To make this chapter fully consonant to its title it now remains for us to pass in review the sociological condition of the inhabitants, whilst we try to learn something of their mode of life, their national characteristics, and their mental aptitudes. We have already seen that in the case of the Neo-Byzantines or Lesser Greeks,[368] the path of evolution lay through a series of historical vicissitudes in which there was more of artificial forcing than of the insensible growth essential to the formation of a homogeneous people. Owing to its geographical position it was perhaps inevitable from the first that Byzantium should become a cosmopolitan town, whose population should develop little political stability or patriotic coherence. In addition, however, it happened that the Megareans, their chief progenitors, had gained an unenviable notoriety throughout Greece; they were generally esteemed to be gluttonous, slothful, ineffective, and curiously prolific in courtesans, who, for some reason which now escapes us, were peculiarly styled “Megarean sphinxes.”[369] Once established on the Golden Horn the Byzantines seem to have found life very easy; their fisheries were inexhaustible and facile beyond belief;[370] whilst the merchants trading in those seas soon flocked thither so that port dues furnished an unearned and considerable income. As a consequence the bulk of the populace spent their time idling in the market-place or about the wharves, each one assured of meeting some visitor to whom for a valuable consideration he was willing to let his house and even his wife, whilst he himself took up his abode in the more congenial wine-shop. So firmly did this dissolute mode of life gain a footing, that when the town was besieged the citizens could not be rallied to defend the walls until the municipal authorities had set up drinking-booths on the ramparts.[371] Law was usually in abeyance,[372] finance disorganized,[373] and political independence forfeit to the leading power of the moment, whether Greek or Persian.
Such was the community whose possession of a matchless site decided Constantine to select them as the nucleus of population for his new Rome, the meditated capital of the East. And, in order to fill with life and movement the streets newly laid out, he engrafted on this doubtful stock a multitude of servile and penurious immigrants, whom he allured from their native haunts by the promise of free residence and rations.[374] Nevertheless a metropolis constituted from such elements was scarcely below the level of the times, and was destined to prove a successful rival of the degenerate Rome which Constantine aspired to supplant.
The impressions of life and colour which affect a stranger on entering a new city arise in great part from the costume of its inhabitants. At Constantinople there prevails in this age a decency in dress foreign to Rome during the first centuries of the Empire, and even to Greece in the most classic period. Ladies invested with garments of such tenuity as to reveal more than they conceal of their physical beauties, to the confusion of some contemporary Seneca, are not here to be met with in the streets;[375] the Athenian maiden, with her tunic divided almost to the hip, or the Spartan virgin displaying her limbs bare to the middle of the thigh, have no reflection under the piazzas of renascent Byzantium. A new modesty, born of Christian influences, has cast a mantle of uniformity over the licence as well as over the simplicity of the pagan world. In observing the costume of this time a modern eye would first, perhaps, note the fact that in civil life the garb of men differs but little from that of women. Loose clothing, which hides the shape of the body, and in general the whole of the lower limbs, is common to both sexes. Men usually shave, but a moustache is often worn; their hair is cropped, but not very close.[376] Head-gear is an exception, and so, for the lower classes, are coverings for the feet. A workman, an artisan, or a slave, the latter a numerous class, wears a simple tunic of undyed wool, short-sleeved, girt round the waist and reaching to the knees, with probably a hood which can be drawn over the head as a protection against the weather.[377] This garment is in fact the foundation dress of all ranks of men, but the rich wear fine materials, often of silk and of varied hues, have long sleeves, and use girdles of some costly stuff. They, in addition, are invested in handsome cloaks reaching to the ankles, which are open for their whole length on the right side and are secured by a jewelled clasp over the corresponding shoulder. Shoes often highly ornamented,[378] and long hose, coloured according to taste, complete the dress of an ordinary Byzantine gentleman. On less formal occasions a short sleeveless cloak, fastened at the neck, but open down the front, is the customary outer vestment. The tunic or gown of women reaches to the feet, and, in the case of ladies, is embroidered or woven with designs of various patterns and tints. The latter usually consist of some small variegated device which is repeated in oblique lines all over the garment. Shawls, somewhat similar in colour and texture to the gown, thrown over the back and shoulders or wound round the bust, are habitually worn at the same time. Gloves, shoes and stockings of various hues, and a simple form of cap which partly conceals the hair, are also essential to the attire of a Byzantine lady. As in all ages, jewellery is much coveted, and women of any social rank are rarely to be seen without heavy necklaces, earrings of an elaborate spreading design,[379] and golden girdles.