Leontius (counter-emperor)
Leontius ( ancient Greek Λεόντιος ; † 488) was a Roman counter-emperor to Emperor Zenon in the east of the Roman Empire .
Life
Leontius was a man of simple origin who served himself highly in the military and in 482 was even promoted to Patricius by Emperor Zenon, an Isaurian compatriot .
When the magister militum per Orientem Illus rose against Emperor Zenon in Antioch in 484, he sent Leontius to put down this uprising. However, Leontius was persuaded by Illus to have himself proclaimed emperor, which happened on July 19, 484 in Tarsus by Verina , the widow of Emperor Leo I - although not voluntarily.
Leontius tried to bring about an alliance with the Persians. However, when this attempt was unsuccessful and the troops of the emperor Zenon advanced, he fled with Illus and Verina to the Isaurian mountain fortress Papyrios, where Verina died that same year. The opposing emperor was able to hold the fortress until the autumn of 488, when the troops of Zenon were able to storm it through treason among Leontius' troops. Illus and Leontius were then executed.
literature
- Alexander Demandt : The late antiquity. Roman history from Diocletian to Justinian. 284 - 565 AD (= Handbook of Classical Studies . Section 3: Ancient Orient, Greek History, Roman History. Part 6). 2nd completely revised and expanded edition. Beck, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-55993-8 , p. 226.
- Gerard Friell, Stephen Williams: The Rome That Did Not Fall. The survival of the East in the fifth century. Routledge, London 1999, ISBN 0-415-15403-0 , p. 195.
- Philip Grierson , Melinda Mays: Catalog of late Roman coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection. From Arcadius and Honorius to the Accession of Anastasius. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington DC 1992, ISBN 0-88402-193-9 , p. 190.
- Ariane Kiel-Freytag: reflections on the usurpation of Illus and Leontius (484–488 AD). In: Journal of Papyrology and Epigraphy . Vol. 174, 2010, pp. 291-301 ( JSTOR 41291046 ).
- John Robert Martindale: Leontius 17. In: The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire (PLRE). Volume 2, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1980, ISBN 0-521-20159-4 , pp. 670-671.
- Warren T. Treadgold : A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford University Press, Stanford CA 1997, ISBN 0-804-72630-2 , pp. 161-164.
Web links
- Hugh Elton: Short biography (English) at De Imperatoribus Romanis (with references).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Leontius |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Λεόντιος (Greek) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Eastern Roman counter-emperor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 5th century |
| DATE OF DEATH | 488 |