also indirectly mentioned in [[Sura]] [[Ar-Rum]] and his victory against Sassanid empire was prophesied here. In the third and fourth verses, the Muslim community is promised that the Byzantines will reverse their defeat into a victory and retake Jerusalem "in a few years' time".<ref>Abdel Haleem, M. A. 2004. ''The Qurʼan.'' Oxford University Press, 257.{{ISBN?}}</ref>
{{blockquote|{{Cite Quran|30|2 |end=5 |t=[[Laleh Bakhtiar]] |q=The Romans were vanquished in the closer region, and they, after being vanquished, will prevail within a certain number of (from 3 to 9) years. To [[God in Islam|God]] belongs the command before and after. And that day, ones who believe will be glad with the help of God. He helps whom He wills. And He is The Almighty, The Compassionate.}}}}

According to Islamic traditions, a letter was sent from Muhammad to Heraclius, through the Muslim envoy [[Dihyah bin Khalifah al-Kalbi]], although [[Irfan Shahîd|Shahid]] suggests that Heraclius may never have received it.<ref name="isal">Irfan Shahid, [[Arabic literature]] to the end of the [[Umayyad period]], Journal of the [[American Oriental Society]], Vol. 106, No. 3, p. 531</ref> He also advances that more positive sub-narratives surrounding the letter contain little credence. According to Nadia El Cheikh, Arab historians and chroniclers generally did not doubt the authenticity of Heraclius' letter due to the documentation of such letters in the majority of both early and later sources.<ref name="Nadia">Muhammad and Heraclius: A Study in Legitimacy, Nadia Maria El-Cheikh, Studia Islamica, No. 89. (1999), pp. 5–21.</ref> Furthermore, she notes that the formulation and the wordings of different sources are very close and the differences are ones of detail: They concern the date on which the letter was sent and its exact phrasing.<ref name="Nadia" /> [[Muhammad Hamidullah]], an Islamic research scholar, argues for the authenticity of the letter sent to Heraclius, and in a later work reproduces what is claimed to be the original letter.<ref name="Nadia" /><ref>Footnote of the El-Cheikh (1999) reads: "Hamidullah discussed this controversy and tried to prove the authenticity of Heraclius' letter in his "La lettre du Prophete P Heraclius et le sort de I'original: Arabica 2 (1955), pp. 97–1 10, and more recently, in Sir originaw des lettms du prophbte de I'lslam (Paris, 1985), pp. 149.172, in which he reproduces what purports to be the original letter."</ref>

The account as transmitted by [[Muslim historians]] is translated as follows:<ref name="Nadia" />

{{Blockquote|[[Basmala|In the name of God, the Gracious One, the Merciful]]<br />From Muhammad, servant of God and His apostle to Heraclius, premier of the Romans:<br />Peace unto whoever follows the guided path!<br />Thereafter, verily I call you to submit your will to God. Submit your will to God and you will be safe.  God shall compensate your reward two-folds. But if you turn away, then upon you will sins of the peasants.<br />Then "O [[People of the Book|People of the Scripture]], come to a term equitable between us and you that we worship none but God and associate with Him nothing, and we take not one another as Lords apart from God. But if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we peace makers."{{cite quran|3|64}}<br />[[Seal of Muhammad|Seal]]: Muhammad, Apostle of God}}

