Theodora Komnena (Austria)

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Gertrud (Gertraud), daughter of Emperor Lothar, (left) and Theodora Komnena, niece of the Byzantine emperor Manuel Komnenos (right). Excerpt from the Babenberger family tree , Klosterneuburg Abbey

Theodora Comnena, Princess of Byzantium, Duchess of Austria (* around 1134 in Constantinople Opel , † 2 January 1184 in Vienna ), was her marriage to Henry II Jasomirgott. Of Austria from the House of Babenberg , Marchioness of Austria (1149-1156 ), Duchess of Bavaria (1149–1156) and first Duchess of Austria (1156–1177).

origin

Theodora came from the House of the Comnenes , the longest ruling Byzantine ruling family , who provided six Byzantine emperors between 1057 and 1185 and 23 rulers of the Trebizond Empire from 1204 to 1461 .

She was a daughter of Sebastokrator Andronikos Komnenos (* 1108; † in autumn 1142) and thus niece of Emperor Manuel I Komnenos of Byzantium (1143–1180), granddaughter of Emperor John II of Byzantium (1118–1143) and great-granddaughter of Emperor Alexios I Comnenus of Byzantium (1081–1118).

Her mother Eirene Aineiadissa came from an old Byzantine patrician family, entered the Pantocratory monastery (now Zeyrek Mosque ) in Constantinople as a widow in 1144 , where she died in 1150/1151.

Theodora was also related to her Austrian husband Heinrich II. Jasomirgott , Duke of Austria (1156–1177), as both were in the female line of Emperor Heinrich III. (1046-1056) descended from the house of the Salians .

Life

Youth in Constantinople

Theodora grew up in Constantinople as a member of the imperial family in the luxurious and cultivated environment of the Byzantine court, which was under her grandfather John II Comnenus , Emperor of the Byzantine Empire , until 1143 . This was an important personality who was nicknamed "Kaloioannes" (John the Fair) not because of his physical appearance, but because of his character, because according to William of Tire he was small, extraordinarily ugly and of so dark skin color that you can see him Mohren called. For Byzantium, however, he was a rare example of a ruler who combined piety, unpretentiousness, integrity and justice with personal courage, organizational talent and strategic talent, so that he was referred to as the Byzantine " Marcus Aurelius ". These characteristics carried over to his politics and his court keeping and enabled the empire to regain political and military strength and to recapture lost territories. They undoubtedly also shaped Theodora's youth.

Theodora's father Andronikos Komnenos was Crown Prince of Byzantium for a few days after the death of his older brother Alexios Komnenos († summer 1142) , but also died before his father, Emperor John II, in the autumn of the same year. Theodora's brother Johannes Dukas Komnenos rose to become crown prince. However, because of his youth, this was passed over by his grandfather, Emperor John II, in favor of his highly gifted youngest son, Manuel I. Komnenos, who followed as Emperor of Byzantium (1143–1180). In any case, Theodora was very close to the Byzantine throne.

Second crusade

The Second Crusade (1147–1148) was to be decisive for her further life , to which - after the conquest of the county of Edessa in 1144 by Zengi , Lord of Mosul , and Aleppo - the most famous preacher of his time, Bernhard von Clairvaux , on 31. March 1146 in Vézelay ( Burgundy ). In the army, which with the Roman-German King Konrad III. von Hohenstaufen left Regensburg at the end of May 1147 , there was also the half-brother of King Heinrich II. Jasomirgott , Margrave of Austria , who had been named Heinrich XI since 1143. was also Duke of Bavaria . In Constantinople there were encounters with the imperial family, since King Konrad III. and Emperor Manuel I were related by marriage (their wives from the house of the Count von Sulzbach were sisters). Duke Heinrich, who had been widowed since 1143, fell in love with a niece of the emperor, Princess Theodora, who was only fifteen years old.

However, the romance was interrupted by the continuation of the crusade - with the devastating defeat of Conrad's army on October 25, 1147 at Dorylaeum (in Asia Minor , near today's Eskişehir ( Turkey )). King Konrad and Duke Heinrich survived with about 2,000 men and joined the subsequent army of King Ludwig VII of France . However, King Conrad fell ill in the winter of 1147 while marching to Jerusalem in Ephesus and returned to Constantinople at the invitation of Emperor Manuel, where he insisted on treating him personally. During this visit the marriage alliance between the emperor's niece - Theodora - and the half-brother of King Conrad III - Duke Heinrich - was agreed.

