The History of the Church Since the Days of Christ, Book 1 · History of century 7
CENTVRIE VII.
Phocas.
THe heresie of Eutyches continued in this Centurie from the beginning, to the end thereof: countenanced by the Emperours, such as Heraclius and Constans. Neverthelesse I hauehave cut off the Eutychian Persecution at the end of the sixt Centurie, because Heraclius, albeit hee favoured the error of the Monothelites, (a branch of Eutyches heresie) notwithstanding hee was so employed with warres against the Avares in the West, and the Persians and Saracens in the East, that hee had not a vacant time to persecute them who professed another faith. And Constans began to persecute, but was quickly interrupted by new occasion of Sea-warfare against the Saracens, wherein also hee was overcome. For this cause I hauehave referred the Eutychian persecution rather to the former Centurie, then to this. Moreover, in this Centurie the vniversall Bishop, and the Antichrist beginneth to spring vp: so that all the rest of the History must be spent in three heads: First, in declaring The growth of the Antichrist, in the seventh, eight, and ninth Centuries: Secondly, in declaring his tyranny, and prevailing power over the Romane Emperours, and Monarches of the world, in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth Centuries: And finally, in declaring his discovery, and his battell against the Saints, especially against those who discovered him: and this shall be done (God willing) from the thirteenth Century vntounto our time. In the History I am compelled to be short, because it may be read in many Authors, Chronologies, and Compends, whereby it may be… sufficiently knowne.
Phocas, after the cruell slaughter of his master Mauritius, was proclaimed to be Emperour by the Romaine souldiours, in the yeere of our Lord 604. and he raigned 8, yeeres: in crueltie, drunkennesse, lecherie, hee surpassed beyond all men, & justlie was called, The calamity of the Romane Empire; nothing succeeded prosperouslie with this parricide: Cosroes on the East-side, the Auares on the West, the Slauonians on the North-side, inuading Dalmatia, and Agilulphus king of Lumbardis in Italie, adding vntounto his dominion Mantua, Cremona, and Vulturnia: all these at one time weakened the Romane Empire, so farre that it could neuer attaine againe to the former strength and splendor that it was wont to hauehave. Great strife had beene betwixt the chaires of Rome and Constantinople for supremacy. The Patriarch of Constantinople thought it due to him,Platina in vita Bonif 3. be cause Constantinople was the seate of the Empire. The Patriarch of Rome on the other part, said, that Constantinople was but a Colonie of Rome, and that the Grecians themselues in their Letters called the Emperour foreign. To this controuersie Phocas put an end, and ordained Bonifacius the third to be called Vniuersall Bishop, and the Church of Rome to bee head of all other Churches. This dignitie the Romane Church begged (as Platina granteth) and not without great con…ention, obtained it at the handes of Phocas. This is that stile, which Gregorius the first counted Antichristian in the person of Ioannes foreign, Patriarch of Constantinople. In the end Priscus his owne sonne in law, Heraclianus, the father of Heraclius the Emperour, and Phocius, whose wife Phocas had vnhonestly abused, conspired against him, and ouer-came him, and brought him to Heraclius, Note.who commanded his head, feete, and secret members to be cut off, and the stampe of his bodie was giuen to the souldiers to be burnt with fire.
Heraclius.
AFter Phocas raigned Heraclius thirtie yeeres. Cosroes king of Persia had mightilie preuailed,Paulus dia…nus, lib. 18. rerum R…nan. and had conquered Syria, Phenicia, and Palestina, and had taken Ierusalem, and Zacharias the Bishop thereof, and the Holie Crosse, and had giuen many thousands of Christians to the Iewes to bee slaine. Neither would he accept any conditions of peace with Heraclius, except hee would condiscend to forsake the worshipping of Christ, and worship the Sunne as the Persians did. For this cause Heraclius was compelled to make peace with the Auares on his West side, and to lead his Army to Asia against the Persians, which indured the space of sixe yeares, wherein he preuayled against Cosroes, and recouered all the Prouinces which Cosroes had taken from the Romane Empire.Hist. Magd. cent. 7. cap. 3. Finallie Cosroes was taken, cast in prison, and cruellie slaine by his owne son Siroes, because he had preferred Medarses his younger sonne to Siroes, his elder brother. This Siroes made a couenant of peace with Heraclius, and deliuered vntounto him Zacharias Bishop of Ierusalem, with the Holie Crosse and the prisoners whom his father had carried Captiue. And so Heraclius in the seuenth yeere, returned backe againe to Constantinople with great triumph. After this the Emperour being circumuened by Pyrrhus Bishop of Constantinople and Cyrus Bishop of Alexandria, fell into the Heresie of the Monothelites: And to this fault hee added other faults, such as incest, for he married his owne sisters daughter: and hee was giuen to curious Artes, and to seeke out the euent of thinges by judiciall Astrologie: and was admonished by the Astrologians to beware of the circumcised people. Heraclius onelyonly deemed, that the Iewes should trouble him but it was the Saracenes, in whom this prophesie had performance:A description of the Saracens for in his time beganne the Monarchie of the Saracenes, and the blasphemous doctrine of Mahomet. Platinain vita Senerini.The Saracenes were people dwelling in Arabia,Note. the posteritie of Hagar, and not of Sara: These fought vnderunder the banner of Heraclius in his sixt yeere warrefare against the Persians: when they craued the wages, of their seruice, in stead of money they receiued contumelious words, and were called Arabik dogs by the Emperours treasurer. This contumely did so irritatate them, that they choosed Mahomet to be their captaine, Anno, 623. inuaded Damascus, and tooke it, and within few yeeres conquered Syria, Phaenicia, Palestina, and Aegypt: And not content with this, they inuaded the kingdome of the Persians and subdued it, and cut off the kings seed. The blasphemous Alcaron and alfurca of Mahomet, which hee said hee receiued from heauen, was a doctrine of lies, containing a mixture of the religion of the Iewes, Pagans, and Christians: to the making whereof concurred Sergius a Nestorian heretik, and Iohn of Antiochia, an Arrian heretike, and some Iewes. Mahomet also ordained, that all people whom the Saracenes could conquer, should be compelled by fire and sword, and al kind of violence, to receiue the doctrine contained in these bookes. Heraclius perceiuing the sudden & great increase of the dōinion of the Saracens gathered a great army, & fought against them, but he was ouer-come in battell and lost 150. thousand men of his army. And when he renewed his forces againe to fight against the Saracens, he found that 52. thousand men of his army died in one night suddenly, as those did who were slaine by the Angell of God in the army of Senacherib. Isai. 37.36.Heraclius was so discouraged with the calamitie of his armie, that he contracted sicknesse and died.