[380] A less numerous class of the community are male ascetics, celibates of a puritanical cast, who love to placard themselves by wearing scarlet clothing and binding their hair with a fillet;[381] also virgins devoted to the service of the churches, who are known by their sombre dress, black hoods, gray mantles, and black shoes.[382] Philosophers adopt gray, rhetoricians crimson, and physicians blue, for the tint of their cloaks.[383] To these may be added the courtesans who try to usurp the costume of every grade of women, even that of the sacred sisterhood.[384] Such is the population who usually crowd the thoroughfares and lend them a gaudy aspect which is still further heightened by numbers of private carriages—literally springless carts—bedizened with paint and gilding, and most fashionable if drawn by a pair of white mules with golden trappings. Such vehicles are indispensable to the outdoor movements of matrons of any rank;[385] and in each case a train of eunuchs in gorgeous liveries, and decked with ornaments of gold, mark the progress of a great lady.[386] Occasionally we may see the Praefect of the City, or some other man of signal rank, passing in a silver wagon drawn by four horses yoked abreast.[387] Often we meet a noble riding a white horse, his saddle-cloth embroidered in gold; around him a throng of attendants bearing rods of office with which they rudely scatter all meaner citizens to make way for their haughty master.[388] A person of any consequence perambulating the city is followed by at least one slave bearing a folding seat for incidental rest.[389] In some retired nook we may encounter a circle of the populace gazing intently at the performance of a street mountebank; he juggles with cups and goblets; pipes, dances, and sings a lewd ballad; the bystanders reward him with a morsel of bread or an obole; he invokes a thousand blessings on their heads, and departs to resume his display in some other spot.[390]
The Byzantine Emperor and Empress are distinguished in dress from all their subjects by the privilege of wearing the Imperial purple.[391] The Emperor is further denoted by his jewelled shoes or slippers of a bright scarlet colour, a feature in his apparel which is even more exclusive than his cloak or his crown. The latter symbol of majesty is a broad black hoop expanding towards the top, bordered above and below with a row of pearls, thickly studded with gems all round, and bearing four great pendent pearls which fall in pairs on the nape of the neck. His ample purple robe, which falls to his feet, is fastened by a costly shoulder-clasp of precious stones. Its uniformity is diversified by two squares or tables of cloth of gold embroidered in various colours, which approach from the back and front the division on the right side. Purple hose and a white tunic, sleeved to the wrists and girt with a crimson scarf, complete the civil attire of the Emperor. When sitting in state he usually bears a globe surmounted by a cross[392] in his left hand. His attendant nobles, a new order of patricians who are styled the Fathers of the Emperor,[393] are garbed all in white, but the tables of their gowns are of plain purple, their girdles are red, and their shoes are black. His Protectors or guards wear green tunics, with red facings, and are shod in black with white hose; a thick ring of gold, joined to a secondary oval one in front, encircles the neck of each one; they are armed with a long spear, and carry an oval shield bordered with blue and widely starred from the centre in black on a red ground. Their Count or Captain is distinguished by a red and purple breasted tunic, and by the Christian monogram of his shield in yellow on a green ground. The dress of the Empress is very similar to that of her consort, but her crown is more imposing, being heightened by sprays of jewels, and laden with strings of pearls which fall over her neck and shoulders.[394] Her purple mantle is without tables, but is brocaded with gold figures around the skirt; she wears besides an under-skirt embroidered in bright hues, golden slippers with green hose, and all jewels proper to ladies of the most costly description.[395] Two or three patricians usually wait on the Empress, but her Court is chiefly composed of a bevy of noble matrons or maids, female patricians who act as her tire-women; the leader[396] of these is distinguished by her purple gown.[397]
