Mid-morning. You are at Group Health on Five Mile Road
waiting for Carol and her doctor’s appointment.
0933
hours. I have birth and death dates:
Merlyn
– 620-699
Criteria
– 650-742; Renaldo – 649-736
Lord
Thomas – 686-774; Lady Hilda – 688-779
In
the process I also put in Maarten and Skylar as Renaldo’s grand parents and
Konrad and Kaaje as his parents. Criteria’s grandparents are Thanos and Peony
and her parents are Count Athalaric and Countess Evangeline. Her father’s first
cousin is King Thedoric I.
I
found an error in book one where Criteria says her uncle was King in Greece. I
will have to find a way to dispose of this or discount it.
** **
THEODORIC THE OSTROGOTH
KING
FROM 475-526 A.D.
THE Ostrogoths, or East
Goths, who had settled in Southern Russia, at length pushed southward and
westward to the mouth of the Danube.
They were continually
invading countries belonging to the Romans and their warlike raids were dreaded
by the emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire, who lived at Constantinople. One
emperor gave them land and money, and thus stopped their invasions for a time.
The most famous of the Ostrogoth kings was
Theodoric the Great.
Theodoric
returned to his own country and became king of the Ostrogoths. At this time he
was eighteen years of age. He was handsome and brave and
people loved him, for in those days a man who was tall and strong and brave was
liked by everybody.
II
FOR some years after he
became king Theodoric had frequent wars with other Gothic kings and also with
the Roman Emperor Zeno. He was nearly always successful in battle, and at last
Zeno began to think it would be better to try to make friends with him. So he
gave Theodoric some rich lands and made him commander of the Imperial Guard of
Constantinople.
But the Emperor soon
became tired of having the Ostrogoth king at his court, and to get rid of him
he agreed that Theodoric should go with his army to Italy, and take that country
from Odoacer. Theodoric was delighted at the proposal and began at once to make
his preparations.
Odoacer was at that time
king of Italy. Before he became king he had been a general in the army of
Romulus Augustulus, the Western Roman Emperor. The soldiers of the army were
not satisfied with their pay, and when they asked for more they did not get it.
Then they drove Romulus Augustulus from the throne, and chose Odoacer to
succeed him. But Odoacer would not take the name of emperor. He was called the
"patrician" of Italy, and he ruled the country well.
Theodoric started for
Italy, not only with a great army, but with all the people of his country. He
meant to take Italy and be its king and settle in it with all his Ostrogoths.
When he set out he had with him two hundred and fifty thousand persons--men,
women, and children--with a great number of horses and wagons to carry them and
their things. He had also an army of sixty thousand brave soldiers.
A
treaty was then made between the two kings and both agreed that they should
rule together over Italy, each to have equal power. But a few days afterwards
Theodoric murdered Odoacer while sitting at a banquet, and then made himself
the sole king of Italy. He divided one-third of the land of the country among
his own followers. So the Ostrogoths settled in Italy, and Ostrogoths, Romans,
and Visigoths were governed by Theodoric as one people.
Theodoric died at the age of seventy-one after
ruling Italy for thirty-three years.
Selected and edited from Wikipedia
** **
Further invasions and reorganization
Greece
was raided in Macedonia in 479 and 482 by the Ostrogoths under their king, Theodoric the Great (493–526).[2] The Bulgars also
raided Thrace and the rest of northern Greece in 540 and on repeated other
occasions. These continuing Bulgar invasions required the Byzantine Empire to
build a defensive wall, called the "Anastasian Wall," that
extended for some thirty (30) miles, or more, from the city of Selymbria (now Silivri) to the Black Sea.[3] The Huns and Bulgars raided Greece in 559 until the Byzantine army returned from Italy, where Justinian I had been attempting to capture the heart of the Roman Empire.[4]
According
to historical documents, the Slavs invaded and settled in
parts of Greece beginning in 579 and Byzantium nearly lost control of the
entire peninsula during the 580s.[5] However, there is no archaeological evidence indicating Slavic
penetration of imperial Byzantine territories before the end of the 6th
century. Overall, traces of Slavic culture in Greece are very rare.[6]
Scenes
of marriage and family life in Constantinople.
