Strymon (theme)
Encyclopedia
The Theme of Strymon was a Byzantine
military-civilian province (theme) located in modern Greek Macedonia, with the city of Serres
as its capital. Founded probably by the mid-to-late 9th century, its history as an administrative history was chequered, being variously split up and/or united with neighbouring themes.
mountains and the Aegean Sea
. The area was strategically important. Not only did the theme control the exits to the mountain passes from the Slav-dominated interior of the Balkans
into the coastal plains of Macedonia, but it was transversed by the great Via Egnatia
highway, which linked Byzantine-controlled Thrace
with Thessalonica, the Empire's second-largest city. The region was peopled predominantly with Slavs from the late 7th century on, and retained a significant Slavic population at least until the 11th century. Its main cities were Serres, Philippi
, Christoupolis
and Chrysopolis
, while it may also initially have included the cities of Xanthi
and Mosynopolis
east of the Strymon.
of Macedonia. The exact date of its establishment as an independent theme is unknown, but it probably dates to the first half of the 9th century. A passage in Theophanes the Confessor
dated to 809 may imply its existence already at that date, but its governor is not included in the list of offices known as the Taktikon Uspensky
of circa 842. The strategos
of Strymon first appears in the 899 Kletorologion
, although a series of seals naming both archon
tes and strategoi of Strymon are known from the second quarter of the 9th century. In addition, the bishop of Serres was elevated to an archbishop at about the same time, a possible indication of the establishment of a thematic capital there. Several authors like the French Byzantinist Paul Lemerle
support its creation in the late 840s, during Theoktistos
's anti-Slavic campaigns, but Warren Treadgold considers it to have been become a full theme in circa 896, to counter the threat of the Bulgarian
tsar Symeon I
.
In the late 10th century, the theme was divided in two parts: Strymon proper, also known as Chryseba or Chrysaba (Greek: Χρυσεύβα/Χρυσάβα, according to Oikonomides a Hellenized
form of "Krushevo", modern Achladochori
), and the theme of New Strymon (Greek: Νέος Στρυμών). The latter is known only through the Escorial Taktikon of circa 975. Oikonomides identifies it either with the portion of the old theme east of the Nestos, which was later raised to a separate theme as Boleron (Greek: Βολερόν), or with a northern portion along the upper Strymon, possibly acquired after John Tzimiskes's conquest of Bulgaria
in 971. Towards the end of the 10th century, the theme of Strymon appears to have been united with that of Thessalonica and perhaps also Drougoubiteia, while in the 11th century it appears united with Boleron.
The theme continued in existence until the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade
(1204), when it became part of the short-lived Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica
. In 1246, after the Nicaean emperor
John III Vatatzes conquered Macedonia, the theme was re-established as a separate province. In the 14th century, however, it again appears as combined with other provinces such as the themes of Boleron and Thessalonica or as the theme of "Serres and Strymon". It was permanently dissolved after the region's conquest by the Serbian Empire
in the 1340s, during a Byzantine civil war
.
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
military-civilian province (theme) located in modern Greek Macedonia, with the city of Serres
Serres
Serres is a city in Greece, seat of the Serres prefecture.Serres may also refer to:Places:* Serres, Germany, a part of Wiernsheim in Baden-WürttembergIn France:* Serres, Aude in the Aude département...
as its capital. Founded probably by the mid-to-late 9th century, its history as an administrative history was chequered, being variously split up and/or united with neighbouring themes.
Location
The theme covered the region between the Strymon and Nestos rivers, between the RhodopeRhodope
Rhodope may mean:* Queen Rhodope, a figure of Greek mythology* Rhodope Mountains, in Bulgaria and Greece* Rhodope Prefecture, of Greece* Rhodope * 166 Rhodope, an asteroid...
mountains and the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. The area was strategically important. Not only did the theme control the exits to the mountain passes from the Slav-dominated interior of the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
into the coastal plains of Macedonia, but it was transversed by the great Via Egnatia
Via Egnatia
The Via Egnatia was a road constructed by the Romans in the 2nd century BC. It crossed the Roman provinces of Illyricum, Macedonia, and Thrace, running through territory that is now part of modern Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Greece, and European Turkey.Starting at Dyrrachium on the...
highway, which linked Byzantine-controlled Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
with Thessalonica, the Empire's second-largest city. The region was peopled predominantly with Slavs from the late 7th century on, and retained a significant Slavic population at least until the 11th century. Its main cities were Serres, Philippi
Philippi
Philippi was a city in eastern Macedonia, established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest...
, Christoupolis
Kavala
Kavala , is the second largest city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia and the capital of Kavala peripheral unit. It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos...
and Chrysopolis
Eion
Eion was an ancient Greek Eretrian colony in Thracian Macedonia. It sits at the mouth of the Strymon River which flows into the Aegean from the interior of Thrace...
, while it may also initially have included the cities of Xanthi
Xanthi
Xanthi ; is a city in Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Xanthi peripheral unit of the periphery of East Macedonia and Thrace.-History:...
and Mosynopolis
Mosynopolis
Mosynopolis , known in late Antiquity as Maximianoupolis, was a Byzantine town in Thrace located on the Via Egnatia near the modern Greek city of Komotini. The town was destroyed by the Bulgarian tsar Kaloyan in 1207 after his victory over the Latin Empire in the battle of Mosynopolis...
east of the Strymon.
