Editing Phocas

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{short description|Byzantine emperor from 602 to 610}}
{{Other uses}}
{{POV|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox Roman emperor
| name         = Phocas
| image        = PhocasNew.png
| image_size   = 250px
| alt          = Bronze statue
| caption      = 7th-century bronze steelyard-weight housed at the [[British Museum]], probably representing Emperor Phocas<ref>{{Cite book |last=Treadgold |first=Warren |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofbyzanti0000trea/page/236 |title=A History of the Byzantine State and Society |date=1997 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-7937-1 |page=237 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Steelyard-weight |url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_1867-1005-1 |website=British Museum}}</ref>
| succession   = [[Roman emperor]]
| reign        = 23 November 602 – {{nowr|5 October 610}}
| predecessor  = [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]] and [[Theodosius (son of Maurice)|Theodosius]]
| successor    = [[Heraclius]]
| birth_date   = 547
| birth_place  = [[Thracia]] or [[Cappadocia]]
| death_date   = {{death date and age|5 October 610|547|df=y}}
| death_place  = [[Constantinople]]
| burial_place = 
| spouse       = [[Leontia]]
| issue        = [[Domentzia]]
| full name    = Focas{{efn|His name is sometimes given as ''Flavius Niceforus Focas''.<ref>{{cite book |author = Alcides Vargas Echegaray |date = 15 June 2021 |title = Sin Fronteras |publisher = Caligrama |isbn = 9788418435485}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title = Godeffroy of Boloyne; or, The siege and conqueste of Jerusalem |author = William of Tyre |editor-first = Mary Noyes |editor-last = Colvin |year = 1893 |publisher = Early English Text Society (originally from the University of Michigan) |page = 335 |quote = Nicephorus Phocas, Emperor of the East from 602&ndash;610.}}</ref> However, this is not corroborated by other sources and may be out of confusion with the later [[Nikephoros II Phokas]].}}
| regnal name  = 
| mother       = [[Domentzia]]
| religion     = [[Chalcedonian Christianity]]
}}
[[File:Phocas coin.jpg|thumb|Coin of Phocas struck {{Circa|605}}|283x283px]]

'''Phocas''' ({{langx|la|Focas}}; {{langx|grc|Φωκάς|Phōkás}}; 547{{spnd}}5 October 610) was [[Byzantine emperor]] from 602 to 610. Initially a middle-ranking officer in the [[East Roman army|Eastern Roman army]], Phocas rose to prominence as a spokesman for dissatisfied soldiers in their disputes with the court of the Emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]]. When the army rebelled in 602, Phocas emerged as the leader of the mutiny. The revolt led to the overthrow of Maurice on 22 November 602, with Phocas being declared emperor the next day.

Phocas deeply mistrusted the uncooperative elite of Constantinople, to whom he was a usurper and a provincial boor. He therefore attempted to base his regime on relatives installed in high military and administrative positions. He immediately faced challenges in domestic and foreign affairs, and responded with little success. He dealt with domestic opposition with increasing ruthlessness that alienated ever wider circles, including some of his own household. At the same time, the Empire was threatened on multiple frontiers. [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]] and [[Slavs]] renewed their destructive raids on the Balkans, and the [[Sasanian Empire]] launched a massive [[Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628|invasion of the eastern provinces]]. Finally, the [[Exarch of Africa]], [[Heraclius the Elder]], rebelled against Phocas and gained wide support throughout the empire. Phocas attempted to use border troops to crush the rebellion, but this only resulted in allowing invaders to break into the heartlands of the Empire. Heraclius the Elder's son, [[Heraclius]], took Constantinople on 5 October 610, executed Phocas the same day, and declared himself emperor.

Surviving sources are universally extremely hostile to Phocas. He is described as an incompetent tyrant and usurper who brutally purged any real or perceived opposition and left the Empire wide open to foreign aggression. The veracity of these sources is difficult to ascertain since emperors of the [[Heraclian dynasty]] who succeeded Phocas had a vested interest in tarnishing his reputation.

