The evolution and maturity of the Byzantineimperial succession system were the important manifestation of the emperors'strengthening of autocratic rule.Compared to the early period,the imperial succession of the Byzantine Empire during the 7 th and 8 th centuries presented smoother and more stable features since the Byzantine rulers during this period improved the succession system through various means.By establishing co-emperors early in the life,the rulers designated their successors before their death,transforming from emphasising the principle of father-to-son succession to highlighting the primogeniture of the eldest son.The corresponding relationship gradually formed between the eldest son and the co-emperor.In the coronation ceremony dominated by the imperial authority,sanctities were reinforced through various Christian elements,such as the consecration by the Patriarch of Constantinople,the religious overtones of the ceremony venue and date,and the sanctified oath.Moreover,emperors consciously shaped and disseminated an ideology emphasising lineal succession that closely tied the royal lineage with the legitimate rule over the empire,defending the dynastic rule of the imperial family.The imperial succession model of the Byzantine Empire in the 7th and 8th centuries achieved relatively satisfactory results in practice.However,it did not survive for long and took a different development path in the Macedonian Dynasty.
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