Άλλα Ονόματα Patriarch John VIII Xiphilinos, John the nomophylax. Τόπος και Χρόνος Γέννησης Around 1010, Trebizond (present day Trabzon)

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1 Περίληψη : Representative of one of the most talented generations of Byzantine scholars, nomophylax and head of the imperial law School, monk and patriarch of Constantinople (1 January August 1075), John Xiphilinos with the course of his life which from his birthplace of Trebizond led him to the highest ranking offices in the capital offers a clear picture of 11th century Byzantine intellectual life: of the great cultural blossoming but also of the increasing and more effectual involvement of a circle of prominent scholars of the capital in active politics, headed by Michael Psellos. Άλλα Ονόματα Patriarch John VIII Xiphilinos, John the nomophylax Τόπος και Χρόνος Γέννησης Around 1010, Trebizond (present day Trabzon) Τόπος και Χρόνος Θανάτου 2 August 1075, Constantinople Κύρια Ιδιότητα Scholar, Patriarch of Constantinople ( ) 1. Birth Family John Xiphilinos was born at around 1010 in the flourishing, at this time, town of Trebizond on the Black Sea. The exact year of his birth is not known, but based on indirect information we can conclude that he was slightly older than his contemporary Michael Psellos (who was born in 1018). Information about John Xiphilinos family is sparse and all comes from the works of Psellos. The names of his parents or any other close family member have been lost. The general impression however suggests that his family did not belong to the most eminent or rich social classes, his status therefore was not particularly high. 1 Xiphilinos father died while John was still very young so he was cared for exclusively by his mother. 2. Upbringing education John Xiphilinos, like most Byzantine scholars of his era, received encyclical education at his home town and then went to Constantinople (perhaps just before 1030), at the encouragement of his widowed mother, seeking further education. The Byzantine capital was a centre of attraction for people with intellectual ambitions from around the empire, who went there in order to partake in the bustle of the advances in the sciences and education, an atmosphere which embodied in the best way the general intellectual flourishing in Byzantium during this time. While in the capital he soon came into contact with the scholars who formed the elite of 11th century Byzantine intellectuality, of which he was to become a member. The oldest representative of this circle was John Mauropous, Psellos teacher and later bishop of Euchaita. Constantine Leihoudes (also later patriarch of Constantinople, from 1059 ton 1063) and Michael Psellos, one of the most important scholars in Byzantine history, also belonged to the same circle. Xiphilinos dedicated himself mainly to studying law, without however neglecting the more conventional subjects of philosophy, rhetoric and dialectics. He was more interested in legal studies which, according to Psellos, he considered equally important to philosophy Activities Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 1/6

2 We could distinguish Xiphilinos activities into three periods: 1.The period of a short stay in the position of nomophylax, head of the law school founded by the emperor Constantine IX Monomachos. 2.The period following his replacement to this position when, after falling into disgrace during the reign of Constantine IX, Xiphilinos was forced to become a monk and move to Olympos of Bithynia, which was a known monastic centre, becoming fully conciliated with his new life. 3.The period during which he served as Patriarch of Constantinople, from his ordination on 1 January 1064 until his death Nomophylax As soon as the emperor Constantine IX Monomachos ( ) came to power, he made provision for a renewal of higher education and assigned the study of philosophy and law to the most educated people of the time, namely Michael Psellos and John Xiphilinos, to whom he entrusted the headship of the respective newly-founded Schools. Thus, Xiphilinos was appointed «nomophylax» while Psellos became «hypatos ton philosophon». The establishment of this school by Monomachos and the appointment of Xiphilinos as nomophylax, i.e. head of the law school, can possibly be placed on 21 April This is also the date for the official inauguration by Constantine Monomachos of his establishment: the monastery of St. George and the surrounding complex situated in the centre of Constantinople, the neighbourhood which was known as Mangana. This is where the Law School was also situated; at its inauguration the emperor read the nοveldrawn up by John Mauropous. However, shortly after the School s inauguration and the appointment of Xiphilinos to the position of nomophylax, a certain Ophrydas, possibly a judge himself, accused John to the emperor of ignorance and self-education, but mainly of «free thinking», because of his young age. 3 Michael Psellos wrote Xiphilinos apology, attempting to prove that although young, John had an excellent education in all necessary subjects. 