==Life==
===Early life===
Phocas was probably born in 547, as he was said to be aged 55 when he became emperor.{{sfn|Martindale|1992|p=1030}} He and his family were likely of [[Thraco-Roman]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bury|first=John Bagnell|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K1YZAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA197|title=A History of the Later Roman Empire: From Arcadius to Irene (395 A.D. to 800 A.D.)|date=1889|publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan and Co.]]|volume=2|location=[[London]]|page=197|language=en|quote=The reign of Phocas the Thracian, which lasted for eight years, was the realisation of that dreaded something whose approach had long been felt.|author-link=J. B. Bury}}</ref> or [[Cappadocians|Cappadocian]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Charanis|first=Peter|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RFVoAAAAMAAJ|title=Studies on the Demography of the Byzantine Empire: Collected Studies|date=1972|publisher=Variorum Reprints|isbn=978-0-902089-25-9|pages=221|language=en|quote=The name Phocas appears as early as the fifth century; it is also attested for the sixth century; and there is of course, the Emperor Phocas, apparently of Cappadocian origin, who overthrew Maurice and was in turn overthrown by Heraclius early in the seventh century.|author-link=Peter Charanis}}</ref> origin. The life of Phocas before his usurpation of the Byzantine Empire's throne is obscure, but he was said to have served as a [[centurion]] in the army in [[Thrace]] under Emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]].{{sfn|Martindale|1992|p=1030}}

Late in Maurice's reign, the army sent Phocas to Constantinople as their spokesperson to complain about the conduct of general [[Comentiolus]]. As Phocas presented their case, he argued with the emperor, and as a result, had his beard pulled by an outraged person of [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patrician]] rank.{{sfn|Martindale|1992|p=1031}}

===Usurpation===
In autumn 602, the Thracian army rebelled against Maurice, largely due to exhaustion and outrage over orders to continue campaigning north of the [[Danube]] in winter, as well as previous cuts in wages. The army initially sent a delegation, which included Phocas, to general [[Peter (curopalates)|Peter]] and demanded a dismissal within the Roman borders. But when Maurice reiterated his command, the troops made Phocas their leader and marched to Constantinople. They insisted that Maurice abdicate and offered to proclaim as successors [[Theodosius (son of Maurice)|Theodosius]], son of Maurice, or his father-in-law [[Germanus (patricius)|Germanus]]. As Maurice tried to arrest Germanus, riots broke out in Constantinople. That night, on 22 November 602, Maurice and his family fled on a warship to [[Bithynia]], sending Theodosius on a mission to ask for Persian King [[Khusrow II]]'s help. According to [[Theophylact Simocatta]] ({{circa|630}}), Germanus initially made an attempt for the throne, but when rebuffed by the Green [[Chariot racing#Byzantine racing faction|circus faction]], he paid homage to Phocas, who had emerged as the heavy favorite.{{sfn|Whitby|Whitby|1986|pp=218–224}}{{sfn|Howard-Johnston|2021|pp=16–18}}

On 23 November 602, Phocas was crowned by the patriarch [[Cyriacus II of Constantinople|Cyriacus]] in the church of [[St John the Baptist]] at the [[Bakırköy#History|Hebdomon]]. He entered Constantinople in a [[Adventus (ceremony)|ceremonial procession]] two days later, on 25 November, while being unanimously acclaimed.<ref>''[[Chronicon Paschale]]'' [[iarchive:chronicon-p/page/142/mode/1up|602.]]</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Phocas {{!}} Emperor, Biography, History, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Phocas|access-date=2024-09-23 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

Maurice and his sons were soon captured and executed. There were, however, stories that Theodosius [[Theodosius (son of Maurice)#Theory of survival and pseudo-Theodosius|managed to escape]] to Persia. Maurice's wife [[Constantina (empress)|Constantina]] and daughters were put in the monastery of Nea Metanoia. They were executed around 605, when Constantina and Germanus were found conspiring after hearing rumors of Theodosius' survival.{{sfn|Garland|1999}}

===Foreign conflict===
Despite the executions of the previous emperor and his dynastic successors, Phocas remained in a precarious position, which led him to devote his energy to purging enemies and destroying conspiracies.{{citation needed|date=February 2025}} Because of this focus, and the local resistance he faced all throughout the Byzantine Empire, he was unable to confront foreign attacks on the empire's frontiers. The [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]] and [[Slavs]] launched numerous raids into the Balkan provinces of the Byzantine Empire, and the [[Sassanian Empire]] launched [[Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628|an invasion of the eastern provinces]] of the empire.