According to Islamic reports, Muhammad dispatched [[Dihyah al-Kalbi]]<ref name=bukhari>{{cite web |title=Sahih al-Bukhari 2940, 2941 – Fighting for the Cause of Allah (Jihaad) – كتاب الجهاد والسير |url=https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2940 |website=sunnah.com |publisher=Sunnah.com – Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم) |access-date=18 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="al-islam.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.al-islam.org/message/43.htm |title=The Events of the Seventh Year of Migration – The Message |website=www.al-islam.org |publisher=Al-Islam.org |access-date=25 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120805184742/http://www.al-islam.org/message/43.htm |archive-date=5 August 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> to carry the epistle to "[[Caesar (title)|Caesar]]" through the government of [[Bosra]] after the [[Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628|Byzantine defeat of the Persians and reconquest of Jerusalem]].<ref name=sirat2>{{cite book |last1=Guillaume |first1=A. |title=Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah – The Life of Muhammad Translated by A. Guillaume |date=1955 |publisher=Oxford University Press |url=https://archive.org/details/TheLifeOfMohammedGuillaume}}</ref><ref name=mishkat>{{cite web |title=Mishkat al-Masabih 3926 – Jihad – كتاب الجهاد |url=https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3926 |website=sunnah.com |publisher=Sunnah.com – Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم) |access-date=19 August 2021}}</ref><ref name=bukhari /> Islamic sources say that after the letter was read to him, he was so impressed by it that he gifted the messenger of the epistle with robes and coinage.{{sfn|Mubarakpuri|2002|p={{page needed|date=May 2024}}}} Alternatively, he also put it on his lap.<ref name=sirat2 /> He then summoned [[Abu Sufyan ibn Harb]] to his court, at the time an adversary to Muhammad but a signatory to the then-recent [[Treaty of Hudaybiyyah]], who was trading in the [[region of Syria]] at the time. Asked by Heraclius about the man claiming to be a prophet, Abu Sufyan responded, speaking favorably of Muhammad's character and lineage and outlining some directives of Islam. Heraclius was seemingly impressed by what he was told of Muhammad, and felt that Muhammad's claim to prophethood was valid.<ref name="Nadia" /><ref name="bukhariherac">{{Hadith-usc|bukhari|usc=yes|1|1|6}}</ref>{{sfn|Mubarakpuri|2002|p=420}} Later reportedly he wrote to a certain religious official in [[Rome]] to confirm if Muhammad's claim of prophethood was legitimate, and, after receiving the reply to his letter, called the [[Byzantine Senate|Roman assembly]] saying, "If you desire salvation and the orthodox way so that your empire remain firmly established, then follow this prophet," to the rejection of the council.{{sfn|Mubarakpuri|2002|p={{page needed|date=May 2024}}}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Sahih al-Bukhari 7 – Revelation – كتاب بدء الوحى |url=https://sunnah.com/bukhari:7 |website=sunnah.com |publisher=Sunnah.com – Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم) |access-date=19 August 2021}}</ref><ref name=sirat2 /> Heraclius eventually decided against conversion but the envoy was returned to Medina with the felicitations of the emperor.{{sfn|Mubarakpuri|2002|p={{page needed|date=May 2024}}}} Described in [[History of the Prophets and Kings|Tarikh al-Tabari]] that, then Heraclius sent Dehia Kalbi to invite the Christian priest [[:ar:الأسقف صغاطر|Dagatir]], Dagatir converted to Islam and called the people to Islam by witnessing Muhammad as Ahmad described in the Bible. The people of Rome were enraged and immediately beat him to death.<ref>{{cite web |title=DAGĀTIR |url=https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/dagatir |website=TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi |access-date=15 March 2025 |language=tr}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Damla |first1=Nurdan |title=Mencintai Rasulullah - 365 Hari Bersama Nabi Muhammad SAW |date=13 August 2009 |publisher=Gramedia Pustaka Utama |isbn=978-979-22-4853-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OlVJDwAAQBAJ&dq=dagatir&pg=PA365 |access-date=15 March 2025 |language=id}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=AYVALLI |first1=Prof Dr Ramazan |title=My Beloved Prophet: sall-Allâhu 'alaihi wa sallam |date=1 December 2015 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yKATCwAAQBAJ&dq=dagatir&pg=PT223 |language=en}}</ref>

Scholarly historians disagree with this account, arguing that any such messengers would have received neither an imperial audience or recognition, and that there is no evidence outside of Islamic sources suggesting that Heraclius had any knowledge of Islam.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p={{page needed|date=May 2024}}}}

This letter is mentioned in Sahih Al Bukhari.<ref>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2938 {{bare URL inline|date=February 2024}}</ref>