History
In the 8th century, Strymon was a kleisouraKleisoura (Byzantine district)
In the Byzantine Empire, a kleisoura was a term traditionally applied to a fortified mountain pass and the military district protecting it. By the late 7th century, it came to be applied to more extensive frontier districts, distinct from the larger themata, chiefly along the Empire's eastern...
of Macedonia. The exact date of its establishment as an independent theme is unknown, but it probably dates to the first half of the 9th century. A passage in Theophanes the Confessor
Theophanes the Confessor
Saint Theophanes Confessor was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy, who became a monk and chronicler. He is venerated on March 12 in the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Church .-Biography:Theophanes was born in Constantinople of wealthy and noble iconodule parents: Isaac,...
dated to 809 may imply its existence already at that date, but its governor is not included in the list of offices known as the Taktikon Uspensky
Taktikon Uspensky
The Taktikon Uspensky or Uspenskij is the conventional name of a mid-9th century Greek list of the civil, military and ecclesiastical offices of the Byzantine Empire and their precedence at the imperial court. Nicolas Oikonomides has dated it to 842/843, making it the first of a series of such...
of circa 842. The strategos
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
of Strymon first appears in the 899 Kletorologion
Kletorologion
The Klētorologion of Philotheos , is the longest and most important of the Byzantine lists of offices and court precedence . It was published in September of 899 during the reign of Emperor Leo VI the Wise by the otherwise unknown prōtospatharios and atriklinēs Philotheos...
, although a series of seals naming both archon
Archon
Archon is a Greek word that means "ruler" or "lord", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem ἀρχ-, meaning "to rule", derived from the same root as monarch, hierarchy, and anarchy.- Ancient Greece :In ancient Greece the...
tes and strategoi of Strymon are known from the second quarter of the 9th century. In addition, the bishop of Serres was elevated to an archbishop at about the same time, a possible indication of the establishment of a thematic capital there. Several authors like the French Byzantinist Paul Lemerle
Paul Lemerle
Paul Lemerle was a French Byzantinist.Lemerle taught at the École française d’Athènes , at the Faculté des Lettres of the University of Burgundy at Dijon , at the École Pratique des Hautes Études , at the Sorbonne and at the Collège de France...
support its creation in the late 840s, during Theoktistos
Theoktistos
Theoktistos was an influential senior Byzantine official during the reigns of Michael II and his son Theophilos, and regent for the underage Michael III...
's anti-Slavic campaigns, but Warren Treadgold considers it to have been become a full theme in circa 896, to counter the threat of the Bulgarian
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
tsar Symeon I
Simeon I of Bulgaria
Simeon I the Great ruled over Bulgaria from 893 to 927, during the First Bulgarian Empire. Simeon's successful campaigns against the Byzantines, Magyars and Serbs led Bulgaria to its greatest territorial expansion ever, making it the most powerful state in contemporary Eastern Europe...
.
In the late 10th century, the theme was divided in two parts: Strymon proper, also known as Chryseba or Chrysaba (Greek: Χρυσεύβα/Χρυσάβα, according to Oikonomides a Hellenized
Hellenization
Hellenization is a term used to describe the spread of ancient Greek culture, and, to a lesser extent, language. It is mainly used to describe the spread of Hellenistic civilization during the Hellenistic period following the campaigns of Alexander the Great of Macedon...
form of "Krushevo", modern Achladochori
Achladochori
Achladochori is a village and a former community in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Sintiki, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 1,208 ....
), and the theme of New Strymon (Greek: Νέος Στρυμών). The latter is known only through the Escorial Taktikon of circa 975. Oikonomides identifies it either with the portion of the old theme east of the Nestos, which was later raised to a separate theme as Boleron (Greek: Βολερόν), or with a northern portion along the upper Strymon, possibly acquired after John Tzimiskes's conquest of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria refers to a conflict beginning in 967/968 and ending in 971, carried out in the eastern Balkans and involving the Kievan Rus', Bulgaria, and the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantines instigated the Rus' ruler Sviatoslav to attack Bulgaria, leading to the collapse of the...
in 971. Towards the end of the 10th century, the theme of Strymon appears to have been united with that of Thessalonica and perhaps also Drougoubiteia, while in the 11th century it appears united with Boleron.
The theme continued in existence until the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
(1204), when it became part of the short-lived Latin Kingdom of Thessalonica
Kingdom of Thessalonica
The Kingdom of Thessalonica was a short-lived Crusader State founded after the Fourth Crusade over the conquered Byzantine lands.- Background :...
. In 1246, after the Nicaean emperor
Empire of Nicaea
The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greek successor states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was occupied by Western European and Venetian forces during the Fourth Crusade...
John III Vatatzes conquered Macedonia, the theme was re-established as a separate province. In the 14th century, however, it again appears as combined with other provinces such as the themes of Boleron and Thessalonica or as the theme of "Serres and Strymon". It was permanently dissolved after the region's conquest by the Serbian Empire
Serbian Empire
The Serbian Empire was a short-lived medieval empire in the Balkans that emerged from the Serbian Kingdom. Stephen Uroš IV Dušan was crowned Emperor of Serbs and Greeks on 16 April, 1346, a title signifying a successorship to the Eastern Roman Empire...
in the 1340s, during a Byzantine civil war
Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347
The Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347 was a conflict between supporters of designated regent John VI Kantakouzenos and guardians acting for John V Palaiologos, Emperor Andronikos III's nine-year-old son, in the persons of the Empress-dowager Anna of Savoy, the Patriarch of Constantinople John XIV...
.