The city
of Thessaloniki
remained unconquered even after being attacked by the Slavs around 615. The
Slavs were eventually defeated, gathered by the Byzantines and placed into
segregated communities known as Sclaviniae. During
the early 7th century, Constans II made
the first mass-expulsions of Slavs from the Greek peninsula to the Balkans and
central Asia Minor. Justinian II
defeated and destroyed most of the Sclaviniae, and moved as many as 110,000–200,000
Slavs from the Greek peninsula to Bithynia, while
he enlisted some 30,000 Slavs in his army.[7]
The
Slavic populations that were placed in these segregated communities were used
for military campaigns against the enemies of the Byzantines. In the Peloponnese, more Slavic invaders brought disorder to the western part of
the peninsula, while the eastern part remained firmly under Byzantine
domination. Empress Irene
organised a military campaign which liberated those territories and restored
Byzantine rule to the region, but it was not until emperor Nicephorus I's resettlement of some rural areas of Peloponnese with
Greek-speakers from southern Italy, that the last trace of Slavic element was
eliminated.[8]
In the
mid-7th century, the empire was reorganized into "themes" by the Emperor Constans II,
including the Theme of Thrace, the
naval Karabisianoi corps
in southern Greece and the Aegean islands. The Karabisanoi were later
divided by Justinian II into
the Theme of Hellas
(centred on Corinth) and the Cibyrrhaeotic Theme By this time, the Slavs were no longer a threat to the
Byzantines since they had been either defeated numerous times or placed in the Sclaviniae. The Slavic communities in Bithynia were
destroyed by the Byzantines after General Leontios lost to
the Arabs in the Battle of Sebastopolis in 692 as a result of the Slavs having defected to the Arab
side.
These
themes rebelled against the iconoclast emperor Leo III in 727 and attempted to set up their own emperor, although Leo
defeated them. Leo then moved the headquarters of the Karabisianoi to
Anatolia and created the Cibyrrhaeotic Theme of them. Up to this time Greece and the Aegean were still
technically under the ecclesiastic authority of the Pope, but Leo also quarreled with the Papacy and gave these
territories to the Patriarch of Constantinople. As emperor, Leo III, introduced more administrative and legal
reforms than had been promulgated since the time of Justinian.[10] Meanwhile the Arabs began their first serious raids in the Aegean. Bithynia was
eventually re-populated by Greeks from mainland Greece and Cyprus.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Greece
** **
Most
historians agree that after the accession to the Byzantine throne of Heraclius
in 610 A.D., the Byzantine Empire became essentially Greek in both culture and
spirit. Heraclius made Greek the official language of the Empire, and it had
already become the most widely spoken language of the Byzantine population.
The Byzantine Empire, having had its origins in the
Eastern Roman Empire, now evolved into something new—something different from
its predecessor. By 650 A.D., only a very few lingering Roman elements
remained alongside the pervasive Greek influence. According to various historical
sources, a large majority of the Byzantine population from 650 A.D. onwards was
of Greek cultural background. Additionally, the Byzantine army
fought in a style which was much closer to that of the Ancient Athenians and
Spartans than that of the Roman Legions.
**
The Byzantine Empire was
mainly comprised of an array of small towns and seaports connected by a
developed infrastructure. Production was very high, and there was a notable
growth in land ownership. The Byzantines followed a Christian lifestyle which
revolved around the home, where women dedicated themselves to the upbringing of
their children. There were also various public places where men sought
relaxation in their leisure hours.
From A.D. 500 to A.D. 1200, Byzantium was the
wealthiest nation in Europe and western Asia. Its standard of living was unrivaled by other nations in Europe,
and it led much of the world
in art, science, trade, and architecture. We could even say that the “Byzantine
Dream” existed long before the American one.
http://listverse.com/2013/04/20/10-interesting-facts-about-the-byzantine-empire/
**
The culture of Byzantium was rich and affluent,
while science and technology also flourished.
Very important for us, nowadays, was the Byzantine tradition of rhetoric and
public debate. Philosophical and theological discources were important in
public life, even emperors taking part in them. The debates kept knowledge and
admiration for the Greek philosophical and scientific heritage alive. Byzantine
intellectuals quoted their classical predecessors with great respect, even
though they had not been Christians. And although it was the Byzantine emperor
Justinian who closed Plato's famous Academy of Athens
in 529 CE, the Byzantines are also responsible for much of the passing on of
the Greek legacy to the Muslims, who later helped Europe to explore this
knowledge again and so stood at the beginning of European Renaissance.
** **
JUSTINIAN
Byzantine
history goes from the founding of Constantinople as imperial residence on 11
May 330 CE until Tuesday 29 May 1453 CE, when the Ottoman sultan Memhet II
conquered the city. Most times the history of the
Empire is divided in three periods.
The first of
these, from 330 till 867 CE, saw the creation and survival of a powerful
empire. During the reign of Justinian (527-565 CE), a last attempt was made to
reunite the whole Roman Empire under one ruler, the one in Constantinople. This
plan largely succeeded: the wealthy provinces in Italy and Africa were reconquered, Libya was rejuvenated, and money bought
sufficient diplomatic influence in the realms of the Frankish rulers in Gaul and the Visigothic dynasty in Spain. The refound unity was
celebrated with the construction of the church of Holy Wisdom, Hagia Sophia, in
Constantinople. The price for the reunion, however, was high. Justinian had to
pay off the Sasanian Persians, and had to deal with firm resistance, for
instance in Italy.
Under
Justinian, the lawyer Tribonian (500-547 CE) created the famous Corpus Iuris.
