Domnica
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Domnica was a Roman empress as the wife of the emperor
Valens Valens (; ; 328 – 9 August 378) was Roman emperor from 364 to 378. Following a largely unremarkable military career, he was named co-emperor by his elder brother Valentinian I, who gave him the Byzantine Empire, eastern half of the Roman Em ...
, who ruled the East from 364 to 378. After the death of her husband at the
Battle of Adrianople The Battle of Adrianople also known as Battle of Hadrianopolis was fought between the Eastern Roman army led by the Roman emperor Valens and Gothic rebels (largely Thervings as well as Greutungs, non-Gothic Alans, and various local rebels) ...
, she ruled as ''de facto''
regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
and defended
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 ...
against the attacking
Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...
until his successor
Theodosius I Theodosius I ( ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also known as Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. He won two civil wars and was instrumental in establishing the Nicene Creed as the orthodox doctrine for Nicene C ...
arrived.


Family

Domnica was the daughter of a soldier named Petronius, who was promoted to praetorian prefect by Valens after he became emperor. Petronius was deeply unpopular for his cruelty and greed, which was one reason why
Procopius Procopius of Caesarea (; ''Prokópios ho Kaisareús''; ; – 565) was a prominent Late antiquity, late antique Byzantine Greeks, Greek scholar and historian from Caesarea Maritima. Accompanying the Roman general Belisarius in Justinian I, Empe ...
decided to revolt in 365. Petronius was probably a Pannonian. Her further ancestry is unknown. Various of her relatives held influentials positions. A possible relative is Domnicus, an officer of Valens mentioned in Oration II by
Libanius Libanius (; ) was a teacher of rhetoric of the Sophist school in the Eastern Roman Empire. His prolific writings make him one of the best documented teachers of higher education in the ancient world and a critical source of history of the Greek ...
. Procopius, prefect 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 ...
in 377, is mentioned by
Zosimus Zosimus, Zosimos, Zosima or Zosimas may refer to: People * * Rufus and Zosimus (died 107), Christian saints * Zosimus (martyr) (died 110), Christian martyr who was executed in Umbria, Italy * Zosimos of Panopolis, also known as ''Zosimus Alch ...
as a relative of Valens by marriage, meaning he was related to Domnica. According to Nicetas of Serra, Eusebius was her uncle and a
praefectus urbi The ''praefectus urbanus'', also called ''praefectus urbi'' or urban prefect in English, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, an ...
in the
Diocese of Pontus The Diocese of Pontus (, ) was a diocese of the later Roman Empire, incorporating the provinces of northern and northeastern Asia Minor up to the border with the Sassanid Empire in Armenia. The diocese was established after the reforms of Diocle ...
. Nicetas was a commentator to the works of
Gregory of Nazianzus Gregory of Nazianzus (; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory Nazianzen, was an early Roman Christian theologian and prelate who served as Archbi ...
and identified Eusebius with an otherwise unnamed figure mentioned in the works of Gregory. Eusebius is thus supposedly recorded in the funeral oration in honor of Basil of Caesarea. The names
Anastasia Anastasia (from ) is a feminine given name of Greek and Slavic origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe. Origin The name Anastasia originated during the Early Christianity, early d ...
, Domnicus, Eusebius, Petronius and Procopius used by various family members are thought to be
Greek Greek may refer to: 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 of all kno ...
in origin. Various scholars have suggested this could indicate the descent of Domnica and her relatives from
Greek Greek may refer to: 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 of all kno ...
-speaking families of
Sirmium Sirmium was a city in the Roman province of Pannonia, located on the Sava river, on the site of modern Sremska Mitrovica in the Vojvodina autonomous province of Serbia. First mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by Illyrians ...
, the initial capital of the
Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum The praetorian prefecture of Illyricum (; , also termed simply the prefecture of Illyricum) was one of four praetorian prefectures into which the Later Roman Empire, Late Roman Empire was divided. The administrative centre of the prefecture wa ...
. Marriage into a
Greek Greek may refer to: 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 of all kno ...
family could have helped solidify Valens' rule over the Hellenized
Eastern Roman Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...
.


Marriage

She married Valens prior to his accession as emperor and had two daughters, Anastasia and Carosa, as well as a son, Valentinianus Galates. Both daughters were tutored by Marcian, a former palatinus (
paladin The Paladins, also called the Twelve Peers (), are twelve legendary knights, the foremost members of Charlemagne's court in the 8th century. They first appear in the medieval (12th century) ''chanson de geste'' cycle of the Matter of France, wh ...
). Marcian had become a Novatianist
presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros'', which means elder or senior, although many in Christian antiquity understood ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning as overseer ...
, and his continued service at court was attributed to Valens’ more tolerant stance regarding Novatianists.