The [[Swahili language|Swahili]] ''[[Utendi wa Tambuka]]'', an [[epic poem]] composed in 1728 at [[Pate Island#Pate Town|Pate]] Island (off the shore of present-day [[Kenya]]) and depicting the wars between the Muslims and Byzantines from the former's point of view, is also known as ''Kyuo kya Hereḳali'' ("The Book of Heraclius"). In that work, Heraclius is portrayed as declining the Prophet's request to renounce his belief in Christianity: he is therefore defeated by the Muslim forces.{{sfn|SOAS|loc=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930165114/http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/perl/Project/showSwahiliItem.pl?ref=MS%2045022a "Scope and content"]}}

In Muslim tradition, he is seen as a just ruler of great piety, who had direct contact with the emerging Islamic forces.{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=9}} The 14th-century scholar [[Ibn Kathir]] (d. 1373) went even further, stating that "Heraclius was one of the wisest men and among the most resolute, shrewd, deep and opinionated of kings. He ruled the Romans with great leadership and splendor."{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=7}} Historians such as Nadia Maria El-Cheikh and [[Lawrence Conrad]] note that Islamic histories even go so far as claiming that Heraclius recognized Islam as the true faith and [[Muhammad]] as its prophet, by comparing Islam to Christianity.{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=12}}{{sfn|Conrad|2002|p=120}}{{sfn|Haykal|1994|p=402}}

Islamic historians often cite a letter in which they claim Heraclius wrote to Muhammad: "I have received your letter with your ambassador and I testify that you are the messenger of God found in our New Testament. Jesus, son of Mary, announced you."{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=9}} According to the Muslim sources reported by El-Cheikh, he tried to convert the ruling class of the Empire, but they resisted so strongly that he reversed course and claimed that he was just testing their faith in Christianity.{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=14}} El-Cheikh notes that these accounts of Heraclius add "little to our historical knowledge" of the emperor; rather, they are an important part of "Islamic [[kerygma]]," attempting to legitimize Muhammad's status as a prophet.{{sfn|El-Cheikh|1999|p=54}}

Most Western academic historians view such traditions as biased and proclamatory and of little historical value.{{sfn|Conrad|2002}} Furthermore, they argue that any messengers sent by Muhammad to Heraclius would not have received an imperial audience or recognition.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=236}} According to Kaegi, there is no evidence outside of Islamic sources to suggest Heraclius ever heard of Islam,{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=229}} and it is possible that he and his advisors actually viewed the Muslims as some special sect of Jews.{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=230}}

== Family ==
[[File:Solidus Heraclius sb 759.png|thumb|''Solidus'' showing Heraclius (middle, with the large beard) in his later reign flanked by his sons Heraclius Constantine and Heraclonas]]

Heraclius was married twice: first to [[Fabia Eudokia]], a daughter of Rogatus, and then to his niece [[Martina (empress)|Martina]]. He had two children with Fabia ([[Eudoxia Epiphania]] and Emperor [[Heraclius Constantine]]) and at least nine with Martina, many of whom were sickly children.{{efn|The number and order of Heraclius's children by Martina is unsure, with some sources saying nine children{{sfn|Alexander|1977|p=230}} and others ten.{{sfn|Spatharakis|1976|p=19}}}}{{sfn|Bellinger|Grierson|1992|p=385}} Of Martina's children at least two were [[disabled]], which was seen as punishment for the illegality of the marriage: Fabius had a paralyzed neck and Theodosius was a [[deaf-mute]]. The latter married Nike, daughter of the Persian general [[Shahrbaraz]], or daughter of Niketas, cousin of Heraclius.

Two of Heraclius's children would become emperor: Heraclius Constantine, his son with Eudokia, and Martina's son [[Heraclonas|Heraclius (Heraclonas)]]. Constantine was [[coronation of the Byzantine emperor|crowned co-emperor]] (''[[augustus (title)|augustus]]'') on 22 January 613, at the age of 8 months. Heraclonas was made ''[[caesar (title)|caesar]]'' on 1 January 632, aged 6, and was later crowned ''augustus'' on 4 July 638.{{sfn|Bellinger|Grierson|1992|p=216ff}} They ruled for a few months in 641, but were eventually succeeded by [[Constans II]], the son of Heraclius Constantine, by the end of the year.

