Longinus (consul 486)
Encyclopedia
Flavius Longinus was a politician of the Eastern Roman Empire, brother of Emperor Zeno
Zeno (emperor)
Zeno , originally named Tarasis, was Byzantine Emperor from 474 to 475 and again from 476 to 491. Domestic revolts and religious dissension plagued his reign, which nevertheless succeeded to some extent in foreign issues...

 and twice consul (in 486 and 490).

Biography

Longinus came from the region of Isauria
Isauria
Isauria , in ancient geography, is a rugged isolated district in the interior of South Asia Minor, of very different extent at different periods, but generally covering what is now the district of Bozkır and its surroundings in the Konya province of Turkey, or the core of the Taurus Mountains. In...

, in Asia Minor. His mother was Lallis or Lalis, his wife was a Valeria and he had a daughter called Longina.

When his brother, the Emperor Zeno
Zeno (emperor)
Zeno , originally named Tarasis, was Byzantine Emperor from 474 to 475 and again from 476 to 491. Domestic revolts and religious dissension plagued his reign, which nevertheless succeeded to some extent in foreign issues...

 was deposed by Basiliscus
Basiliscus
Basiliscus was Eastern Roman Emperor from 475 to 476. A member of the House of Leo, he came to power when Emperor Zeno had been forced out of Constantinople by a revolt....

 and chased by the Imperial army in Isauria (475), Longinus was captured by the Isaurian general Illus
Illus
Illus was a Byzantine general, who played an important role in the reigns of the Byzantine Emperors Zeno and Basiliscus.Illus supported the revolt of Basiliscus against Zeno, then switched sides, supporting the return of Zeno...

 and held prisoner for a decade: Illus, who had been a supporter of Basiliscus but later had passed on Zeno's side, used Longinus to keep Zeno under control. In 483 Zeno requested Longinus' liberation, Illus refused and started the rebellion that led to his death.

After being released (485), Longinus started a military career, being elevated to the post of magister militum praesentialis (485) and holding the consulate twice (in 486 and in 490). He led a military campaign against the Tzans and lavishly donated to the people of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

, paying for four new dancers to the factions of the hippodrome, to replace the older ones.

On the death of Zeno (491), Longinus was one of the possible candidates for the succession, but his Isaurian origin, which had already caused problems to Zeno, disadvantaged him: Ariadne
Ariadne (empress)
Aelia Ariadne was the Empress consort of Zeno and Anastasius I of the Byzantine Empire.-Family:Ariadne was a daughter of Leo I and Verina. Her mother was a sister of Basiliscus....

, Zeno's widow charged with selecting the successor, choose Anastasius I
Anastasius I (emperor)
Anastasius I was Byzantine Emperor from 491 to 518. During his reign the Roman eastern frontier underwent extensive re-fortification, including the construction of Dara, a stronghold intended to counter the Persian fortress of Nisibis....

, a senior official.

Longinus then instigated a revolt in Isauria, known as the Isaurian War
Isaurian War
The Isaurian War was a conflict that lasted from 492 to 497 and that was fought between the army of the Eastern Roman Empire and the rebels of Isauria. At the end of the war, Eastern Emperor Anastasius I regained the control of the Isauria region and the leaders of the revolt were killed.-...

: Anastasius forced him to take the votes and sent him into exile in Thebaid
Thebaid
The Thebaid or Thebais is the region of ancient Egypt containing the thirteen southernmost nomes of Upper Egypt, from Abydos to Aswan. It acquired its name from its proximity to the ancient Egyptian capital of Thebes....

 (Egypt), later defeating the rebel army (492) led by Longinus of Cardala
Longinus of Cardala
Longinus of Cardala or Longinus the Bald was a high-ranking Eastern Roman Empire official and rebel leader from Isauria.- Biography :...

 and finally repressing the revolt six years later, with the death of the last leader of the rebels, Longinus of Selinus
Longinus of Selinus
Longinus of Selinus was one of the Isaurian leaders in the Isaurian War of 492–497.- Biography :The Isaurian War started as a revolt of the Isaurians against the Empire after the emperor of Isaurian origin Zeno had died and had been succeeded not by his brother, the Isaurian Longinus but by the...

. Longinus' mother retired to a monastery at Brochthi in Bithynia
Bithynia
Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...

at the news of the exile of his son.
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