The
Roman Empire had had a division of responsibility since
Diocletian named a co-emperor in 286. The
eastern and western halves each had an
emperor and a deputy called a
caesar. But with the death of
Theodosius the Great in 395, the empire was divided into two fully independent states. His son
Arcadius inherited the
Eastern Roman Empire, with its capital at
Constantinople. This had been called
Byzantium until 330, and the eastern
empire is usually called the Byzantine Empire.
With the accession of Heraclius in 610, the title used was Basileus, the classical Greek word for 'king', and Autocrator. Some of these emperors had junior partners or co-regents; for clarity I am not including them in the main list. Another problem is that many of them had surnames or epithets as well as regnal numbers, so Leo III and Leo the Isaurian are the same. This presents a problem deciding how to hardlink them. If you ever want to node any of these people and would prefer to see them referred to differently, please let me know.
- Arcadius 395-408
- Theodosius II 408-450
- Marcian 450-457
- Leo I the Thracian 457-474
- Leo II 474
- Zeno the Isaurian 474-475
- Basilicus 475-476
- Zeno the Isaurian again 476-491
- Anastasius I 491-518
- Justin I 518-527
- Justinian I the "Great" 527-565
with his depredations the Dark Ages begin
- Justin II 565-578
- Tiberius II Constantine 578-582
- Maurice 582-602
- Phocas 602-610
- Heraclius 610-641
- Constantine III 641
- Heracleonas 641
- Constans II Pogonatus 641-668
- Constantine IV 668-685
- Justinian II Rhinotmetus 685-695
- Leontius 695-698
- Tiberius III (Apsimar) 698-705
- Justinian II Rhinotmetus again 705-711
- Philippicus (Bardanes) 711-713
- Anastasius II (Artemius) 713-715
- Theodosius III 715-717
- Leo III the Isaurian 717-741
- Constantine V Copronymus 741
- Artavasdus 741-743
- Constantine V Copronymus again 743-775
- Leo IV the Khazar 775-780
Despite being called a Khazar, he was the son of Constantine V
- Constantine VI 780-797
- Empress Irene 797-802
- Nicephorus I 802-811
- Stauracius 811
- Michael I Rhangabe 811-813
- Leo V the Armenian 813-820
- Michael II the Amorian 820-829
- Theophilus 829-842
- Michael III the Drunkard 842-867
- Basil I the Macedonian 867-886
- Leo VI the Wise 886-912
- Alexander 912-913
- Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus 913-919
His surname refers to porphyrogeniture, by which the succession fell to the first son born while his father was emperor (born to the purple).
- Romanus I Lecapenus 919-944
- Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus again 944-959
- Romanus II 959-963
- Basil II Bulgaroctonus 963
- Nicephorus II Phocas 963-969
- John I Tzimisces 969-976
- Basil II Bulgaroctonus again 976-1025
the Bulgar-slayer
- Constantine VIII 1025-1028
- Romanus III Argyrus 1028-1034
- Michael IV the Paphlagonian 1034-1041
- Michael V Calaphates 1041-1042
- Empresses Zoë and Theodora 1042
daughters of Constantine VIII; Zoë's husbands were Romanus III, Michael IV, and Constantine IX
- Constantine IX Monomachus 1042-1055
- Theodora again 1055-1056
- Michael VI Stratioticus 1056-1057
- Isaac I Comnenus 1057-1059
- Constantine X Ducas 1059-1067
- Empress Eudocia Macrembolitissa 1067-1068
- Romanus IV Diogenes 1068-1071
- Eudocia Macrembolitissa again 1071
- Michael VII Parapinaces 1071-1078
- Nicephorus III Botaniates 1078-1081
- Alexius I Comnenus 1081-1118
- John II 1118-1143
- Manuel I 1143-1180
- Alexius II 1180-1183
- Andronicus I 1183-1185
- Isaac II Angelus 1185-1195
- Alexius III 1195-1203
- Alexius IV 1203-1204
with Isaac II restored as co-regent
- Alexius V Ducas (Murtzuphlus) 1204
- Theodore I Lascaris 1204-1222
In 1204 Constantinople was taken by the Crusaders, who created the Latin Empire and the Empire of Thessalonica. The remnants of the Byzantine state held out in remote parts of Greece. Theodore I held the title of despot until 1208. At this time one branch of the Byzantine dynasty fled and founded the tiny Empire of Trebizond on the Black Sea.
- John III Vatatzes 1222-1254
- Theodore II Lascaris 1254-1258
- John IV 1258-1261
- Michael VIII Palaeologus 1261-1282
retook Constantinople and restored the Byzantine Empire
- Andronicus II 1282-1328
- Andronicus III 1328-1341
- John V 1341-1347
At this point the internecine strife gets so confused that I offer the next few as at most roughly right.
- John VI Cantacuzene 1347-1355
- John V again 1355-1376
- Andronicus IV 1376-1379
- John V again 1379-1390
- John VII 1390
- John V again 1390-1391
- Manuel II 1391-1425
- John VIII 1425-1448
- Constantine IX Palaeologus (Dragases) 1448-1453
The
Seljuq Turks defeated the Byzantines at
Manzikert in 1071 and occupied most of
Anatolia (Asia Minor). In 1353 they crossed over and settled in Europe for the first time, and took
Adrianople (now
Edirne) in 1357. The last of Anatolia fell in 1390. The
Turks besieged Constantinople for the first time in 1422. Their final victory came under
Mehmet Fâtih (Mehmet the
Conqueror) on 29 May 1453.