Empress Theodora. At the pinnacle of power
Frame from the film "Battle for Rome" (1968-1969), Silva Koshina as Theodora, Orson Welles as Justinian
В previous article It was told about the origin and youth of the future Empress Theodora, her spiritual transformation after meeting in Alexandria with the Monophysite patriarchs Timothy IV of Alexandria and Sevir of Antioch. Today we will talk about Theodora's acquaintance with Justinian and the further fate of this outstanding woman.
Fateful meeting with Justinian
So, returning after a short stay in Alexandria to Constantinople, Theodora suddenly began to lead a modest lifestyle and earn a living by spinning yarn. It was during this period of her life that she met Justinian, who was 18 years older than her and, thanks to his relationship with the reigning emperor Justin II, had already achieved great success in public service, even being a consul. Justinian seriously fell in love with the former hetera. At first, she became his concubine and received the rank of patrician, and then, in 525, her wife. To do this, it was necessary to change the law of Constantine the Great, which prohibited the marriages of noble men with women of low birth, actresses and daughters of actresses: now an actress could be married with the personal permission of the emperor, provided that she abandoned her craft.
Friend and “right hand” of Theodora
By the way, we note at the same time that the wife of Belisarius, Antonina, was also a circus dancer. She was 5 years older than him, but, according to contemporaries, despite the age difference, the marriage turned out to be happy.
Antonina (center) and her daughter Ioannina (left). Mosaic of the Church of San Vitale, Ravenna
Antonina was Theodora's oldest friend (the age difference is 5 years), and they had known each other since the time of their joint work in the circus. Perhaps Antonina took care of the girl starting her career as an actress, and even acted as her teacher.
Antonina's father and grandfather were charioteers, about her mother Procopius of Caesarea contemptuously reports that she "was one of the prostitutes attached to the theater". He also calls Antonina "skilled in magic"And an unfaithful wife (unlike Theodora, to whom he has no complaints in this case). Some later historians considered Antonina "the right hand of Theodora in exercising influence and power". So, for example, through Antonina, the empress completely controlled Belisarius, but Belisarius also enjoyed her patronage.
It was Antonina, carrying out the order of Theodora, who played a key role in the dismissal of Pope Silverius. The Liber Pontificalis says:
“Silverius went alone with Vigilius to the mausoleum, and Antonina, the patrician, lay on a bed, and Belisarius, the patrician, sat at her feet. And when Antonina, the patrician, saw him, she said to him:
"Tell us, Pope Silverius, what have we done to you and the Romans, that you want to betray us into the hands of the Goths."
While she was still speaking, John, the subdeacon of the first district, removed the pallium from his neck ... and took off his vestments, put on him a monastic cassock.
"Tell us, Pope Silverius, what have we done to you and the Romans, that you want to betray us into the hands of the Goths."
While she was still speaking, John, the subdeacon of the first district, removed the pallium from his neck ... and took off his vestments, put on him a monastic cassock.
From the first article, we remember that the son of Theodora's daughter (whom she gave birth to before meeting Justinian) became the husband of the daughter of Antonina and Belisarius.
Antonina accompanied her husband on campaigns, during the wars against the Vandals and the Goths. Procopius, who was unkind to her, nevertheless reports that in 537 Antonina helped him in Naples "[o]organize the fleet[/i]". At the same time, historians believe that the secretary of Belisarius exaggerates his merits, and it was Antonina who played the main role then.
Antonina lobbied for the interests of Belisarius and, although she was older, survived him, and used the inheritance received to build a monastery.
Marriage of Theodora and Justinian
Let us return to Theodora and see that the Empress Euphemia turned out to be the opponent of her marriage to Justinian. Only after her death, Justinian managed to get the emperor's consent to marry his beloved woman. And it must be said that even Procopius of Caesarea, who was hostile to Theodora, admitted that during this period Theodora behaved impeccably, without giving even the slightest reason for jealousy:
“Justinian and Theodora in their life together did nothing without each other. For a long time it seemed to everyone that they were always completely opposite to each other both in their way of thinking and in their way of acting, but then it became clear that they deliberately created such an idea of themselves so that their subjects, having formed a single opinion about them, would not oppose them.
Justinian on the mosaic of the Church of San Vitale, Ravenna
Theodora on the mosaic of the Church of San Vitale, Ravenna
When suddenly there were rumors about Theodora's connection with the slave Areovind, she ordered him to be flogged with whips and sent out of Constantinople.
