Constantine IX Monomachos

Constantine IX Monomachos
Emperor and Autocrat of the Romans
A mosaic with a background of gold showing a bearded Constantine wearing a crown and jeweled robes holding a small bag in his hands which is tied at the top
Mosaic of Emperor Constantine IX at the Hagia Sophia.[1]
Byzantine emperor
Reign11 June 1042 – 11 January 1055
Coronation12 June 1042
PredecessorZoë and Theodora
SuccessorTheodora
Co-rulersZoë (1042–1050)
Theodora (1042–1055)
Bornc. 1000/1004
Antioch
Died11 January 1055 (aged 50–55)
Constantinople
Burial
Spousedaughter of Basil Skleros
Maria Skleraina
Zoë Porphyrogenita
IssueAnastasia[2]
DynastyMacedonian
FatherTheodosios Monomachos

Constantine IX Monomachos (Medieval Greek: Κωνσταντῖνος Μονομάχος, romanizedKōnstantinos Monomachos; c. 980[3]/c. 1000[4] – 11 January 1055) reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 1042 to January 1055. Empress Zoë Porphyrogenita chose him as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring against her previous husband, Emperor Michael IV the Paphlagonian. The couple shared the throne with Zoë's sister Theodora Porphyrogenita. Zoë died in 1050, and Constantine continued his collaboration with Theodora until his own death five years later.

Constantine waged wars against groups which included the Kievan Rus', the Pechenegs and, in the East, the rising Seljuq Turks. Despite the varying success of these campaigns, the Byzantine Empire largely retained the borders established after the conquests of Basil II (r. 976–1025), even expanding eastwards when Constantine annexed the wealthy Armenian kingdom of Ani. Constantine accordingly may be considered the last effective emperor during the Macedonian Renaissance.

In 1054, a year before Constantine's death, the Great Schism between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches took place, culminating in Pope Leo IX excommunicating the Patriarch Michael Keroularios. Constantine, aware of the political and religious consequences of such a disunion, made unsuccessful efforts to prevent the breach.

  1. ^ Davies, Wendy; Fouracre, Paul (2 September 2010). The Languages of Gift in the Early Middle Ages. Cambridge University Press. p. 38. ISBN 9780521515177. The mosaic dates between 1042, when Zoe married Constantine (her third husband), and 1050, when Zoe died, but the heads have been changed and the mosaic probably originally portrayed Zoe with her first husband, Romanos III (1028–34), who also donated funds to the church.
  2. ^ A.V. Soloviev, 'Marie, fille de Constantin IX Monomaque', Byzantion, vol. 33, 1963, p. 241-248.
  3. ^ "Constantine IX Monomachus". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  4. ^ Head, Constance (1982). Imperial Byzantine Portraits: A Verbal and Graphic Gallery. Caratzas Brothers Publishing. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-89241-084-2.