Deux notes sur Théodose II et les Perses

Two points relating to Theodosius II and relations with Persia are discussed in this article. In the first section the author returns to the subject of the guardianship supposedly exercised by the Sasanian king Yazdgerd I over the young Theodosius through the despatch of a eunuch, Antiochus, to Constantinople. Despite recently expressed doubts as to the reliability of this tradition, he argues that it is credible and notes the publication of recent relevant evidence. In the second section he turns to the much debated question of the date of the foundation of Theodosioupolis (in Armenia), arguing in detail, contrary to recent discussions of the subject, that it was indeed founded in the immediate run-up to the Romano-Persian war of 421-422, rather than during the reign of Theodosius I.