Justinian I 527AD Ancient Medieval Byzantine Coin Large M i34966 For Sale

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Byzantine - Justinian I - Emperor: 1 August 527 - 14 November 565 A.D. -
Bronze Follis 30mm (15.45 grams) Constantinople mint: 527-565 A.D.
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D N IVSTINIANVS PP AVG - Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right.
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Justinian I (Latin: Flavius Petrus Sabbatius Justinianus Augustus) (c. 482 – 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, wasByzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lostwestern half of the historical Roman Empire.

One of the most important figures ofLate Antiquity and the last Roman Emperor to speak Latin as a first language, Justinian's rule constitutes a distinct epoch in the history of theEastern Roman Empire. The impact of his administration extended far beyond the boundaries of his time and domain. Justinian's reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized renovatio imperii, or "restoration of the Empire".

Because of his restoration activities, Justinian has sometimes been called the "Last Roman" in modern historiography. This ambition was expressed by the partial recovery of the territories of the defunctWestern Roman Empire. His generalBelisarius swiftly conquered theVandal Kingdom in North Africa, extending Roman control to theAtlantic Ocean. Subsequently Belisarius,Narses, and other generals conquered theOstrogothic Kingdom, restoringDalmatia,Sicily,Italy, andRome to the Empire after more than half a century of barbarian control.

TheprefectLiberius reclaimed most of southernIberia, establishing the province ofSpania. These campaigns re-established Roman control over the western Mediterranean, increasing the Empire's annual revenue by over a millionsolidi. During his reign Justinian also subdued the Tzani, a people on the east coast of theBlack Sea that had never been under Roman rule before.

A still more resonant aspect of his legacy was the uniform rewriting of Roman law, the Corpus Juris Civilis, which is still the basis ofcivil law in many modern states. This work was carried out primarily by hisquaestorTribonian. His reign also marked a blossoming of Byzantine culture, and his building program yielded such masterpieces as the church ofHagia Sophia, which was to be the center ofEastern Orthodox Christianity for many centuries.

A devastating outbreak ofbubonic plague (seePlague of Justinian) in the early 540s marked the end of an age of splendour. The Empire entered a period of territorial decline not to be reversed until the 9th century.

Procopius provides the primary source for the history of Justinian's reign. TheSyriac chronicle ofJohn of Ephesus, which does not survive, was used as a source for later chronicles, contributing many additional details of value. Both historians became very bitter towards Justinian and his empress,Theodora. Other sources include the histories of Agathias,Menander Protector,John Malalas, thePaschal Chronicle, the chronicles ofMarcellinus Comes andVictor of Tunnuna.

Justinian is considered asaint amongstOrthodox Christians, and is also remembered by some in theLutheran Church on November 14.

LifeSummary

Justinian was born inTauresium around 482. HisLatin-speakingpeasant family is believed to have been ofThraco-Roman orIllyro-Roman origins

The cognomen Iustinianus which he took later is indicative of adoption by his uncleJustin. During his reign, he foundedJustiniana Prima not far from his birthplace, today in South East Serbia. His mother was Vigilantia, the sister of Justin. Justin, who was in the imperial guard (theExcubitors) before he became emperor, adopted Justinian, brought him toConstantinople, and ensured the boy's education. As a result, Justinian was well educated injurisprudence,theology and Roman history. Justinian served for some time with theExcubitors but the details of his early career are unknown. ChroniclerJohn Malalas, who lived during the reign of Justinian, tells of his appearance that he was short, fair skinned, curly haired, round faced and handsome. Another contemporary chronicler,Procopius, compares Justinian's appearance to that of tyrannical EmperorDomitian, although this is probably slander.

When EmperorAnastasius died in 518, Justin was proclaimed the new Emperor, with significant help from Justinian. During Justin's reign (518–527), Justinian was the Emperor's close confidant. Justinian showed much ambition, and it has been thought that he was functioning as virtual regent long before Justin made him associate Emperor on 1 April 527, although there is no conclusive evidence for this. As Justin became senile near the end of his reign, Justinian became the de facto ruler. Justinian was appointedconsul in 521, and later commander of the army of the east. UponJustin I's death on 1 August 527, Justinian became the sole sovereign.

