Cyrus of Alexandria ( al-Muqawqis, ; ) was a prominent figure in the 7th century Byzantine Empire. He served as a Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria, as well as the de facto governor of Egypt. As governor, he heavily persecuted the Copts, and during the Arab conquest of Egypt, continually pushed for surrender and sabotaged the Byzantine military's defence of the country. Notably, he also played a significant role in the development of monothelitism.Abba Cyrus Jean and Alexander Heard Library, Vanderbilt University, 2007. Retrieved 15 November 2013. Cyrus died in Alexandria on March 21, 642.
Early life Cyrus was born in the late 6th century. He was from the Caucasus region, hence the nickname Al-Muqawqis, from the Coptic ⲡⲓⲕⲁⲩⲕⲟⲥ meaning "the Caucasian". He had a sister, who married Domentianus the governor of Faiyum. Arabic sources name various other relatives of Cyrus, such as a daughter named Armenousa, another daughter Luliyah, two sons Aristulis and Paul, a brother Andrew, a nephew Masius, and a maternal uncle al-Hamuk or al-Hamirak who had twelve sons, including Sata and Hizbar. However, historian Karl Stowasser describes these relatives as "pure legend".
Bishop of Phasis In 620, he assumed the position of Bishop of Phasis in Colchis. In 626, during the Persian campaign led by the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius, he was consulted regarding a plan proposed by Sergius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, aimed at reconciling the Miaphysites of Egypt with the Church and gaining their support for the empire. This plan, known as the monenergist plan, involved accepting the Chalcedonian principle of two natures of Christ while effectively nullifying it by asserting that he possessed only one energy, referred to as (ἓν θέλημα καὶ μία ἐνέργεια). Cyrus embraced this formula after Sergius assured him that Pope Honorius I in Rome had endorsed it and that it did not contradict the teachings of the Church Fathers or the decisions made at the Council of Chalcedon. Cyrus was subsequently appointed by Heraclius as the Bishop of Alexandria in 630, in opposition to the Miaphysite Patriarch of Alexandria, with the intention of implementing this plan.
Patriarch of Alexandria
Cyrus, once patriarch, made persistent efforts to reconcile the Miaphysites and Chalcedonians by promoting monenergism, which eventually developed into monothelitism—a belief in a single will. In June 633, he presented the Pact of Union, also known as the plerophoría of "Satisfactio," during a synod held in Alexandria. This agreement consisted of nine articles, with the seventh one boldly asserting monothelitism. Although the Miaphysites, also referred to as Theodosians or Severians, welcomed the pact, they maintained that Chalcedon should come to them rather than vice versa. During this time, numerous clergy, soldiers, and common people converted to Cyrus's position.
In 636, Cyrus attended another synod in Cyprus under Arkadios II, where he served as a moderator. He allowed opponents of Monothelitism to present their case to the Emperor. After receiving the Emperor's Monothelite response, known as the Ecthesis, Cyrus signed it in 637. However, the monothelete compromise ultimately proved ineffective. It was condemned at the Lateran Council of 649 and soon lost credibility, earning the derogatory name "enôsis hydrobaphès" or "washy union" in Medieval Greek.
For a period of ten years, Cyrus harshly persecuted the Egyptians, attempting to forcefully convert them to his brand of Christianity. However, the Christian majority accepted the authority of Pope Benjamin I, who was forced to go into hiding. Cyrus's troops captured Benjamin's brother, Mennas, subjecting him to brutal torture. According to Severus ibn al-Muqaffa, Mennas refused to renounce his faith. He was thrown into the sea where he drowned.
Cyrus appointed Chalcedonian bishops to govern every Egyptian city up to Ansena, and Coptic priests were put to death whenever discovered. Despite the absence of priests, the Coptic people continued to hold secret gatherings. One priest, Agathon, risked his life each night to administer communion in Alexandria. Later, he succeeded Benjamin as Pope. Some Copts made an attempt on Cyrus's life, but the plot was uncovered by Eudocianus, the brother of Domentianus, who was a general in the Muslim conquest of Egypt. The conspirators were summarily executed without trial.
Military prefect Since 538, the highest governmenal rank in Egypt was . Cyrus, in addition to being Patriarch, held immense secular power in Egypt and was often referred to by his contemporaries as the "governor of Egypt". However, it is unclear whether he held an official title such as , or whether he derived this power by an imperial commission. Such a combination of secular and religious positions was contrary to ecclesiastical canons and extremely rare in Byzantine history.
During the period when Umar's general, 'Amr ibn al-'As, also known as Amru to the Romans, posed a threat to the Prefecture of Egypt, Cyrus was both the de facto governor of Egypt and the government-appointed Patriarch of Alexandria,The majority of Egypt's population was non-Chalcedonian and recognised Pope Benjamin I as their rightful Pope. and Theodore was the commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army in the province. At this time, the governor of Faiyum was Domentianus (who was married to Cyrus' sister), while Theodosius was the prefect of its province, Arcadia Aegypti, and Anastasius was the prefect of Alexandria (and by extension the de jure governor of Egypt).
