In August 527 AD Justinian ascended the throne of the Byzantine Empire, succeeding his elderly uncle Justin I. Justinian was born in Naissos in 482. After being adopted by Justin, he settled in Constantinople and followed a military career, which paved the way for him to assume political office. In 512 he was given the title of vassal. From the time his uncle ascended the throne in 518, Justinian became one of the main shapers of state policy. When he came to power, in August 527, he already had a very good knowledge of the workings of the political system of his empire, as well as the reforms he had to implement.
Justinian had a high idea of the office and mission of the emperor. He was imbued with the idea of restoring the greatness of the Roman state, which he set as the main axis of his policy. As a character he was proud and domineering, he could control his anger, but he was vain and distrustful of everyone. Regardless of the sympathy felt for him by his contemporary writers, all recognize that Justinian was an industrious and active man with a vision for the empire. With the Reconquista policy he managed to recover areas of Spain, North Africa and the Italian Peninsula. In its internal policy, the codification of the law of its time (Corpus Iuris Civilis) stands out.
Undoubtedly one of the achievements of the Justinian era is the temple of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. First Constantine the Great was the one who gave the order for the construction of a temple dedicated to the Wisdom of God in the area around the Great Palace. The construction of the temple lasted several years. The inauguration took place in 360. That temple was destroyed by fire in 404 and was rebuilt during the reign of Theodosius II. The inauguration of the new church took place in January 415 by the Patriarch of Constantinople Atticus. About a century later, in 532, the Hagia Sophia was again given over to the flames, during the most violent riots, which broke out in Constantinople in the context of the Nicene Stasis.
The construction of an imposing building worthy of its name, namely the temple of God Hagia Sophia, and the greatness of the empire was a top priority for Justinian. The design and implementation of the project was entrusted to Anthemios from Trallei and Isidoros from Miletos, great architects and mathematicians of the time. The construction of the temple lasted almost six years. It was chosen to be built as a domed basilica. The best materials of the time were used: bricks from Rhodes, which were specially made to fit together better, marble from Prokonnisos in the Propontis, a lot of gold and silver. There were thousands of craftsmen who worked to complete the project, the cost of which was enormous.
The opening of the doors of Hagia Sophia took place on December 27, 537. The sources state that Justinian approached the gate of the church on a chariot and was received by the Patriarch of Constantinople, Minas. Together the two men entered the temple. Standing inside the temple, the emperor exclaimed: “Praise be to God, conqueror of me, that you have done such a work. Nenikites to Solomon!
Neither of the two architects of the project was lucky enough to see Hagia Sophia completed. When certain modifications had to be made to the dome of the church in 558, as part of it had fallen due to the strong earthquakes that sometimes hit Constantinople, Isidore the Younger, nephew of the Milesian architect, was called. Since then, projects have been carried out several times to restore parts of Hagia Sophia.
Column editor: Myrto Katsigera, Vassilis Minakakis, Antigoni-Despina Poimenidou, Athanasios Syroplakis