Again the continuation of the crusade should interrupt the relationship between the two fiancés. Instead of attacking Nur ad-Din , the son of Zengis and lords of Aleppo, and recapturing the county of Edessa , followed under King Louis VII of France and King Conrad III. a little deliberate attempt by the crusaders to conquer Damascus , which had to be abandoned on July 28, 1148 without success. King Konrad therefore decided to return to Germany, left Akkon with his court on September 8, 1148 , but made a stop in Constantinople at the invitation of Emperor Manuel I to celebrate Christmas there. There the marriage of Theodora to Duke Heinrich Jasomirgott was celebrated with great pomp - probably in the Hagia Sophia . However, dismayed Byzantines burst into tears that the adorable young princess was delivered to such a barbaric fate - "offered as a sacrifice to the monster from the west," as a poet wrote to her mother with compassion. However, the wedding also served in particular to achieve full reconciliation between the German and Byzantine courts.

Duchess of Bavaria, then of Austria

Theodora and Heinrich II traveled in the wake of King Conrad III. leaves Constantinople in the spring of 1149.

As Duke of Bavaria, Heinrich II resided with his wife Theodora mainly in his Bavarian capital, Regensburg, but occasionally also in Vienna. In both cities, Theodora may have felt homesick for the cosmopolitan city of Constantinople, as there was no city in western Europe that could even remotely compete with its hometown in terms of size, architecture, wealth and culture.

In 1156, for reasons of imperial politics, there was a decisive turning point in the life of the ducal couple: Friedrich I Barbarossa , who had been crowned emperor in 1155, decided to reconcile himself with the Guelphs by returning the Duchy of Bavaria. It therefore had to be taken away from his uncle Duke Heinrich II Jasomirgott - as painlessly as possible. The concept of this transaction - which Duke Heinrich tried to prevent several times - was laid down in a certificate from the emperor, the so-called "Priviliegium Minus" of September 17, 1156, which was the basis of Austrian statehood in the Middle Ages. Accordingly, Duke Heinrich II Jasomirgott had to renounce the Duchy of Bavaria, which his younger brother Leopold IV had ruled from Austria from 1139 to 1141 and he himself from 1143 to 1156, and handed it over to Heinrich the Lion . This in turn handed over the margravate Austria to Heinrich, which at the same time was elevated to an independent duchy of Austria and Heinrich was compensated by special privileges. Thanks to these special rights, the Privilegium Minus was sometimes referred to as the “Magna Charta” of the German territorial state.

The special rank of Theodoras as the imperial princess of Byzantium could have played a role in the following points:

  • The loan with the Duchy of Austria takes place jointly - not only to Heinrich, but also to Theodora at the same time.
  • The child's line of succession is intended not only in the male, but also in the female line.
  • In the event of childlessness, Heinrich and Theodora have the right to turn the duchy to whomever they want.

These rights went far beyond what was customary in the empire, in particular the "libertas affectandi", i. H. the free choice of a successor in the event of childless death, which was unique in the constitution of the time.

Theodora and Heinrich therefore left their previous residence in Regensburg in 1156 and made Vienna the capital of the newly created Duchy of Austria. Since Regensburg was already disappointing for Theodora, Duke Heinrich II felt compelled to vigorously upgrade Vienna, the no less disappointing new center of Theodora's life, which undoubtedly happened with her cooperation. This was urgently needed, as this city was only two decades ago under his father, Leopold III. , the saint, had come to his house.

Based on the highly developed theological and intellectual tradition of Byzantine monasteries, Heinrich founded the Schottenstift in Vienna in 1155 , ie the “Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady of the Scots”, as a spiritual and scientific center as well as a new burial place for his family. This monastery also had a connection to the old royal seat in Bavaria, as it was settled with Irish monks from the Schottenkloster St. Jakob in Regensburg . At that time it was built on a hill outside the western city walls of Vienna on the old Roman road, today's Herrengasse . The oldest Viennese parish churches, the Ruprechtskirche and the Peterskirche as well as the church Maria am Gestade , were entrusted to him.

To the Roman past of Vienna emphasize one went as historian Karl Lechner suggested a step further by the Latin name contained in the Deed of 1161 Vienna was chosen as the "Favie" with regard to Theodora to Vienna with the Favianis the Equate Vita Severini of Eugippius . This should probably indicate the common Austrian-Byzantine roots in the ancient Roman Empire. In fact, Favianis was not in Vienna, but in today's city of Mautern on the Danube .

The move to Vienna also required the construction of a new residence corresponding to the prestige of a Byzantine princess, which was built on today's “Am Hof” square, near the old western - in some cases still Roman - city walls. Unfortunately, thanks to the subsequent changing overbuilding, no archaeological evidence of this building - and thus also no evidence of any stylistic elements of Byzantine architecture that can be traced back to Theodora - has been obtained so far. The fact that the court chapel was consecrated to Saints Pantaleon and Pankratius , both of whom come from Eastern Europe, could be understood as a gesture to Theodora.

