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| − | '''Constantine V''' ''Kopronymos'' or ''Copronymus'' (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Ε΄, ''K�?nstantinos V'' ), (718–September 14, 775) was Byzantine emperor from 741 to 775.
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| − | ==Life==
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| − | Constantine was the son and successor of Emperor [[Leo III the Isaurian|Leo III]] and Maria. His derogatory nickname ''Kopronymos'' derives from kopra (feces) and onoma (name). This nickname, given to him by [[iconodule]] sources (with whom he had many conflicts), refers to him allegedly defecating in the [[baptism]]al font or the imperial purple cloth with which he was swaddled.
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| − | In August of 720 he was associated on the throne by his father, who had him marry a Khazar princess, baptized [[Irene of Athens]] (''Eirēnē'', "peace") in 732. Constantine V then succeeded his father as sole emperor on [[April 19]], 741.
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| − | Shortly after becoming emperor, Constantine found himself in a civil war with his brother-in-law Artabasdos, a supporter of the restoration of images. Perhaps because of this, Constantine now became an even more fervent [[Iconoclasm|iconoclast]] than his father.
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| − | ==Iconoclasm==
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| − | In February 754 Constantine convened a [[synod]] at Hieria, which was attended entirely by Iconoclast [[bishop]]s. The council approved of Constantine's religious policy and secured the election of a new Iconoclast [[patriarch]]. It was followed by a campaign to remove images from the walls of churches and to purge the court and bureaucracy of [[Iconodule]]s.
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| − | Since monasteries tended to be strongholds of [[Iconodule|Iconophile]] sentiment, Constantine specifically targeted the [[monk]]s, pairing them off and forcing them to marry nuns in the Hippodrome and expropriating monastic property for the benefit of the state or the army. The repressions against the monks (culminating in 766) were largely led by the emperor's general Michael Lachanodrakon, who threatened resilient monks with blinding and exile.
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| − | An iconodule abbot, [[Stephen Neos]], was brutally lynched by a mob at the behest of the authorities. As a result many monks fled to southern Italy and Sicily. By the end of Constantine's reign, Iconoclasm had gone as far as to brand [[relics]] and prayers to the [[saint]]s as [[heresy|heretical]].
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| − | ==Later Reign==
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| − | His reign was also marked by the return of the Empire to the offensive against the [[w:Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad Caliphate]]. He made it a policy of resettling Syrian and Anatolian Christians from reconquered territories into the depopulated Balkans. This provided a much needed resurgence and replenishment of people into [[parish]]es devastated by war.
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| − | Iconophiles considered his death a divine punishment. They spread the rumour that he had defecated in his baptismal font as a baby, and began to refer to him as ''Kopronymos''. In the 9th century he was disinterred and his remains were thrown into the sea.
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| − | ==References==
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| − | *''The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium'', Oxford University Press, 1991.
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| − | {{start box}}
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| − | {{succession|
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| − | before=[[Leo III]]|
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| − | title=[[Byzantine Emperor]]|
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| − | years=741-775|
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| − | after=[[Leo IV the Khazar|Leo IV]]}}
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| − | {{end box}}
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| − | [[Category:Rulers]]
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| − | [[Category:Roman Emperors]]
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| − | [[Category:Heretics]]
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