Michael V Calafate

Family

Michael's father was Stefan Calafat (Hopper), his mother was Maria, the sister of Michael IV Paflagon . The nickname of Father Michael reflected his profession - he caulked and tarred the built ships.

Maria and Michael IV Paflagon had 4 brothers:

• Eunuch John Orfanotrof (Breadwinner of Orphans), who held the position of a partridge and was then cut as a monk, introduced the empress Zoya, rejected by Roman III, to her brother Michael (future emperor);
• Nikita, who died before 1034;
• Konstantin - eunuch;
• George is a eunuch.

Origin and rise to power

After the death of Roman III of Argyropole on April 11, 1034, on the eve of Easter in a bathhouse (there were rumors that the emperor was poisoned by John Orphanotroph and Empress Zoe ), the power was in the hands of the latter. Soon, John Orfanotrof convinced the elderly empress to quickly marry with Michael and proclaim him emperor. Zoya did not have to convince for a long time, and the power was in the hands of the brothers - Emperor Michael IV Paflagon and eunuch John Orfanotrof. Soon, Michael IV cooled to the aging Zoe, and she was, in fact, under house arrest on the female half of the palace. Michael Paflagon was ashamed to meet with Empress Zoe, realizing the vileness of his act.

The brothers firmly held power, the rule was successful, but soon the hidden disease, epilepsy, worsened in Mikhail IV Paflagon. At receptions on the sides of the throne , curtains were placed so that in the event of a seizure, the emperor was closed from prying eyes. Yes, and John Orphanotroph loved wine and drank more. Finally, John Orfanotrof, in a conversation with his brother, expressed concern about the loss of power for the family and the possible consequences in the event of the sudden death of Michael. Mikhail Paflagon asked what to do. And John Orfanotrof proposed to proclaim Caesar (the second person after the emperor) to be his nephew - Mikhail Kalafat, and for this to convince Empress Zoya to adopt him, he invited himself and the whole family to death. Zoya agreed, and in the Blachernae church the solemn mystery (mystery) of the adoption of Michael Kalafat by Zoe and Michael IV Paflagon and the proclamation of him as Caesar took place. But soon Mikhail Kalafat fell out of favor with the emperor and was expelled from Constantinople .

After the suppression of the Dolyan uprising in Bulgaria, Michael IV Paflagon returned to Constantinople completely ill, he had a dropsy , and it became clear to everyone that his days were numbered. To Caesar Mikhail Calafat, the eunuch Konstantin, brother of Mikhail Paflagon, began to trust. He provided his nephew with considerable cash. And the emperor was increasingly thinking about saving the soul - he invited hermits to the palace, built Cosmidius - the church of Saints Cosmas and Damian (the church built by Theodosius II in the 5th century, was now rebuilt) and the adjacent buildings. Feeling the near end, Michael IV Paflagon got a haircut as a monk . On his last day, he went to the church of Cosmas and Damian, and, not finding monastic shoes - they left him imperial sandals - he went barefoot, supported by two servants. Returning from service, Michael, already unable to speak, died.

Board

For three days his brother, John Orphanotroph, sat at the body of the deceased emperor. And in the palace they anxiously awaited the beginning of the wedding of the new emperor to the kingdom. This required the consent of the Dowager Empress Zoe and the actual ruler of the empire - John Orphanotroph. Michael IV Paflagon was buried in the church of Cosmas and Damian in front of the altar . Having given his last debt to his brother, John Orfanotrof came to the palace, and the proclamation of the new emperor took place on December 10, 1041 . New appointments began - the father of Mikhail Kalafat Stefan was appointed domestic of the fleet (later he came into conflict with George Maniac, who commanded the Byzantine forces in southern Italy). Mikhail Calafat elevated his uncle - the eunuch Konstantin to the rank of novelissim, making him the second person in the state. Despising the nobility, Mikhail Kalafat sought support from wealthy citizens. Suspended from power, the nobility began to look for a figure that could be contrasted with Mikhail Kalafat. Such a person was the younger sister of the Dowager Empress Zoe, the nun Theodora.

John Orfanotrof realized that he had made a fatal mistake in making Michael Caesar, and began to think about replacing Mikhail Calafat. But the emperor delivered a pre-emptive strike - he ordered all his close male relatives to be seized . Soon, in a quarrel with the emperor, John Orfanotrof ostentatiously left the hall, interrupting the conversation with Mikhail Kalafat, and rode out of Constantinople on a horse. He was followed by many noble warriors and officials. This frightened Mikhail Calafate, and he invited John Orphanotroph to return. When he returned, the emperor did not honor his meeting, watching the performance at the hippodrome . John Orfanotrof left again, but was again summoned by the emperor. The ship on which John Orfanotrof returned to Constantinople was met by the triera at the harbor of Bukoleon, and the former actual ruler of the empire was sent to Lesbos to the monastery (he was blinded in 1043).

Then Mikhail Kalafat decided to eliminate the Dowager Empress Zoya, sheared a nun and sent to the island of Principos, the closest to Constantinople from the Princes' Islands in the Sea of ​​Marmara . Standing on a ship and looking at Constantinople, Zoya cried, remembering her uncle, the powerful Vasily II , who wrapped her in a purple veil after birth (a sign of belonging to the imperial house), cursed the rootless power thief Mikhail Kalafat and prayed to God to avenge her humiliation.

Fall

On April 19, an uprising began in the city. The nobles and the plebs were outraged by Zoe's exile as her adoptive son. Returning from exile, Patriarch Aleksey Studit proclaimed Empress Zoya's younger sister, nun Theodora, to be empress in the Cathedral of St. Sophia . Soon, the townspeople armed themselves, having distributed among the troops (the patriotic Konstantin Kavasil headed the armed squads), and decided to go burn the houses of relatives of Mikhail V. Soon, the townspeople went to storm the palace. Frightened by the battle, the emperor ordered Zoya to be returned to the palace, which he forced to speak to the rebels. But her speech did not affect the rebels.

Mikhail Kalafat with his uncle novelissimo Konstantin fled on a ship to the Studios Monastery , located in the southwestern part of Constantinople. The rebels surrounded the building, and the servants of the new government arrived to arrest the fugitives. Among the pursuers was Mikhail Psell , the secretary of the imperial palace, the future historian who wrote The Chronograph.

Calafates took refuge behind the altar of the church, and refused to offer to surrender under security guarantees. An enraged crowd forcefully pulled out the former emperor and eunuch Constantine, and dragged along the street for violence. But then a messenger arrived from the proclaimed Empress Theodora with the order to blind Michael and Constantine. Hearing the verdict, Konstantin behaved courageously, lay down on the ground and asked not to bind him. The executioner tore his eyes and it was the turn of Mikhail Calafat. He began to cry and beg for mercy, the executioner tied him up and pulled out his eyes. After this, the crowd lost interest in the former emperor and dispersed, although about 3,000 people died in 3 days of the uprising. On August 24, 1042, the former basileus died in a monastery.

• Michael Angold The Byzantine empire 1025-1204 . (Longman, 2nd edition, 1997). ISBN 0582 29468 1 .
• Jonathan Harris. Constantinople: Capital of Byzantium . (Hambledon / Continuum, 2007). ISBN 978 1847251794 .