[[File:NaplesBibVittEmanIIIMS1B18Fol4vLotAndDaughters.jpg|thumb|An early 7th-century drawing of [[Job (biblical figure)|Job]] and his family, likely represented as Heraclius (left), his second wife Martina, his sister Epiphania, and his daughter Eudoxia, on a [[Old Testament fragment (Naples, Biblioteca Vittorio Emanuele III, I B 18)|5th-century biblical manuscript]].<ref>{{harvnb|Weitzmann|1979|pp=35–36}}.<br />See also {{harvnb|MET|loc=[https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/477154 "Drawing..."]}}.</ref>{{efn|The artist very likely used pre-existing portraits of Heraclius and his family. Heraclius is noted as being similar to how he's described in literary sources and how he appears in his early coinage.{{sfn|Spatharakis|1976|pp=14–20}}}}]]

Heraclius had at least one illegitimate son, [[John Athalarichos]], who conspired against Heraclius with his cousin, the magister [[Theodore (nephew of Heraclius)|Theodorus]], and the Armenian noble [[David Saharuni]].{{efn|The illegitimate son is recorded by a number of different spellings including: Atalarichos,{{sfn|Kaegi|2003|p=120}} Athalaric,{{sfn|Charanis|1959|p=34}} At'alarik,{{sfn|Sebeos|loc=[https://web.archive.org/web/20081209005043/http://rbedrosian.com/seb9.htm ch.&nbsp;29]}} etc.}} When Heraclius discovered the plot, he had Athalarichos's [[Political mutilation in Byzantine culture|nose and hands cut off]], and he was [[exile]]d to [[Prinkipo]], one of the [[Princes' Islands]].{{sfn|Nicephorus|1990|p=73}} Theodorus received the same treatment, but was sent to Gaudomelete (possibly modern-day [[Gozo]] Island) with additional instructions to cut off one leg.{{sfn|Nicephorus|1990|p=73}}

During the last years of Heraclius's life, it became evident that a struggle was taking place between Heraclius Constantine and Martina, who was trying to position her son Heraclonas to assume the throne. When Heraclius died, he [[Will and testament#Terminology|devised]] the empire to both Heraclius Constantine and Heraclonas to rule jointly with Martina as empress.{{sfn|Bellinger|Grierson|1992|p=385}}

=== Family tree ===
{{Main|Byzantine Empire under the Heraclian dynasty#Heraclian dynasty family tree|l1=Heraclian dynasty family tree}}

