Christopher (Domestic of the Schools)

Christopher (Greek: Χριστόφορος, fl. 870s) was the commander-in-chief (Domestic of the Schools) of the Byzantine army during the 870s, and scored significant victories against the Paulicians.

Biography

Nothing is known of Christopher's origin, date of birth or death.[1] He is identified in the sources as the gambros of Emperor Basil I the Macedonian (r. 867–886), a word which usually means "son-in-law", but can imply a more general family tie through marriage. Cyril Mango suggested that Christopher married Basil's eldest daughter, Anastasia, but all the emperor's daughters were eventually confined to a convent.[1][2]

In 872 or 878/9,[3] Christopher led an expedition against the Paulicians of Tephrike, comprising the forces of the Charsianon and Armeniakon themes. The campaign culminated in the Battle of Bathys Ryax, which saw a crushing defeat of the Paulicians and the death of their leader, Chrysocheir. This success was followed, whether immediately afterwards or a few years later, by the sack of the Paulician capital, Tephrike, and the extinction of their state.[1][2][4]

References

1. Kazhdan 1991, pp. 441–442.
2. Guilland 1967, p. 438 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFGuilland1967 (help).
3. The date is disputed, cf. Kiapidou 2003, Note 6.
4. Kiapidou 2003, Chapter 2 and Chapter 3.

Sources

• Guilland, Rodolphe (1967). "Le Domestique des Scholes". Recherches sur les institutions byzantines [Studies on the Byzantine Institutions]. Berliner byzantinische Arbeiten 35 (in French). I. Berlin and Amsterdam: Akademie-Verlag & Adolf M. Hakkert. pp. 426–468. OCLC 878894516.
• Kazhdan, Alexander (1991). "Christopher". In Kazhdan, Alexander (ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 441–442. ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
• Kiapidou, Eirini-Sofia (17 January 2003). "Battle at Bathys Ryax, 872/8". Encyclopedia of the Hellenic World, Asia Minor. Athens: Foundation of the Hellenic World. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2013.