POLITICS
Justinian and Theodora     Justinian's reign     Imperial iconography

Justinian and Theodora, the imperial couple
  Born in 482 in the village Bederiana, Justinian (his given name was Flavius Petrus Sabbatius) came from a family of romanized thracian peasants. As a young officer, he made a brilliant career under his uncle, Justin I (518-527), who appointed him co-emperor in 527. Prokopios, an official in the Justinianic administration, describes the emperor as a rather plain individual, with simple tates, approachable and hard-working, crafty and vindictive. A man of low origin, Justinian was surrounded by loyal people who did not belong to the crust of society - his wife Theodora, his nephew Germanos, the generals Belisarios and Narses, and the administrators John of Cappadocia and Tribonian. Theodora was a woman of great charm and wit, who, in her youth, had been an actress, a dishonorable occupation involving mime and nudity. She led a quiet, independent life in Constantinople, when she became involved with Justinian, whom she married in 524. Mutual devotion, trust and support made their mariage a strong and long-lasting one. Theodora favored Monophysitism, and endowed numerous religious and welfare establishments.