== See also ==
{{portal|Byzantine Empire}}
* [[Cathedral of Mren]]
* [[Flavia gens]]
* [[Non-Muslim interactants with Muslims during Muhammad's era]]
* [[Revolt against Heraclius]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|25em}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin|30em}}
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* {{cite book |last1=Greatrex |first1=Geoffrey |last2=Lieu |first2=Samuel N. C. |year=2002 |title=The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars AD 363-628 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-46530-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Haykal |first=Muhammad Husayn |author-link=Muhammad Husayn Haykal |year=1994 |title=The Life of Muhammad |publisher=The Other Press |isbn=978-983-9154-17-7}}
* {{cite book |last=Haldon |first=John |year=1997 |title=Byzantium in the Seventh Century: the Transformation of a Culture |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-31917-X}}
* {{cite book |last=Jenkins |first=Romilly James Heald |title=Byzantium: The Imperial Centuries, AD 610-1071 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1987 |isbn=0-8020-6667-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Kaegi |first=Walter E. |author-link=Walter Kaegi |date=2003 |title=Heraclius: emperor of Byzantium |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=0-521-81459-6}}
* {{cite book |last=Kaldellis |first=Anthony |title=Hellenism in Byzantium: The Transformations of Greek Identity and the Reception of the Classical Tradition |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2008 |isbn=9780521876889 }}
* {{cite journal |last=Kouymjian |first=Dickran |date=1983 |title=Ethnic Origins and the 'Armenian' Policy of Emperor Heraclius |journal=[[Revue des Études Arméniennes]] |volume=XVII}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |date=1991 |entry=Cartagena |author-first=R. Bruce |author-last=Hitchner |editor-last=Kazhdan |editor-first=Alexander P. |encyclopedia=The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-504652-6 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195046526.001.0001/acref-9780195046526-e-0916?rskey=hEJqvS&result=901 |url-access=subscription}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |date=1991 |entry=Herakleios |editor-last=Kazhdan |editor-first=Alexander P. |encyclopedia=The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-504652-6 |ref=CITEREFKazhdan1991b |author1-first=Walter Emil |author1-last=Kaegi |author2-first=Alexander |author2-last=Kazhdan |author3-first=Anthony |author3-last=Cutler}}
* {{cite journal |last=Kiilerich |first=Bente |author-link=Bente Kiilerich |date=2018 |title=The Barletta Colossos revisited |journal=Acta Ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia |volume=28 |pages=55–72 |doi=10.5617/acta.5832 |doi-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last=Lamers |first=Han |title=Greece Reinvented: Transformations of Byzantine Hellenism in Renaissance Italy |publisher=Brill |year=2015 |isbn=978-9004297555 }}
* {{cite book |last=Lewis |first=Bernard |author-link=Bernard Lewis |date=2002 |title=The Arabs in History |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-280310-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/arabsinhistory00bern}}
* {{Cite book |last=Lingenthal |first=C. E. Z. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-54UAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA33 |title=Jus Graeco-Romanum: Novellae Constitutiones |date=1857 |publisher=T. O. Weigel |pages=33–34}}
* {{wikicite |reference=MET: {{cite web |title=Drawing of Job and His Family Represented as Heraclius and His Family |location=New York |publisher=[[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/477154 |access-date=24 June 2021 |ref=none}} |ref={{harvid|MET}}}}
* {{cite book |last=Milani |first=Abbas |author-link=Abbas Milani |year=2004 |title=Lost wisdom: rethinking modernity in Iran |publisher=Mage Publishers |isbn=0-934211-89-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Mitchell |first=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Mitchell (translator) |date=2007 |title=A history of the later Roman Empire, AD 284–641: the transformation of the ancient world |publisher=[[Wiley-Blackwell]] |isbn=1-4051-0857-6<!--what was this? |date=September 18, 2006-->}}
*{{Cite book |title=When the Moon Split (A Biography of Prophet Muhammad) |last=Mubarakpuri |first=Safi ar-Rahman |author-link=Safiur Rahman Mubarakpuri |publisher=Darussalam Publications |year=2002 |isbn=978-603-500-060-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Nicephorus |author-link=Nikephoros I of Constantinople |year=1990 |title=Short history |url=https://archive.org/details/cfhb-11.1-nicetae-choniatae-historia |translator-first=Cyril |translator-last=Mango |translator-link=Cyril Mango |publisher=[[Dumbarton Oaks]] |isbn=0-88402-184-X}}
* {{cite book |last=Norwich |first=John Julius |author-link=John Julius Norwich |year=1988 |title=Byzantium: The Early Centuries |publisher=Guild}}
* {{cite book |last=Olster |first=David Michael |year=1993 |title=The politics of usurpation in the seventh century: rhetoric and revolution in Byzantium |publisher=A. M. Hakkert}}
* {{cite book |last=Pourshariati |first=Parvaneh |date=2017 |title=Decline and fall of the Sasanian empire : the Sasanian-Parthian confederacy and the Arab conquest of Iran |location=London |publisher=I. B. Tauris |isbn=978-1-78453-747-0 |oclc=953439586}}
* {{wikicite |reference=''[[Quran]]'': {{cite web |year=2015 |url=http://quran.com/30 |title=Surah Al-Rum |work=The Noble Quran |at=30:2–4, mouse over the arabic text to see the literal translation quoted here |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150522083737/http://quran.com/30 |archive-date=22 May 2015 |ref=none}} |ref={{harvid|''Quran''}}}}
* {{cite book |last=Russell |first=Eugenia |title=Literature and Culture in Late Byzantine Thessalonica |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |year=2013 |isbn=978-1441161772 }}
* {{cite book |last=Sebeos |author-link=Sebeos |chapter=Chapter 29 |title=Sebeos' History: A History of Heraclius |others=Translated from Old Armenian by Robert Bedrosian |publisher=History Workshop |chapter-url=http://rbedrosian.com/seb9.htm |url-status=dead |access-date=22 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209005043/http://rbedrosian.com/seb9.htm |archive-date=9 December 2008}}
