Thread by @Hippokleides

I promised the good Herbalist @paracelsus1092 a thread on Byzantine prophecy to mark my recent milestone of 1,000 followers. Since true promises, like true prophecies, must be fulfilled, here is a 12th-century tale of astrology, imperial folly, and blood. /1

All societies seek to peer into the future. The medieval Roman Empire - Byzantium - was deeply Christian. Those living lives of exemplary holiness, often monks, could sometimes be permitted glimpses of the future in dreams or visions by God who, in His omniscience, knew all. /2

But other paths held temptation, particularly for the wealthy whose concerns were focused on the earthly rather than the heavenly. Ancient pagan texts or Arabic imports suggested divinatory practices condemned by the Church: augury, brontology, occult magic to summon demons. /3

But above all astrology, regarded as science not magic. The movements of heavenly bodies were real and observable, but the idea that they held power over the destinies of men was contrary to the free will granted by God. Anna Komnena both dabbled in and deplored the practice. /4

Her condemnation and also affirmation of astrology, shared by her father, emperor Alexios I Komnenos (r. 1081-1118), reveals conflicting attitudes toward the practice in high society. Yet Alexios’ grandson, Manuel I Komnenos (r. 1143-1180), was more wholeheartedly in favour. /5

The history written by the courtier Niketas Choniates is filled with portents and omens, false and true. But he relates a particular astrological prophecy that seemed quite unambiguous - if ominous - yet was fulfilled in a terrible manner, far beyond expectations. /6

Manuel was a dashing emperor who had more illegitimate children than legitimate. It was only with his second wife that he managed to sire a legitimate son, born in 1169 when his father was already fifty. Concerned for the succession, he consulted the most renowned astrologers. /7

The horoscope revealed that the initials of the emperors of the Komnenos dynasty would spell AIMA (Greek for ‘blood’). First there had been the emperor Alexios I Komnenos, then his son Ioannes II Komnenos and now his grandson Manuel. /8

Accordingly, Manuel christened his son Alexios. He might be destined to be the last of the line to rule, but he would rule. /9

Eleven years later, Manuel lay dying. He would pass the throne to his son, but he knew that a child could not hold the reins of empire; the title would be empty until he could. Up until his last hours, the astrologers had falsely promised him a longer life. /10

The emperor now renounced the astrologers, accepted the truth of the Church and called for the ‘angelic habit’ so he could die as a monk. He was filled with foreboding for the safety of his son. /11

Power now shifted to the widowed empress, Maria of Antioch, who held authority over her juvenile imperial son. But she was young, beautiful and lonely. Men competed for her attention and favour. /12

Foremost among them was the prōtosebastos Alexios Komnenos. Soon he was the main power at court. Could it be this Alexios, not Manuel’s son, who would rule? Another faction opposed him, and pitched battles broke out in the heart of Constantinople as they fought for power. /13

Faced with this shambles, a more formidable man saw his moment. He was the elderly cousin and lifelong rival of Emperor Manuel, one Andronikos Komnenos; a man of noble appearance, military skill, and outstanding eloquence. /14

He led an army through Anatolia towards Constantinople, defeating all sent to stop him by words or violence. The prōtosebastos, abandoned by his friends, was blinded and Andronikos entered the city, posing as the young emperor’s saviour, in April 1182. /15

Within a year Andronikos had Maria strangled on a charge of conspiracy and was declared co-emperor, as the boy’s guardian. Not long thereafter, he tired of the boy who was in turn quietly murdered. His decapitated corpse was sealed in a lead casket and hurled into the sea. /16

Andronikos Komnenos was now sole, ruling emperor. Manuel’s hopes had proven to be folly, but the prophecy had still been fulfilled. AIMA.
/17

Yet, more blood was to follow. Andronikos was a harsh ruler filled with bitterness and with fear that the aristocracy would remove him. He started a murderous purge of high society. It was a reign of terror. /18

The butchery was intense as his agents scoured the city for victims to torture and execute. But, in September 1185, an undistinguished nobleman, Isaakios Angelos, in desperation to escape arrest, killed Andronikos’ chief henchman and then fled to seek asylum in Hagia Sophia. /19

There, in the largest church in the world, something unprecedented happened. The assembled masses, sick of bloodshed, saw Isaakios’ escape as righteous, and proclaimed him emperor. They laid siege to the imperial palace and Andronikos, in panic, fled by boat. /20

But he did not get far as the currents carried him back to shore. Once captured, he was bound and dragged before the court of the new emperor to be ridiculed, beaten and mutilated. His right hand was cut off and one eye gouged out, before he was given over to the mob. /21

Following such horrific abuse, Andronikos eventually expired. Yet his final act once more recalled the words of the prophecy: the dynasty of Komnenos had ended with blood. AIMA.
/end