Anastasia (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: Άναστασία, c. 650 – after 711) was the Empress consort of

Constantine IV Constantine IV ( la, Constantinus; grc-gre, Κωνσταντῖνος, Kōnstantînos; 650–685), called the Younger ( la, iunior; grc-gre, ὁ νέος, ho néos) and sometimes incorrectly the Bearded ( la, Pogonatus; grc-gre, Πωγων ...

of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

Empress

Anastasia entered historical record when her husband

succeeded to the throne in 668. On September 15, 668, her father-in-law Constans II was assassinated in his bath by his

chamberlain Chamberlain may refer to: Profession *Chamberlain (office), the officer in charge of managing the household of a sovereign or other noble figure People *Chamberlain (surname) **Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855–1927), German-British philosop ...

. He resided for the last few years of his reign in Syracuse, while Constantine and Anastasia remained in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

. Anastasia became the senior Empress consort when news of the assassination reached the court. The birth of her first son,

Justinian II Justinian II ( la, Iustinianus; gr, Ἰουστινιανός, Ioustinianós; 668/69 – 4 November 711), nicknamed "the Slit-Nosed" ( la, Rhinotmetus; gr, ὁ Ῥινότμητος, ho Rhinótmētos), was the last Eastern Roman emperor of the ...

, can be estimated to 668/669 due to the chronologies of

Theophanes the Confessor Theophanes the Confessor ( el, Θεοφάνης Ὁμολογητής; c. 758/760 – 12 March 817/818) was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy who became a monk and chronicler. He served in the court of Emperor Leo IV the Khazar before taking ...

and

Ecumenical Patriarch Nikephoros I of Constantinople Nikephoros I or Nicephorus I (c. 758 – 5 April 828) was a Byzantine writer and patriarch of Constantinople from 12 April 806 to 13 March 815. Life He was born in Constantinople as the son of Theodore and Eudokia, of a strictly Orthodox f ...

. A reference in De Administrando Imperio by Constantine VII, places the birth in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

. Her only other son mentioned is named as Heraclius in the Liber Pontificalis. The entry on

Pope Benedict II Pope Benedict II ( la, Benedictus II) was the bishop of Rome from 26 June 684 to his death. Pope Benedict II's feast day is 8 May. Early life Benedict was born in Rome. It is possible that he was a member of the Savelli family, though this is n ...

(term 26 June 684 – 8 May 685), mentions the Pope receiving locks of hair from both Justinian and Heraclius, presumably as a gesture of goodwill by their father. Constantine IV died of

dysentery Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...

in September, 685. Anastasia is known to have survived him by more than two decades.

Later life

Justinian succeeded to the throne and would go on to earn a reputation for excessive harshness. Justinian needed funds for his building projects and allowed Stephen the Persian, his ''

logothetes tou genikou The ( gr, λογοθέτης τοῦ γενικοῦ, often called or simply (, 'the general ogothete), and usually rendered in English as the General Logothete, was in charge of the 'general financial ministry', the of the middle Byzantine Em ...

'' (responsible for the

taxation A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, o ...

of the state), to secure them by any means. Both Theophanes and Nikephoros claimed that Stephen inflicted corporal punishment or plain

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. definitions of tortur ...

while trying to collect the needed funds. Theophanes records an incident in 693/694, where Anastasia was subject to

flagellation Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed on ...

under the orders of Stephen. Justinian was absent at the time. The incident might indicate lasting hostility between the mother of the emperor and his

favourite A favourite (British English) or favorite (American English) was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In post-classical and early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated s ...

. The increased taxation and the methods used in collecting made Justinian increasingly unpopular with the people. He was deposed in a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

under

Leontios Leontius ( el, Λεόντιος, Leóntios; – 15 February 706), was Byzantine emperor from 695 to 698. Little is known of his early life, other than that he was born in Isauria in Asia Minor. He was given the title of ''patrikios'', and mad ...

in 695. The whereabouts and status of Anastasia during the short reigns of Leontios (695–698) and

Tiberios III Tiberius III ( gr, Τιβέριος, Tibérios), born Apsimar ( la, Apsimarus; gr, Αψίμαρος, Apsímaros),), Apsimerus and Absimerus. Many of these are likely typos or transliteration errors. was Byzantine emperor from 698 to 705AD. Lit ...

(698–705) are unknown. Her son reclaimed the throne in 705 and would rule until 711. Justinian died while facing a revolt under strategos Bardanes, renamed

Philippikos Philippicus ( la, Filepicus; el, Φιλιππικός, Philippikós) was Byzantine emperor from 711 to 713. He took power in a coup against the unpopular emperor Justinian II, and was deposed in a similarly violent manner nineteen months later. ...

. Justinian was captured and swiftly executed outside the gates of Constantinople. Anastasia resurfaces trying to protect the life of her six-year-old grandson, Tiberios. She took the boy to

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

at St. Mary's Church in

Blachernae Blachernae ( gkm, Βλαχέρναι) was a suburb in the northwestern section of Constantinople, the capital city of the Byzantine Empire. It is the site of a water source and a number of prominent churches were built there, most notably the great ...

. However, they were pursued by Philippicus' henchmen. Anastasia was still pleading for his life while the boy was forcibly removed from the altar. He was executed despite her protests. How long she survived her son and grandson is unknown. She was mentioned by

Leo Grammaticus Symeon Logothete (or Symeon Magister) was a 10th-century Byzantine Greek historian and poet. Symeon wrote a world chronicle that goes from Creation to the year 948.It has been misattributed to one Theodosius of Melitene and also to Leo Grammaticus ...

to have been buried in the

Church of the Holy Apostles The Church of the Holy Apostles ( el, , ''Agioi Apostoloi''; tr, Havariyyun Kilisesi), also known as the ''Imperial Polyándreion'' (imperial cemetery), was a Byzantine Eastern Orthodox church in Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman E ...

alongside her husband.

References

Sources

, Chronicle *

, ''Chronographikon syntomon'' * Joannes Zonaras, ''Extracts of History''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anastasia 650s births 8th-century deaths Burials at the Church of the Holy Apostles Heraclian dynasty 7th-century Byzantine empresses 8th-century Byzantine women Mothers of Byzantine emperors