As a ruler, Justinian showed great energy. He was known as "the Emperor who never sleeps" on account of his work habits. Nevertheless, he seems to have been amiable and easy to approach. Justinian's family came from a lowly and provincial background, and therefore he had no power base in the traditional aristocracy of Constantinople. Instead, he surrounded himself with men and women of extraordinary talent, whom he selected not on the basis of aristocratic origin, but on the basis of merit.

Around 525 he married in Constantinople his mistressTheodora, who was by profession acourtesan about 20 years his junior. Justinian would have, in earlier times, been unable to marry her because of her class, but his uncle Emperor Justin I had passed a law allowing intermarriage between social classes. Theodora would become very influential in the politics of the Empire, and later emperors would follow Justinian's precedent in marrying outside thearistocratic class. The marriage caused a scandal, but Theodora would prove to be shrewd, a good judge of character and Justinian's greatest supporter. Other talented individuals includedTribonian, his legal adviser;Peter the Patrician, the diplomat and longtime head of the palace bureaucracy; his finance ministersJohn the Cappadocian andPeter Barsymes, who managed to collect taxes more efficiently than any before, thereby funding Justinian's wars; and finally, his prodigiously talented generalsBelisarius andNarses.

Justinian's rule was not universally popular; early in his reign he almost lost his throne during theNika riots, and a conspiracy against the Emperor's life by dissatisfied businessmen was discovered as late as 562.

Justinian was struck by theplague in the early 540s but recovered. Theodora died in 548, perhaps of cancer, at a relatively young age; Justinian outlived her by almost twenty years. Justinian, who had always had a keen interest in theological matters and actively participated in debates on Christian doctrine, became even more devoted to religion during the later years of his life. When he died, on 14 November of the year 565, he left no children. He was succeeded byJustin II, who was the son of his sister Vigilantia, and married to Sophia, the niece of Empress Theodora. Justinian's body was entombed in a specially built mausoleum in theChurch of the Holy Apostles.

Legislative activities The Barberini Ivory, which is thought to portray either Justinian or AnastasiusI

Justinian achieved lasting fame through his judicial reforms, particularly through the complete revision of allRoman law, something that had not previously been attempted. The total of Justinian's legislature is known today as the Corpus juris civilis. It consists of the Codex Iustinianus, the Digesta or Pandectae, the Institutiones, and the Novellae.

Early in his reign, Justinian appointed the quaestorTribonian to oversee this task. The first draft of the Codex Iustinianus, a codification of imperial constitutions from the 2nd century onward, was issued on 7 April 529. (The final version appeared in 534.) It was followed by the Digesta (orPandectae), a compilation of older legal texts, in 533, and by the Institutiones, a textbook explaining the principles of law. The Novellae, a collection of new laws issued during Justinian's reign, supplements the Corpus. As opposed to the rest of the corpus, the Novellae appeared inGreek, the common language of the Eastern Empire.

The Corpus forms the basis of Latin jurisprudence (including ecclesiasticalCanon Law) and, for historians, provides a valuable insight into the concerns and activities of the later Roman Empire. As a collection it gathers together the many sources in which the leges (laws) and the other rules were expressed or published: proper laws,senatorial consults (senatusconsulta), imperial decrees,case law, and jurists' opinions and interpretations (responsa prudentum).

Tribonian's code ensured the survival of Roman law. It formed the basis of later Byzantine law, as expressed in the Basilika ofBasil I andLeo VI the Wise. The only western province where the Justinianic code was introduced was Italy (after the conquest, by the so-calledPragmatic Sanction of 554), from where it was to pass toWestern Europe in the 12th century and become the basis of much European law code. It eventually passed toEastern Europe where it appeared in Slavic editions, and it also passed on toRussia. It remains influential to this day.

