When delegations from Western Europe arrived in Constantinople in 476, Emperor Zeno was fresh from the civil war that had left him in power for more than a year. The deputies represented two conflicting sides, one demanded the support of Julius Nepos, the overthrown emperor of the west, and the other asked for recognition of Odoacer’s power and granting him the title of patrician. Solomon’s decision of Zeno determined the fate of Europe, so it is worth looking at the geopolitical and dynastic conditions that the emperor had to consider.
The moment that started the avalanche was the year 473 and the departure from Rome of Gundobad, Ricimer’s nephew and successor. Germaninus preferred to secure his father’s succession among the Burgundians rather than defend his nominee Glycerius, who had to face an immediate threat. The eastern co-ruler, Leo I, did not recognize most of the puppet rulers, Antemius became the western emperor on his recommendation, and this time he had a suitable candidate. Julius Nepos married into an imperial family (Nepos’s wife was most likely a relative of the empress Verina), and at the same time the nephew of the famous leader Marcelinus, the lord of Dalmatia, seemed to be a perfect choice. Nepos and his allies had to hurry because it was possible that after securing his homeland, Gundobad would not return with his countrymen to look after business in Italy.
The political situation became even more complicated, because at the beginning of 474 Leo I died. Power was taken over by his minor grandson Leo II, who was joined as co-ruler by his father Zeno. Julius Nepos landed in Italy a few months later and took power practically without resistance, dethroned Glycerius, but spared his life, appointing him bishop of Salona in Dalmatia. The almost simultaneous change of rulers of the empire had a significant impact on the further fate of the empire. Nepos lost his political patron, and Zeno – the de facto ruler – was unpopular due to his “barbaric” origin. Leo II died the same year, and the legitimacy of Zeno’s power was based on their affinity with his predecessor through marriage to his daughter Ariadne, and the military support of his Isaurian tribesmen. Both newly minted rulers did not stay on the throne for long. A year later, Zeno had to flee from Constantinople, and Basiliscus, the brother of the dowager empress, seized power from Verina, and at the same time Ariadne’s mother, starting a civil war. A few months later, a similar fate befell Julius, who fled to his lair of Dalmatia, and Orestes installed his son Romulus as emperor. Nepos never accepted the loss of power and, ruling in his domain, planned to return to Italy, but he expected the support of the East, where the situation was slowly changing in favour of Zeno. In 476, the power of Orestes and his son was challenged by Odoacer, and Zeno returned to the throne by killing the usurper.
It was at this time that the above-mentioned delegations arrived. Zeno had a big dilemma. Julius Nepos had support in Constantinople, but his family connections with the murdered Basiliscus were unlikely to arouse enthusiasm in the emperor, whose position in the capital was not strong enough to intervene. Nepos’s affinity with a relative of the current empress and the influential empress-dowager made him a potential contender for both titles, which could not have escaped Zeno, who was particularly keen to limit the influence of his mother-in-law who corrupted his blood throughout his reign until her death in 484. The emperor himself noticed that the intervention of Eastern Rome ended in the murder or exile of the ruler, so the effort put into restoring Nepos could again be in vain.
In fact, none of Zeno’s decisions was good for him. Failure could undermine his authority, sending an army under the command of an ambitious commander could encourage usurpation, and Nepos’ victory would force further help in recapturing lost provinces. The Germanic states then had a period of strong and stable rule, and the succession crises among the Visigoths or the Vandals will come much later. Odoacer, on the other hand, only asked for the approval of his rule in Italy, and by overthrowing Romulus, he restored the rule of law. German was not completely anonymous at the court of Zeno, because his brother Onulf deservedly fought for the return of the emperor to the throne in the city of Constantine and later held important positions in the army. So Zenon made a careful decision that postponed the responsibility in time. He confirmed the right to the throne of Julius Nepos, and directed all supplicants regarding intervention in the West to his “co-ruler”. For Odoacer, this was enough, and in recognition of the verdict, he minted coins with the image of Nepos. The ruler of Dalmatia did not have enough strength to defeat Odoacer, and the offer made by the ruler of the Ostrogoths – Theodoric, later called the Great, was not satisfactory, because Nepos did not want to become a puppet.
Again, the fate of the Western Roman Empire was in the hands of Zeno four years later, because in 480 Julius Nepos was murdered. Who ordered the murder remains a mystery, because the ruler was inconvenient for almost everyone. Anyway, Zenon had other problems on his mind. A year earlier, Marcjan, husband of Leoncia (Ariadna’s younger sister) and his brothers with the support of Zeno