Meanwhile, Justinian was twice elected consul, successfully fought with the Himyarite kingdom (on the territory of Yemen), in April 527 he became Caesar - Justin's junior co-ruler, and the emperor did this at the repeated request of the Senate. And in August of the same year, after the death of a relative, Justinian became the sole ruler of the Great Empire. His official name was Caesar Flavius \uXNUMXb\uXNUMXbJustinian of Alaman, Gothic, Frankish, Germanic, Antian, Alanian, Vandal and African. Theodora and Justinian had no children, and therefore had to transfer the throne to the emperor's nephew, known as Justin II. His wife was the daughter of one of Theodora's sisters, Elia Sophia.
On top of power
Theodora by Jean-Joseph Constant
For 21 years, Theodora was not just the wife of the emperor, but in fact his co-ruler, delving into both state and religious affairs. Sometimes she even canceled the orders of Justinian himself, replacing them with her own. Modern historians believe that Justinian usually did not delve into details in the administration of the state, leaving many questions to the discretion of Theodora. From the writings of John of Ephesus, we can conclude that the officials in the places of Theodora were more afraid than the emperor. Speaking about the baptism of one of the Nubian tribes, he gives the answer of one of the imperial officials to the envoy of Justinian:
“The fear of the queen is well known to me, so I did not dare to resist.”
Sculpture of Theodora's head, Castello Sforza, Milan
The Empress appointed and dismissed senior officials, military leaders and church hierarchs - as we remember, she even initiated the dismissal of Pope Silverius and the election of Vigilius as the new pontiff. This, by the way, later became the reason for the extremely negative attitude towards her of the Catholic hierarchs, who for a long time betrayed her name "curses and insults».
Theodora received ambassadors and corresponded with the rulers of neighboring powers. Procopius of Caesarea cites an excerpt from a letter from the Empress to the Persian king Khosrow, which says:
"I promise you many blessings from my husband, who does nothing without consulting me."
Procopius of Caesarea also argued that the appointment to any more or less significant position without the consent of Theodora, as a rule, ended for this person "the most shameful death».
Theodora favored the missionary activity of the Monophysites in Arabia, Nubia and Abyssinia. It was thanks to her patronage that the persecution of supporters of this branch of the Christian faith was somewhat mitigated for a while. Theodora contributed to the election of the Monophysite Anthimios as Patriarch of Constantinople, and after his deposition (536), she sheltered him for 12 years in her half of the imperial palace. Since 538, Patriarch Theodosius of Alexandria was there, who claimed to be the head of the Monophysite church and even created a semblance of a monastery there, performed church services. As a result, the Syrian Monophysites, cursing Justinian, prayed for the health of his wife.
In addition, Theodora passed a number of laws that improved the status of women, and also increased the punishment for homosexuality, having achieved a law on the public castration of homosexuals.
Uprising "Nika"
Theodora's leadership and strong-willed qualities manifested themselves most clearly during the largest history The Byzantine revolt that shook Constantinople in 532. The reason was the abuse of officials and the persecution of the Monophysites, who still had quite a few supporters. Until then, something unprecedented happened - the seemingly irreconcilable parties of the Hippodrome united against the emperor. As often happens, the immediate reason for the uprising then seemed to everyone insignificant and even insignificant. The most influential parties of the Hippodrome, where the chariot races took place, were the Veneti (“Blue”) and the Prasin (“Green”).
A. von Wagner. "Chariot Run"
One day, Justinian, who sympathized with the Veneti, ignored a complaint against them from a delegation of the Prasins. Without waiting for an answer, the prasins, during the race of the chariots, began to provoke the Veneti, and also to insult the emperor himself. A fight broke out that engulfed the entire hippodrome. It was here that Justinian decided to show his impartiality: he ordered the arrest and trial of both the “blues” and the “greens”. He did not win the sympathy of the offended prasins, but he set his allies, the Venets, against him. Five people from among the supporters of both parties were found to be instigators of the riots and sentenced to death by hanging. However, three of them fell off the gallows, and the crowd, referring to "God's will", began to demand their pardon. After the refusal of the authorities, riots broke out again, which escalated into an uprising - and Prasins and Veneti now opposed Justinian. The slogan of the rebels was the word "Nika" ("Win") - this is an exclamation with which the fans cheered "their" charioteers. The nephews of Emperor Anastasius (the predecessor of Justin I) Hypatius and Pompey were nominated as pretenders to the throne. The rebels destroyed almost the entire center of Constantinople. Justinian was already preparing to flee (with the state treasury), but Theodora prevented this. Hostile to her, Procopius of Caesarea, in a treatise on "On the Persian War," put into her mouth the following words spoken at the imperial council:
“Now, I think, is not the time to argue whether it is proper for a woman to show courage in front of men and speak to the timid with youthful courage. For those whose affairs are in the greatest danger, there is nothing left but to arrange them in the best way. In my opinion, flight, even if it ever brought salvation and perhaps will bring it now, is unworthy. One who has been born cannot help but die, but one who once reigned cannot bear to be a fugitive. May I not lose this purple, may I not live to see the day when the people I meet do not call me mistress! If you wish to save yourself by flight, my lord, it is not difficult. We have a lot of money, and the sea is nearby, and there are ships. But see that the one who has been saved does not have to choose death over salvation. I like the ancient saying that kingship is the best shroud.”