He passed laws to protect prostitutes from exploitation and women from being forced into prostitution. Rapists were treated severely. Further, by his policies, women charged with major crimes should be guarded by other women to prevent sexual abuse, and were a woman widowed, her dowry should be returned and a husband could not take on a major debt without his wife giving her consent twice.

Nika riots Main article: Nika riots

Justinian's habit of choosing efficient, but unpopular advisers nearly cost him his throne early in his reign. In January 532, partisans of thechariot racing factions in Constantinople, normally divided among themselves, united against Justinian in a revolt that has become known as theNika riots. They forced him to dismissTribonian and two of his other ministers, and then attempted to overthrow Justinian himself and replace him by the senatorHypatius, who was a nephew of the late emperorAnastasius. While the crowd was rioting in the streets, Justinian considered fleeing the capital, but eventually decided to stay, apparently on the prompting of Theodora, who refused to leave. In the next two days, he ordered the brutal suppression of the riots by his generalsBelisarius andMundus. Procopius relates that 30,000 unarmed civilians were killed in the Hippodrome. On Theodora's insistence, and apparently against his own judgment, Justinian had Anastasius' nephews executed.

The destruction that had taken place during the revolt provided Justinian with an opportunity to tie his name to a series of splendid new buildings, most notably the architectural innovation of the domedHagia Sophia.

Military activities

One of the most spectacular features of Justinian's reign was the recovery of large stretches of land around the Western Mediterranean basin which had slipped out of Imperial control in the 5th century. As a Christian Roman emperor, Justinian considered it his divine duty to restore theRoman Empire to its ancient boundaries. Although he never personally took part in military campaigns, he boasted of his successes in the prefaces to his laws and had them commemorated in art. The re-conquests were in large part carried out by his generalBelisarius.

War with the Sassanid Empire, 527–532

From his uncle, Justinian inherited ongoing hostilities with theSassanid Empire. In 530 a Persian army was defeated atDara, but the next year saw the defeat of Roman forces under Belisarius nearCallinicum. When kingKavadh I of Persia died (September 531), Justinian concluded an "Eternal Peace" (which cost him 11,000 pounds of gold) with his successorKhosrau I (532). Having thus secured his eastern frontier, Justinian turned his attention to the West, whereArianGermanic kingdoms had been established in the territories of the formerWestern Roman Empire.

Conquest of North Africa, 533–534 An older Justinian; mosaic in Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna (possibly a modified portrait of Theodoric).

The first of the western kingdoms Justinian attacked was that of theVandals inNorth Africa. KingHilderic, who had maintained good relations with Justinian and the North AfricanCatholic clergy, had been overthrown by his cousin Gelimer in 530. Imprisoned, the deposed king appealed to Justinian.

In 533, Belisarius with a fleet of 92dromons escorting 500 transports, landed atCaput Vada (modern Ras Kaboudia) in modernTunisia with an army of about 15,000 men, as well as a number of barbarian troops. They defeated the Vandals, who were caught completely off-guard, atAd Decimum on 14 September 533 andTricamarum in December; Belisarius tookCarthage. KingGelimer fled to Mount Pappua inNumidia, but surrendered the next spring. He was taken to Constantinople, where he was paraded in atriumph.Sardinia andCorsica, theBalearic Islands, and the strongholdSeptem nearGibraltar were recovered in the same campaign.

AnAfrican prefecture, centered in Carthage, was established in April 534, but it would teeter on the brink of collapse during the next 15 years, amidst warfare with theMoors and military mutinies. The area was not completely pacified until 548, but remained peaceful thereafter and enjoyed a measure of prosperity. The recovery of Africa cost the empire about 100,000 pounds of gold.

War in Italy, first phase, 535–540

As in Africa, dynastic struggles inOstrogothic Italy provided an opportunity for intervention. The young kingAthalaric had died on 2 October 534, and an usurper, Theodahad, had imprisoned queenAmalasuntha,Theodoric's daughter and mother of Athalaric, on the island of Martana inLake Bolsena, where he had her assassinated in 535. ThereuponBelisarius with 7,500 men invadedSicily (535) and advanced into Italy, sackingNaples and capturingRome on 9 December 536. By that timeTheodahad had been deposed by theOstrogothic army, who had electedVitigis as their new king. He gathered a large army and besieged Rome from February 537 to March 538 without being able to retake the city.

