Basil I or Basil the Macedonian

Basil I, often referred to as Basil the Macedonian in reference to his birthplace, was ruler of the Byzantine Empire from 867 to 886 AD. Basil I played a pivotal role in the creation of the Macedonian dynasty that resulted from the revolutionary changes established during his rule. To completely understand how Basil implemented crucial advancements that salvaged the decaying Byzantine Empire, it is necessary to review the flaws of preceding emperor Michael III, as well as Basil’s deceitful ascent to power from peasantry1. Given the state of the empire after emperor Michael III, it is clear how Basil’s military, naval, legislative, and infrastructural revisions gave rise to the economic and political success now referred to as the golden age of the Byzantine Empire.

The initial cultural and political decline of the Byzantine Empire that preceded the rule of emperor Michael III can be attributed to the second iconoclast crisis; the religious dispute between those in favor of and against religious images and symbols. The Byzantine Empire, “ a Graeco-Christian Empire, also occupied a unique cultural position, set midway between the East and the West” at the divide of the crisis (Ostrogorski 217). However, this fall in political standing was followed by reversal and expansion into the East under the rule of Theodora, Michael’s mother. Michael III lacked the ambition to carry out the topographical expansion of the Byzantine Empire, as he was “capricious and fickle to the point of complete unreliability” (Ostrogorski 223). Regardless, his reign was considered profitable due to the genius of his uncle Bardas and the politician Photius. However by the end of Michaels reign, the tension from the iconoclast division between the Roman Chur...

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