Maurice Tiberius
August 13, 582 to November 22, 602 AD
Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (b. 539 in Arabissus, Cappadocia, d. 602 in Constantinople),
was a Byzantine Emperor who ruled from 582-602. He was one of the most important rulers of the early 'Byzantine'
era, whose reign was troubled by almost unending wars on all frontiers.
In 581 he married Constantina, the Emperor’s daughter. On August 13th, he succeeded his father-in-law. At that time,
he ruled a bankrupt Empire, paying extremely high tribute to the Avars, its Balkan provinces thoroughly devastated by the Slavs and
at war with Persia.
In 602, Maurice, always dealing with the lack of money, decreed that the army should stay for winter beyond the Danube, which would
prove to be a serious mistake. The exhausted troops mutinied against the emperor. Probably misjudging the situation, Maurice
repeatedly ordered his troops to start a new offensive rather than returning to winter quarters. After a while, his troops gained
the impression that Maurice no longer mastered the situation, they proclaimed Phocas their leader and demanded Maurice to abdicate
and proclaim the successor either his son Theodosius or General Germanus. Both men were accused of treason, but the riots broke out
in Constantinople and the emperor with his family left the city for Nicomedia. Theodosius headed east to Persia, but historians
are not sure whether he had been sent there by his father or if he had fled there. Phocas entered Constantinople in November,
where he was crowned emperor, while his troops captured Maurice and his family.
Maurice was brutally murdered on November 27, 602. It is said that the deposed emperor was forced to watch his three sons executed
before his eyes, before he was beheaded himself. Empress Constantina and her three daughters were spared and sent to a monastery.
The Persian King Chosroes II used this coup and the murder of his Patron as an excuse for a renewed war against the Byzantine Empire.
From Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_%28emperor%29
Click on coin images to enlarge
Maurice Tiberius
595 to 596 AD
Mint: Theoupolis
AE Follis
Obvs: δ.N.mAЧГI.CN.P.AЧT, Facing holding eagle scepter
Revs: ANNO M XIIII right. Cross above. Г THЄUP' below
30mm, 11.0g
$27.00
Order # B 052
Ref: Sear 533
