Theodora (also Teodora) (c. 870 – 916) was a senatrix and ''serenissima vestaratrix'' of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. Theodora, a Byzantine princess, was married to Theophylact I, Count of Tusculum, of the incredibly powerful Theophylact family. Theophylact I was appointed both commander of the Roman militia and head of the papal chapel. The couple shared effective rulership of Rome between 905 and her death in 916. As heads of the most powerful family in Rome, Theodora and her husband held great sway over the papacy. Theodora was rumoured to have been a lover of Pope John X, and she supported his papal candidacy. With her husband Theophylact I, Theodora had at least three children:

Marozia Marozia, born Maria and also known as Mariuccia or Mariozza ( 890 – 937), was a Roman noblewoman who was the alleged mistress of Pope Sergius III and was given the unprecedented titles ''senatrix'' ("senatoress") and ''patricia'' of Rome by Po ...

, Theodora II, and Sergia. Her daughter,

, was the alleged lover of

Pope Sergius III Pope Sergius III ( − 14 April 911) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from 29 January 904 to his death. He was pope during a period of violence and disorder in central Italy, when warring aristocratic factions soug ...

, and mother of

Pope John XI Pope John XI (; 910 – December 935) was the bishop of Rome and nominal ruler of the Papal States from March 931 to his death. The true ruler of Rome at the time was his mother, Marozia, followed by his brother Alberic II. His pontificate occu ...

. The latter, according to Liutprand of Cremona and the ''

Liber Pontificalis The ''Liber Pontificalis'' (Latin for 'pontifical book' or ''Book of the Popes'') is a book of biography, biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the ''Liber Pontificalis'' stopped with Pope Adr ...

'', was fathered by Sergius. However, the annalist

Flodoard Flodoard of Reims (; 893/4 – 28 March 966) was a Frankish chronicler and priest of the cathedral church of Reims in the West Frankish kingdom during the decades following the dissolution of the Carolingian Empire. His historical writings are ...

(c. 894–966), a direct contemporary of Theodora's, says John XI was the brother of Count Alberic II of Spoleto. Because Alberic II was Marozia's son by her husband Count Alberic I of Spoleto, John was likely the son of Marozia and Alberic I. Theodora was characterized by the aforementioned Liutprand as a "shameless whore ... hoexercised power on the Roman citizenry like a man". Liutprand, a bishop of Cremona, was known to his contemporaries and modern historians as being unfair to adversaries.

General bibliography

* E. Dümmler, ''Auxilius u. Vulgarius. Quellen und Forschungen zur Geschichte des Papsttums im Anfange des zehnten Jahrhunderts'', Leipzig 1866, pp. 12–26; * P. Fedele, ''Ricerche per la storia di Roma e del papato al secolo X'', in "Archivio della Società Romana di Storia Patria", 33, 1910, pp. 177–247; 34, 1911, pp. 75–115 e 393–423; * L. Duchesne, ''Serge III. et Jean XI.'', in "Mélanges d'archéologie et d'histoire", 33 (1913), pp. 25–64 *

Ferdinand Gregorovius Ferdinand Gregorovius (; 19 January 1821 – 1 May 1891) was a German historian who specialized in the medieval history of Rome. Biography Gregorovius was the son of Neidenburg district justice council Ferdinand Timotheus Gregorovius and his wi ...

, ''Storia di Roma nel medioevo'', New Compton Editori Srl, Roma 1972 * ''Lexikon des Mittelalters'', München 2002 *

Citations

External links

"Liutprand of Cremona"
in the ''

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

'' Papal mistresses People from medieval Rome Women and the papacy 10th-century Italian women 10th-century Italian nobility 870s births 916 deaths {{RC-bio-stub