Justinian sent another general,Narses, to Italy, but tensions between Narses and Belisarius hampered the progress of the campaign.Milan was taken, but was soon recaptured and razed by the Ostrogoths. Justinian recalledNarses in 539. By then the military situation had turned in favour of the Romans, and in 540 Belisarius reached the Ostrogothic capitalRavenna. There he was offered the title ofWestern Roman Emperor by the Ostrogoths at the same time that envoys of Justinian were arriving to negotiate a peace which would leave the region north of thePo River in Gothic hands. Belisarius feigned to accept the offer, entered the city in May 540, and reclaimed it for the Empire. Then, having been recalled by Justinian, Belisarius returned to Constantinople, taking the capturedVitigis and his wifeMatasuntha with him.

War with the Sassanid Empire, 540–562 Modern or early modern drawing of a medallion celebrating the reconquest of Africa, c. 535

Belisarius had been recalled in the face of renewed hostilities by thePersians. Following a revolt against the Empire inArmenia in the late 530s and possibly motivated by the pleas ofOstrogothic ambassadors, KingKhosrau I broke the "Eternal Peace" and invaded Roman territory in the spring of 540. He first sackedBeroea and thenAntioch (allowing the garrison of 6,000 men to leave the city), besiegedDaras, and then went on to attack the small but strategically significant satellite kingdom ofLazica near theBlack Sea, exacting tribute from the towns he passed along his way. He forced Justinian I to pay him 5,000 pounds of gold, plus 500 pounds of gold more each year.

Belisarius arrived in the East in 541, but, after some success, was again recalled to Constantinople in 542. The reasons for his withdrawal are not known, but it may have been instigated by rumours of disloyalty on behalf of the general reaching the court. The outbreak of theplague caused a lull in the fighting during the year 543. The following year Khosrau defeated a Byzantine army of 30,000 men, but unsuccessfully besieged the major city ofEdessa. Both parties made little headway, and in 545 a truce was agreed upon for the southern part of the Roman-Persian frontier. After that theLazic War in the North continued for several years, until a second truce in 557, followed by a Fifty Years' Peace in 562. Under its terms, the Persians agreed to abandon Lazica in exchange for an annual tribute of 400 or 500 pounds of gold (30,000 solidi) to be paid by the Romans.

War in Italy, second phase, 541–554

While military efforts were directed to the East, the situation in Italy took a turn for the worse. Under their respective kingsIldibad andEraric (both murdered in 541) and especiallyTotila, the Ostrogoths made quick gains. After avictory atFaenza in 542, they reconquered the major cities of Southern Italy and soon held almost the entire peninsula. Belisarius was sent back to Italy late in 544, but lacked sufficient troops. Making no headway, he was relieved of his command in 548. Belisarius succeeded in defeating a Gothic fleet with 200 ships.[citation needed] During this period the city ofRome changed hands three more times, first taken and depopulated by the Ostrogoths in December 546, then reconquered by the Byzantines in 547, and then again by the Goths in January 550. Totila also plunderedSicily and attacked the Greek coastlines.

Finally, Justinian dispatched a force of approximately 35,000 men (2,000 men were detached and sent to invade southernVisigothicHispania) under the command ofNarses. The army reached Ravenna in June 552, and defeated the Ostrogoths decisively within a month at the battle ofBusta Gallorum in theApennines, where Totila was slain. After a second battle atMons Lactarius in October that year, the resistance of the Ostrogoths was finally broken. In 554, a large-scaleFrankish invasion was defeated atCasilinum, and Italy was secured for the Empire, though it would take Narses several years to reduce the remaining Gothic strongholds. At the end of the war, Italy was garrisoned with an army of 16,000 men. The recovery of Italy cost the empire about 300,000 pounds of gold.

Other campaigns Spanish Visigothic gold tremisses in the name of emperor Justinian I, 7th century. The Christian cross on the breast defines the Visigothic attribution. British Museum.

