International congress of byzantine studies belgrade, 22 27 august 2016

Christos G. Makrypoulias
Athens, Greece; 
[e-mail]
A Byzantine Band of Brothers: 
The Tenth- and Eleventh-Century Infantry Commanders
One of the main characteristics of the Eastern Roman Empire’s military organisation from the 
middle of the tenth to the end of the eleventh century was the existence of composite units of light 
and heavy infantry. Each of these 1000-man brigades, known as a 
taxiarchia
or 
chiliarchia
, was under 
the overall command of a 
taxiarches
(also called 
chiliarches
by some sources). Although for the past 
two decades historians have adequately studied this reorganisation and the renewed importance of 
infantry within the framework of Byzantine military history, little attention had been paid to the 
position of infantry commanders in both military and social hierarchy. The aim of this paper is to 
present the first fruits of an ongoing investigation into this group of high-ranking Byzantine military 
officials. It will give a concise overview of the creation and evolution of that particular officer corps, 
and will touch upon various aspects of research pertaining to administrative and social history, as 
well as prosopography.
Katerina Nikolaou
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens,
Faculty of History and Archaeology, Athens, Greece; 
[e-mail]
Women as Agents of Restoration of Imperial Power and Peace in Byzantium
Women in Byzantium, but also in those states with which the empire either maintained 
friendly relations or was involved in armed conflict, have played a key role in the foreign policy of 
either opponents or allies at all times.
Their passive input pertains to their contribution to the success of Byzantine diplomacy 
through marriage alliances.
However, the political maneuvers of women who found themselves at a particular point in 
time in a position to have to make decisions regarding the fate of states that were opposed to the 
empire are of particular interest. The untimely demise of a ruler, combined with the existence of 
an underage successor, as well as conditions of domestic or family rivalries have given the women 
of reigning families the fortuitous chance to act in a decisive manner with regard to the states they 
temporarily ruled. In these instances their actions were driven by their wish to secure the position of 
both themselves and the rulers in whose place they exercised power. Their gender qualities, mainly 
their insufficiency in meeting the demands of a war have proven beneficial to the Byzantines.

---

483
In this paper references will be made to cases, mostly dating from the eleventh century, of 
wives of enemy rulers who, after the death of the latter, asked for a peace treaty or capitulation.
The actions of Maria, widow of Tsar John Vladislav, contributed to the total submission of Bulgaria 
after the political and military turmoil of the years that followed the victory of Basil II at Kleidion. After 
her husband’s death she reached a rapprochement with the emperor and, in exchange for her life and 
those of her family, she surrendered to Basil the remaining Bulgarian lands that she ruled.
The troubled relations between Byzantium and Georgia were normalized after the death of 
George I, ruler of Abasgia, in 1027. His wife, Maria, came to power as regent for her underage 
son. Having had to face many difficulties, and in her wish to renew diplomatic contacts with 
Constantinople, she sent an embassy to Romanos III bringing gifts and an offer of capitulation, as 
well as a Byzantine bride for her son. The emperor accepted both the offered peace treaty and the 
marriage alliance.
There was s second woman attached to George I, Alde, by whom he had another son, 
Demetrios. The rivalry between the two brothers after their father’s death weakened their kingdom, 
as is proven by Alde’s move to join the Byzantine emperor and surrender to him the fortress of 
Anacopia, apparently part of the paternal inheritance of Demetrios.
Family infighting among its opponents was a boon for the Empire, which would otherwise have 
to face a powerful Georgia, united under a single crown, an obstacle in the way of imperial aspirations 
in the region. The different approaches of successors and their mothers offered Byzantium, which 
was seeking allies outside Georgia, the chance of help from within and gave it a powerful foothold 
in NW Georgia.
During the same period, the empire managed to reach a rapprochement with yet another of its 
opponents; according to Scylitzes, this was due to the Christian wife of Amer, the Fatimid caliph of 
Egypt. After his death, his widow and her son sent a joint embassy to the Byzantine emperor, with 
the aim of negotiating peace.
Through a presentation of, and commentary on, these cases it is shown that, whenever the 
empire had to face a state that was temporarily run by a woman, it reaped the benefits of peace – 
and bountiful they were: hostilities were terminated or avoided altogether, and Byzantium either 
restored or expanded the limits of its power.