The defence of Arcadia Aegypti was entrusted to a certain John, whom Hermann Zotenberg identifies with the John, Duke of Barca or Barcaina mentioned by Nicephorus. He had brought the Ecthesis and a portion of the True Cross from Patriarch Sergius to Cyrus, and was likely on a direct commission from Emperor Heraclius.
Alfred J. Butler described Cyrus as having a "strange anxiety all through the war to hasten the submission of Egypt". For three years after the Muslim conquest of the Levant, Cyrus paid them tribute not to conquer Egypt. When the Arabs entered Egypt and besieged Pelusium for two months, Cyrus did not react at all (although his daughter Armenousa may have sent reinforcements there). The city eventually fell in February 640.Al-Kamil, pp. 451–452Al-Gawzi, Al-Montazim, pp. 532–534al-Tabari, History of the Kings, p. 862Abu Salih the Armenian, The churches and monasteries of Egypt and some neighbouring countries, tr. B.T.A.Evetts, p. 168
Loss of Belbeis After taking Pelusium, the Muslims marched on to Belbeis. Two Christian monks,According to Arabic legends, these were two bishops named Abu Miriam and Abu Maryam. Butler tenuously identifies them with two generals named Marinus and Marianus, mentioned by Nicephorus and Severus. accompanied by Cyrus of Alexandria and the famous Roman general Aretion, came out to negotiate with 'Amr ibn al-'As. Aretion had been the Byzantine governor of Jerusalem, but had gone to Egypt shortly after losing the Battle of Ajnadayn. 'Amr gave them three options: convert to Islam, pay the jizya, or fight. They requested three days to reflect and then, according to Al-Tabari, requested two extra days.
At the end of the five days, Aretion, the two monks, and Armenousa decided to reject Islam and the jizya and fight the Muslims, thus disobeying Cyrus, who wanted to surrender and pay jizya. Cyrus left for the Babylon Fortress. The battle resulted in a Muslim victory during which Aretion was killed and Armenousa was captured, but sent back to Cyrus. 'Amr ibn al-'As subsequently attempted to convince the native Egyptians to aid the Arabs and surrender the city, based on the kinship between Egyptians and Arabs via Hajar. When the Egyptians refused, the siege resumed until the city fell around the end of March 640.
Cyrus was present at the siege of Babylon Fortress, where on 22 December 640 he negotiated a treaty with the Arabs involving the surrender of the Thebaid. According to Nikephoros, Cyrus even suggested giving one of Heraclius' daughters in marriage to Amr. The treaty was subject to the approval of the emperor Heraclius, but Cyrus stipulated that even if the emperor repudiated the treaty, he and the Egyptians, would honour its terms."Omar (634-644)", The Islamic World to 1600 Multimedia History Tutorials by the Applied History Group, University of Calgary. Last accessed 20 Oct 2006 Cyrus asked Heraclius to ratify the treaty and offered an argument in support. 'Amr submitted a detailed report to Umar recommending ratification. Upon hearing about this, Heraclius was furious and had Cyrus recalled to Constantinople. Cyrus tried to defend his actions, but Heraclius angrily threatened to kill him, calling him an abject coward and a heathen, and asking whether 100,000 Romans were a match for 12,000 barbarians. He then handed him to the city Prefect to humiliate him, and sent him to exile.
Summons to Constantinople Heraclius died in February 641, two months before the fall of the Babylon Fortress, and was succeeded by his two sons Constantine III and Heraclonas as co-emperors. Heraclonas' mother, Martina, ruled through Heraclonas because of his young age and consistently opposed Constantine. Constantine, following his father's wishes, summoned Cyrus from exile and Theodore from Egypt to Constantinople to discuss the invasion. Cyrus was in favour of surrendering to the Muslims, whereas Theodore wanted to continue fighting them and hoped the Emperor would send reinforcements to Egypt. Constantine had been preparing a fleet to send to Egypt, but died on May 25 after a reign of just 100 days. With Heraclonas as sole emperor, Martina gained complete control over the government. She had Heraclonas give Cyrus express permission to make peace at any price with the Arabs, but also gave him reinforcements and a new general named Constantine to replace John. After Theodore and Cyrus' left for Egypt with reinforcements, Martina was deposed by Valentine, who sent envoys to Rhodes with a message to Cyrus' troops, telling them to return to Constantinople and not to side with Cyrus. He also sent a letter to Alexandria telling the defenders not to obey Martina, and to keep fighting. Theodore was pleased to hear this, and without telling Cyrus or anyone but the captain, he secretly attempted to sail from Rhodes to Pentapolis.It is unclear what Theodore's motives were. Butler suggests "He may have desired merely retirement and shelter from the coming storms; or he may have resolved, like Heraclius, to stake his fortune on a throw for the crown, and to found a new empire at Carthage; or he may have wished to gather resources and watch events, detesting the policy of surrender and hoping to strike a blow at the Muslims from Carthage." However, the captain of the ship claimed the wind was contrary to him, and Theodore was stuck with Cyrus. They returned to Alexandria on September 14, 641, the Feast of the Cross.
Meanwhile, in Egypt, the governor Anastasius had been left in charge, and during his time the Muslims captured both Babylon and Nikiu. They had also begun their Siege of Alexandria.
Siege of Alexandria