Constantine Porphyrogenitus''s Accounts of the Conversion of the Croats and Serbs under Emperor Heraclius (610-641): a Problem of Interpretation
The article is devoted to the interpretation of the accounts about the baptism of Croats and Serbs during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius (610-641), which are contained in the treatise of Constantine Porphyrogenitus On the Administration of the Empire (middle of the 10th century). Te account of the baptism of the Slavic peoples in this treatise was, in the author’s opinion, primarily a result of a discursive interpretation of the historical experience of the Slavic polities from the perspective of the mid-tenth century. The baptism of Croats and Serbs, whom Heraclius settled on the lands devastated by the Avars, was determined, according to the historical scheme reflected in chapters 29 and 31-36 of the treatise, by their status as subjects of the Basileus. Heraclius, who restored the authority of the Empire over Dalmatia, occupies in this scheme a position similar to that occupied by Diocletian, who settled the Romans in Dalmatia, and Basil I, who returned Dalmatia to the control of the Empire after the temporary falling away of the Slavs. Given this, it can be assumed that the motive that prompted Constantine Porphyrogenitus to give Heraclius such a significant place in the story of the history of Serbs and Croats was either the presence of this name in the tradition of Dalmatian Romans (as in the case of Diocletian) or knowledge of the real political activity of the Emperor in this region (as in the case of Basil), or both