Theodora, a 6th-century Byzantine empress married to Emperor Justinian I, is remembered for being one of the most powerful women in Byzantine history. She used her power and influence to promote religious and social policies that were important to her. She was one of the first rulers to recognize the rights of women.
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What are three facts about Theodora Justinian's wife?
10 Facts About Theodora: Byzantine Empress, Courtesan and...She led an unconventional early life. ... She abandoned her acting career aged 16. ... She converted to an early form of Christianity. ... She and Justinian were an unlikely match. ... Justinian changed the law to marry her.More items...•
What is Theodora personality?
Theodora was a very commanding personality with great influence as seen in her persuading Justinian to change laws and her reaction to disloyalty when she was left effectively in control while Justinian suffered from the plague. Theodora was strong willed, opinionated, and believed that women should have rights.
How old was Theodora when she married Justinian?
about 28 years oldTheodora was born in 497 C.E., and she married Justinian in 525 C.E. This would have made her about 28 years old. She was crowned empress only two years later.
What was Theodora before she married Justinian?
Before she married Justinian, the nephew of Emperor Justin (r. 518-527 CE), in 525 CE, Theodora left the sands of the Hippodrome to travel to North Africa as the mistress of a medium-level civil servant.
Is Eleanor in love with Theodora?
Eleanor wants to move in with Theodora later on in the book. This proves to me that Eleanor is in love with Theodora and wants to start a life with her. Theodora is NOT interested and Eleanor is disheartened. She chooses to commit suicide when her crush spurns her love.
Why is Theodora the only character without a last name?
Theodora's free spirit is shown by the fact that her individual name only is given to the reader. Unlike the others, she's not tied down by a family or a home. Theodora's distaste for family life is perfectly displayed by the haunt she and Eleanor witness in the forest.
How was Justinian's wife Theodora unusual?
Procopius says that she became an actress and prostitute while still young, leading an unconventional life that included giving birth to at least one child out of wedlock. For a time, she made her living as a wool spinner. When Justinian met her, she had been converted to miaphysitism, a nonorthodox doctrine.
Why is Empress Theodora so powerful?
Empress Theodora (c. 497–June 28, 548), wife of Emperor Justinian I, is regarded as the most powerful woman in Byzantine history. Because of her intelligence and political savvy, she was Justinian's most trusted adviser and used her influence to promote religious and social policies in line with her interests.
What did purple mean to Theodora?
According to Procopius, at a meeting of the government council, Theodora spoke out against leaving the palace and underlined the significance of someone who died as a ruler instead of living as an exile or in hiding, saying, "royal purple is the noblest shroud".
Did Empress Theodora have a child?
IoannisTheodora / Children
What are the 4 types of personality?
The four temperament theory is a proto-psychological theory which suggests that there are four fundamental personality types: sanguine, choleric, melancholic, and phlegmatic.
What are the 7 different personality types?
Measuring personality traitsOpenness.Conscientiousness.Extraversion.Agreeableness.Neuroticism.
What are the types of personality?
Socionics divides people into 16 different types, called sociotypes which are; ESTJ, ENTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ, ISTJ, ISFJ, INTJ, INFJ, ESTP, ESFP, ENTP, ENFP, ISTP, ISFP, INTP & INFP. A formal conversion is carried out following the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator.
What are the main personality types?
The five major personality types are conceived to be Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.
Who were Theodora’s parents?
Little is known of Theodora’s early life, but some sources say her father was named Acacius and was a bear keeper at the Hippodrome in Constantinople.
What is Theodora remembered for?
Theodora, a 6th-century Byzantine empress married to Emperor Justinian I, is remembered for being one of the most powerful women in Byzantine histo...
What were Theodora’s beliefs?
Theodora believed in miaphysitism, which holds that both divinity and humanity are equally present within a single nature in the person of Christ,...
What did Theodora die of?
Theodora likely died from cancer.
What is the painting of Justinian and Theodora?
Procopius' Buildings of Justinian, written probably after Secret History, is a panegyric which paints Justinian and Theodora as a pious couple and presents particularly flattering portrayals of them. Besides her piety, her beauty is praised within the conventional language of the text's rhetorical form.
Why did Theodora work against her husband's support of Chalcedonian Christianity?
As a result, she was accused of fostering heresy and thus undermined the unity of Christendom .
How did Theodora die?
Theodora's death is recorded by Victor of Tonnena, with the cause uncertain but the Greek terms used are often translated as " cancer ." The date was 28 June 548 at the age of 48, although other sources report that she died at 51. Later accounts frequently attribute the death to specifically breast cancer, although it was not identified as such in the original report, where the use of the term "cancer" probably referred to a more general "suppurating ulcer or malignant tumor". Her body was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, in Constantinople. During a procession in 559, Justinian visited and lit candles for her tomb.