Constantinus and Heracleonas.
AEter the death of Heraclius raigned his son Constantine, 4 moneths, & was made out of the way, by poyson giuen vntounto him by Martina his fathers second wife, to the end that Heracleonas her son might raigne. But God suffered not this wickednes to be vnpunished: For Martina and Heracleonas were taken by the Senators of Constantinople, & her tongue was cut out, and his nose cut off, least either her flattering speeches, or his beauty and comelines should hauehave moued the people to compassion: and they were both banished.
About this time the Saracenes had taken Caesarea in Palestina after they had besieged it seuen yeeres: and they slew in it seuen thousand Christians.
Constans.
AFter the banishment of Martina, and Heracleonas her sonne, raigned Constans the sonne of Constantine, 27. yeeres: in religion he followed the footsteps of Heraclius and was infected with the heresie of the Monothelites, and persecuted Martinus 1. Bishop of Rome, because he had gathered a Synode in Rome, and damned the heresie of the Monothelites: whom also he caused to be brought in bands to Constantinople,Hist. Magd. cent. 8. cap. 3. cut out his tongue, and cut off his right hand, and banished him to Chersonesus in Pontus, where hee ended his life. Hee fought also against the Saracenes in sea-warre-fare, and was ouer-come by them, like as interpreters of dreames had fore-tolde him: for he dreamed, that hee was dwelling in Thessalonica, and the interpreters said it portended no good, but that others should ouer-come him, as if the world Thessalonica did import foreign, that is, render victory to another. Constans was slaine by one of his owne seruants as hee was washing himselfe in the bathe-houses of Saracuse.
Constantinus Pogonatus.
COnstans being slaine in Sicile, the army in those parts appointed Mezentius, a man of incomparable beautie, to bee Emperour: but Constantinus, the eldest sonne of Constans, sayled to Sicile with a great nauie, slew Mezentius, and the murtherers of his father, and recouered his fathers dominion to himselfe. Hee was called Pogonatus, because his face was not bare and voide of haire when he returned from Sicile, as it was when hee sailed thither from Byzans, but his face was rough and couered with haire. Hee had 2. brethren, whom the people reuer…nced with equall honour as they did him: therefore hee disfigured their faces by cutting off their noses, and reigned himselfe alone 17. yeeres. In religion hee was not like vntounto his predecessors,Chron. func. who had beene fauourers of heretiques, but he assembled a generall Councell at Constantinople, vulgarly called, the sixt Oecumenick Councell, wherein the heresie of the Monothelites was vtterly damned, as in his owne place shall be declared, God willing. Likewise, the estate of the Emperour was more peaceable than it had beene in time of his predecessors: for the Saracens were compelled to seeke conditions of peace from him, and to offer yeerely paiment of 3000.Hist. Magd. cen. 7. cap. 3. pound weight of gold vntounto him, with other tributes of horse, seruants, and prisoners.
Iustinianus the second, Leontius, and Absimarus.
AFter the death of Constantine, raigned his son Iustinian the second, sixteene yeeres, to wit, ten yeeres before his banishment, and sixe yeeres after his banishment: His gouernement was cruell and blood…e, by perswasion of Stephanus, and Theodorus, whose counsell hee followed, euen till the purpose of exirpation of all the Citizens of Constantinople. But Leontius, a man of noble birth, pitying the Citie, tooke Iustinian the Emperour, cut off his nose, and banished him to Chersonesus Ponti, where he remained in great miserie ten yeeres. Stephanus and Theodorus his bad counsellors, receaued a condigne punishment, for they were burnt quicke in the bellie of an hot brasen bull.
After this banishment of Iustinian the second, Leontius raigned three yeeres. The flexible mindes of vnconstant people, and souldiers, choosed Absimarus to be their Emperour, who dealt with Leontius as hee had dealt with Iustinian, and cut off his nose, and thrust him into a Monasterie, where hee remained seuen yeeres, to wit, all the time of Absimarus gouernement.
In the ende, Iustinian, after ten yeeres banishment, recouered his Emperiall dignitie againe, by the helpe of Terbelli… Prince of Bulgaria. Hee caused Leontius, and Absimarus to be brought vntounto him, whom he trampled vnderunder his feete, & after commanded that they should be beheaded. The crueltie that he vsed against the Citizens of Constantinople, and against the inhabita… of Chersonesus Ponti, is almost vnspeakeable. He was hated of all men▪ Philippicus conspired against him▪ and he was slaine by one named Elias, his seruant.