Leo Iii (Byzantine Emperor)

Currency of Leo III and his son Constantine V.

Leo III the Isaurian, born in 675 in Germaniceia (Maras in Turkey today), who died in 741 , Emperor Byzantine from 717 to 741. He founded the dynasty Isaurian.

There is little information on Leo III: from a modest background, origin Isaurian, his family was transplanted into Thrace, in the repopulation of this region, devastated by the Bulgarian and Slav incursions.

The Emperor Anastasius II appointed him strategist Anatolian theme. Theodosius III Anastasius had reversed, he marched to turn on Constantinople and proclaimed himself emperor, with the approval of all, the March 25 717.

Reign

The Arabs are near the beginning of his reign siege to Constantinople , from August 717 to August 718, but he managed to repulse them, having concerned, upon his accession to strengthen the protections of the city, raising a tax Special land for this purpose. It also ends the danger of Bulgaria, under an agreement with the Khan Tervel.

In 718 the governor of Sergios Sicily also means an emperor in the person of Basil's son Gregory Onomagoulos a noble of Constantinople he proclaimed emperor under the name "Tiberius IV. Leo III hastily sent to Sicily Paul's "chartularios (Private Secretary) elected patrician and general and quickly captured Syracuse. Sergios fled to the Lombards and the emperor ephemeral "Tiberius" is performed ^{Reform of the Empire}

Leo III is working to reorganize the military administration, financial, and legal empire. He published well, in 726, the Ekloga, a collection of laws forming a code adapted to the needs and daily practices of judges and regarded as one of the largest compilations of Byzantine law with the codes of Justinian and Theodosius.

Among the major provisions of this code are:

• strengthening the rights of women, a corollary to the limitation of the patria potestas;

• replacing the death penalty with sentences of mutilation (removal of the nose, tongue, hands, blindness).

Iconoclasm

The most striking feature of the policy of Leo III is the appearance of iconoclasm , it imposes a short time after his accession. Three reasons seem to have prompted the decision of Leo III:

• a name: based on a current recognizing images of educational value, some advocate the worship of religious images as a symbol of reconciliation between man and divinity. This worship of images, however, is pushed to extremes bordering on idolatrous paganism. Under these conditions, appears among the people a phenomenon of rejection of icons;

• Religious reasons: Based on Deuteronomy , some Bible scholars advocate iconomachie, as a battle of idolatry. Also, coming from the eastern provinces of the Empire, remained faithful to the Monophysite and nearby Muslim areas, Leon has been influenced by Islamic doctrine prohibits any depiction of God: iconoclasm would be born of the encounter between dogma Muslim prohibiting any representation of God and the dogma of the divine essence Monophysite of Christ;

• a political reason: Byzantine society associating the image to power, the icon symbolizes the power of the deity or the saint it represents. The Emperor can be seen as a competition to staff its temporal power: it is therefore necessary to eradicate any picture of a power other than his own.

Leo III took the first position against images in 726 , under the influence of Constantine and Thomas Nacolia Claudiopolis. The first significant manifestation of iconoclasm is the destruction of Christ the Chalk , Constantinople, causing a riot quickly quelled in blood. It must be said here that the historian Marie-France Auzpy showed no reliable evidence does not corroborate this account. The letters of Patriarch Germanos discussing representations of the Apostles and the Cross, Christ's footsteps. The icon of Christ was placed by the Empress Irene (797-802), iconodoules satisfied, then destroyed by Emperor Leo V (813-820). The allocation of a first destruction in the Isaurian Leo III propaganda seems to be exploiting a simple analogy of the names of two emperors.

The iconoclastic edict was promulgated in January 730 , requiring the destruction not only icons but also relics. This policy not only receives the opposition of John of Damascus, but also of Pope Gregory III : In retaliation, Leo III confiscate all property located in Papal Sicily and Calabria , while Byzantine lands.

Union and posterity

Leo III crowned Maria had married after the birth of their son, "Augusta" on December 25 718 including:

• Anna wife Artavasdes
• Constantine V

References

Bibliography

D. Beard: Irene of Byzantium, Perrin.

External Links

• The Roman Law Library by Yves Lassard and Alexandr Koptev

Preceded by	Leo III the Isaurian	Followed by
Theodosius III	Byzantine Emperor 717 - 741	Constantine V

• Portal of the Byzantine world

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