What ancient saying did Theodora like so much? Researchers note the similarity of her speech with the speech at the royal council of the Carian ruler Artemisia, who, according to Herodotus, before the Battle of Salamis said to Darius:
"Royal power is the best shroud."
And also with the words of the tyrant of Syracuse Dionysius the Elder, who in 403 BC. e. was besieged in the city fortress by rebellious citizens:
"Tyrania is a beautiful shroud."
This, of course, is evidence of Theodora's good erudition, who, having not received an education in childhood, read a lot in adulthood, trying to catch up.
It is possible that Procopius, who was clearly not present at the imperial council, somewhat embellished and literary processed Theodora's speech, but he certainly conveyed its meaning correctly. The empress was supported by the commander Narses, and then Belisarius and Mund attacked the rebels who had gathered at the hippodrome. During the suppression of the uprising, more than 30 thousand people died, and 40 days later, Justinian ordered the construction of a new basilica to atone for the sin of mass bloodshed.
Saint Sophie Cathedral
During the Nika uprising, among other buildings, the basilica, built by order of Emperor Theodosius II, burned down. For the construction of a new, truly grandiose temple, Justinian bought out nearby plots of land. It was entrusted to supervise the construction of Isidore of Miletus and Anfimy of Tralsky, who had previously erected the so-called "Little Sophia".
Herbert Cole. An angel shows Justinian a model of the future Hagia Sophia
An amount equal to three annual budgets of the empire was spent, the number of workers reached 10 thousand people. Dorotheus of Monemvasia reports that for the manufacture of the throne of the cathedral were used:
“Gold, silver, copper, electr (a natural alloy of 75% gold with silver, copper and other metals), iron, glass, many honest stones, yachts, emeralds, beads, kasider, magnet, onyxium, diamonds and other up to seventy-two different of things."
On it was inscribed:
“Yours from Yours, we offer You Yours, Christ, servants Justinian and Theodora.”
Constantine and Justinian in front of the Mother of God, mosaic of the southern facade of the Hagia Sophia
Already on December 27, 537, Patriarch Mina of Constantinople consecrated the new cathedral.
Saint Sophie Cathedral
It is said that on this day many animals were sacrificed, the meat of which, along with grain, was distributed to the poor.
Everyone was surprised by the unexpected lightness and weightlessness of the vault of the temple - they said that it was suspended from heaven. Because of the huge number of windows that were not visible from the outside, the walls looked almost transparent. Some of the windows are now bricked up, and therefore the famous "mystical light" of St. Sophia Cathedral has lost a particle of its magical power.
Currently, the so-called “weeping column”, which is also called the “column of desires”, is being shown in the cathedral.
Weeping Column
Tradition connects it with the repentance of Theodora, who allegedly often prayed and cried near her, which is why the surface of this column is now always wet. If you stick your finger into the round slot of the column and make a wish, then, according to legend, it will come true.
Death of the Empress
In 542, a catastrophic plague began, which was called Justinian. She came to Constantinople in 544. Procopius of Caesarea recalled:
"There was no salvation for a man from the plague, no matter where he lived - neither in the palace, nor in the barracks, nor on the island, nor in the cave, nor on the top of the mountain."
It was this epidemic that dealt the most terrible blow to the state of Justinian and Theodora. But she did not cause the death of the Empress. Theodora died of cancer in June 548 at the age of only 48 and was buried in the Church of the Twelve Apostles in Constantinople. Justinian, who survived her for 17 years, took the death of his beloved wife very hard and then even swore by her name. In the main basilica of the Saint Catherine's Monastery in Sinai, built on his orders, an inscription was made:
"To the repose of the blessed memory of Empress Theodora."
In honor of his wife, he renamed the Syrian fortress of Anazarv, which became known as Theodorias, and created a diocese in Syria with the same name. Later, Justinian and Theodora were canonized by the Orthodox Church. The feast day of Saints Justinian and Theodora is celebrated on November 27.
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