4 Despite this, Xiphilinos was removed from his position, possibly because Ophrydas had the support of the older judges, lawyers and jurisprudents of Constantinople, who sided with him against Xiphilinos. Very soon even greater changes took place in Constantinople, which did not just affect Xiphilinos but many of the most eminent people of his circle, who formed the circle of imperial advisors. At around 1050, Constantine IX Monomachos removed not simply from high-ranking positions but from the capital itself, the most educated and influential representatives of a brilliant generation. Constantine Leihoudes, who had in fact gained substantial political influence, John Xiphilinos, Michael Psellos and John Mauropous were forced, one after the other, to become monks. This is how the secular career of John Xiphilinos and the other scholars of his circle ended; Xiphilinos continued his life in the noted monastic centre of Bithynian Olympos. Little could be said safely about Xiphilinos writing activities. If it can be proved that he is in fact the author of a large number of legal commentaries which cannot yet be identified with certainty, then they were written most probably during this period of his life Monk When the emperor Constantine Monomachos forced him to become a monk, John Xiphilinos came to terms with his destiny and his new way of life much easier than was expected and with more ease than his friend Michael Psellos. Xiphilinos retired to Olympos, where he remained for almost a decade, in contrast to Psellos who also began his monastic life in Olympos but quickly returned to the capital. Little is known about John Xiphilinos period of monastic life. It appears that he dedicated himself honestly to spiritual life, abandoning some of his previous principles. This can be proved by his reproach to Michael Psellos for the latter s excessive love of Plato. In his response Psellos criticizes Xiphilinos of «forgetting» his secular education and way of life Patriarch Xiphilinos course of life remained tied to the fortune of his friend Michael Psellos. Thus, his return to Constantinople was connected to Psellos, who in the meantime had regained his influence in the capital, although it is not possible to verify Psellos assertion that he Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 2/6

3 proposed Xiphilinos for patriarch. The emperor Constantine X Doukas however was a personal friend of Michael Psellos, at whose exhortation Constantine s predecessor Isaac I Komnenos had resigned from the throne. Psellos became the emperor s chief advisor while the position of patriarch was filled, from 1058, by another friend of Psellos and Xiphilinos, Constantine Leihoudes. Thus the invitation by the emperor Constantine X Doukas which arrived after Leihoudes death (1063) at the monastic community of Bithynian Olympos and recalled John Xiphilinos to the capital could plausibly have been the result of Psellos influence. Xiphilinos was ordained patriarch of Constantinople on 1 January His first concern was the issue of the heresies in the eastern borders of the Empire. Already from the beginning of his patriarchy he issued a denouncement of the jacobite bishop of Mytilini, condemning him into exile because he had developed/spread monophysitic propaganda. Apart from this, in 1066 John Xiphilinos formally declared the ecclesiastic union between Armenia and Constantinople. This union was an action of political importance within the framework of Byzantine policy in the East under the threat of the Seljuks. On the Armenian side the union was ratified by someone by the name of Jacob who did not even have the official authorization of his church. As patriarch, and important player on the Byzantine political scene, John Xiphilinos was also involved in the issue of succession to the throne after the death of Constantine X Doukas. So, just