Nicola Bergamo: Was Irene truly a Roman Emperor?

Describing the life of a saint is never easy. On the one hand, one may rely too heavily on the hagiography that embellishes his or her actions. On the other, a saint's unique character may be lost in the very efforts undertaken to demystify it. In addition to the challenges so common to contemporary historiography, one might also fail to contextualize past events, thereby providing a modern vision of a society that disappeared centuries ago. The figure of Irene (752-803) is not exempt from this conundrum. My intervention will shed light on some stubbornly obscure points, while trying to avoid, in the process of contextualization, unlikely comparisons with modern society. My paper will focus on the rise to power of Irene who quickly became a perfect court woman when she took over the great imperial bureaucratic machinery shortly after the death of her husband. Additionally, I will address the nearly symbiotic relationship between Irene and her son Constantine especially when he forced her to relinquish the imperial throne despite her continued hold on imperial power, a decision which cost him his life. Once every possible opponent had been eliminated, Irene’s symbolic triumph of power becomes apparent, especially through her dominance and control over the four most powerful men of the Empire at the time of Byzantium's most important festivities. Although coins are the only remaining proof that Irene had proclaimed herself "Basileus", there are many arguments in support of viewing her as, in fact, the first Female Roman Emperor.