Around the same time there was also an expansion of the city by incorporating a street village east of Stephansplatz , between Wollzeile and Singerstrasse as far as Riemergasse.

Theodora must have played a role that should not be neglected in the cultural field. Thanks to the crusades that took place by land and moved - in both directions - along the Danube and past Vienna, around 1096, 1147 and 1189, Vienna was exposed to new influences , through which many cultural elements from the Orient entered the empire and with it found in Austria. New patronage for churches came into use, Greek literature and the Byzantine conception of art, especially in painting, book art and applied arts, found their way into the West, as did scientific, technical, mathematical and musical knowledge. This Byzantine influence was undoubtedly reinforced by Theodora's presence in Vienna.

The fact that a Greek princess resided in Vienna probably also contributed to the fact that the influence of Greek culture was felt in Vienna. It is probably due to Byzantine influence that the court in Vienna was now more concerned with the ancient past of Austria. Otto I of Austria , Bishop of Freising (1138–1158) (younger brother of Duke Heinrich II.), Who also took part in the Second Crusade and experienced Constantinople, has undoubtedly also received inspiration for his work from Byzantine historiography, for example for the famous Chronica sive Historia de duabus civitatibus (Chronicle or History of the Two States), a world history in seven books, which made him one of the most important historians of the Middle Ages. As a result, Austrian historiography flourished during Theodora's lifetime, as the Breve chronicon Austriacum Mellicense (about the history of the family) was written in Melk Abbey and the Chronicon pii marchionis (on the life of Margrave Leopold III of Austria ) in Klosterneuburg .

For Theodora, however, life at the Viennese court was by no means solely dedicated to expanding the city and cultural life, as the internal and external political conflicts of the empire also had an impact here, such as the conflicting papal election that took place in 1159, which divided the family: her brother-in-law Conrad II of Austria supported Pope Alexander III as Archbishop of Salzburg (1164–1168) . , while her husband, Duke Heinrich, supported the antipope Viktor IV .

Since Duke Heinrich stayed in the vicinity of Emperor Friedrich I many times and, contrary to the Privilegium Minus, voluntarily accompanied him on his campaigns - around 1158 and 1162 against Milan and the Lombard cities - Theodora repeatedly ruled over the city during this time Duchy of Austria.

Another important event in Theodora's life was certainly the visit of Emperor Friedrich I Barbarossa (1155–1190) in 1165, who stayed in Vienna for two weeks on the occasion of a crusade project and at the same time had Duke Heinrich swear an oath on the antipope Victor IV . At that time, Emperor Friedrich I undoubtedly stayed in the new castle "am Hof".

Another important visit to the residence of Theodoras and Heinrich in Vienna was that of Duke Heinrich the Lion , who made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1172, visiting his stepfather Duke Heinrich Jasomirgott and Theodora. He moved into the "civitas metropolitana Wene" (capital Vienna), which at that time was already one of the most important German cities.

The ducal couple were not spared problems with their neighbors either, although Heinrich and Theodora tried to calm down the uncertain borders in the east and north by means of a targeted marriage policy. This led to a conflict with Bohemia when Duke Soběslav II invaded Austria in 1175/76 and devastated the Waldviertel . There was also a conflict with the Kingdom of Hungary when Duke Heinrich sided with a brother of his daughter-in-law (Prince Géza) against her other brother (King Béla III of Hungary). (The latter was first married to Maria Komnene, a cousin of Theodoras and daughter of Emperor Manuel I, and was temporarily crown prince of Byzantium.) In 1176, Duke Heinrich's opponents united, so that soldiers from Bohemia, Hungary, Poland and Saxony invaded the duchy. There were also numerous conflicts with the Margraves of Styria from the House of Traungau over border issues, with Margrave Ottokar IV finally joining the hostile coalition against Austria in 1176.

A decisive turning point in Theodora's life was the death of her husband, Duke Heinrich II, who suffered serious injuries as a result of falling from his horse near Melk , to which he died on January 13, 1177 in Vienna. According to his last will, he was buried in a high grave in the Schottenkirche in Vienna. His grave has been in the crypt of the Schottenstift since the 19th century . A statue on the outer wall of the Schottenkirche commemorates him.

The marriage of her younger son, Heinrich of Austria , to Richza of Bohemia, which sealed the Eger peace treaty between Austria and Bohemia in 1179, may have been the last great event in Theodora's life. Theodora died six years after her husband, on January 2, 1184, and was buried next to her husband with the Scots.

