Siege of Constantinople (626)

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Siege of Constantinople (626)
Constantinople with the Theodosian Walls
Constantinople with the Theodosian Walls
date July 29th to August 7th, 626
place Constantinople
output Byzantine victory
Parties to the conflict

Avars
Sassanids

East stream

Commander

Chagan the Avars
Shahrbaraz

Bonos

Troop strength
80,000-130,000 30,000-50,000
losses

unknown

unknown

The failed siege of Constantinople in 626 marked a turning point in the last Roman-Persian War in favor of the Eastern Romans / Byzantines . The allied troops of the Avars and Persian Sassanids besieged the city from July 29 to August 7, 626, but had to give up the siege after the defeat of the Slavic rowers on the Golden Horn . In Byzantium, August 7th was celebrated centuries later as the day of liberation from the “barbarians”.

swell

The importance of the siege is shown by the fact that, despite the actually “dark” 7th century, several sources report on it in detail. A homily , which is mostly attributed to Theodor Synkellos ( presbyter at the Hagia Sophia Church and confidant of the Patriarch ), praises the salvation from the “barbarians” as does the poem Bellum Avaricum by Georgios Pisides . The Chronicon Paschale (Easter Chronicle ) describes the course of the siege very precisely , making it the most important source for this event. The two later chroniclers Nikephoros and Theophanes can also be used as sources. However, a number of later chroniclers, preachers, and panegyricists , who also mention the siege, do not add anything worth mentioning to the current knowledge.

The history

A solidus on which Herakleios and his sons Constantine III. and Heraklonas is shown

After the Eastern Roman emperor Maurikios was overthrown and murdered by Phocas in 602, things began to ferment all over the empire. The Sassanid great king Chosrau II , whom Maurikios had once brought back to the throne, began a war against Ostrom with the declared aim of driving the usurper from the throne. In the face of Persian successes, however, the "campaign of revenge" turned into a campaign of conquest, and the Sassanids conquered Armenia and Mesopotamia . In 606 the important border fortress Dara fell and in 609 Edessa . Most researchers today doubt whether a Persian army was able to advance as far as Chalcedon on the Bosporus , as later sources report. Poor harvests and the cold turned the growing dissatisfaction with the emperor into open riot, in the course of which Phocas was overthrown in 610 by the son of the exarch of Carthage , Herakleios .

However, there was no improvement in sight, as Herakleios was initially occupied with consolidating his rule within. Thus, when the Sassanids crossed the Euphrates in 611 , they were gradually able to take all the important cities in Syria: Already in 611 Emesa and Antioch , 613 Damascus and 614 Jerusalem . A major Eastern Roman counter-offensive in 613 had failed catastrophically. Jerusalem was a particularly hard loss for the Romans because the Holy Cross fell into the hands of the Persians and was carried off to Ctesiphon . In 616 the Persians invaded Egypt , in 619 they conquered Alexandria and were able to bring the granary of the Eastern Roman Empire completely under their control by 621.

Meanwhile, the areas of the Balkans fared no better: the Avars and Slavs had the opportunity, because of Phocas 'inactivity, to recover from the blows they had suffered from Maurikios' campaigns . They then became active after 612 and began ravaging Illyria and Thrace and pillaging the territories. In 615 Naissus and Serdica were conquered and around 625 Salona suffered the same fate. Only Thessaloníki, which was besieged several times (610 ?, 615 and 617), was able to hold out. In 622 Herakleios went on the offensive and was able to defeat the Sassanids in several smaller battles in the Caucasus, which improved the morale of the imperial troops . In 623 he went to Constantinople to move the Avars to peace talks. After a failed ambush of the Avars to Heraclius at Heraclea , the emperor and the Awarenchagan whose name does not provide the sources could, finally an agreement for a Year Bid of 200,000 solidi some, as needed in the war against the Persians Heraclius his back in the West keep the empire free. In March 624, Herakleios left for his troops in Armenia to take action against the Persians.

Regardless of the tribute peace, the Avars went on the offensive and allied with the Persians. In the summer of 626, when Herakleios was still operating in Asia, the armies of the Avars and Slavs appeared at the gates of Constantinople, while at the same time the Persians were marching on the Asian bank. It is very unlikely that they met “by chance”, so negotiations in advance can be assumed. In itself it was contrary to the way of fighting of steppe riders to run against walls; All the more so since the walls of Constantinople built under Emperor Theodosius II were considered to be insurmountable. But the Avarenchagan had no other choice: the only targets that still yielded noteworthy booty in the Balkans were the fortified cities, and the Avars desperately needed a victory, because from 624 the empire was raging (uprising of the Bohemian-Moravian Slavs under Samo ) shaken. Probably the Avars relied on the routine of the Sassanid Persians, who were very experienced besiegers. Chosrau II, who also came under pressure again due to the successes of Herakleios, tried to strike the decisive blow with a copied tactic of the Eastern Romans (military operations in the opposing hinterland).

