Constans II

For the Western Roman usurper, see Constans II (son of Constantine III).

Constans II
Emperor of the Romans
A solidus of Constans II c. 651–3 (aged 21–3), wearing a diadem and holding the globus cruciger. The inscription reads dn constantinus pp av.
Byzantine emperor
ReignNovember 641 – 15 July 668
CoronationSeptember 641
PredecessorHeraclonas
SuccessorConstantine IV
Co-emperorsDavid Tiberius (641)
Heraclius (659–681)
Tiberius (659–681)
Constantine IV (654–668)
BornHeraclius
7 November 630
Constantinople
Died15 July 668 (aged 37)
Syracuse, Sicily
SpouseFausta
Issue
Detail
Regnal name
Constantinus Augustus[a]
DynastyHeraclian
FatherConstantine III
MotherGregoria
ReligionChristianity

Constans II[b] (‹See Tfd›Greek: Κώνστας, translit. Kōnstas; 7 November 630 – 15 July 668), also called "the Bearded" (‹See Tfd›Greek: ὁ Πωγωνᾶτος, translit. ho Pōgōnãtos),[c] was the Byzantine emperor from 641 to 668. Constans was the last attested emperor to serve as consul, in 642,[9][10][d] although the office continued to exist until the reign of Leo VI the Wise (r. 886–912).[13] His religious policy saw him steering a middle line in disputes between the Orthodoxy and Monothelitism by refusing to persecute either and prohibited discussion of the natures of Jesus Christ under the Type of Constans in 648. His reign coincided with Muslim invasions under, Umar, Uthman, and Mu'awiya I in the late 640s to 660s. Constans was the first emperor to visit Rome since the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, and the last one to visit Rome while the Empire still held it.


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  1. ^ a b Foss 2005, pp. 93–94.
  2. ^ Biermann 2009, p. 537.
  3. ^ Moosa 2008.
  4. ^ Widdowson 2009.
  5. ^ Laurent, V. (1939). "Notes de titulature byzantine". Échos d'Orient. 38 (195–196): 355–370. doi:10.3406/rebyz.1939.2941.
  6. ^ Academia Republicii Populare Romîne , ed. (1981). Revue roumaine d'histoire: Volume 20. Editions de l'Académie de la République socialiste de Roumanie. p. 626.
  7. ^ Warwick, Wroth (1908). Catalogue of the Imperial Byzantine Coins in the British Museum. Longman. pp. v, 184, 255. ISBN 978-5-87507-093-8.
  8. ^ Grumel, Venance (1996). "Quel est l'empereur Constantin le nouveau commémoré dans le Synaxaire au 3 septembre?." Analecta Bollandiana 84: 254–260.
  9. ^ Shahi̇d, I. (1972). The Iranian Factor in Byzantium during the Reign of Heraclius. Dumbarton Oaks Papers 26: 293–320.
  10. ^ Cameron, A., & Schauer, D. (1982). The Last Consul: Basilius and His Diptych. The Journal of Roman Studies 72: 126–145.
  11. ^ Hendy, Michael F. (2008). Studies in the Byzantine Monetary Economy. Cambridge University Press. p. 193. ISBN 9781316582275.
  12. ^ Salzman, Michele R. (2021). The Falls of Rome. Cambridge University Press. p. 310. ISBN 9781107111424.
  13. ^ Riedel, Meredith (2018). Leo VI and the Transformation of Byzantine Christian Identity. Cambridge University Press. p. 100. ISBN 9781107053076.