“Leading From The Middle” in Fifth Century Constantinople
When a mid-level Prefect saved an empire through very creative leadership.
It has been said that leadership is driving meaningful change. In fifth century Constantinople, in what was then the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, a prefect named Constantius led an amazing effort to rally the hearts, minds and hands of the population to effect an extreme example of meaningful action. First, a short, simplified summary of the historical context.
The year was 447 AD. The western Roman empire was on its last legs, with its final demise to come a mere 29 years later. Meanwhile, the eastern Roman empire was thriving under the Byzantine Empire, with its capital city Constantinople (today’s Istanbul). At that time “Attilla the Hun” was terrorizing both Western and Eastern empires. He had his sights on the ultimate prize, Constantinople itself. However the walls of the city were widely recognized as impenetrable.
When word of a devastating series of earthquakes that lasted a full month had rocked the city and its walls reached Attila, he saw his chance and mobilized for an assault. The seemingly impossible task of rebuilding the walls before the inevitable attack by Attila and his vast army fell to the prefect Constantius. Rather than conscripting the men of the city to force labor to repair the walls, he took a different tack. He went to the city hippodrome where the wildly popular chariot racing took place and spoke to the leaders of the four racing teams, the Red, Blue, Green and White teams. Between these sports teams there was a faniatical rivalry. Constantius declared there would be a competition between the teams’ fans as to which could repair their assigned part of the walls the fastest. The match had been lit, and the leaders of the team’s fan clubs went into action. 16,000 men worked around the clock on the walls for two months. Not only were the walls repaired before Atilla’s army arrived, they were improved beyond their pre-damaged state.
Attilla and his generals were shocked and dismayed when they arrived and found the city walls in full fighting condition. Stage was set for a prolonged stalemate. Instead, the city negotiated a new treaty with the Hun Empire and the Byzantine Empire was saved. It would last another 1000 years until its fall in 1453 to the Ottoman Empire.
As leaders, what are some lessons can we learn from our friend Constantius? That people respond to a goal that they can understand. That people’s perceived self interests can be harnessed to support a larger goal. That people naturally form teams to which their most fervent loyalty will lie. That people need to feel pride in their work and the outcome of that work. And that, as servant leaders like Constantius, the team can be made to be the heroes, rather than the leader themselves. In this way real and meaningful results can follow.
