Thread by @byzantineprof

December 5: #OTD in 562, Belisarius suffered his last disgrace at the hands of an aging Justinian. Belisarius, by this point retired for more than a decade, was implicated in a plot to murder the emperor. Was he guilty? A 🧵 #BelisariusAndAntonina #Byzantine #History

In November 562, three men devised a conspiracy to assassinate Justinian: Ablabios, a musician, Marcellos, a banker, and Sergios, the nephew of an important senator named Aitherios. This was not exactly a roster of the elites of the elites of Constantinopolitan society.

The plot, which was to stab Justinian to death in the evening while he sat in the palace triclinium (dining room), was amateurish and quickly detected by palace guards, who arrested all three men before they came close to ambushing the emperor.

Under questioning, Sergios accused three others of participating in the conspiracy. They were Isaac, Vitus, and Paul, who all belonged to the household of Belisarius as accountants and assistants. By extension, their alleged involvement implicated the retired general.

After an extensive investigation, the depositions of the accused were read out in a special sitting of the imperial court on December 5, and according to the chronicler John Malalas, "the patrician Belisarius incurred anger."

Justinian stripped Belisarius of all of his household men, and presumably the retired general lost his titles and special access to the palace. It was quite the fall for Belisarius, who possibly had enjoyed a privileged position as an advisor to the emperor.

But did Belisarius actually have anything to do with this plot? It's impossible to be sure, of course, but I have my doubts. Belisarius had years of military power with which he might have overthrown Justinian, but he appears to have never even contemplated it.

Why should Belisarius plot against Justinian now, when he was long retired and had comparatively little power? If not Belisarius personally, the chance remains that his household men were involved in the plot without his knowledge.

It is also entirely possible that the accusation against Belisarius' household men was an attempt by jealous political enemies to besmirch Belisarius' reputation. If Belisarius was a favorite advisor of Justinian, this would be a way to remove him so others might claim that spot.

That Justinian would believe Belisarius was involved in this plot might suggest that his mental acuity was declining as he aged (he was now about 80). I tweeted about this recently:

https://twitter.com/byzantineprof/status/1460272926251536387

Incidentally, it is from this disgrace that the rumor of Belisarius being blinded by Justinian comes. The legend was very popular up to about 100 years ago, but is widely recognized now as a fiction. I tweeted about the legend some time ago:

https://twitter.com/byzantineprof/status/1175066991188729856

For those concerned about the fate of Belisarius after his disgrace, know that he was restored to full honors in July 563. You can read about his restoration here:

https://twitter.com/byzantineprof/status/1549379488236146688