Aelia Ariadne () ( – 515) was Eastern Roman empress as the wife of

Zeno Zeno may refer to: People * Zeno (name), including a list of people and characters with the given name * Zeno (surname) Philosophers * Zeno of Elea (), philosopher, follower of Parmenides, known for his paradoxes * Zeno of Citium (333 – 264 B ...

and Anastasius I. She is venerated as a saint in the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

, with her feast day falling on August 22.

Family

Ariadne was a daughter of Leo I and Verina. Her mother was a sister of Basiliscus. Ariadne's younger sister, Leontia, was first betrothed to Patricius, a son of Aspar. Their engagement was probably annulled when Aspar and another of his sons, Ardabur, were assassinated in 471. Leontia then married Marcian, a son of Emperor

Anthemius Procopius Anthemius (; died 11 July 472) was the Western Roman Empire, Western Roman emperor from 467 to 472. Born in the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, Anthemius quickly worked his way up the ranks. He married into the Theodosian dyna ...

. The couple led a failed revolt against Zeno in 478–479. They were exiled to

Isauria Isauria ( or ; ), in ancient geography, is a rugged, isolated district in the interior of Asia Minor, of very different extent at different periods, but generally covering what is now the district of Bozkır and its surroundings in the Konya P ...

following their defeat. Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, vol. 2 An unnamed younger brother was born in 463. He died five months following his birth. The only sources about him are a horoscope by Rhetorius and a

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

of Daniel the Stylite.

Marriage

Ariadne was born prior to the death of Marcian (reigned 450–457).Hugh Elton, "Leo I (457–474 AD)"
/ref> In January 457, Marcian succumbed to a disease, allegedly gangrene. He was survived by his daughter Marcia Euphemia and his son-in-law

. Leo was at this point the tribune of the Mattiarii, a regiment wielding the mattea (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for mace) as their weapon. He was proclaimed emperor with the support of Aspar, the

magister militum (Latin for "master of soldiers"; : ) was a top-level military command used in the late Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, the e ...

("Master of soldiers"). On 7 February 457, Leo was crowned by Patriarch Anatolius of Constantinople, the first such coronation known to involve a patriarch. At this point Ariadne became a member of the imperial family. In 461, Leo founded the Excubitors as a counterbalance to the Germanic soldiers under Aspar. He recruited the majority of its members from among the sturdy and warlike Isaurians. In 466, Tarasicodissa, an Isaurian officer of the Excubitors, came forth with evidence that Ardabur, a son of Aspar, was guilty of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

. The scandal caused Leo to distance himself from Aspar and rely even more on the Excubitors. In 467, the alliance of Leo and Tarasicodissa was sealed with the marriage of Ariadne to the officer. To make himself more acceptable to the Roman hierarchy and the primarily Greek-speaking population of

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

, her husband changed his name to Zeno. Their only known son, Leo II, was born within the year.

Son's reign

In 471, Aspar and Ardabur were murdered within the Great Palace of Constantinople on the order of Leo. Leo earned the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

"Macelles" (the

Butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale ...

) for the manner of the deaths. Zeno was left by default as the main supporter of Leo within the Byzantine army. Leo II was proclaimed caesar in October 473 and effectively became the designated heir to the throne by virtue of being the closest male relative of Leo I. On 18 January 474, Leo I died of

dysentery Dysentery ( , ), 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 may include dehyd ...

. His grandson immediately succeeded him. Since Leo II was too young to rule himself, Ariadne and her mother Verina prevailed upon him to crown Zeno as co-emperor, which he did on 9 February 474. When Leo became ill and died on 17 November Zeno became sole emperor, with Ariadne as empress.

Empress of Zeno

The new reign was not particularly popular. The barbarian origins of Zeno caused antipathy towards his regime among the people of Constantinople. Furthermore, the strong Germanic portion of the military, led by Theodoric Strabo, disliked the Isaurian officers that Leo I brought to reduce his dependency on the

Ostrogoths The Ostrogoths () were a Roman-era Germanic peoples, Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Goths, Gothic kingdoms within the Western Roman Empire, drawing upon the large Gothic populatio ...

