John the Cappadocian

John the Cappadocian (Greek: Ιωάννης ο Καππαδόκης), was a praetorian prefect of the East (532–541) in the Byzantine Empire under Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). He was also a patrician and the consul ordinarius of 538.

Both John the Lydian and Zacharias Rhetor report that John was a native of Caesarea, Cappadocia. Procopius, John Malalas, the Chronicon Paschale, and Zacharias called him "John the Cappadocian" for disambiguation reasons, as the name John (Ioannes in Greek and Johannes in Latin) was widely used by his time. John the Lydian and John Malalas at times mention him only as "the Cappadocian". His family connections are obscure and only two relatives are known with certainty. Those are his only daughter Euphemia and a kinsman called Ioannes Maxilloplumacius.

His contemporary historians were biased against him, particularly Procopius and John the Lydian, and their accounts are often coloured by their prejudices. Procopius calls John poorly educated, though he grudgingly admits the Cappadocian's great natural abilities led to his rise to prominence. He first appears in the sources as a scriniarius (notary) in the service of an unidentified magister militum. His administrative ideas reportedly attracted the attention of Emperor Justinian, resulting in his promotion to positions with financial responsibilities. From there, he gained enough favour to become a vir illustris and eventually the acting Prefect. There is a theory that his close relationship with Emperor Justinian may date to Justinian's service as magister militum praesentalis in the 520s, prior to his elevation to the Byzantine throne.

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