Arethas the Lame

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Arethas the Lame (* unknown; † 569 ) was as al-Harith V. ibn Jabalah a king of the Ghassanids (529-569) and one of the most important vassals of Byzantium and Eastern Rome in the 6th century .

Arethas succeeded his father Gabalas (Jabalah ibn al-Harith). As a vassal of the Byzantines, he led the battles against the Persian Sassanids to protect the border of Byzantine Syria . There was ongoing fighting with the Arab tribe of the Lachmids , who, as vassals of the Sassanids , were supposed to protect Iraq from the Arab tribes. To balance the power of the Laughmid kings, Emperor Justinian I made Arethas king and supreme phylarch of the Arab tribes associated with Byzantium . During the campaigns on the Euphrates , a son of Arethas was captured by the Lachmids, who sacrificed him to their goddess al-Uzza . In retaliation, the Lachmid ruler Mundir III. defeated and killed in battle. Because of these successes, Arethas was awarded the title of Patricius .

Under his rule, Monophysite Christianity also spread among the Ghassanids. With Empress Theodora , Arethas obtained the appointment of the monk Yaʿqōḇ Burdʿāyā as bishop in 542 , who brought new dynamism to the long-persecuted Monophysite Church.

Arathas's successor was his son al-Mundir (569-581).

literature

personal data
SURNAME Arethas the Lame
ALTERNATIVE NAMES al-Harith V. ibn Jabalah; Aretas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION King of the Ghassanids
DATE OF BIRTH 6th century
DATE OF DEATH 569