Justin II

Emperor of the Romans

A gold solidus of Justin II. The imprint reads "DNI-VSTI-NVS PP AVG" (Dominus Noster Iustinus Perpeetus Augustus).

* Life
* Names
* Reign

### Born

c. 520
 Thrace

### Died

5 October 578 (aged 57/58)
 Constantinople

### Issue

Arabia
 Iustus
 Tiberius II (adoptive)

### Religion

Chalcedonian Christianity
 Previously Monophysite Christianity

### Greek

Ἰουστῖνος ὁ νέος
 *Ioustînos ho néos*

### Epithets

Justin the Younger
 Justin the Thracian
 Justin the Mad

### Caesars

Justin (possibly, until 566)
 Tiberius II (r. 574–578)

**Justin II** (Latin: *Flavius Anicius Iustinus*; Greek: Φλάβιος Ανίκιος Ἰουστῖνος, *translit.* *Phlábios Aníkios Ioustînos*; Thrace, c. 520 – Constantinople, 5 October 578), commonly referred to as **Justin the Younger** (Latin: *Iustinus iunior* or *Iustinus minor*; Greek: Ἰουστῖνος ὁ νέος, *translit.* *Ioustînos ho néos*) or as **Justin the Mad**, was Eastern Roman emperor from 565 to 578, although in practice he ruled only until 574. A son of Dulcissimus and Vigilantia, Justin was a cousin to the acclaimed emperor Justinian I, and together with the consul also named Justin, was one of said emperor's heirs. Justin II managed to maneuver his way to the throne faster, due to a wider degree of support among the aristocracy and already being in Constantinople; although he possibly elevated Justin the consul to *caesar*, his empress Sophia later had him assassinated in Egypt.

His reign began bright, with the emperor administering justice in person, repealing a strict marriage law issued by Justinian I, fighting corruption, and refilling the empire's treasury by cutting expenditure and installing new taxes. His decision not to bribe the Avars, however, indirectly led to an invasion of Italy by the Germanic Lombards in 568, which Justin was unable to effectively respond to due to the weakness of the Roman garrisons in Italy and instability on the eastern front. A new war with Persia broke out in 572, which went disastrously for the Romans. In 573, Justin became mentally insane, likely as a result of the horrible Persian war, the invasion of Italy, stress associated with ruling the Roman Empire, and his inability to live up to his predecessor Justinian.

Becoming incapable of effectively ruling the empire, Justin adopted his best friend, the later Tiberius II, as his own son in 574 and made him *caesar*. From then on out, Tiberius would rule the empire in Justin's name. Justin's health quickly deteriorated and he died in 578. His lifelong companion succeeded him. Justin was by no means an incompetent ruler; he successfully refilled the empire's treasury after the expensive conquests of Justinian (even if Tiberius ended up spending all of it in his solo reign) and was a vocal proponent of justice and equity. However, his impulsive decisions led to calamities, and, eventually, the loss of his own sanity, such that he could no longer exercise effective power for the last four years of his life.

## Footnotes

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Elsewhere given as *Flavius Valerius Iustinus*.
2. ↑ *De facto* 7 December 574, when Justin transferred power to Tiberius II and Empress Sophia, and retreated from politics afterwards.
3. ↑ Tiberius was elevated from *caesar* to *augustus* by Justin a mere 10 days before his death.

## Bibliography

Occo, Adolf (1730) (in Latin). *Imperatorum Romanorum numismata a Pompeio Magno ad Heraclium, ab Adolfo Occone olim congesta... perpetuis historico-chronologicis notis... jam illustrata a Francisco Mediobarbo Birago,... nunc vero... expurgata... curante Philippo Argelato,...*. in aedibus Societatis palatinae. p. 569. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Imperatorum\_Romanorum\_numismata\_a\_Pompei/-j4aP\_el7kMC.