A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

838 CONSTANTINUS. CONSTANTINUS.
was he gone, than an Arabic fleet, perhaps invited nothing of the last five years of the reign of Conthither by the rebels, appeared off Syracuse. stantine: he died in the month of September, 685,
The place was taken by surprise and partly de- and was succeeded by his son, Justinian II.
stroyed, and the riches and statues, the plunder of Besides the wars which signalized the reign
Rome, collected there by Constans, were carried of Constantine IV., there is an event not less
by the Arabs to Alexandria. The Greek troops remarkable, which most probably took place during
in Asia revolted soon after the return of the em- the same period. We allude to the new division
peror. They would be governed by a "Trinity," of the empire, which had hitherto been adminisand not by a sole sovereign, and demanded that tered according to the ancient system, so that, for
Constantine should divide his authority, with his instance, all the Asiatic dominions were ruled by
two brothers, Heraclius and Tiberius, who had the a civil governor or proconsul, and the whole army
title but not the power of Augusti. This rebellion stationed in that part of the empire had likewise
was likewise soon quelled, and Constantine par- but one chief commander, the praefect of Asia.
doned both his brothers. At the same time, an The constant incursions of the Arabs required the
Arabic army commanded by Ukbah and Dinar presence of different moveable corps stationed in
invaded the remaining part of the Greek dominions the frontier provinces, the commanders of which
in Africa (Mauretania), penetrated as far as the were independent of one another: these bodies
shores of the Atlantic, and ravaged the country so were called themata (O41eaa), from thema (OEa),
fearfully, that both the Greek and-Berber inhabi- a position. This name was afterwards given to
tants rose in despair, and, under the command of a the districts in which such corps were stationed,
native chief named Kussileh, surprised the Mos- and its use became so general, that at last the
lems, and killed nearly all of them. This however whole empire was divided into twenty-nine thewas no advantage to the emperor, since Kussileh ntac, seventeen of which were in the eastern and
succeeded in seizing the supreme power in that southern or Asiatic part of the empire, and twelve
country. in the northern and western parts, from the CimIn 671 the Arabs equipped a powerful fleet merian Bosporus to Sicily. This important change
with the intention of laying siege to Constantino- in the administration of the empire took place in
ple. They conquered Smyrna and nearly all the the latter years of the reign of Heraclius, or in the
islands of the Grecian archipelago, and began the reign of Constantine IV., that is, from about 635
blockade of Constantinople in the spring of 672; to 685. But although we do not precisely know
but, after a protracted siege of five months,were com- the year, there are many reasons for believing that
pelled to sail back, after sustaining immense losses Constantine IV. was the originator of that plan.
from the Greek fire, which had just been invented [CONSTANTINUS VII.] (Cedren. p. 436, &c., ed.
by Callinicus, a native of Heliopolis in Syria, and Paris; Zonar. vol. ii. p. 89, &c., ed. Paris; Glywas first employed in that siege. Yezid, the son cas, p. 278, &c., ed. Paris; Theophan. p. 289, &c.,
of the khalif Mi'awiyah, who commanded the ed. Paris; Paulus Diacon. De Gestis Longobard.
Arabic forces, returned in the following spring, v. 30.) [W. P.]
and, during a period of seven years, regularly ap- CONSTANTI'NUS V., surnamed COPRO'peared before Constantinople in the spring, and NYMUS (6 KorrpC'vuveos), because he polluted the
sailed to his winter-quarters in the autumn, but baptismal font at the time of his baptism, emperor
wa% not able to take the city. During the last of the East, A. D. 741-775, was the only son of
siege, in 679, the Arabic fleet lost so many ships the emperor Leo III. Isaurus. He was born in 719,
by the Greek fire, that Yezid was compelled to and succeeded his father in 741. The unfortunate
make a hasty retreat, and not having a sufficient commencement of his reign is related in the life of
number of ships for his numerous forces, despatched the emperor ARTAVASDES, p. 370, b. The downa body of 30,000 men by land for Syria, while he fall of this usurper in 743 and the complete success
embarked the rest on board his fleet. But his of Constantine caused much grief to pope Zacharias,
fleet was destroyed by a storm, and the land army who had recognized Artavasdes because he prowas overtaken and cut to pieces by a Greek army tected the worship of images, while Constantine
commanded by Florus, Petronas, and Cyprianus. was an iconoclast, at whose instigation a council
This unfortunate campaign, and the war at the held at Constantinople in 754 condemned the worsame time with the Maronites or Druses of Mount ship of images throughout the whole Eastern emLebanon, pressed so heavily upon the khalif pire. Constantine was most cruel in his proceedMYh'awiyah, that, wishing for peace, he signed the ings against the orthodox: he anathematized
conditions offered him by Constantine, and he thus Joannes Damascenus and put to death Constanbecame liable, for the period of thirty years, to an tine, the patriarch of Constantinople, St. Stephaannual tribute of 3000 pounds of gold accompanied nus, and many other fathers who had declared fbr
by rich presents of slaves and horses. By this the images. In 751 Eutychius, exarch of Ravenna,
glorious peace the authority of the Greek emperor was driven out by Astolf (Astaulphus), king of the
rose to such a height, that all the minor powers of Longobards, who united that province with his
Asia sought his protection. But his name was dominions after the dignity of exarch had been in
less dreaded in Europe, for he was compelled by existence during a period of 185 years. A war
the Bulgarians to cede to them that country south having broken out between Astolf and Pipin the
of the Danube which is still called Bulgaria. Short, king of the Franks, the latter conquered
In 680 Constantine assembled the sixth general the exarchate and gave it to pope Stephen (755),
council at Constantinople, by which the Monoth- the first pope who ever had temporal dominions,
elists were condemned and peace was restored the duchy of Rome being still a dependency of the
to the church. In 681 the emperor's brothers, Eastern empire. Constantine sent ambassadors to
Heraclius and Tiberius, were both deprived of their Pipin, Astolf, and the pope, to claim the restitution
dignity of Augustus, which title Constantine con- of the exarchate; but the negotiations proved aborferred upon his son Justinian. We know almost tive, since the emperor could not give them suffi