Wikipedia
Heraclius (, , , c. 575 – February 11, 641) was Byzantine Emperor from 610 to 641.
He was responsible for introducing Greek as the Eastern Empire's official language. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the exarch of Africa, led a revolt against the unpopular usurper Phocas.
Heraclius's reign was marked by several military campaigns. The year Heraclius came to power, the empire was threatened on multiple frontiers. Heraclius immediately took charge of the Byzantine–Sassanid War of 602–628. The first battles of the campaign ended in defeat for the Byzantines; the Persian army fought their way to the Bosphorus but Constantinople was protected by impenetrable walls and a strong navy and Heraclius was able to avoid total defeat. Soon after, he initiated reforms to rebuild and strengthen the military. Heraclius drove the Persians out of Asia Minor and pushed deep into their territory, defeating them decisively in 627 at the Battle of Nineveh. The Persian king Khosrau II was overthrown and executed by his son Kavadh II, who soon sued for a peace treaty, agreeing to withdraw from all occupied territory. This way peaceful relations were restored to the two deeply strained empires.
Heraclius soon experienced a new event, the Muslim conquests. Emerging from the Arabian Peninsula, the Muslims quickly conquered the Sassanid empire. In 634 the Muslims marched into Roman Syria, defeating Heraclius' brother Theodore . Within a short period of time, the Arabs conquered Mesopotamia, Armenia and Egypt.
Heraclius entered diplomatic relations with the Croats and Serbs in the Balkans. He tried to repair the schism in the Christian church in regard to the Monophysites, by promoting a compromise doctrine called Monothelitism. The Church of the East (commonly called Nestorian) was also involved in the process. Eventually, however, this project of unity was rejected by all sides of the dispute.
Heraclius (c. 575–641), was a Byzantine emperor.
Heraclius may also refer to:
- Heraclius the Cynic ( fl. 360s), Roman philosopher
- Heraclius (primicerius sacri cubiculi) (died 455), courtier of Emperor Valentinian III
- Heraclius of Edessa (d. 474). Byzantine general.
- Heraclius, Bishop of Angoulême (d. 580).
- Heraclius the Elder (fl. 580s–610s), Armenian-born Byzantine general and exarch of Africa
- Heraclius Constantine (612–641), the full name of the Byzantine emperor Constantine III, reigned briefly in 641
- Heraclius II, alternate name for the Byzantine emperor Heraclonas (626–641), reigned briefly in 641
- Heraclius (son of Constans II), Byzantine co-emperor (reigned 659–681)
- Heraclius (brother of Tiberius III) (fl. 698–705), Byzantine general
- Patriarch Heraclius of Jerusalem (c. 1128–1190/1191), religious leader
- Heraclius I of Kakheti (1642–1709), Georgian king
- Heraclius II of Georgia (1720/1721–1798), Georgian king
Heraclius (died March 16, 455) was an influential eunuch of the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III.
Heraclius was a eunuch and the primicerius sacri cubiculi of the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III, on whom he had a great influence.
Heraclius was an enemy of the powerful general Aetius, and allied himself with the senator Petronius Maximus, who also opposed Aetius. The two of them convinced Valentinian that Aetius wanted to kill him, and the Emperor killed Aetius in 454. However, his alliance with Petronius ended with the death of Aetius: when Petronius asked to be conferred the consulship and the patriciate, Heraclius advised Valentinian to refuse.
One year later, in 455, Optila and Thraustila, two barbarian officers in Valentinian's service but loyal to Aetius, killed the Emperor by order of Petronius while Valentinian was on the Campus Martius to train with the bow; on the same occasion, Thraustila killed Heraclius.
Heraclius (, Herakleios) was Byzantine co-emperor from 659 to 681. He was the focus of a military revolt and was eventually dethroned by his brother, the senior emperor Constantine IV.
Heraclius (, Herakleios) was the brother of the Byzantine emperor Tiberius III (r. 698–705) and the Byzantine Empire's leading general during his reign. He scored a number of victories against the Umayyads, but was unable to halt the Arab conquest of Armenia, nor able to prevent the deposition of his brother by Justinian II (r. 685–695 and 705–711), who later captured and executed them both.