The Avars were able to take all land in the Balkans north of Thessalonica. The populations of Christian cities were slaughtered or captured. The Byzantines transferred most of their forces to the eastern front due to the threat from the Persians.

The Sassanid Persians had formerly been at peace with Maurice as a result of a treaty they made with him in 591. After Phocas usurped and killed Maurice, the Persians invaded the empire in 603.{{sfn|Kleinhenz|2017|p=890}} The Sassanids rapidly occupied the eastern provinces, leading the ''[[Magister militum per Orientem]]'', [[Narses (magister militum per Orientem)|Narses]], to defect to their side. Phocas swiftly dealt with him, by inviting him to Constantinople under the promise of safe conduct, then having him burnt alive when he arrived. By 607, the Sassanids had occupied [[Mesopotamia (Roman province)|Mesopotamia]], [[Byzantine Syria|Syria]], and much of [[Byzantine Anatolia|Asia Minor]], as far as the [[Bosphorus]].{{sfn|Carr|2015|p=80}}

By the time his reign ended in 610, the Persians had already crossed the Euphrates and taken Zenobia. Contemporary accounts describe the Persians as being very brutal to the occupied population. The 'miracle of St Demetrios' described the carnage:

<blockquote>[T]he devil raised the whirlwind of hatred in all the East, Cilicia, Asia, Palestine and all the lands from there to Constantinople: the factions, no longer content simply to spill blood in public places, attacked homes, slaughtered women, children, the aged, and the young who were sick; those whose youth and frailty impeded their escape from the massacre, [saw] their friends, acquaintances, and parents pillaged, and after all that, even set on fire so that the most wretched inhabitant was not able to escape.<ref name="Ekonomou">Ekonomou, Andrew. ''Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes.'' Lexington books, 2007</ref>{{page needed|date=February 2025}}</blockquote>

===Administration ===
[[File:RomaForoRomanoColonnaFoca2.JPG|thumb|upright=0.8|The [[Column of Phocas]] in Rome]]

Phocas frequently filled senior posts with his relatives, due to his isolation from the bulk of Constantinople's elite, with whom he had had no connection before,{{Sfn|Parnell|2016|p=136}} or because of Constantinople's system of imperial patronage which prioritized loyalty to the emperor.{{sfn|Crow|2002}} Phocas installed: his brother [[Domentziolus (brother of Phocas)|Domentziolus]] as ''[[Magister officiorum]]'' in 603; his nephew [[Domentziolus (nephew of Phocas)|Domentziolus]] as ''Magister militum per Orientem'' in 604, giving him command over the eastern provinces; and his brother [[Comentiolus (brother of Phocas)|Comentiolus]] as ''Magister militum per Orientem'' around 610. All three remained loyal to Phocas until they were killed by Heraclius.{{Sfn|Parnell|2016|p=136}} On the other hand, Phocas appointed [[Priscus (magister militum)|Priscus]], a general under Maurice, as the Count of the [[Excubitors]] (''comes excubitorum'') in 603.{{Sfn|Parnell|2016|p=137}} Priscus would later marry Phocas' daughter [[Domentzia]] around 607.{{Sfn|Martindale|1992|p=1056}} During his reign, Phocas was unable to control either the state or the army effectively.{{Sfn|Parnell|2016|p=6}}

===Italian policy===
When Phocas was emperor, Byzantine Italy was under continual attack from [[Lombards]], but the Byzantine government spent few resources to aid Italy due to troubles elsewhere. In the entirety of Phocas' reign, the only public structure built with taxes in the city of Rome was a statue of Phocas completed in 608.<ref name="Ekonomou" />{{page needed|date=February 2025}}

