To the issue of truth of the allegations to the Byzantine Patriarch Nicholas the Mystic in the conspiracy of Andronikos Doukas (X century)
The article is devoted to investigating the allegations of the Byzantine Patriarch Nicholas the Mystic’s participation on the conspiracy of Drungary Andronikos Doukas. The author critically analyzes the sources, internal political and internal Church processes in Byzantium in 901-907 and comes to the conclusion about the falsification of the evidence. This Slander was made by eunuch Samonas with the full assistance of the Emperor Leo VI. The author of the false letter pursued a dual goal: the political elimination of Andronikos Doukas and the discreditation of the High Priest of Constantinople. The Emperor used the falsification to overthrow Nicholas the Mystic who denied the legality of the Emperor’s fourth marriage. The Patriarch evaded the confession of the accusation of the conspiracy and demonstrated Christian humility under the pressure from the secular authorities. Nicholas the Mystic suffered because of the court intrigues and the struggle for the purity of the canons in the matter of tetragamy of Leo VI.