What did Theodora do to help women?
They sought to escape 'the unwelcome transformation' by leaping over the walls ( SH 17). On the other hand, chronicler John Malalas who wrote positively about the court, declared she "freed the girls from the yoke of their wretched slavery." A century later, John of Nikiu, influenced by Malalas' positive portrayal, noted that Theodora "put an end to the prostitution of women, and gave orders for their expulsion from every place."
What is Justinian depicted as?
Justinian is depicted as cruel, venal, prodigal, demonic and incompetent; as for Theodora, the reader is given a detailed portrayal of vulgarity and underage sex, combined with shrewish and calculating mean-spiritedness.
Where was Theodora born?
There are several indications of Theodora's possible birthplace. According to Michael the Syrian, her birthplace was in Mabbug , Syria ; Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopoulos names Theodora a native of Cyprus, while the Patria, attributed to George Codinus, claims Theodora came from Paphlagonia. She was born c. 500 AD. Her father, Acacius, was a bear trainer of the hippodrome's Green faction in Constantinople. Her mother, whose name is not recorded, was a dancer and an actress. Her parents had two more daughters, the eldest named Comito and the youngest Anastasia. After her father's death, when Theodora was four, her mother brought her children wearing garlands into the hippodrome and presented them as suppliants to the Blue faction. From then on, Theodora would be their supporter.
When did Theodora become empress?
She became empress upon Justinian's accession in 527 and was one of his chief advisers, albeit from humble origins. Along with her spouse, Theodora is a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church and in the Oriental Orthodox Church, commemorated on 14 November and 28 June respectively.
What did Theodora do for Justinian?
They also claim that Theodora advocated for the right of women to commit adultery and to be socially serviced, helping to advance protections and "delights" for them.
Who was Theodora born into?
Theodora was born into the lowest class of Byzantine society, the daughter of a bearkeeper for the circus. Much of the information from this earliest part of her life comes from the Secret History of Procopius, published posthumously. Critics of Procopius—whose work reveals a man seriously disillusioned regarding his rulers and out to defame them—have dismissed his work as vitriolic and pornograpic.
How did Theodora die?
Theodora died of cancer (probably breast cancer) before the age of 50, some 20 years before Justinian died. Her body was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, one of the splendid churches the emperor and empress had built in Constantinople. Both Theodora and Justinian are represented in beautiful mosaics that exist to this day in the Church of San Vitale at Ravenna in northern Italy, which was completed a year before her death.
Was Justinian a monophysite?
It is believed by some scholars that sometime before meeting Justinian she became an adherent of Monophysite Christianity, which claims Christ was of one nature, remaining their partisan throughout her life. Others instead argue that her association with Monophysitism is largely because of Justinian's putting her in charge of courting the Monophysites' reunion with the Chalcedonian party in the Church, and so while remaining Chalcedonian herself, she was pastorally favorable toward the non-Chalcedonians.
Who was the wife of Justinian?
THEODORA, the wife of the emperor Justinian (q.v.), was born probably in Constantinople, though according to some in Cyprus, in the early years of the 6th century, and died in 547. According to Procopius, our chief, but by no means a trustworthy authority for her life, she was the daughter of Acacius, a bear-feeder of the amphitheatre at Constantinople to the Green Faction, and while still a child was sent on to the stage to earn her living in the performances called mimes. She had no gift for either music or dancing, but made herself notorious by the spirit and impudence of her acting in the rough farces, as one may call them, which delighted the crowd of the capital. Becoming a noted courtesan, she accompanied a certain Hecebolus to Pentapolis (in North Africa), of which he had been appointed governor, and, having quarrelled with him, betook herself first to Alexandria, and then back to Constantinople through the cities of Asia Minor. In Constantinople (where, according to a late but apparently not quite groundless story, she now endeavoured to support herself by spinning, and may therefore have been trying to reform her life) she attracted the notice of Justinian, then patrician, and, as the all-powerful nephew of the emperor Justin, practically ruler of the empire. He desired to marry her, but could not overcome the opposition of his aunt, the empress Euphemia. After her death (usually assigned to the year 523) the emperor yielded, and as a law, dating from the time of Constantine, forbade the marriage of women who had followed the stage with senators, this law was repealed. Thereupon Justinian married Theodora, whom he had already caused to be raised to the patriciate. They were some time after (527) admitted by Justin to a share in the sovereignty; and, on his death four months later, Justinian and Theodora became sole rulers of the Roman world. He was then about forty-four years of age, and she some twenty years younger. Procopius relates in his unpublished history (' AvbcSora) many repulsive tales regarding Theodora's earlier life, but his evident hatred of her, though she had been more than ten years dead when the Anecdota were written, and the extravagances which the book contains, oblige us to regard him as a very doubtful witness. Some confirmation of the reported opposition of the imperial family to the marriage has been found in the story regarding the conduct of Justinian's own mother Vigilantia, which Nicholas Alemanni, the first editor of the Anecdota, in his notes to that book, quotes from a certain "Life of Justinian" by Theophilus, to which he frequently refers, without saying where he found it. Mr Bryce, however, discovered in Rome what is believed to be the only MS. of this so-called life of Justinian; and his examination of its contents makes him think it worthless as an authority (see Theophilus).
