Theophana Skleros
Female 1 January 957 - 15 June 991
Born, Constantinople, Byzantium, Turkey.
Married to II (Unknown). Mother of Adelaide (Unknown) and Sophia (Unknown) and *Mathilde Von Saxony and III (Unknown) and Theophana (Unknown). Daughter of II Romanus and Theophano Anastasia. Sister of Princess Theodora and Princess Agatha and II Basileos and Anna (Unknown) and VIII Constantine.
Theophanuheophania, was born in Constantinople, and was the wife of Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor.o, to seal a treaty between the Holy Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire. Theophanu duly arrived in 972, arriving in grand style with a magnificent escort and bearing great treasure. However, according to the chronicler Thietmar, she was not the virgo desiderata, the Imperial princess, that was expected. Theophanu is identified in the marriage contract as the neptis (niece or granddaughter) of Emperor John I Tzimisces. At one time it was believed Theophanu was the daughter of the Emperor Romanus III, but no mention is made of her being porphyrogenita, purple-born, nor are her parents identified. It is unlikely that Theophanu was the daughter of any emperor -- the current theory is that her father was Konstantinos Skleros (brother of the pretender Bardos Skleros) and her mother was Sophia Phokaina (niece of Emperor Nicephorus II and the sister of Tzimisces' wife Maria Skleraina).nt Peter's and she was crowned the same day in Rome. Their children were:as in her own name as Empress. It is known she was frequently at odds with her mother-in-law, Adelaide of Italy, and this caused an estrangement between Otto II and Adelaide. According to Odilo, Abbot of Cluny, Adelaide was very happy when "that Greek woman" died. Albert of Metz describes Theophanu as being an unpleasant and talkative woman. Theophanu was also criticized for introducing luxurious garments and jewelry into Germany. The theologian Peter Damian even asserts that Theophanu had a love affair with John Philagathos, a Greek monk who briefly reigned as Antipope John XVI.stmas Theophanu had their three-year-old son crowned as Otto III, with herself ruling as Empress Regent on his behalf. Henry II, Duke of Bavaria seized Otto in spring 984, but was forced to surrender the child to his mother. With the cooperation of Willigis, Archbishop of Mainz, and Hildebald, Bishop of Worms, Theophanu reigned until her death in 991. She was buried in the church of Saint Pantaleon at Cologne. The chronicler Thietmar eulogized her as follows: "Though [Theophanu] was of the weak sex she possessed moderation, trustworthiness, and -- which is not often found in Greece -- good manners. In this way she protected with male vigilance the royal power for her son, friendly with all those who were honest, but with terrifying superiority against rebels."ok over the regency until Otto III became old enough to rule on his own.
Sources
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