* {{cite journal |last=Seleznev |first=Nicolay<!--Николай Селезнев--> |date=2012 |script-title=ru:Ираклий и Ишоʿйав II: Восточный эпизод в истории «экуменического» проекта византийского императора |trans-title=Heraclius and Ishoʿyav II: An Eastern Episode in the History of the 'Ecumenical' Project of the Byzantine Emperor |language=ru |journal=Символ [Symbol] |volume=61: Syriaca-Arabica-Iranica |pages=280–300 |location=Paris-Moscow |issn=0222-1292<!--cited in |url=http://east-west.rsuh.ru/article.html?id=67105 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127120233/http://east-west.rsuh.ru/article.html?id=67105 |archive-date=January 27, 2012-->}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Shahbazi |first=A. Shapur |date=2005 |title=Sasanian Dynasty |editor1-last=Yarshater |editor1-first=Ehsan |editor2-last=Ashraf |editor2-first=Ahmad |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Iranica]] |edition=online |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/sasanian-dynasty |url-status=live |access-date=17 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928014205/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/sasanian-dynasty |archive-date=28 September 2013}}
* {{cite web |author=SOAS: Swahili Manuscripts Project |title=Item Record (Utenzi wa Hirqal) |at=Entry "Scope and content" is a summary of the plot of the poem |location=London |publisher=[[School of Oriental and African Studies]] |url=http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/perl/Project/showSwahiliItem.pl?ref=MS%2045022a |url-status=dead<!--timeout--> |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930165114/http://mercury.soas.ac.uk/perl/Project/showSwahiliItem.pl?ref=MS%2045022a |archive-date=30 September 2007 |ref={{harvid|SOAS}}}}
* {{cite journal |last=Souza |first=Guilherme Queiroz de |year=2015 |title=Heraclius, emperor of Byzantium |journal=Revista Digital de Iconografía Medieval |volume=7 |issue=14 |pages=27–38 |url=https://www.ucm.es/data/cont/docs/621-2015-12-22-Heraclius58.pdf}}
* {{cite book |last=Spatharakis |first=Iohannis |year=1976 |title=The portrait in Byzantine illuminated manuscripts |publisher=Brill Archive |isbn=90-04-04783-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6BEVAAAAIAAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Speck |first=Paul |year=1984 |chapter=Ikonoklasmus und die Anfänge der Makedonischen Renaissance |title=Varia 1 (Poikila Byzantina 4) |pages=175–210 |publisher=Rudolf Halbelt}}
* {{cite book |author=Theophanes the Confessor |author-link=Theophanes the Confessor |year=1997 |title=The Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor |translator1=Cyril Mango |translator2=Roger Scott |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-822568-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/chronicle-of-theophanes-the-confessor |ref={{harvid|Theophanes|1997}}}}
* {{cite book |last1=Thomson |first1=Robert W. |author1-link=Robert W. Thomson |last2=Howard-Johnston |first2=James |author2-link=James Howard-Johnston |last3=Greenwood |first3=Tim |year=1999 |title=The Armenian history attributed to Sebeos |publisher=[[Liverpool University Press]] |isbn=0-85323-564-3}}
* {{cite book |last=Treadgold |first=Warren |author-link=Warren Treadgold |date=1997 |title=A History of Byzantine State and Society |publisher=[[University of Stanford Press]] |isbn=0-8047-2630-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Weitzmann |first=Kurt |author-link=Kurt Weitzmann |date=1979 |title=Age of Spirituality: Late Antique and Early Christian Art, Third to Seventh Century |publisher=[[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] |isbn=0-87099-179-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Zuckerman |first=Constantin |year=2013 |chapter=Heraclius and the return of the Holy Cross |title=Constructing the Seventh Century |series=Travaux et mémoires |volume=17 |pages=197–218 |location=Paris |publisher=Association des amis du Centre d'histoire et civilisation de Byzance |isbn=978-2-916716-45-9 |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/10124428 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180210141739/http://www.academia.edu/10124428/Heraclius_and_the_return_of_the_Holy_Cross |archive-date=10 February 2018}}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Davies |first=Norman |author-link=Norman Davies |date=1996 |title=Europe: A History |url=https://archive.org/details/europehistory00davi_0 |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-820171-0 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=El-Cheikh |first=Nadia Maria |date=2004 |title=Byzantium viewed by the Arabs |publisher=Harvard CMES |isbn=0-932885-30-6 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Hovorun |first=Cyril |date=2008 |title=Will, Action and Freedom: Christological Controversies in the Seventh Century |location=Leiden-Boston |publisher=Brill |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OcKasEOTR38C |isbn=978-90-04-16666-0 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Kazhdan |first=Alexander P. |author-link=Alexander Kazhdan |date=1991 |chapter=Herakleios |title=[[Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-504652-8 |pages=916–917 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/odb_20210521/page/916 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Meyendorff |first=John |author-link=John Meyendorff |date=1989 |title=Imperial unity and Christian divisions: The Church 450–680 A.D. |series=The Church in history |volume=2 |location=Crestwood, NY |publisher=St. Vladimir's Seminary Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6J_YAAAAMAAJ |isbn=978-0-88141-055-6 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Ostrogorsky |first=George |author-link=George Ostrogorsky |date=1956 |title=History of the Byzantine State |location=Oxford |publisher=Basil Blackwell |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bt0_AAAAYAAJ |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Tarasov |first=Oleg |date=2004 |title=Icon and Devotion: Sacred Spaces in Imperial Russia |publisher=[[Reaktion Books]] |isbn=1-86189-118-0 |ref=none}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{EB1911 poster|Heraclius}}
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.roman-emperors.org/heraclis.htm "Heraclius"] at ''[[De Imperatoribus Romanis]]'' ([https://web.archive.org/web/20220304140040/http://www.roman-emperors.org/heraclis.htm Archive]) – online encyclopedia of Roman Emperors

