Editing Arcadius (section)

=== Later reign ===
[[File:Marble Bust of Emperor from Late Antiquity, c. 400 AD (28735071955).jpg|alt=Portrait head of Emperor, most likely  Arcadius, Honorius, or Theodosius I. C. Late fourth to early fifth century A.D.|thumb|Portrait head of an emperor, potentially Arcadius<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lenaghan |first=J. |date=2012 |title=Portrait head of Emperor: Arcadius, Gratian, or Theodosius I? From Rome. Late fourth to early fifth century.|url=http://laststatues.classics.ox.ac.uk/database/discussion.php?id=961 |access-date= |website=Last Statues of Antiquity |id=LSA-589}}</ref>]]
With Eutropius's fall from power, [[Gainas]] sought to take advantage of Arcadius's current predicament.{{sfn|Cameron|1993|pp=227–231}} He joined the rebel Ostrogoths, and, in a face to face meeting with Arcadius, forced the emperor to make him ''magister militum praesentalis'' and Consul designate for 401.{{sfn|Treadgold|1997|p=84}}{{sfn|Cameron|1993|p=327}} Arcadius also acquiesced when Gainas asked for the dismissal of further officials, such as the [[Praefectus urbi|urban prefect]] [[Aurelianus (consul 400)|Aurelianus]], as well as a place for settlement for his troops in Thrace.<ref>Lee, p. 92; Gibbon, pp. 1158–1159</ref> However, Arcadius refused to agree to Gainas's demand for an [[Arianism|Arian]] church in Constantinople for his Gothic mercenaries, following the advice of [[John Chrysostom]], the [[Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople|Archbishop of Constantinople]].<ref>Theodoret ''Ecclesiastical History'' 5.32.6, Cameron, p. 327; Treadgold, p. 84; Bury, p. 87</ref>

By July 400, the actions of Gainas had irritated a significant portion of the population of Constantinople to the point that a general riot broke out in the capital.<ref>Cameron, p. 333; Bury p. 88</ref> Although Gainas had stationed his troops outside of the capital walls, he was either unable or unwilling to bring them into the capital when many Goths in the city were hunted down and attacked.{{sfn|Cameron|1993|pp=207–209}} As many as 7,000 Goths were killed in the rioting; those who took refuge in a church were stoned and burned to death, after they received the emperor's permission, nor was it condemned by the Archbishop of Constantinople, John Chrysostom.<ref>Cameron, p. 231; Bury, p. 88; Burns, p. 173; Lee, p. 92</ref>

Although initially staying his hand (probably through the intervention of the new Praetorian Prefect of the East [[Caesarius (consul)|Caesarius]]),{{sfn|Cameron|1993|pp=231–232}} Gainas eventually withdrew with his Gothic mercenaries into Thrace and rebelled against Arcadius. He attempted to take his forces across the Hellespont into Asia, but was intercepted and defeated by [[Fravitta]], another Goth who held the position of ''magister militum praesentalis''. Following his defeat, Gainas fled to the [[Danube]] with his remaining followers, but was ultimately defeated and killed by [[Uldin]] the [[Hun]] in Thrace.<ref>Burns, p. 173; Cameron, p. 331; Lee, p. 92</ref>

With the fall of Gainas, the next conflict emerged between Eudoxia and John Chrysostom. The Archbishop was a stern, ascetic individual, who was a vocal critic of all displays of extravagant wealth. But his ire tended to focus especially on wealthy women, and their use of clothing, jewellery and makeup as being vain and frivolous.<ref>Liebeschuetz, pp. 231–232; Bury, pp. 91–93</ref> Eudoxia assumed that Chrysostom's denunciations of extravagance in feminine dress were aimed at her.<ref>Liebeschuetz, p. 236</ref> As the tensions between the two escalated, Chrysostom, who felt that Eudoxia had used her imperial connections to obtain the possessions of the wife of a condemned senator, preached a sermon in 401 in which Eudoxia was openly called [[Jezebel]], the infamous wife of the Israelite king [[Ahab]].<ref>Liebeschuetz, p. 233</ref> Eudoxia retaliated by supporting Bishop [[Severian of Gabala]] in his conflict with Chrysostom. As Chrysostom was very popular in the capital, riots erupted in favour of the Archbishop, forcing Arcadius and Eudoxia to publicly back down and beg Chrysostom to revoke Severian's excommunication.<ref>Liebeschuetz, p. 233; Bury, pp. 96–97</ref>

Then in 403, Eudoxia saw another chance to strike against the Archbishop, when she threw her support behind [[Theophilus I of Alexandria|Theophilus of Alexandria]] who presided over a [[synod]] in 403 (the [[Synod of the Oak]]) to charge Chrysostom with heresy. Although Arcadius originally supported Chrysostom, the Archbishop's decision not to participate caused Arcadius to change his mind and support Theophilus, resulting in Chrysostom's deposition and banishment.<ref>Liebeschuetz, pp. 237–239</ref> He was called back by Arcadius almost immediately, as the people started rioting over his departure, even threatening to burn the imperial palace.<ref>{{cite book|author=Socrates Scholasticus|editor=Schaff, Philip|editor-link=Philip Schaff|editor2=Wace, Henry |translator=Schaff, Philip |translator2=Wace, Henry |others=Zenos, A. C. (rev., notes)|title=Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers |volume=II: Socrates and Sozomenus Ecclesiastical Histories|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf202.html|access-date=29 March 2007|chapter=Book VI, Chapter XVI: Sedition on Account of John Chrysostom's Banishment|chapter-url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf202.ii.ix.xvii.html|author-link=Socrates of Constantinople|page=149|publisher=Hendrickson Publishers|location=Peabody, MA|isbn=1-56563-118-8|edition=reprint|year=1995|orig-year=1890}}</ref> There was an earthquake the night of his arrest, which Eudoxia took for a sign of [[God]]'s anger, prompting her to ask Arcadius for John's reinstatement.<ref name="OCA">{{cite web|url=http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsLife.asp?FSID=103292|title=St John Chrysostom the Archbishop of Constantinople|access-date=29 March 2007|publisher=Orthodox Church in America}}</ref>

Peace was short-lived. In September 403 a silver statue of Eudoxia was erected in the [[Augustaion]], near the ''[[Hagia Sophia|Magna Ecclesia]]'' church. Chrysostom, who was conducting a mass at the time, denounced the noisy dedication ceremonies as pagan and spoke against the Empress in harsh terms: "Again [[Herodias]] raves; again she is troubled; she dances again; and again desires to receive John's head in a charger",<ref>Socrates Scholasticus, op cit [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf202.ii.ix.xix.html "Chapter XVIII: Of Eudoxia's Silver Statue"], p. 150.</ref> an allusion to the events surrounding the death of [[John the Baptist]]. This time Arcadius was unwilling to overlook the insult to his wife; a new synod was called in early 404 where Chrysostom was condemned. Arcadius hesitated until Easter to enforce the sentence, but Chrysostom refused to go, even after Arcadius sent in a squad of soldiers to escort him into exile. Arcadius procrastinated, but by 20 June 404, the emperor finally managed to get the Archbishop to submit, and he was taken away to his place of banishment, this time to [[Abkhazia]] in the [[Caucasus]].<ref>Bury, pp. 100–102</ref> Eudoxia did not get to enjoy her victory for long, dying later that year.{{sfn|Treadgold|1997|p=86}}