before 21 May 1067, he sanctioned/validated the oath given by the empress Eudokia at the demande of her dying husband that she would not remarry, making sure that Constantine X would be succeeded by his sons. The patriarch threatened the empress Eudokia with damnation if she broke her oath. This situation virtually left all authority in the hands of the all-powerful Michael Psellos and the caesar John Doukas, brother of the deceased Constantine X. 7 Only a few months later however, the threat from the Seljuks in the East, where the Byzantines were suffering destructive defeats forced John Xiphilinos to release Eudokia from her oath, despite the objection of Psellos and ceasar John Doukas, and allow her to marry Romanos Diogenes, an competent general who appeared to be in position to face the difficult situation the empire faced, although this hope was later disproved. Also political was John Xiphilinos signature with which the patriarch sanctioned the marriage agreement between the next emperor Michael VI Doukas, and the leader of the Normans Robert Guiscard. The agreement which stated that Michael VI Doukas son Constantine was to marry Robert s daughter Helen had a purely political character, as the Normans were a terrible threat for the Byzantines in the West. 8 In 1071, the year of a terrible defeat for the Byzantines in Mantzikert by the Seljuks, was also marked by the fall of Bari to the Normans, stripping Byzantium of its Italian territories. John Xiphilinos was also involved with the renovation and decoration of the churches of Constantinople. He paid particular attention to the decoration of Aghia Sophia. Psellos highlights Xiphilinos care for the decoration of the area above the Bema. It is possible that the mosaic of Virgin Mary holding the Child on the apse in Aghia Sophia belongs to this period Death John Xiphilinos remained on the throne as patriarch of Constantinople until his death on 2 August He was buried at the Aggourion monastery on the Bosporus. 1. Sathas, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 4, p See «John VIII Xiphilinos», Kazhdan, A., "John VIII Xiphilinos" in A. Kazhdan (ed.), The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium 2 (Oxford-New York 1991), p Sathas, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 4, pp Lemerle, P., Cinq études sur le XIe siècle byzantin (Paris 1977), p Dennis, G.T. (ed.), Michaelis Pselli Orationes forenses et acta (Stutgard et Lipsia 1994), p Wolska Conus, W., «L École de droit et l enseignement du droit à Byzance au XIe siècle: Xiphilin et Psellos», Travaux et Mémoires 7 (1979), pp. Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 3/6

4 Sathas, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 4, pp See Crisculo, U. (ed.), Epistola a Giovanni Xiphilino, Byzantina et Neo-Hellenica Neapolitana 1. Collana di Studi e testi, diretta da A. Garzya I (Napoli 1973). 7. Oikonomides, N., «Le serment de l imperatice Eudocie», Revue des Études Byzantines 21 (1963), pp Dennis, G.T. (ed.), Michaelis Pselli Orationes forenses et acta (Stutgard et Lipsia 1994), pp Sathas, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 4, p See Mango, C., «Documentary Evidence on the Apse Mosaic of St. Sophia», Byzantinische Zeitschrift 47 (1954), p Βιβλιογραφία : Μιχαήλ Ψελλός, Χρονογραφία, Renauld, É. (ed.), Michael Psellos, Chronographie ou histoire d un siècle de Byzance ( ), Ι-ΙΙ, Paris (ανατ. 1967) Μιχαήλ Ατταλειάτης, Ιστορία, Bekker, I. (ed.), Michaelis Attaliotae Historia, Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae, Bonn 1853 Les regestes des actes du patriarcat de Constantinople, Grumel, V. Laurent, V. Darrouzès, J. (eds), 1: Les actes des patriarches, Facs. 2-3: Les regestes de 715 à 1206, Paris Lemerle P., Cinq études sur le XIe siècle byzantin, Paris 1977 Любарский Я.Н., Михаил Пселл: личность и творчество, Москва 1978 Μπόνης Κ., Ιωάννης ο Ξιφιλίνος ο νομοφύλαξ, ο μοναχός, ο πατριάρχης και η εποχή αυτού, Αθήνα 1937, Texte und Forschungen zur byzantinisch- neugriechischen Philologie Psellus Michael, Επιστολές προς τον Ιωάννη Ξιφιλίνο, Criscuolo U., Michele Psello, Epistola a Giovanni Xifilino, Byzantina et Neo-Hellenica Neapolitana 1. Collana di Studi e testi, diretta da A. Garzya, I, Naples 1973 ανατ Lefort J., "Rhétorique et politique. Trois discours de Jean Mauropous en 1047", Travaux et Memoires, 6, 1976, Mango C., "Documentary Evidence on the Apse Mosaics of St. Sophia", Byzantinische Zeitschrift, 47, 1954, Oikonomides N., "Le serment de l imperatrice Eudocie", Revue des Études Byzantines, 21, 1963, Wolska-Conus W., "L'École de droit et l'enseignement du droit à Byzance au XIe siècle: Xiphilin et Psellos", Travaux et Mémoires, 7, 1979, Wolska-Conus W., "Les écoles de Psellos et de Xiphilin sous Constantin IX Monomaque", Travaux et Mémoires, 6, 1976, Μιχαήλ Ψελλός, Orationes forenses et acta, G. T. Dennis (ed.), Michaelis Pselli, Orationes forenses et acta, Stuttgard and Lipsia 1994 Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 4/6

