Emperor Phocas

Emperor Phocas(reigned 602-610 AD/CE)started his imperial career from the position of a mere Centurion serving at the danubian field army during extensive wars against Avars and Slavs of his predecessor Maurice.Phocas had gained the throne through military usurpation(one of the most bloody in the entire Roman history)-actually first successful military usurpation in the eastern half of the Roman Empire since almost 300 years earlier during Tetrarchic wars.

His reign was as turbulent as was the way he take reins of power over the state and was dominated by frequent revolts and attempts to depose him on which Phocas reacted with utmost brutality and paranoia(although-is it really a paranoia if very many people indeed wanted his death?) against real conspirators as well as against those he only suspected or considered a danger.He was hated in higher imperial society cirles for his bloody usurpation as well as for being of lowborn origin(by both he reminded Emperor Maximinus from the 3rd century) but mainly his usurpation provided welcomed excuse for the ambitious Persian King to declare war to Phocas styling himself an avenger of Emperor Mauricius(who once intervened in the Persian civil war and reinstalled young Khosrau II back on the throne in Ctesiphon when he was forced to seek exile in the Roman Empire).This war eventually turned into classic war of conquest and most importantly into apocalyptically devastating conflict,the last among ancient arch-rivals,which,in a sense,ended antiquity as an era and opened the way to drastically reshaped world.

Although Phocas is presented in highly negative light by the eastern sources as a prototype of bloody tyrant and incompetent ruler there is no doubt that his image was later significantly corrupted by the propaganda of his successor Heraclios and all consequent historians following it.At the west Phocas picture was not viewed so negatively.During his reign last monument was added to the Forum Romanum in Rome-a victory collumn topped with his statue~Amelianvs