Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
POWERS BEHIND THE THRONE
Many powerful women have featured in İstanbul's imperial history. Our favourites are the following:
Theodora
The wife of Justinian, Theodora (500-548) was the daughter of a bear-keeper at the Hippodrome and
had been a courtesan before she married. She subsequently became extremely devout and endowed a
number of churches in the city. Justinian was devoted to her and she was widely acknowledged by
contemporary historians to be the true power behind the throne. During her time as consort, she es-
tablished homes for ex-prostitutes, granted women more rights in divorce cases, allowed women to
own and inherit property, and enacted the death penalty for rape.
Zoe
Our favourite of all the empresses, feisty Zoe (978-1050) was 50 years old and supposedly a virgin
when her dying father, Constantine VIII, insisted she marry the aged Romanus III Argyrus. Romanus
had in fact been happily married for 40 years but neither Zoe nor her father were going to let that get
in their way, threatening him with blinding if he didn't consent. When Constantine died, Romanus
was crowned emperor and Zoe empress. Finding married life a tad dull, Zoe took as her lover the
much younger Michael the Paphlagonian. After Romanus mysteriously drowned in his bath in 1034,
Zoe quickly married her virile companion, who joined her on the throne as Michael IV. Eight years
later, after Michael died from an illness contracted while on campaign, Zoe and her sister Theodora
ruled as empresses in their own right. At the age of 64 Zoe was married again, this time to an emin-
ent senator, Constantine IX Monomachus, who eventually outlived her.
Roxelana
The wife of Süleyman the Magnificent, Hürrem Sultan (1506-1558) was more commonly known as
Roxelana. She was beautiful, clever and a thoroughly nasty piece of work. Though allowed four leg-
al wives and as many concubines as he could support by Islamic law, Süleyman was devoted to
Roxelana alone and ended up marrying her. Secure in her position, she mastered the art of palace in-
trigue and behind-the-scenes manipulation, even convincing the sultan to have İbrahim Paşa, Süley-
man's lifelong companion and devoted grand vizier, strangled when he objected to her influence.
Unfortunately, she also made sure that her drunken son, Selim the Sot, would succeed to the throne
by having the able heir apparent, Prince Mustafa, strangled.