When Phocas usurped Maurice, [[Gregory the Great]] was bishop of Rome and he praised Phocas as a restorer of liberty.{{sfn|Crow|2002}} Gregory referred to him as a pious and clement lord, and compared his wife (the new Empress) Leontia to Marcian's consort Pulcheria (whom the Council of Chalcedon called the new Helena). In May 603, portraits of the imperial couple arrived in Rome and were ordered by the pope to be placed in the oratory of St. Caesarius in the imperial palace on the Palatine.<ref name="Ekonomou" />

Imperial approval was needed at that time to appoint a new pope, but the approval was delayed by a year upon the death of [[Pope Sabinian]] in 606, as Phocas was occupied with killing internal enemies that threatened his rule.<ref name="Ekonomou" /> He finally gave approval in 607 and [[Boniface III]] became pope. Phocas declared Rome "the head of all churches".<ref name="Ekonomou" /> Shortly afterwards, Phocas had a gilded statue of himself erected on a [[Roman triumphal column|monumental column]] in the [[Roman Forum]], known as the [[Column of Phocas]].

===Downfall===
{{see also|Heraclian revolt}}
[[File:The deposition of Phocas 610 AD.jpg|thumb|The deposition of Phocas, 610 AD]]

Despite being appointed as ''Comes excubitorum'', Priscus was not loyal to Phocas, and in 608 he appealed to [[Heraclius the Elder]], the [[Exarch of Carthage]], to rebel against Phocas.{{Sfn|Parnell|2016|p=137}} Heraclius the Elder agreed, and began to prepare to invade, by cutting off the supply of grain to Constantinople and assembling a large army and navy. Heraclius the Elder launched his invasion in 609, with his nephew, [[Nicetas (cousin of Heraclius)|Nicetas]], marching troops overland to the capital, and his son, [[Heraclius]], leading a naval invasion of [[Thessalonica]], before marching to Constantinople. Heraclius arrived outside Constantinople on 3 October 610, and seized the city on 5 October. Heraclius was declared emperor on the same day, and swiftly had Phocas executed.<ref>''[[Chronicon Paschale]]'' [[iarchive:chronicon-p/page/150/mode/1up|610]]. Heraclius arrived on 3 October, "a Saturday" (correct). However, the chronicle later states that he entered the city on 6 October, "a Monday". The 5th is clearly intended.</ref>

== Legacy ==
Phocas is generally depicted as a villain by Byzantines and modern historians alike, but some of the earliest sources available about Phocas' reign were written during the reign of Heraclius. The writings that survive are not reliably neutral and the writers would have good reason to demonize him in order to strengthen the rule of Heraclius.{{sfn|Crow|2002}}

[[File:41-manasses-chronicle.jpg|thumb|Miniature 41 from the [[Constantine Manasses]] Chronicle, 14th century: Usurper Phocas and the assault against him from the armies of Heraclius]]

The reign of Phocas is marked by the change of imperial fashion set by [[Constantine the Great]] ({{reign|306|337}}). Starting with Constantine, it became common again to show emperors as clean-shaven on [[Byzantine coinage|coinage]] in line with the style of early emperors until the reign of [[Hadrian]] ({{reign|117|138}}). However, Phocas was consistently depicted with a [[beard#Rome|beard]] and this became the convention until the end of the Byzantine Empire.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.byzantium.xronikon.com/statfirst.html |title=Byzantine first & last times |publisher=Byzantium.xronikon.com |access-date=7 November 2012}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=February 2025}}

On 19 February 607, Emperor Phocas appointed Boniface III as the new bishop of Rome, then Phocas issued an imperial decree by the Roman government, recognizing Boniface III as the "Head of all Churches" and "Universal Bishop". Phocas transferred the title of "Universal Bishop" from the [[Diocese of Constantinople]] to the [[Diocese of Rome]]. Boniface sought and obtained a decree from Phocas in which he restated that "the See of Blessed Peter the Apostle should be the head of all the Churches" and ensured that the title of "Universal Bishop" belonged exclusively to the Bishop of Rome. This act effectively ended the attempt by [[Patriarch Cyriacus of Constantinople]] to establish himself as "Universal Bishop".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Apostate church organization: 588 - 606 AD: The final dog fight for control of the world!|url=https://www.bible.ca/ntx-organization-historical-development-papal-patriarchal-systems-588-606AD.htm|access-date=23 October 2021|website=www.bible.ca}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=October 2021}}