The Code of Justinian, a compilation of all the imperial laws, was published in
529 CE; soon the Institutions (a handbook) and the Digests (fifty books of
jurisprudence), were added. The project was completed with some additional
laws, the Novellae. The achievement becomes even more impressive when we
realize that Tribonian was temporarily relieved of his function during the Nika
riots of 532 CE, which in the end weakened the position of patricians and senators in the government, and strengthened the position
of the emperor and his wife.
After
Justinian, the Byzantine and Sasanian empires suffered heavy losses in a
terrible war. The troops of the Persian king Khusrau II captured Antioch and
Damascus, stole the True Cross from Jerusalem, occupied Alexandria, and even
reached the Bosphorus. In the end, the Byzantine armies were victorious under
the emperor Heraclius (reign 610-642 CE).
However, the empire was weakened and
soon lost Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Cyrenaica, and Africa to the
Islamic Arabs. For a moment, Syracuse on Sicily served as imperial residence. At the same time, parts of
Italy were conquered by the Lombards, while Bulgars settled south of the
Danube. The ultimate humiliation took place in 800 CE, when the leader of the
Frankish barbarians in the West, Charlemagne, preposterously claimed that he,
and not the ruler in Constantinople, was the Christian emperor.
http://www.ancient.eu/Byzantine_Empire/
***
688: Emperor Justinian II
of the Byzantine Empire defeats the Bulgarians.
537: Battle of Camlann, final battle of legendary
King Arthur.
Scottish Merlyn 620 - 699
**
**
In early Welsh language poems
a character called Myrddin appears in the 6th Century as a forlorn old man
blessed with the gift of prophecy.
Myrddin is described as the bard to Gwenddoleu,
the king of the Welsh-speaking territories of
southern Scotland and northern England.
At the battle of Battle of Arfderydd (believed to be in Cumbria) in 573 AD
Gwenddoleu is killed. Driven mad by the carnage of battle, Myrddin flees to the
forests of southern Scotland where he develops a reputation for his visions and
predictions.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/the_scottish_roots_of_merlin_the_welsh_wizard.shtml
** **
1215
hours. Carol is on her walk as I wait in the shade of a Pine tree near the
earth dam at Pine Hill Lakes Park. I have been going over much research on the
dates of Merlyn and am finding myself in a quandary. In Gardner’s Bloodline of the Holy Grail, page 191:
“The title Merlin – Seer to the King – was
long established in Druidic tradition. Prior to Emrys, the appointed Merlin was
Taliesin the Bard, husband of Viviane I del Acqs. At his death in 540 the Merlin
title passed to Emrys of Powys, who was the famous Merlin of the Arthurian
tradition. . . . Emrys was an elder cousin of King Aedan.”
Relax orndorff. You are getting too caught
up in the numbers. This is a story not history. We can work around this by
placing an error in mistaken identity. Confusion is caused by Renaldo and
Criteria who think this the rumored Merlyn was the famous Emrys of Powys.
However, it is a descendant of Emrys of Powys who is in fact, Seer to the King of
Scotland at that time. This then is Scottish Merlyn who lived from 620 to 699.
You
had lunch at Potbelly’s and are stopped at Kroger’s on Mason-Montgomery Road for
a couple kids’ essentials. You are having Papa John’s for supper – half cheese
and half veggie. The kids will enjoy. Kim and Paul will be at the wedding. Your
glucose was 111 before lunch a new low for you, and you have lost nine pounds
since seeing Dr. B. – Amorella
1411 hours. Larry will be by around three so we can pay
him for the condo, one less thing to be concerned with. I am thinking about
Merlyn – I did say he was the Celtic-Scottish Merlyn I never thought about him
not being the original because I thought of the Celtic-Scottish Merlyn was my
sense of the original – but like all myths the stories get mixed up. I like the
irony in that I am telling the Angel the story and I have mixed up the Merlyns.
Very funny; and very much like my real character – not having my head on
straight as one of my former IH superintendents, a bean counter in the early
1980’s, used to say. One would think I would have the Merlyn story down by now
since I have been working specifically on this since 2004. It has been ten
years since Laney told me to focus romantic in the storytelling rather than
neo-classic.
I’ll guide you through this genealogy of the
Criteria/Renaldo family. We can fix this up in short order with your authentic
self-humor intact. – Amorella
What a fictional trilogy this is going to turn out to be.
It shows the ‘real’ fiction built into your
self-honesty and glass house consciousness. – Amorella
1505 hours. People have to keep a sense of humor; well, I
do. I would not have survived this long if I had not had it with me. This is
only a writer’s problem anyway. Nothing life threatening. Talked to Kim and
they are almost at the house while we are picking up a prescription for Carol
from Kroger’s Tylersville. It has been a busy day so far but we are looking
forward to seeing the boys shortly.
Later, dude. – Amorella
The
boys are taking their bath before bed. Post. – Amorella
2018 hours. This is a sort of hodge-podge.
They are part of your notes and thoughts on
the subject at hand. Nothing more, nothing less. - Amorella
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