Did Theodora have a son?
Theodora bore to Justinian no son, but one daughter - at least it would seem that her grandson, who is twice mentioned, was the offspring of a legitimate daughter, whose name, how ever, is not given. According to Procopius, she had before her marriage become the mother of a son, who when grown up returned from Arabia, revealed himself to her, and forthwith disappeared for ever; but this is a story to be received with distrust. That her behaviour as a wife was irreproachable may be gathered from the fact that Procopius mentions only one scandal affecting it, the case of Areobindus. Even he does not seem to believe this case, for, while referring to it as a mere rumour, the only proof he gives is that, suspecting Areobindus: of some offence, she had torture applied to this supposed paramour. Her health was delicate, and, though she took alI possible care of it, frequently quitting the capital for the seclusion of her villas on the Asiatic shore, she 'died comparatively young. Theodora was small in stature and rather pale, but with a graceful figure, beautiful features, and a piercing glance. There remains in the apse of the famous church of S. Vitale at Ravenna a contemporaneous mosaic portrait of her, to which the artist, notwithstanding the stiffness of the material, has succeeded in giving some character.
What happened between Justinian and Theodora?
The marriage, which took place in 525 CE, between Justinian and Theodora allowed the latter to legitimize her illegitimate daughter.
Who was younger, Emperor Justinian or Empress Theodora?
Empress Theodora, 20 years younger than Justinian I, was crowned a co-ruler. What this meant was that Empress Theodora was not a consort, rather an equal to her husband, Emperor Justinian I, per the instruction given by the latter.
Why did Justinian ply with his uncle to change the laws?
Enamored with Theodora because of her looks, charm, and intelligence, Justinian pleaded with his uncle to have the laws changed so that he, a senator, could marry an actress. This came in spite of Empress Lupicina Euphemia’s (Justin I’s wife) strong opposition to the marriage.
What was the Empress Theodora's greatest accomplishment?
Empress Theodora: 9 Major Accomplishments. Most known for being the wife of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (482 CE – 565 CE), Empress Theodora was arguably the most powerful woman in the history of the Byzantine Empire, as she was able to use her immense influence to advocate a number of social and religious reforms across the empire.
How did Theodora die?
Empress Theodora most likely died in 548 CE. She was in her early 50s. Cancer has been suggested as the likely cause of her death, although some historians suggest gangrene as a more likely cause. In any case, her death had an adverse effect on Justinian, affecting the Emperor’s ability to rule for the remainder of his reign. Most likely out of honor and love for her, Justinian never remarried even though he did not have a heir.
Why was Theodora scorned?
Most likely due to her independent thoughts and novel ways of doing things, Empress Theodora was scorned by some conservative elements in the royal court. One such example of those independent thoughts of hers saw her advocate Monophysitism (also known as miaphysitism), a religious belief that only recognizes the divine nature of Jesus Christ, instead of two natures (human and divine) popularly believed by orthodox Christians of that era.
Why did Theodora shut down the Hippodrome?
Empress Theodora further advised that the doors to the Hippodrome be shut for many years in order to prevent a reoccurrence of any similar riots.
What did Theodora believe?
Theodora was strong willed, opinionated, and believed that women should have rights.
What is Theodora's character?
Theodora became a character in popular Greek legend who possessed many of the qualities of a hero. Campbell says that heroes are partly defined as protectors and defenders, attributes that are shown in Theodora's character, and she was also wise and beautiful, qualities often attributed to classical heroes.
What is Procopius's notorious account of Theodora in his 'Secret History'?
Procopius's notorious account of Theodora in his 'Secret History' shows extreme dislike for her character; he, and Byzantine society in general, evaluated her former occupations as very near the bottom of the “hierarchy of the arts”.
Who was the high official who disapproved of Theodora?