5 Δικτυογραφία : Johannes Xiphilinos Γλωσσάριo : enkyklios education The secondary education in Byzantium. The students, from 12 years old, were taught grammar, rhetorics and eloquence. hypatos ton philosophon (consul of the philosophers) Byzantine official and scholar responsible for the public schools of philosophy. The first one was Michael Psellos (11th C.), whose successors were John Italos and Theodore of Smyrna etc. nomophylax Officer responsible for the guard of law and the publication of the resolutions. Quite often the holder of the office undertook the costs himself. In Byzantium he was the nomodidaskalos (nomikos), the appointed dignitary in charge of the funtion of the Law School. novel (novella) Τerm meaning ad verbum "new decree" and used since around the 4th century in order to denote the provisions of the emperors as separate from the organized codes. They were written mainly in Greek and used extensively in the Middle Byzantine Era. Since the days of Komnenoi and after, they were replaced by other more specialized terms and they are very rare in the Late Byzantine era Πηγές Bekker, I., Michael Attaliotae, Historia (Bonnae 1853). Dennis, G. T. (ed.), Michaelis Pselli, Orationes forenses et acta (Stutgard and Lipsia 1994). Renauld, É. (ed.), Michel Psellos, Chronographie ou histoire dʹun siècle de Byzance, I II (Paris ). Criscuolo, U. (ed.), Michele Psello, Epistola a Giovanni Xifilino. Byzantina et Neo Hellenica Neapolitana 1. Collana di Studi e testi, diretta da A. Garzya, I (Napoli 1973, repr. 1990). Salač, A., Novella Constitutio saec. XI medii quae est de schola iuris Constantinopoli constituenda et legum custode creando, in Textus breves Graeci et Latini I. [Republication: Νεαρά εκφωνηθείσα παρά του φιλοχρίστου δεσπότου κυρού Κωνσταντίνου του Μονομάχου επί τη αναδείξει και προβολή του διδασκάλου των νόμων (Prague 1954)]. Σάθας, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 5 (Παρίσι 1876, repr. Αθήνα 1972). Σαθάς, K. (ed.), Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, vol. 4 (Παρίσι 1874, repr. Αθήνα 1972). Παραθέματα Michael Psellos defends the young nomophylax Xiphilinos in his conflict with Ophrydas Ὑπὲρ τοῦ νομοφύλακος κατὰ τοῦ Ὀφρυδᾶ [...] Ἀλλ ὅτι ἐν ἀκμαίῳ τῷ σώματι καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἠλικίας ταῦτα κατώρθωσε, διὰ ταῦτά σοι καὶ νόμων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων μαθημάτων ἀποκεκήρυκται; σοὶ δὲ σε ἐν βαθεῖ γήρᾳ ποία μετουσία παιδεύσεως; τίς δέ σε τῶ πάντω ἔγνω, ὅσα ἐμὲ εἰδέναι, μετὰ τὴν λευκὴν τρίχα ῥητορεύσαντα ἢ φιλοσοφήσαντα ἢ λόγους γενναίους ἀπογεννήσαντα ἢ τισὶ συμπλακέντα διαλεκτικῶς ἢ ἀναμφίβολόν τι κατασκευάσαντα; [...] ὅτι μὲν γὰρ καὶ οὗτος μέγα μέρος συμβάλλεται τῷ μανθάνοντι, οὐδένα ἀντειπεῖν οἶμαι οὐχ οὕτως δὲ ἔχει ἀεί, οὐδὲ πᾶσιν ὁ βαθὺς χρόνος ἀθρόα δίδωσι τὰ καλά, ἀλλά τι καὶ ἡ φύσις νεανιεύεται καὶ τοῦ χρόνου μᾶλλον κρατεῖ. Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 5/6

6 Dennis, G.T. (ed.), Michaelis Pselli Orationes forenses et acta (Stutgard et Lipsia 1994), Λόγος ΙΙΙ, pp Χρονολόγιο c. 1010: birth of John in Trebizond Before 1030: arrival in Constantinople for studies 1047, c. 21st April: Appointed nomophylax, director of the Law School in Constantinople After 1048 (?): Removed from position of nomophylax c. 1050: Becomes a monk in Olympos, Bithynia 1 January 1064: He is ordained patriarch of Constantinople 2 August 1075: Dies in Constantinople while still patriarch Βοηθ. Κατάλογοι Works Κων. Μπόνη, Ιωάννης ο Ξιφιλίνος ο νομοφύλαξ, ο μοναχός, ο πατριάρχης και η εποχή αυτού (Αθήνα 1937), pp Heimbach, W. E. (ed.), Basilicorum libri LX, τόμ. 1 7 (Lipsiae ) (commentary on the Βασιλικά). Παπαδόπουλος Κεραμεύς, Α. (ed.), «Διήγησις θαυμάτων του αγίου και ενδόξου μεγαλομάρτυρος Ευγενίου του Τραπεζουντίου, συγγραφείσα παρά Ιωάννου του γεγονότου πατριάρχου Κωνσταντινουπόλεως του Ξιφιλίνου», in Fontes historiae imperii Trapezuntini (Petropoli 1897), pp Δημιουργήθηκε στις 2/2/2017 Σελίδα 6/6