Theodora was the first, but not the last, Greek ruler of Austria because her grandson, Duke Leopold VI. with Theodora Angela and her great-grandson, Duke Friedrich II the Arguable, married other Byzantine princesses with Eudokia Laskarina. This underlines the high status of this first “House of Austria” and is an early indication of the historical bridging function of this country.

Marriage and offspring

Theodora Komnene married Heinrich II , then Duke of Bavaria (* c. 1112, † January 13, 1177), the 1140 Count Palatine on the Rhine, from 1141 to 1156 Margrave of Austria , from 1143 to 1156 Duke of Bavaria and from 1156 to 1177 he was the first Duke of Austria . The nominal difference in class between a Byzantine princess and a Duke of Bavaria was largely compensated because Heinrich II. Was a half-brother of the Roman-German King Konrad III. of Swabia and through him to the uncle of Theodora, Emperor I. Manuel , was related. In addition, Heinrich was already in his first marriage to an imperial princess, Gertrud von Sachsen , a daughter of Emperor Lothar III. from Supplinburg , been married. He was therefore one of the few princes who were related by marriage to both the rulers of the Western and the Byzantine Empire.

Children:

The following children were from the marriage of Theodoras to Heinrich II. Duke of Austria:

  • Agnes of Austria, (* 1154, † 1185)
oo 1.) 1168 Stephan III. King of Hungary (1161–1172), from the house of the Árpáds .
oo 2.) Hermann II von Spanheim Duke of Carinthia , († 1181)
oo 1172 Ilona / Helene Princess of Hungary , († May 25, 1199), T. v. King Géza II of Hungary
oo 1179 Richza Princess of Bohemia, († April 19, 1182), T. v. King Vladislav II of Bohemia

literature

  • Karl Lechner: Die Babenberger - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976-1246 , Böhlau-Verlag, Vienna, Cologne, Graz, 3rd edition 1985, ISBN 3-205-00018-8 .
  • Georg Scheibelreiter: The Babenbergs, imperial princes and sovereigns. Böhlau Verlag, Vienna / Cologne / Weimar 2010, ISBN 978-3-205-78573-6 .
  • Steven Runciman: History of the Crusades , translation from English, DTV-Verlag, 2nd edition 1997
  • Georg Ostrogorsky: Byzantine History 324 - 1453 , Verlag CH Beck, Munich, 2nd edition 2006, ISBN 3-406-39759-X
  • John Julius Norwich: Bisanzio - Splendore e Decadenza di un Impero 330 - 1453 , Mondatdori Editore, Milano 2000, ISBN 88-04-49922-2 (Original title: A short History of Byzantium)
  • Johannes Preiser-Kapeller, From Ostarrichi to the Bosporus. An overview of relationships in the Middle Ages , in: Pro Oriente Yearbook 2010. Vienna 2011, pp. 66–77 ( online )

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Detlev Schwennike: European Family Tables New Series , Verlag JA Stargardt, Volume II, Plate 177
  2. ^ Steven Runciman: History of the Crusades , (translation), DTV-Verlag Munich, 2nd edition 1997, p. 574.
  3. ↑ Steven Runciman: History of the Crusades , (translation), DTV-Verlag Munich, 2nd edition 1997, p. 589.
  4. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenberger - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976-1246 , p. 155.
  5. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenbergs - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 157.
  6. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenberger - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976-1246 , p. 244.
  7. ↑ a b c d e Karl Lechner: The Babenberger - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 245.
  8. ↑ Karl Lechner: The Babenbergs - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 152.
  9. ^ A b Karl Lechner: The Babenbergs - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976-1246 , p. 255.
  10. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenbergs - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 169/171.
  11. ↑ Richard Groner: “Vienna as it was”, reworked by Felix Czeike; Verlag Fritz Molden - Wien - Munich, 5th edition 1965, p. 22.
  12. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenbergs - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 166.
  13. ↑ Ref BUB IV / 1, No. 826, | Document book on the history of the Babenbergs, Volume IV / 1 Supplementary sources 976 - 1194, No. 826 (1968).
  14. ^ Karl Lechner: The Babenberger - Margraves and Dukes of Austria 976 - 1246 , p. 167.
  15. ↑ BUB IV / 1 No. 848
predecessor Office successor
- Duchess of Austria
1156–1177 		Ilona, ​​daughter of the Hungarian King Géza II.
personal data
SURNAME Theodora Komnena
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Theodora Komnena Princess of Byzantium, first Duchess of Austria
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Duchess of Austria
DATE OF BIRTH around 1134
PLACE OF BIRTH Constantinople
DATE OF DEATH January 2, 1184
Place of death Vienna