Procopius, a high official, historian, and contemporary of Theodora, greatly disapproved of Theodora's personality and background - she was smart and ruthless, and in her early life a prostitute and actress - blaming her for political and financial upheaval. Foss describes her as “less than saintly”.
Was Theodora I a heroine?
Was Theodora I, the wife of Emperor Justinian of Byzantium (reigned 527 - 565 CE), a heroine? The historian Treadgold calls her a protectress of women, as she used her influence to help them gain rights. She is also seen in popular legend as a protector and defender of the poor and weak. Because she was a close collaborator, some even say a co-ruler, with her husband, it is extremely likely that she was able to influence policy and even laws that helped to achieve these ends. Does this make her a heroine? The answer to this question depends on how one defines heroine and who one asks.
Who was Justinian married to?
So by the time Emperor Justin died and Justinian managed to secure himself as the new ruler, he had already been married to Theodora for quite a while, and she had become a well-known figure at court.
Who was Procopius complaining about?
Well our main source on this period is a guy named Procopius who constantly complained in his secret history about how the empire was ruled by a peasant emperor and prostitute empress.
Was Justinian an emperor?
Keep in mind that when they married, Justinian wasn't emperor- he wasn't even definitely the emperor's heir. He was a commander in the emperor's employ. True, the Emperor washis uncle Justin, but Justin had been born a peasant as well before eventually becoming a commander in the imperial army. But the nephew of a low-born emperor isn't exactly "born in the purple".
Who would have been able to crush Macedon if they only banded together?
Yet, we would recall how the Greeks should have been able to crush Macedon if they only banded together, especially Thebes and Sparta while also possibly having Persian assistance.
Was Justinian a peasant?
Justinian was born a peasant, and so was his predecessor. And I think he did not marry her until he was emperor so nobody would question it
Overview
Theodora was Byzantine empress by marriage to emperor Justinian. She became empress upon Justinian's accession in 527 and was one of his chief advisers, albeit from humble origins. Along with her spouse, Theodora is a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church and in the Oriental Orthodox Church, commemorated on 14 November and 28 June respectively. She is sometimes enumerated as T…
Historiography
The main historical sources for her life are the works of her contemporary Procopius. The historian offered three different portrayals of the empress. The Wars of Justinian, largely completed in 545, paints a picture of a courageous and influential empress who saved the throne for Justinian.
Later, he wrote the Secret History. The work has sometimes been interpreted as representing a d…
Early years
Theodora was of Greek descent, but there are several indications of her possible birthplace. According to Michael the Syrian, her birthplace was in Mabbug, Syria; Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopoulos names Theodora a native of Cyprus, while the Patria, attributed to George Codinus, claims Theodora came from Paphlagonia. She was born c. AD 500. Her father, Acacius, was a bear trainer of the hippodrome's Green faction in Constantinople. Her mother, whose name is not recor…
Empress
When Justinian succeeded to the throne in 527, two years after the marriage, Theodora was crowned augusta and became empress of the Eastern Roman Empire. She shared in his decisions, plans and political strategies, and participated in state councils. Justinian once called her his "partner in my deliberations," in Novel 8.1 (AD 535), an anti-corruption legislation, where provincial officials had to take an oath to her as well as the emperor. She had her official compa…
Religious policy
Theodora worked against her husband's support of Chalcedonian Christianity in the ongoing struggle for the predominance of each faction. As a result, she was accused of fostering heresy and thus undermined the unity of Christendom.
In spite of Justinian being Chalcedonian, Theodora founded a Miaphysite monastery in Sykae and provided shelter in the palace for Miaphysite leaders who faced opposition from the majority of …
Death
Theodora's death is recorded by Victor of Tonnena, with the cause uncertain but the Greek terms used are often translated as "cancer." The date was 28 June 548 at the age of 48, although other sources report that she died at 51. Later accounts frequently attribute the death to specifically breast cancer, although it was not identified as such in the original report, where the use of the term "cancer" probably referred to a more general "suppurating ulcer or malignant tumor". Her bo…
Lasting influence
The Miaphysites believed her influence on Justinian to be so strong that after her death, when he worked to bring harmony between the Miaphysites and the Chalcedonian Christians in the Empire, and kept his promise to protect her little community of Miaphysite refugees in the Hormisdas Palace, the Miaphysites suspected Theodora's memory to be the driving factor. Theodora provided much political support for the ministry of Jacob Baradaeus, and apparently personal fri…
Media portrayals
• The artwork The Dinner Party features a place setting for Theodora.
• The jewellery line Nika of Sassi Fine Jewellery is inspired by a jewel that might have belonged to Theodora and the event of the attack of the royal palace in 532 [1]
• Count Belisarius. Robert Graves (1938). A historical novel by the author of I, Cla…