The image of emperor John I Tzimiskes (969-976) in Anna Comnena’s narrative: a myth or a fruit of collective memory?

The article examines the image of the Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimisces (969-976) in the work of Princess Anna Komnena (in the “Alexiad”). The literary image of Tzimisces is considered as the fruit of historical tradition developed in the military Byzantine aristocracy, and is compared with the real historical Tzimisces. It is concluded that the image of Tzimiskes created by Anna Komnena was polemical in nature and was initially directed against the court propaganda of Emperor Nikephoros III Botaniates (1078-1081).