. Finally, Zeno alienated his fellow Isaurian general Illus. Basiliscus and Verina took advantage of the situation to form a conspiracy against their imperial in-law. In 475, a popular revolt against the emperor started within the capital. The uprising received military support from Theodoric Strabo, Illus, and Armatus, and succeeded in taking control of Constantinople. Verina convinced her son-in-law to leave the city. Zeno fled to his native lands, bringing with him some of the Isaurians living in Constantinople and the imperial treasury. Basiliscus was then acclaimed as ''Augustus'' on 9 January 475 at the Hebdomon palace, by the palace ministers and the Byzantine Senate. The mob of Constantinople got its revenge against Zeno, killing almost all of the Isaurians left in the city. However, Basiliscus managed to estrange himself from most of his key collaborators. Patricius, the magister officiorum and lover of Verina, was executed to prevent her aspirations to elevate him to the throne. As a consequence, Verina later intrigued against Basiliscus because of her lover's execution. Theodoric and Armatus were promoted to ''magister militum'' and ''magister militum praesentialis'' and were vying for authority. Finally, the support of Illus was most likely wavering, given the massacre of the Isaurians allowed by Basiliscus. In 476, both Illus and Armatus defected to the side of Zeno. In August, Zeno besieged Constantinople. The leader of the

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a Roman province, province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, on the west by Noricum and upper Roman Italy, Italy, and on the southward by Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia and upper Moesia. It ...

n Goths, Theodoric the Amal (later known as Theodoric the Great) had allied with Zeno. Theodoric would have attacked Basiliscus and his Thracian Goth ''

foederati ''Foederati'' ( ; singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the '' socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign ...

'' led by Theodoric Strabo, receiving, in exchange, the title of ''magister militum'' held by Strabo and the payments previously given to the Thracian Goths. It has been suggested that Constantinople was defenseless during Zeno's siege because the ''Magister Militum'' Strabo had moved north to counter this menace. The Senate opened the gates of the city to the Isaurian, allowing the deposed emperor to resume the throne. Ariadne was still empress. In 479, Ariadne came into conflict with her husband over the fate of her mother. Verina had attempted to assassinate Illus and had become his prisoner. She had supported the revolt of her other son-in-law Marcian even during her captivity. Ariadne attempted to obtain her release, first from Zeno, and then from Illus, to whom the emperor referred her. Illus not only refused her request, but charged her with wishing to place another person on her husband's throne. This irritated her, and she, like her mother, attempted to assassinate Illus, a move which appeared to be supported by Zeno.

Jordanes Jordanes (; Greek language, Greek: Ιορδάνης), also written as Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th-century Eastern Roman bureaucrat, claimed to be of Goths, Gothic descent, who became a historian later in life. He wrote two works, one on R ...

ascribes her hatred to another cause: he says that Illus had infused jealous suspicions into Zeno's mind which had led Zeno to attempt her life, and that her knowledge of these things drove her to revenge. The assassin whom she employed failed to kill Illus, but cut off his ear in the attempt. The assassin was taken, and Zeno, who appears to have been privy to the affair, was unable to prevent his execution. The affair does not seem to have had long-term effects in their marriage. She remained married to Zeno until his death on 9 April 491.

Empress of Anastasius I

The widowed '' Augusta'' was able to choose Zeno's successor for the throne and a second husband for herself in the person of Anastasius, a palace official ('' silentiarius''), whom she preferred to Zeno's brother Longinus. Anastasius was proclaimed emperor on 11 April and they were married on 20 May.Hugh Elton, "Anastasius (AD 491–518)"
/ref> Their marriage remained childless. She died in Constantinople in 515 and was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles. Anastasius was buried beside her in 518.

References

* '' Les ancêtres de Charlemagne'', 1989 * '' Continuité gentilice et continuité sénatoriale dans les familles sénatoriales romaines à l'époque impériale'', 2000 * '' Continuité des élites à Byzance durante les siècles obscurs. Les princes caucasiens et l'Empire du VIe au IXe siècle'', 2006

External links

Profile of her father Leo in the Prosopography of the Late Roman Empire

Profile of her sister Leontia in the Prosopography of the Late Roman Empire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ariadne 450s births 515 deaths Burials at the Church of the Holy Apostles House of Leo Aelii 5th-century Byzantine empresses 6th-century Byzantine empresses Daughters of Byzantine emperors Remarried empresses consort Mothers of Byzantine emperors