In addition to the other conquests, the Empire established a presence inVisigothicHispania, when the usurperAthanagild requested assistance in his rebellion against kingAgila I. In 552, Justinian dispatched a force of 2,000 men; according to the historianJordanes, this army was led by the octogenarianLiberius. The Byzantines tookCartagena and other cities on the southeastern coast and founded the new province ofSpania before being checked by their former ally Athanagild, who had by now become king. This campaign marked the apogee of Byzantine expansion.

During Justinian's reign, theBalkans suffered from several incursions by theTurkic andSlavic peoples who lived north of theDanube. Here, Justinian resorted mainly to a combination of diplomacy and a system of defensive works. In 559 a particularly dangerous invasion ofSklavinoi andKutrigurs under theirkhanZabergan threatened Constantinople, but they were repulsed by the aged general Belisarius.

Results Emperor Justinian reconquered many former territories of the Western Roman Empire, including Italy, Dalmatia, Africa, and southern Hispania.

Justinian's ambition to restore the Roman Empire to its former glory was only partly realized. In the West, the brilliant early military successes of the 530s were followed by years of stagnation. The dragging war with the Goths was a disaster for Italy, even though its long-lasting effects may have been less severe than is sometimes thought. The heavy taxes that the administration imposed upon its population were deeply resented. While the final victory in Italy and the conquest of the coast of southern Hispania significantly enlarged the area over which the Empire could project its power and influence, and while they must have contributed to the Empire's prestige, most of the conquests proved ephemeral. The greater part of Italy would be lost to the invadingLombards three years after Justinian's death (568), the newly founded province of Spania was completely recovered by the Hispanian Visigoths in 624 under the leadership ofSuintila, and within a century and a half Africa would be forever lost for the empire to theRashidun andUmayyad Caliphates during theMuslim conquests.

Events of the later years of the reign showed that Constantinople itself was not safe from barbarian incursions from the north, and even the relatively benevolent historianMenander Protector felt the need to explain the Emperor's failure to protect the capital from the weakness of his body in his old age. In his efforts to renew the Roman Empire, Justinian dangerously stretched its resources while failing to take into account the changed realities of 6th-century Europe. Paradoxically, the grand scale of Justinian's military successes probably contributed in part to the Empire's subsequent decline.

Religious activities

Justinian saw the orthodoxy of his empire threatened by diverging religious currents, especiallyMonophysitism, which had many adherents in the eastern provinces of Syria and Egypt. Monophysite doctrine had been condemned as a heresy by theCouncil of Chalcedon in 451, and the tolerant policies towards Monophysitism ofZeno andAnastasius I had been a source of tension in the relationship with the bishops of Rome. Justin reversed this trend and confirmed the Chalcedonian doctrine, openly condemning the Monophysites. Justinian, who continued this policy, tried to impose religious unity on his subjects by forcing them to accept doctrinal compromises that might appeal to all parties, a policy which proved unsuccessful as he satisfied none of them.

Near the end of his life, Justinian became ever more inclined towards the Monophysite doctrine, especially in the form ofAphthartodocetism, but he died before being able to issue any legislation which would have elevated its teachings to the status of dogma. The empress Theodora sympathized with the Monophysites and is said to have been a constant source of pro-Monophysite intrigues at the court in Constantinople in the earlier years. In the course of his reign, Justinian, who had a genuine interest in matters of theology, authored a small number of theological treatises.

Religious policy Justinian I, depicted on an AE Follis coin

As in his secular administration,despotism appeared also in the Emperor's ecclesiastical policy. He regulated everything, both in religion and in law.

At the very beginning of his reign, he deemed it proper to promulgate by law the Church's belief in theTrinity and theIncarnation; and to threaten allheretics with the appropriate penalties; whereas he subsequently declared that he intended to deprive all disturbers of orthodoxy of the opportunity for such offense bydue process of law.[59] He made the Nicaeno-Constantinopolitan creed the sole symbol of the Church, and accorded legal force to thecanons of the fourecumenical councils. The bishops in attendance at theSecond Council of Constantinople in 553 recognized that nothing could be done in the Church contrary to the emperor's will and command; while, on his side, the emperor, in the case of thePatriarch Anthimus, reinforced the ban of the Church with temporal proscription. Justinian protected the purity of the church by suppressing heretics. He neglected no opportunity for securing the rights of the Church and clergy, for protecting and extendingmonasticism. He granted the monks the right to inherit property from private citizens and the right to receive solemnia or annual gifts from the Imperial treasury or from the taxes of certain provinces and he prohibited lay confiscation of monastic estates.

Although the despotic character of his measures is contrary to modern sensibilities, he was indeed a "nursing father" of the Church. Both the Codex and the Novellae contain many enactments regarding donations, foundations, and the administration of ecclesiastical property; election and rights of bishops, priests and abbots; monastic life, residential obligations of the clergy, conduct of divine service, episcopal jurisdiction, et cetera. Justinian also rebuilt the Church ofHagia Sophia (which cost 20,000 pounds of gold), the original site having been destroyed during the Nika riots. The new Hagia Sophia, with its numerous chapels and shrines, gilded octagonal dome, andmosaics, became the centre and most visible monument ofEastern Orthodoxy in Constantinople.

Religious relations with Rome

From the middle of the 5th century onward, increasingly arduous tasks confronted the emperors of the East in ecclesiastical matters. For one thing, the radicals on all sides felt themselves constantly repelled by the creed adopted by theCouncil of Chalcedon to defend the biblical doctrine of the nature of Christ and bridge the gap between thedogmatic parties. The letter ofPope Leo I toFlavian of Constantinople was widely considered in the East as the work ofSatan; so that nobody cared to hear of the Church of Rome. The Emperors, however, had a policy of preserving the unity between Constantinople andRome; and this remained possible only if they did not swerve from the line defined atChalcedon. In addition, the factions in the East which had become stirred up and disaffected because of Chalcedon needed restraining and pacifying. This problem proved the more difficult because, in the East, the dissenting groups exceeded supporters of Chalcedon both in numerical strength and in intellectual ability. Tension from the incompatibility of the two aims grew: whoever chose Rome and the West must renounce the East, and vice versa.

Consular diptych displaying Justinian's full name (Constantinople 521)

Justinian entered the arena of ecclesiastical statecraft shortly after his uncle's accession in 518, and put an end to theMonophysiteschism that had prevailed between Rome and Constantinople since 483. The recognition of theRoman see as the highest ecclesiastical authority[65] remained the cornerstone of his Western policy. Offensive as it was to many in the East, nonetheless Justinian felt himself entirely free to take a Despotic stance toward the popes such asSilverius andVigilius. While no compromise could ever be accepted by the dogmatic wing of the church, his sincere efforts at reconciliation gained him the approval of the major body of the church. A signal proof was his attitude in theTheopaschite controversy. At the outset he was of the opinion that the question turned on a quibble of words. By degrees, however, Justinian came to understand that the formula at issue not only appeared orthodox, but might also serve as a conciliatory measure toward the Monophysites, and he made a vain attempt to do this in the religious conference with the followers ofSeverus of Antioch in 533.

Again, Justinian moved toward compromise in the religious edict of 15 March 533, and congratulated himself thatPope John II admitted the orthodoxy of the imperial confession. The serious blunder that he had made at the beginning by abetting a severe persecution of the Monophysite bishops and monks and thereby embittering the population of vast regions and provinces, he remedied eventually. His constant aim now remained to win over the Monophysites, yet not to surrender the Chalcedonian faith. For many at court, he did not go far enough: Theodora especially would have rejoiced to see the Monophysites favoured unreservedly. Justinian, however, felt restrained by the complications that would have ensued with the West. But in the condemnation of theThree Chapters Justinian tried to satisfy both the East and the West, but succeeded in satisfying neither. Although the pope assented to the condemnation, the West believed that the Emperor had acted contrary to the decrees of Chalcedon. Though many delegates emerged in the East subservient to Justinian, many, especially the Monophysites, remained unsatisfied; all the more bitter for him because during his last years he took an even greater interest in theological matters.