Religious scandals and the death of Galates

The history of the Christian Church in the early 4th century was marked by the Trinitarian controversy. The
First Council of Nicaea The First Council of Nicaea ( ; ) was a council of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I. The Council of Nicaea met from May until the end of July 325. This ec ...
in 325 had established the
Nicene Creed The Nicene Creed, also called the Creed of Constantinople, is the defining statement of belief of Nicene Christianity and in those Christian denominations that adhere to it. The original Nicene Creed was first adopted at the First Council of N ...
, which declared that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were all equal to each other and of the same substance. The theologian
Arius Arius (; ; 250 or 256 – 336) was a Cyrenaica, Cyrenaic presbyter and asceticism, ascetic. He has been regarded as the founder of Arianism, which holds that Jesus Christ was not Eternity, coeternal with God the Father, but was rather created b ...
, founder of
Arianism Arianism (, ) is a Christology, Christological doctrine which rejects the traditional notion of the Trinity and considers Jesus to be a creation of God, and therefore distinct from God. It is named after its major proponent, Arius (). It is co ...
, disagreed with this and believed that the three parts of the Trinity were materially separate from each other and that the Father created the Son. Domnica was already an Arian and is rumored to have persuaded her husband Valens to convert to the Arian sect.Schaff, Philip. Theodoret, Jerome, Gennadius, and Rufinus: Historical Writings. Vol. 3. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1892. Christian Classics Ethereal Library. 17 May 2007 . In about 367, according to
Theodoret Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus (; AD 393 –  458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivotal role in several 5th-century Byzantine ...
, Domnica convinced Valens to seek
baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...
from Eudoxius of Antioch, Archbishop of Constantinople. Eudoxius was one of the most influential Arians. Valens was one of the few emperors of the century to favor the Arians. The empress is accused, with no proof, of having urged her husband to persecute the Trinitarian sect, including persecuting many prominent bishops. Persecution was common throughout his reign. A group of pagan philosophers engaged in divination and predicted that a certain philosopher named Theodore would be the next emperor. When Valens discovered this prophecy he considered the philosophers guilty of a plot against his safety. Valens became enraged and killed the philosophers and, such was his fury, also killed other entirely innocent philosophers and even those dressed like philosophers. The young Valentinianus's early death was a great blow to his parents, surrounded by religious scandal and quarrels. According to Socrates, Domnica told her husband that she had been having visions that their son's illness was a punishment for ill treatment of the bishop
Basil of Caesarea Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great (330 – 1 or 2 January 379) was an early Roman Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia from 370 until his death in 379. He was an influential theologian who suppor ...
. Basil was a prominent orthodox leader who opposed the emperor's semi-Arian beliefs. When asked to pray for the child, known as Galates, Basil is said to have responded by giving Valens’ commitment to orthodoxy as the condition for the boy's survival. Valens refused to comply and baptize Galates Catholic. He instead gave his son an Arian baptism. Basil replied by saying that God's will would be done, and Galates died soon after.


Defeat at Adrianople and the death of Valens

Valens was killed at the
Battle of Adrianople The Battle of Adrianople also known as Battle of Hadrianopolis was fought between the Eastern Roman army led by the Roman emperor Valens and Gothic rebels (largely Thervings as well as Greutungs, non-Gothic Alans, and various local rebels) ...
on August 9, 378. The Goths then continued to move east and attacked Constantinople. Because there was no emperor to lead the forces, the empress was forced to organize a counterattack. She paid soldiers’ wages out of the imperial treasury to any civilian volunteers who were willing to arm themselves against the invaders. After that, Domnica disappears from the historical record. The date and circumstances of her death remain unknown.


Notes


References


Sources

* * * * * * * * * Lewis, Naphtali, and Meyer Reinhold, eds. Roman Civilization: Volume II: the Empire. New York: Columbia UP, 1990. 594–597, 614–615. *Schaff, Philip. Theodoret, Jerome, Gennadius, and Rufinus: Historical Writings. Vol. 3. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1892. Christian Classics Ethereal Library. 17 May 2007 .


External links


Page of "Failure of Empire" reporting on her ancestry and familyEntry of her uncle Eusebius in the Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire
{{Roman empresses, state=collapsed 4th-century Roman empresses Arian Christians Augustae Valens Valentinianic dynasty Year of death unknown 4th-century women regents Byzantine regents 4th-century regents