{{S-start}}
{{S-hou|[[Heraclian Dynasty]]||ca. 575|11 February|641}}
{{S-reg|}}
{{S-bef | before=[[Phocas]]}}
{{S-ttl | title=[[Byzantine emperor]] | years=610–641 |regent1=[[Constantine III (Byzantine emperor)|Constantine III Heraclius]] from 613}}
{{S-aft | after=[[Constantine III (Byzantine emperor)|Constantine III]] and [[Heraclonas]]}}
{{S-off}}
{{S-bef | before=[[Phocas]], 603, then lapsed}}
{{S-ttl | title=[[List of Roman consuls|Roman consul]] | years=611}}
{{S-aft | after=Lapsed, then<br />[[Heraclius Constantine]] in 632}}
{{S-end}}

{{Roman emperors}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Heraclius| ]]
[[Category:570s births]]
[[Category:641 deaths]]
[[Category:7th-century Byzantine emperors]]
[[Category:7th-century rebels]]
[[Category:Armenian Byzantine emperors]]
[[Category:Byzantine Cappadocians]]
[[Category:7th-century Byzantine generals]]
[[Category:Byzantine people of the Arab–Byzantine wars]]
[[Category:Dhul-Qarnayn]]
[[Category:Byzantine consuls]]
[[Category:Leaders who took power by coup]]
[[Category:People of the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628]]
[[Category:People of the Muslim conquest of the Levant]]
[[Category:People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars]]