The situation of the opponents

Persians and Avars

The Persian great king had raised a new army and placed it under the experienced General Shahrbaraz . He had marched from Syria to the Bosporus, occupied Chalcedon and set up camp there. The composition of the army certainly did not differ from other Sassanid armies: the focus was on their heavily armored riders, the Kataphraktoi and Klibanarioi, and mounted archers. In addition, forcibly recruited (?) Infantry, archers and special troops for the siege equipment were added. War elephants may also have been set up.

The army of the Avars supposedly comprised around 80,000 men. Stratos estimates the Avar army at 120–150,000 men. The Avarenchagan, who himself commanded the siege, had called up all "wild peoples whose life is war". Slavic, Gepid and Bulgarian aid contingents supported the Avar army. The Slavs led dugout canoes called, Monoxyla with. The Slavic rowers had gained great experience with this tactic on their numerous raids and wanted to use them against the larger Roman boats. The siege weapons were apparently only supposed to be built on site.

Byzantines

Herakleios knew of the plans for the siege, but did not want to and could not give up his strategic advantage on the northeast front. He therefore sent only 12,000 riders in addition to instructions for precautionary measures. He himself stayed with the troops in Armenia. In addition to the riders, city militias and circus parties should take over the defense. The city itself was home to around 500,000 residents at that time. The command of the city was given to the magister militum praesentalis Bonos , but also to the fourteen-year-old co-emperor and heir to the throne, Constantine III. and the Patriarch Sergios were in the city. The city was supported and supplied by the superior Eastern Roman fleet .

From today's perspective, however, the fact that there were 100 attackers for one defender, as Theodoros describes it, seems far exaggerated.

In the run-up to the siege

In order to still be able to avert the siege, an embassy was sent to the Chagan under the leadership of Patricius Athanasios. But he rejected all offers. When the Avar army reached Adrianople, he sent Athanasios ahead. He gave him the order that the Byzantines should see what presents they could still keep him from the siege of the city. When Athanasios called again at the Chagan, the latter answered all offers with the request to hand over the city.

On June 29, 626, the Avar vanguard, which is said to have comprised around 30,000 riders, reached the area around the city. She set up camp near Melantias on the Marmara Sea . Smaller groups pushed as far as the fortifications, probably for exploratory purposes. Since there were no enemies to be seen, ten days later some Eastern Romans ventured out of the city under military protection to bring in their crops. However, there were some skirmishes in which some Byzantines were killed or captured. On the same day (probably July 8th) about 1000 Avars rode to Galata and showed themselves to the Persians near the Macabean church , who were near Chrysopolis . In the following days the area around Constantinople was plundered and devastated: numerous churches and other buildings fell victim to the Avars. Exactly one month after the advance guard appeared on July 29th, the main army, headed by the Chagan, reached the city. Now the real war of nerves began: The Chagan rode in front of the Philoxenon Gate on the middle section of the Theodosian Wall and showed his power. The tanks, shields and weapons that sparkled in the morning sun must have had a terrible effect on the townspeople who watched the spectacle from the wall. In order to restore the declining morale, the Patriarch Sergios walked along the city wall with a miraculous icon , supposedly not painted by human hands . In addition, he had other pictures of Mary painted and placed on the wall. The Mother of God should save the city from the great disaster.

course

The siege of Constantinople in 626 by Sassanid Persians and Avars (painting on the outer wall of the monastery church of Moldovita 1537)

The siege ring was now closed, and the next day the Chagan quietly began to prepare for the storm. When the Chagan still demanded the delivery of cattle from the townspeople, Constantine even complied with the request so as not to incite the Chagan any further. The attacks began on July 31st. The Avars concentrated on the one kilometer long section between Pemptu and Polyandriu gates . Slavs were placed on the other sections. In the first line of battle, unprotected Slavs fought, behind them more respected, armored Avar soldiers. The walls were constantly showered with arrows. The fighting continued until the eleventh hour, when the first siege engines were ready for action. Apparently the Avars were well trained in the construction of such weapons.