Every morning at seven o’clock the Grand Janitor of the Palace,[398] taking his bunch of keys, proceeds with a company of guards and Silentiaries to open all the doors which lead from the Augusteum to the Consistorium. After the lapse of an hour the Primicerius or captain of the watch knocks at the door of the Emperor’s private apartments. Surrounded by his eunuchs the prince then sallies forth and first, standing before an image of Christ in a reverential attitude, recites a formal prayer. On the completion of this pious office he takes his seat on the throne and calls for the Logothete[399] or steward of the royal household. Upon this the Janitor, pushing aside the variegated curtains which close the door leading to the antechamber, passes out, and in a short time returns with the desired official. The Logothete first drops on one knee and adores the majesty of the Emperor, after which he rises and transaction of business for the day begins. By this time the antechamber of the Throne room has become crowded with dignitaries of state, patricians, senators, praefects, and logothetes of various denominations. The Emperor commands the presence from time to time of such of these as he wishes to confer with, and all of them at their first entrance salute him with the same form of submissive obeisance, except those of patrician rank, who merely bow profoundly, and are greeted by the Emperor with a kiss.[400] Codicils or commissions for the appointment of officers of state or rulers of provinces are presented by the Master of the Rolls,[401] and the Emperor signs the documents in purple ink, the use of which is forbidden to subjects.[402] Such codicils are illustrated in colours with various devices symbolical of the dignity or duties of the office conferred. Those of praefects and proconsuls of the highest rank display a draped abacus or table on which rests a framed image of the Emperor lighted by wax tapers; in addition, busts of the Emperor with his imperial associates or heirs on a pedestal, and a silver quadriga—insignia of office, which adorn the local vestibule or denote the vicegerent of the sovereign in his progress through the public ways. The provinces or districts are indicated by female figures or busts labelled with various names; in many instances by rivers, mountains, indigenous animals, and miniature fortresses representing the chief towns. In the case of rulers of lesser rank—dukes, vicars, correctors, counts, presidents—a portly volume inscribed with the initials of a conventional sentence[403] supplants the painted image. For Masters of the Forces the codicils are illustrated with weapons of war or with the numerous designs, geometrical or pictorial, which distinguish the shields of the cohorts under their command. Dignitaries of civil rank, financial or secretarial, are suitably denoted on their diplomas by vessels loaded with coin, purses, writing-cases, and rolls of manuscript.[404] In addition to those assigning administrative appointments honorary codicils are also issued, by which the prerogative or precedence only pertaining to various ranks is conferred. These documents are also called “nude,” as they are not illustrated with those figures which indicate that the holder is in authority over particular districts. They are equivalent to patents of nobility, and are granted for service to the state, general esteem, and probably also by mere purchase.[405] Among the throng at the Emperor’s receptions are always a number of officers of a certain rank, who, on vacating their posts, have the privilege of waiting on the Emperor in order to adore or kiss his purple.[406] In the absence of urgent business the audience closes at ten o’clock; at a sign from the Emperor the Janitor passes into the antechamber with his keys, which he agitates noisily as a signal of dismissal. The Palace is then shut up, but at two o’clock it is reopened with the same formalities for the further transaction of affairs. At five o’clock it is again closed and the routine of Imperial reception is at an end for the day. On the Dominica or Sunday the assembly is most numerous, and the company repairs in procession to one of the adjoining halls to attend the performance of a brief divine service.[407] As a concession to the holiness of this day adoration of the Emperor is less formal. When the Emperor or Empress drives through the streets the carriage is drawn by four white horses or mules,[408] the vehicle and the trappings of the animals being ornate in the highest degree.[409] Public processions on festal days of the Church are regular and frequent; and on these occasions, as well as on those of national rejoicing, the Emperor rides a white horse amidst his train of eunuchs, nobles, and guards. At such times the Praefect of the City enjoins a special cleansing and decoration of the streets on the prescribed route. The way is adorned from end to end with myrtle, rosemary, ivy, box, and flowers of all kinds which are in bloom at the season. The air is filled with the odour of incense, and from private windows and balconies particoloured and embroidered fabrics are suspended by the inhabitants. Wherever the royal cavalcade passes, cries of “Long live the Emperor” rise from every throat.[410] At night the thoroughfares are illuminated by frequent lamps displayed from windows and doorways. But on occasions of public calamity, such as ruinous earthquakes or prolonged drought, this scene of splendour is reversed; and the Emperor, on foot and uncrowned, proceeds amidst the clergy and populace, all clad in sombre garments, to one of the sacred shrines outside the walls to offer up supplications for a remission of the scourge.[411] And again the Emperor may be seen as a humble pedestrian, whilst the Patriarch, who usually rides upon an ass, is seated in the Imperial carriage, on his way to the consecration of a new church, or holding on his knees the relics of some saint prior to their deposition in one of the sacred edifices.[412]
