Zeno

Born Tarasis in Isauria around 425, he rose as a general under Leo I, who used the Isaurian as a counterweight to the powerful Germanic leader Aspar. He married Leo's daughter Ariadne in 466, and when Leo died in 474, their seven-year-old son became Leo II with Zeno as co-emperor. The boy died of illness months later, leaving Zeno sole ruler. His barbarian origins made him deeply unpopular; in early 475 a revolt led partly by dowager Empress Verina drove him from Constantinople, and Leo's brother-in-law Basiliscus seized the throne. Zeno retreated to Isauria, then exploited Basiliscus's collapsing support, flipped two key generals, and retook the capital in mid-476 - the same year Odoacer deposed Romulus Augustulus and sent the Western regalia east, acknowledging Zeno's suzerainty in exchange for de facto control of Italy. The 470s and 480s brought more revolts, including from his own brother-in-law and from the general Illus, both crushed. He managed the two rival Theodorics by setting them against each other until Strabo's death let him dispatch Theodoric the Great to Italy, where the Ostrogoth toppled Odoacer and founded his own kingdom. Zeno's 482 Henotikon,