Suppression of religions Justinian was one of the first Roman Emperors to be depicted wielding the cross on the obverse of a coin.

Justinian's religious policy reflected the Imperial conviction that the unity of the Empire unconditionally presupposed unity of faith; and it appeared to him obvious that this faith could only be theOrthodox (Nicaean). Those of a different belief had to recognize that the process of consolidation, which imperial legislation had effected from the time ofConstantius II, would now vigorously continue. The Codex contained twostatutes which decreed the total destruction ofpaganism, even in private life; these provisions were zealously enforced. Contemporary sources (John Malalas,Theophanes,John of Ephesus) tell of severe persecutions, even of men in high position.

Perhaps the most noteworthy event occurred in 529 when theNeoplatonic Academy ofAthens was placed under state control by order of Justinian, effectively strangling this training-school for Hellenism.Paganism was actively suppressed. InAsia Minor alone, John of Ephesus claimed to haveconverted 70,000 pagans. Other peoples also accepted Christianity: theHeruli, theHuns dwelling near theDon, theAbasgi, and theTzanni inCaucasia.

The worship of Amun atAugila in theLibyan desert was abolished; and so were the remnants of the worship ofIsis on the island ofPhilae, at the firstcataract of theNile. ThePresbyter Julian and theBishop Longinus conducted a mission among theNabataeans, and Justinian attempted to strengthenChristianity inYemen by despatching a bishop fromEgypt.

The civil rights ofJews were restricted and their religious privileges threatened. Justinian also interfered in the internal affairs of thesynagogue.,[81] and he encouraged the Jews to use the GreekSeptuagint in their synagogues in Constantinople.

The Emperor had much trouble with theSamaritans, who resisted conversion to Christianity and were repeatedly in insurrection. He opposed them with rigorous edicts, but yet could not prevent hostilities towards Christians from taking place in Samaria toward the close of his reign. The consistency of Justinian's policy meant that theManicheans too suffered severe persecution, experiencing both exile and threat of capital punishment. AtConstantinople, on one occasion, not a few Manicheans, after strict inquisition, were executed in the emperor's very presence: some by burning, others bydrowning.

Architecture, learning, art and literature

Justinian was a prolific builder; the historian Procopius bears witness to his activities in this area. Under Justinian's patronage theSan Vitale in Ravenna, which features two famous mosaics representing Justinian and Theodora, was completed. Most notably, he had theHagia Sophia, originally abasilica-style church that had been burnt down during the Nika riots, splendidly rebuilt according to a completely different ground plan, under the architectural supervision ofIsidore of Miletus andAnthemius of Tralles. According to Procopius, Justinian stated at the completion of this edifice, "Solomon I have outdone thee" (in reference to the 1st Jewish temple). This new cathedral, with its magnificent dome filled with mosaics, remained the centre of eastern Christianity for centuries.

Another prominent church in the capital, theChurch of the Holy Apostles, which had been in a very poor state near the end of the 5th century, was likewise rebuilt. Works of embellishment were not confined to churches alone: excavations at the site of theGreat Palace of Constantinople have yielded several high-quality mosaics dating from Justinian's reign, and acolumn topped by a bronze statue of Justinian on horseback and dressed in a military costume was erected in theAugustaeum in Constantinople in 543. Rivalry with other, more established patrons from the Constantinopolitan and exiled Roman aristocracy (likeAnicia Juliana) may have enforced Justinian's building activities in the capital as a means of strengthening his dynasty's prestige.

Justinian also strengthened the borders of the Empire from Africa to the East through the construction of fortifications, and ensured Constantinople of its water supply through construction of undergroundcisterns (seeBasilica Cistern). To prevent floods from damaging the strategically important border townDara,an advanced arch dam was built. During his reign the largeSangarius Bridge was built inBithynia, securing a major military supply route to the east. Furthermore, Justinian restored cities damaged by earthquake or war and built a new city near his place of birth calledJustiniana Prima, which was intended to replaceThessalonica as the political and religious centre ofIllyricum.

