Bardas Skleros

Bardas Skleros was a Byzantine general who led a major revolt against Basil II from 976 to 979. His rebellion revealed the power of the military aristocracy and shaped Basil II’s early reign.

A senior Byzantine commander, Skleros rebelled against Basil II in the 970s and again became a threat during the civil wars of the 980s; his eventual submission helped Basil survive one of the most dangerous challenges of his early reign.

Rosemary Sutcliff’s Blood Feud brings Bardas Skleros into the Byzantine phase of Jestyn and Hakon’s journey. Their arrival in the eastern empire coincides with the great military rebellions that challenged the young Basil II, and Skleros’s revolt helps explain why Constantinople needs dependable foreign fighting men. Rather than serving as a detached historical name, he forms part of the political crisis that transforms the protagonists from fugitives moving through the Viking world into soldiers caught up in the struggle over who will control the Byzantine throne.