Justinian I

Justinian I or Iustinian I (/dʒʌˈstɪniən/; Latin: Flavius Petrus Sabbatius Iustinianus Augustus, Greek: Φλάβιος Πέτρος Σαββάτιος Ἰουστινιανός Flávios Pétros Sabbátios Ioustinianós) (c. 482 – 14 November 565), traditionally known as Justinian the Great and also Saint Justinian the Great in the Eastern Orthodox Church, was a Byzantine (East Roman) emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the historical Roman Empire. Justinian's rule constitutes a distinct epoch in the history of the Later Roman empire, and his reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized renovatio imperii, or "restoration of the Empire".

Because of his restoration activities, Justinian has sometimes been called the "last Roman" in modern historiography. This ambition was expressed by the partial recovery of the territories of the defunct western Roman empire. His general, Belisarius, swiftly conquered the Vandal kingdom in North Africa, re-extending Roman control to the Atlantic Ocean. Subsequently Belisarius, Narses, and other generals conquered the Ostrogothic kingdom, restoring Dalmatia, Sicily, Italy, and Rome to the empire after more than half a century of rule by the Ostrogoths. The prefect Liberius reclaimed most of southern Iberia, establishing the province of Spania. These campaigns re-established Roman control over the western Mediterranean, increasing the Empire's annual revenue by over a million solidi. During his reign Justinian also subdued the Tzani, a people on the east coast of the Black Sea that had never been under Roman rule before.

Justinian (ship)

The Justinian was a storeship that carried provisions to the convict settlement at New South Wales. She left Falmouth in England on 20 January 1790 and, after calling at Madeira and Saint Jago, she arrived at Sydney Cove in Port Jackson on 20 June, having been driven off from the harbour heads on 2 June. One week after her arrival, the three ships of the infamous Second Fleet arrived. After unloading, she departed for China on 28 July 1790, calling at Norfolk Island on the way.

References

Justinian (general)

Justinian (Latin: Iustinianus, Greek: Ἰουστινιανός, after 525–582) was an East Roman (Byzantine) aristocrat and general, and a member of the ruling Justinian dynasty. As a soldier, he had a distinguished career in the Balkans and in the East against Sassanid Persia. In his later years, he plotted unsuccessfully against regent and later emperor Tiberius II (r. 574–582).

Biography

Origins and early career

Justinian was born in Constantinople sometime shortly after 525, the second son of Germanus, a cousin to the Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). He had an elder brother, Justin, and a sister, Justina, who married the general John.

Justinian was first appointed to military command in 550, when he, together with his brother Justin, were to accompany their father in his expedition against Ostrogoth Italy. Germanus, however, died suddenly in autumn 550, before the army had left the Balkans, where it was assembling. After this, Justinian and John (Germanus's son-in-law) were ordered to lead the army towards Salona (modern Split, Croatia), in preparation for a crossing over to Italy or an overland march to Venetia. John remained in charge of the army until the eunuch Narses, who was appointed as the expedition's new commander-in-chief in early 551, arrived at Salona to take up command. In early 552, Justinian was placed at the head of an expedition against the Slavs who were raiding Illyricum, and shortly after, was sent to assist the Lombards against the Gepids. His brother Justin was also a member of this army. The two brothers, however, were detained by the need to suppress a revolt in the city of Ulpiana, and never arrived to aid the Lombards.