Description

Leo III the Isaurian, also known as the Syrian or Assyrian, was the founder and first Byzantine emperor of the Isaurian dynasty from 717 until his death in 741. Hailing from an Assyrian background, he put an end to the Twenty Years' Anarchy, a period of great instability in the Byzantine Empire between 695 and 717, marked by the rapid succession of several emperors to the throne, along with ending the continual defeats and territorial losses the Byzantines had suffered during the 7th century. He also successfully defended the Empire against the invading Umayyads and forbade the veneration of icons.