Philippikos Bardanes

Born Bardanes, he came to the throne through a coup that ended Justinian II's reign in 711. Once emperor, he backed monothelitism, the theological position that Christ had a single will — a stance that reopened bitter doctrinal fights across the empire. His brief rule saw fighting on two fronts: against the First Bulgarian Empire in the Balkans and the Umayyad Caliphate pressing from the east. In 713, after nineteen months, he was overthrown in another coup, deposed as abruptly as he'd risen.