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The Theme of Macedonia ((ギリシア語:θέμα Μακεδονίας)) was a military-civilian province (theme) of the Byzantine Empire established between the late 8th century and the early 9th century. Byzantine Macedonia also incorporated the region of Thrace, and actually had Adrianople as its capital. ==History== From the beginning of the 6th century, the former Roman Diocese of Macedonia, then part of the Byzantine Empire became a subject to frequent raids by Slavic tribes which, in the course of next centuries, resulted in drastic demographic and cultural changes. The Slavs organized themselves into "Sklaviniai", that continued to assault the Byzantine Empire, either independently, or aided by Bulgars or Avars during the 7th century. In the late 7th century, the Byzantines organized a massive expedition against the Slavs in the area. They subdued many Slavic tribes and established a new theme of Thrace in the hinterland of Thessaloniki. Despite these temporary successes, the rule in the region was far from stable. The Empire rather resorted to withdraw its defense-line south along the Aegean coast, until the late 8th century. As a consequence, a new theme called Macedonia was created between 789 (or 797) and 801/802 by the Empress Irene of Athens, from the older theme of Thrace.〔.〕〔.〕〔.〕 Sigillographic evidence shows that a ''tourma'' ("division") named "Macedonia" existed before, subordinated to the ''strategos'' of Thrace. The first known ''strategos'' of Macedonia, the ''patrikios'' John Aplakes, is first mentioned in 813, but Theophanes the Confessor mentions Leo, brother of the eunuch chamberlain Aetios, being appointed as the ''monostrategos'' ("single-general", placed in command over two or more themes) of Thrace and Macedonia already in 801/802.〔〔.〕 Its creation came in the aftermath of a series of military successes that had extended Byzantine reach over most of the wider region of Thrace, and was probably intended to make imperial control more efficient by entrusting the greatly expanded territory to two ''strategoi''.〔.〕 Although the theme is attested in the 960s, its absence in the ''Escorial Taktikon'' of c. 975 has led to the supposition that it may have been abolished and subsumed into the command of the new ''doux'' of Adrianople.〔cf. .〕〔.〕 The theme of Macedonia, however, is attested again in 1006/1007, and there is some sigillographic evidence to support its continued existence alongside the ''doukaton'' of Adrianople. In the late 10th century, as a result of the conquests of John I Tzimiskes (r. 969–976) and Basil II (r. 976–1025), the theme of Macedonia ceased being a border theme; to its north, it was bounded by new provinces centred on Philippopolis and Beroe, while to its south, the new theme of Boleron came into existence in the early 11th century.〔 Little is known of the provincial organization in the 12th century. In an imperial chrysobull to the Venetians dating to 1198, "Thrace and Macedonia" appear as a single territorial entity describing all of Thrace, but it is subdivided into smaller units centred on the major cities. The core area of the old theme of Macedonia is now recorded as the "''provincia Adrianupleos et Didimotichi''".〔.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Macedonia (theme)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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