The first attack with siege weapons followed on August 1st: In addition to the conventional “inventory” of siege weapons ( stone and incendiary throwers , “turtles” and “rams”), there were also 12 huge siege towers in the section between Polyandriu Gate and Hagiu-Romanu Gate brought into position. One of the sailors who helped defend the wall developed a structure that allowed the Byzantines to set fire to several siege towers. Where the siege ring reached the Golden Horn, the Slavs launched their dugout canoes. They gathered at the Kalliniku Bridge, where the great ships of the Eastern Romans could not maneuver because of the shallows.

During the fighting, Bonos made the Chagan another offer to negotiate. As before, the latter responded by demanding that the city and its riches be handed over. Nevertheless, on August 2nd, a large delegation made their way to the Chagan with rich gifts. Among them were Athanasius, Georgios Pisides and Theodoros Synkellos. At the same time, three Persians were also present. While they were allowed to sit, the Byzantines or Romans had to stand. The Chagan announced triumphantly that Shahrbaraz would send him assistance; Persian elite units were to be set across the Bosporus with the help of the Slavic rowers. However, the sources give contradicting information on how many soldiers were to be transferred: The Chronicon paschale names 3,000 Persian soldiers, Georgios Pisides only 1,000.

In addition, the Chagan repeated his request for the surrender, but with a small change: the city and its riches should fall into the hands of the Avars, while the inhabitants should surrender themselves to the Persians. The fact that the Eastern Romans continued to insist on negotiations shows that they by no means wanted to rely solely on the fortifications of the city. The past showed that it was precisely in critical moments that one could buy the peace of the Chagan. This time the Chagan disappointed this hope. He was probably of the opinion that the Byzantines' situation was hopeless. The fact that the Persians could hardly intervene from Chalcedon as long as the Eastern Roman fleet ruled the Bosphorus must have escaped the Chagan. After some verbal battles, the ambassadors left the enemy's camp, to whom the gifts were even given (or had to be given).

The mood in town was depressed that evening. Nevertheless, it was decided to seize the only chance and thwart the unification of the two enemy armies. The vigilance finally paid off that night. The three Persian ambassadors who wanted to cross the Bosphorus at the narrowest point near Chalai were taken by the fleet and overwhelmed. The success was used for a “ spectacle of demonstrative cruelty, in which the Byzantines took pleasure again and again ”: The hands of the first prisoner were cut off and tied, as was the head of the second Persian, who was already killed during arrest Neck. The third envoy was beheaded on a ship within sight of the Persians and his head was thrown at the feet of the Persian army with a scornful letter. On August 3rd, a Sunday, an Avar envoy appeared in front of the walls accusing the Byzantines of killing the people who had dined with the chagan the day before. The chagan also appeared outside the walls, and the residents sent him food and wine in an act of "generosity".

The fighting continued throughout Sunday, as well as on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday night, the Slavic rowers then tried to cross the Persian support. Since the Byzantine fleet struggled with winds, they also managed to reach the other bank. On the way back, however, the East Romans prevailed, and a very large number of the Slavs and Persian soldiers were killed. In the days that followed, the “barbarians” intensified their attacks, concentrating on the area around the Blachernenviertel , at that end where the wall protruded into the Golden Horn.

The decision was not made on the walls, but on the sea. The Avars' hopes were directed towards the Monoxyla , who now stormed the poorly fortified bank of the Golden Horn. Heavily armored (proto-) Bulgarian infantry fought alongside the Slavic rowers. Allegedly, Slavic women should also have been among the rowers. The attacks were concentrated on the northwest end of the city. The Byzantines successfully used two and three oars against the Monoxyla. A ruse supposedly decided the end of the battle: Armenian seamen who fought alongside the Romans lit a fire in the port near Hagios Nikolaos, which the Slavs mistakenly took for the agreed signal of the Avars, so that they now crossed the bay. In the bay, however, they were ambushed by the Armenians, who slaughtered all the Slavs and brought the captured dugout canoes ashore. The chronicler Sebeos reports that several thousand Persian soldiers were also killed here; if so, it means that the transfer of Sassanid troops to Europe had already begun.

With the failure of this enterprise and the destruction of the Slavic boats, the decision was made. The Persians, who were experienced besiegers of the city, could not intervene directly in the fighting, and neither the dreaded Avar armored riders nor the deadly hail of arrows that had decided so many battles could bring the imperial city down. The Avar siege weapons were not up to the military superiority of the Eastern Romans and the Persians were unable to attack the city with their own ships from the sea. In addition, a relief army was advancing under Theodoros, Herakleios' brother.