At this date conventional titles of distinction or adulation have attained to the stage of full development. The Emperor, in Greek Basileus or Autocrator, the sole Augustus, is also styled Lord and Master, and is often addressed as “Your Clemency.”[413] His appointed heir receives the dignity of Caesar and perhaps the title of Nobilissimus, an epithet confined to the nearest associates of the throne.[414] Below the Imperial eminence and its attachments the great officers of state are disposed in three ranks, namely, the Illustres, Spectabiles, and Clarissimi. The Illustrious dignitaries are termed by the Prince and others “Most Glorious,” and are variously addressed as “Your Sublimity,” “Magnificence,” “Eminence,” “Excellence,” “Highness,” “Serenity,” or “Sincerity,” etc. The two lower ranks are similarly addressed, but only the less fulsome of such expressions are applied to them. Consonant to the same scheme the clergy receive the epithets of “Most Holy,” “Blessed,” “Reverend,” “Beloved of God”; and are addressed as “Your Beatitude,” “Eminence,” etc., the emphasis being graduated according as they may happen to be Patriarchs, Archbishops, Metropolitans, Bishops, or simple clericals.[415]
In the assemblies of the Hippodrome popular fervour reaches its highest pitch, whether in times of festive or political excitement. From Daphne, by the gallery of St. Stephen’s and the Cochlea, the Emperor, surrounded by courtiers and guards, gains his throne in the Kathisma.[416] On his entry the Protectors, already assembled in the Stama or Pi, elevate the Standards which have previously been lying on the ground.[417] Before seating himself on his throne the Emperor, advancing to the balustrade of the Kathisma, greets the assembled populace by making the sign of the cross in the air. As soon as the answering cries of adulation subside, a set hymn[418] is intoned from each side of the Circus in alternate responsions by particular bodies of the people called Demes, whose importance, not merely agonistic, but above all political, renders a special account of them here necessary.
The Demes or factionaries of the Hippodrome occupy the benches at the end of the arena on each side adjacent to the Kathisma,[419] and are called the Veneti and Prasini, that is, the Blues and Greens.[420] These bodies, which are legally incorporated as guilds,[421] consist of the contending parties in the chariot races, and of such others as elect to enroll themselves as their followers, and to wear the colours of the respective sides. Each Deme has a subdivision, or rather, a pendant, to which the colours white and red are attached respectively.[422] The chief or president of each faction is entitled the Demarch.[423] These two parties form cabals in the state, who are animated by a fierce rivalry engendering an intensely factious disposition. Every consideration is subordinated to a strained sense of personal or party honour, whence is evolved a generally uncompromising defiance to the restrictions of law and order. Ties of blood and friendship are habitually set at naught by the insolent clanship of these factions; even women, although excluded from the spectacles of the Circus, are liable to become violent partisans of either colour, and that in opposition sometimes to the affinities of their own husbands and families. Nor does the Emperor by an equal distribution of his favours seek to control the intemperate rivalry of the Demes, but usually becomes the avowed patron of a particular faction.[424] At the present time the Greens are in the ascendant, and fill the benches to the left of the Kathisma, a position of honour assigned to them by the younger Theodosius.[425] Every town of any magnitude has a Circus with its Blue and Green factions, and these parties are in sympathetic correspondence throughout the Empire.[426]
The throng of spectators within the Hippodrome, who can be accommodated with seats around the arena, amounts to about 40,000, but this number falls far short of the whole mass of the populace eager to witness the exhibition. From early dawn men of all ages, even if maimed or crippled, assault the gates; and when the interior is filled to repletion the excluded multitude betake themselves to every post of vantage in the vicinity which overlooks the Circus. Then windows and roofs of houses, hill-tops and adjacent eminences of all kinds are seized on by determined pleasure seekers.[427]
Public entertainments are given regularly in the Hippodrome and the theatre during the first week of January, in celebration of the Consul being newly installed for the year. They are given also on the 11th of May, the foundation day of the city, and on other occasions to celebrate some great national event, such as the accession of an emperor, the fifth or tenth anniversary of his reign,[428] the birth or nomination of a Caesar or successor to the throne, or the happy termination of an important war.[429] Several Praetors, officers who were formerly the chief oracles of the law, are nominated annually, their judicial functions being now abrogated in favour of organizing and paying for the amusements of the people.[430]