One of the Byzantine emperors, Anastasius recognized Theodoric the Ostrogoth's rule of Italy, but was soon at war with him, sending fleets to raid Roman shipping. He fought a successful war with Persia and brokered a peace that did much to secure that frontier. He removed the tax from trade goods, replacing it with a tax on land, which caused periodic rebellions by farmers. An able administrator, his reign was complicated by his heretical religious policies. A Monophysite, his stance caused unrest among the competing Christian factions.
