Changes

Maurice had refused to pay a ransom for some Byzantine troops that had been captured by the Avars, who subsequently killed them. In the bitterly cold winter of 602, he ordered his army to camp beyond the Danube and would not let them retire to their winter quarters. The military mutinied and proclaimed a general, Phocas as Emperor because they had not been paid. Maurice was forced to abdicate, and he was later beheaded after being forced to watch the torture and death of his sons.<ref>Norwich, p 137</ref>

==== The Persian-Byzantine War ====