How many children did theodora have

Emperor Justinian I and his wife the Empress Theodora. She worked as an actress which at that time was much similar to a stripper-prostitute hybrid than the modern definition of an actress. Theodora, she was the wife of Justinian I. There were no weaknesses of the Byzantine Empire except for the fact that Theodora was empress!! No, that would have been quite impossible. The Empress Theodora lived in the first half of the sixth century, the Franciscans and the Dominicans did not come into being until St.

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Roman Empire 21 cards. What type of government is ruled by only one person. Q: How many children did Empress Theodora have? Write your answer Related questions. She had proven herself a great statesman and a worthy partner in power. No one was more aware of that fact than Justinian. Far from arousing in him any sense of jealously, her resolute action only deepened his respect and love for her. Throughout the remainder of her life, she was Justinian's active assistant in all matters of importance.

She was not a dark power behind the throne, but shared openly in both the decision-making and the glory of her husband's reign. Her name appeared linked with his upon church walls and over the gates of citadels. Even in the mosaics that decorated the apartments of the Sacred Palace, writes Diehl, "Justinian had in like manner associated Theodora with him in connection with his military triumphs and the brightest glories of his reign. They transformed it into the most splendid city in the world, so much so that Europeans during the Middle Ages referred to it as simply "The City.

Justinian and Theodora built more that 25 churches and convents in Constantinople. The greatest of them, and indeed the greatest church in all of Christendom prior to the building of St. Peter's in Rome, was the Hegia Sophia, rebuilt by the imperial couple. With its great dome, feet in diameter, and decorated in rich marbles and mosaics, it dazzled visitors for centuries.

One European churchman who visited Constantinople during the high Middle Ages recorded that upon entering the Hegia Sophia he felt as if he had died and entered heaven itself. Both Justinian and Theodora recognized the importance of religious issues. Complex theological issues dominated the lives of even the common people. They were inseparable from the important political issues of the day. Hence Justinian, who wanted to reconquer the Latin West, stoutly defended the orthodox position in such theological debates as those concerning the nature of Christ.

To do so won support among the Christians in the ruins of the old Roman Empire in the West. But it also tended to alienate the Christians in the eastern provinces of the Empire who were attracted to the Monophysite heresy. Monophysitism held that Christ had but one nature, a composite divine-human one. The orthodox position, as defined by the Council of Chalcedon in , was that Jesus Christ was at the same time both fully human and fully divine.

While Justinian might use the carrot-and-stick approach to combat Monophysitism, Theodora championed their cause both openly and in secret.

No doubt her own convictions, which went back to her conversion under Monophysite influence, were behind her efforts to secure religious tolerance for Monophysitism. But she was motivated also by her belief that the strength of the Empire was in the Middle East. Monophysitism was especially strong in the eastern provinces along the frontier with the revived Persian Empire. To grant toleration to them would be to strengthen and further the unity of the Empire where it faced a powerful enemy. But it also would undermine Justinian's dream of reuniting the old Roman Empire.

In her efforts to help the Monophysites, Theodora influenced the election of popes, provided refuge within the apartments of her palace for Monophysite leaders, and openly established a Monophysite monastery in Sycae, directly across the Golden Horn from Constantinople. By such efforts, Theodora was able to keep alive the fire of the Monophysite heresy in the eastern provinces of the Empire.

When Theodora died of cancer on June 28, , her body was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, one of the splendid churches she and Justinian had built in Constantinople. Her death was a great loss to Justinian. It is tempting to see, as some have, the decline of imperial fortunes during the latter years of Justinian's reign as the result of his loss of her counsel.

But that would be unfair to Justinian's own genius. Nevertheless, he cherished her memory, as later Queen Victoria did that of her dear Prince Albert. In his latter years, Justinian was in the habit of swearing in the name of Theodora. Those who wished to win his favor learned the importance of reminding him of her virtues. How much she meant to him personally was evident in an incident which occurred on August 11, Following a campaign against the Huns, Justinian was making a triumphal entry into Constantinople.

The official record states that "as the procession passed before the Church of the Holy Apostles it halted while the emperor went in to offer a prayer and light candles before Theodora's tomb. His body was taken to the Church of the Holy Apostles to lie with the one whom he was fond of calling "his sweetest delight. Barker, John W. Justinian and the Later Roman Empire. University of Wisconsin Press, Bury, J.

Dover Publications, History of the Wars, Secret History, and Buildings. Washington Square Press, Vandercook, John W. All rights reserved. Home Biography Theodora Theodora. Then Theodora rose and—as quoted in Browning's Justinian and Theodora —made what must be considered one of the greatest short speeches ever recorded: Whether or not a woman should give an example of courage to men, is neither here nor there. Browning, Robert.

They were certainly not a likely couple. Justinian was a farmer's son from present-day Serbia who travelled to Constantinople at the age of 11 to work for his uncle Justin , and help in his rise to power and eventual elevation to the throne. Justinian had a strong legal mind his codifying of Roman law remains a part of legal training today , and had one law changed to raise Theodora's status, and another created to allow her to marry, something that former actresses could not legally do at the time.

They married against the wishes of Justinian's aunt, the empress Euphemia, herself an ex-slave and concubine, who saw her own origins echoed a little too obviously in Theodora's. When Justin died and Justinian became emperor in , "Theodora-from-the-Brothel" was empress of Rome.

The classic rags to riches story is made richer still by Theodora's achievements in power. As empress, she worked on the paper On Pimps, an attempt to stop pimps making their money from prostitutes.

Well aware of the impossibility of marriage and a safe life for such women, she set up a house where they could live in peace. Theodora worked for women's marriage and dowry rights, anti-rape legislation, and was supportive of the many young girls who were sold into sexual slavery for the price of a pair of sandals.

Her laws banished brothel-keepers from Constantinople and from all the major cities of the empire. All of which makes Theodora sound like an early and ardent feminist, but her story is more complicated. There are hints that she was involved in poisoning, torture and forced marriage, and while she did a great deal to help women and girls in difficulty, she had rather less time for women of higher standing — attacking any who threatened her position, including the empress Euphemia.

There are so many questions in Theodora's story. Was she a spy or a saint, a slut or a theatrical genius? What actually happened with the geese on stage at the hippodrome? Was Macedonia her friend or her lover? Theodora is the kind of hero you couldn't make up without being accused of overdoing it, and yet you can't tell her story without making a lot of it up.

A perfect balance for fiction.