The Chagan, who had watched the battle from a hill, rode to his camp after the defeat and, according to the sources, hit his chest and cheeks plaintively. Then he ordered an orderly retreat. The remaining siege weapons were burned throughout the night. Some churches also fell victim to the fire, including the Kosmas Church and the Damian Church . When the Persians saw the plumes of smoke, they initially thought the city had fallen. They followed the spectacle rather skeptically: on the one hand they were glad to see the enemy capital fall, on the other hand they grudged the Chagan this success.

Shortly before the Avar army set out, the Chagan sent the Byzantines a letter: It was not because of fear that he was withdrawing, but because of the scarcity of food. He must now ensure the supply of the army, but he will come back. On August 8th, only a few riders could be seen. In the last phase tensions arose between the Slavs and the Chagan, because the latter had let the survivors of the Slavic rowers murdered in his anger, so that he had to force the Slavs to follow him now. Even for the Eastern Romans, the enemy's signs of disintegration could not be overlooked. In the end, Bonos even had to prevent the townspeople from chasing after the "barbarians" on their own. In the evening the Patriarch Sergios organized a first procession of thanksgiving for the victory over the “barbarians”.

consequences

Return of the Cross of Christ in 629/30 to the Eastern Roman Emperor Herakleios by the Sassanid Persians.

The defeat shook the Avar kingdom badly, and in the period that followed there were internal disputes that brought the Avar empire to the brink of abyss. Many of the peoples subject to the Avars pushed for independence, including the Bulgarians, Serbs and Croats , all of whom were supported by Ostrom. Due to the failed siege and the successes of Herakleios, the Sassanids increasingly lost hope of being able to end the war victoriously in the foreseeable future. After some successful battles for the Eastern Romans, the decision was finally made in December 627 in the battle of Nineveh . Chosrau II, who blamed his generals for this defeat, was deposed and executed by his son Siroe in February 628 . In the peace treaty of 629, the Persians had to evacuate all areas occupied since 603 and return the "Cross of Christ". But the Romans (Byzantines) could not enjoy the successes for long: With the conquest of the Islamic Arabs , a new calamity and challenge broke out over the Roman Empire as early as 634.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. Pisides, Bellum Acaricum 219th
  2. ^ Andreas N. Stratos: Byzantium in the seventh century, vol. I, p. 184.
  3. ^ Theodoros, Homilia de obsidione avarica Constantinopolis , 6, 21.
  4. a b Chronicon paschale 718.
  5. ^ Theodoros, Homilia de obsidione Avarica Constantinopolis 9.
  6. Chronicon paschale 717/718.
  7. ^ Chronicon paschale 720.
  8. Chronicon paschale 721.
  9. ^ Pisides, Bellum Avaricum 342.
  10. ^ Walter Pohl: The Avars , p. 252.

swell

  • Georgios Pisides: Accidental to the Bellum Avaricum of Georgios Pisides Paul Speck (Ed.), In: Miscellanea Byzantina Monacensia 24 (1980).
  • Theophanes the Confessor: (Theophanes chronographia) The chronicle of Theophanes Confessor. Byzantine and Near Eastern history AD 284-813 , Oxford 1997, ISBN 0-19-822568-7 .
  • Chronicon paschale 284-628, AD , Mary Whitby, Michael Whitby (Eds.) Liverpool 1989, ISBN 0-85323-096-X .
  • Theodoros, Homilia de obsidione Avarica Constantinopolis , in: Leo Sternbach, Analecta Avarica, Krakau 1900.

literature

  • Frano Barišić: Le siegé de Constantinople par les Avars et les Slaves en 626 . In: Byzantion 24 (1954), pp. 371-395.
  • James Howard-Johnston : The siege of Constantinople in 626 . In: Ders., East Rome, Sasanian Persia and the End of Antiquity , Aldershot 2006, pp. 131-142.
  • Martin Hurbanič: The Avar Siege of Constantinople in 626. History and Legend. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham 2019.
  • Walter Pohl : The Avars. A steppe people in Central Europe 567-822 n. Chr . Munich ²2002, ISBN 3-406-48969-9 .
  • Andreas N. Stratos: The Avar's Attack on Byzantium in the year 626 . In: Polychordia. Festschrift Franz Dölger (Byzantine Research 2), Amsterdam 1967, pp. 370–376.
  • Andreas N. Stratos: Byzantium in the seventh century . 3 volumes, Amsterdam 1968–71.