In calling the Pope the "head of all churches", Phocas' decree has been important in discussions about [[papal primacy]] and [[papal supremacy]]. Some Protestant [[Historicism (Christianity)|historicist]] commentators have seen the decree of Phocas (usually taken to be in 606) as having eschatological significance.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Newsom |first1=Carol A. |author-link1=Carol A. Newsom |title=Daniel: A Commentary |date=2014 |publisher=[[Westminster John Knox Press]] |page=317 |isbn=9781611645392 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ha51BwAAQBAJ&pg=PA317 |access-date=8 July 2020}}</ref> For example, in his ''[[Horae Apocalypticae]]'', [[Edward Bishop Elliott]] took the [[1260 days]] of [[Revelation 11]]:3 to be the period between 606 and the [[Italian unification|Unification of Italy]] in 1866.

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|20em}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite book|last1=Carr|first1=John|title=Fighting Emperors of Byzantium|date=2015|publisher=Pen and Sword|isbn=9781473856400}}
*{{cite book|last1=Crawford|first1=Peter|title=The War of the Three Gods: Romans, Persians and the Rise of Islam|date=2013|publisher=Pen and Sword|isbn=9781473829510}}
*{{Cite web|url=https://www.roman-emperors.org/phocas.htm|title=Phocas|first=Kevin|last=Crow|date=2002|website=De Imperatoribus Romanis|access-date=25 September 2019}}{{Dead link|date=February 2025}}
*{{Cite web|last=Garland|first=Lynda|date=1999|url=http://www.roman-emperors.org/tina.htm|title=Constantina (Wife of the Emperor Maurice)|website=De Imperatoribus Romanis|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180722213752/http://www.roman-emperors.org/tina.htm|archive-date=22 July 2018}}
* {{cite book|last=Howard-Johnston|first=James|title=The Last Great War of Antiquity|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|year=2021|isbn=9780198830191|url=https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-last-great-war-of-antiquity-9780198830191}}
*{{cite book|last1=Kleinhenz|first1=Christopher|title=Routledge Revivals: Medieval Italy (2004): An Encyclopedia|date=2017|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=9781351664431}}
*{{Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire|volume=3}}	
*{{cite book|last1=Parnell|first1=David Alan|title=Justinian's Men: Careers and Relationships of Byzantine Army Officers, 518-610|date=2016|publisher=Springer|isbn=9781137562043}}
* {{cite book |last1=Whitby |first1=Michael |last2=Whitby |first2=Mary |year=1986 |title=The History of Theophylact Simocatta |location=Oxford |publisher=Clarendon Press |isbn=978-0-19-822799-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AtRfAAAAMAAJ}}

==External links==
* {{Commons-inline|Phocas}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|Non-dynastic||unknown||610}}
{{s-reg|}}
{{s-bef | before=[[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]]}}
{{s-ttl | title=[[Byzantine Emperor]] | years=602–610}}
{{s-aft | after=[[Heraclius]]}}
{{s-bef | before=[[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]] in 583,<br/>then lapsed}}
{{s-ttl | title=[[Roman consul]] | years=603 }}
{{s-aft | after= [[Heraclius the Elder]]<br/>and [[Heraclius]] in 608}}
{{s-end}}

{{Roman Emperors}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phocas}}
[[Category:540s births]]
[[Category:610 deaths]]
[[Category:600s in the Byzantine Empire]]
[[Category:6th-century Byzantine military personnel]]
[[Category:7th-century Byzantine emperors]]
[[Category:7th-century executions by the Byzantine Empire]]
[[Category:7th-century murdered monarchs]]
[[Category:7th-century rebels]]
[[Category:Byzantine Cappadocians]]
[[Category:Byzantine rebels]]
[[Category:Executed Byzantine people]]
[[Category:Executed monarchs]]
[[Category:Byzantine consuls]]
[[Category:Leaders who took power by coup]]
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[[Category:People executed by decapitation]]
[[Category:People of the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628]]
[[Category:Roman-era Thracians]]