Miliaresion - Leo IV and Constantine VI

Leo IV's co-emperorship with his young son Constantine VI was a calculated dynastic move, but the reign was complicated from the start by Leo's half-brothers, the Caesars, who staged a failed coup around 776. Coins struck in this joint name were part of a deliberate effort to establish Constantine's succession beyond dispute while Leo was still alive to enforce it. Leo died in 780, leaving Constantine under the regency of his mother Irene — who would eventually have him blinded and rule alone.