In Justinian's era, and partly under his patronage, Byzantine culture produced noteworthy historians, includingProcopius andAgathias, and poets such asPaul the Silentiary andRomanus the Melodist flourished during his reign. On the other hand, centres of learning as the Platonic Academy in Athens and the famousLaw School of Beirut[89] lost their importance during his reign. Despite Justinian's passion for the glorious Roman past, the practice of choosingRoman consul was allowed to lapse after 541.

Economy and administration Gold coin of Justinian I (527–565 CE) excavated in India probably in the south, an example of Indo-Roman trade during the period.

As was the case under Justinian's predecessors, the Empire's economic health rested primarily on agriculture. In addition, long-distance trade flourished, reaching as far north asCornwall wheretin was exchanged for Roman wheat. Within the Empire, convoys sailing fromAlexandria provided Constantinople with wheat and grains. Justinian made the traffic more efficient by building a large granary on the island ofTenedos for storage and further transport to Constantinople. Justinian also tried to find new routes for the eastern trade, which was suffering badly from the wars with the Persians.

One important luxury product wassilk, which was imported and then processed in the Empire. In order to protect the manufacture of silk products, Justinian granted a monopoly to the imperial factories in 541. In order to bypass the Persian landroute, Justinian established friendly relations with theAbyssinians, whom he wanted to act as trade mediators by transporting Indian silk to the Empire; the Abyssinians, however, were unable to compete with the Persian merchants in India. Then, in the early 550s, two monks succeeded insmuggling eggs of silk worms fromCentral Asia back to Constantinople, and silk became an indigenous product.

Gold and silver were mined in the Balkans, Anatolia, Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt and Nubia.

Scene from daily life on a mosaic from the Great Palace of Constantinople, early 6th century

At the start of Justinian I's reign he had inherited a surplus 28,800,000 solidi (400,000 pounds of gold) in the imperial treasury from Anastasius I and Justin I. Under Justinian's rule, measures were taken to counter corruption in the provinces and to make tax collection more efficient. Greater administrative power was given to both the leaders of theprefectures and of the provinces, while power was taken away from thevicariates of thedioceses, of which a number were abolished. The overall trend was towards a simplification of administrative infrastructure. According toBrown (1971), the increased professionalization of tax collection did much to destroy the traditional structures of provincial life, as it weakened the autonomy of the town councils in the Greek towns. It has been estimated that before Justinian I's reconquests the state had an annual revenue of 5,000,000 solidi in AD 530, but after his reconquests, the annual revenue was increased to 6,000,000 solidi in AD 550.

Throughout Justinian's reign, the cities and villages of the East prospered, although Antioch was struck by two earthquakes (526, 528) and sacked and evacuated by the Persians (540). Justinian had the city rebuilt, but on a slightly smaller scale.

Despite all these measures, the Empire suffered several major setbacks in the course of the 6th century. The first one was theplague, which lasted from 541 to 543 and, by decimating the Empire's population, probably created a scarcity of labor and a rising of wages. The lack of manpower also led to a significant increase in the number of "barbarians" in the Byzantine armies after the early 540s. The protracted war in Italy and the wars with the Persians themselves laid a heavy burden on the Empire's resources, and Justinian was criticized for curtailing the government-run post service, which he limited to only one eastern route of military importance.

In art and popular culture Statue of Justinian I in Skopje, Macedonia

In the Divine Comedy,Dante meets the spirit of Justinian in the Heaven of Mercury, among the other blessed souls whose earthly ambitions were imperfectly aligned with the Divine Will.

Justinian was portrayed byOrson Welles in the 1968 German film Kampf um Rom I, directed byRobert Siodmak.

In the video game Civilization IV, Justinian is the leader of the Byzantine Empire.

In the comic strip Prince Valiant, Justinian abductsPrince Nathan.

InGuy Gavriel Kay's two book series The Sarantine Mosaic, Emperor or Valerius II and Empress Alixana are based heavily upon Justinian and Theodora.

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