Powerful Women in Byzantine Empire
The Life and Ideology the Empress Theophano (941 – after 978)
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20390976 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Eirini Artemi (0000-0002-8852-9907, Hellenic Open University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 84 |
| Pages | 123-140 |
| Publication date | 2022-12-15 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Vox Patrum (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0860-9411 • E-ISSN: 2719-3586 |
| Publisher | Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawla II (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.31743/vp.14454 |
| OpenAlex | W4311611876 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 5 |
In this paper we present the life and the character of Theophano, the mother of Basil II Porphyrogenitus, the Macedonian. Some women made spectacular progress up the social ladder by marrying into higher-class families, even sometimes into the imperial family itself and to become empresses as Theophano did. So, social advancement could be achieved through marriage. The power and privileges of an imperial spouse were directly dependent on the emperor. Did it have a catalytic role in the life of Theophano? Through her life we will examine woman’s position in Byzantine Empire. It will be searched if there was any discrimination among women according to their classes and if the byzantine society faced with the same way a vicious life of an imperial woman and of a poor one. Which was the position of the Christian Church for woman? Had Church Fathers forgiven rich and powerful women and had they condemned poor women from lower social class? All these questions are going to be answered through the life and the actions of Theophano, a woman who managed from being the daughter of a poor tavern-keeper, to become the Empress and one of the most powerful and vicious women in the Byzantine history
Ancient history · Byzantine architecture · Emperor · Empire · Ideology · Political science · Politics · Social science · Sociology · Spouse · Upper class · Anthropology · Byzantine Studies and History · Classics · Eurasian Exchange Networks · Gender Studies · History · Law · Medieval Literature and History
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |