naturally developed a new and an exceedingly high type of womanhood. Of
the women of the provinces we know almost nothing, for the records of
the Eastern Empire centre about the capital city. We may be sure,
however, that throughout the Orient Christian womanhood exhibited its
characteristic traits of piety and unselfishness. In Constantinople,
though an intensely religious city, paganism for centuries continued to
exert a marked influence, and the type of woman there varied in
accordance with the proportions of the two ingredients--Christianity and
paganism--in the mental and spiritual aggregate of the individual woman.
Some, to avoid the vanities and temptations of the world, lived lives of
retirement in secluded monasteries; others, often of prominent social
position, partook not of the gay life of the city, but gave themselves
up to good works, ministering to the sick, providing for the poor,
uplifting the fallen; while others, chiefly in the court circles, knew
how to combine with their devotion to all the vanities and frivolities
of high life a strict attention to the external duties of Christianity.
The religious sisters of the day were an important factor in the society
of Constantinople, and the exercise of their spiritual duties often
brought them before the public in a manner inconsistent with the
prevailing ideas of female retirement. A popular priest or bishop became
the target of admiration on the part of enthusiastic women, who would
gather about him and espouse his cause in a way that was often more
embarrassing than helpful. As Jerome in Old Rome, so Chrysostom in New
Rome was the centre of such a spiritual circle.
These various types of Christian womanhood present themselves in the
reign of Arcadius, the first independent emperor of the Eastern Empire
so called, and we are indebted to the sermons of the patriarch
Chrysostom for many glimpses into their lives. Far more than in Old Rome
the influence of women made itself felt in the government at
Constantinople, and under almost every dynasty and throughout the
centuries of its existence we find remarkable ladies of the imperial
house playing a prominent part in politics as well as in religion.
The keynote of this new departure was struck by Eudoxia, empress of
Arcadius, and the influence of her personality and her example upon her
successors was marked. Hence, her career and that of the women of her
time constitute the initial stage in the prominence of Christian women
of the East.
Owing to the intellectual weakness of Arcadius, who inherited the
eastern half of the Empire upon the death of Theodosius the Great in
395, the administration really fell into the hands of his minister,
Rufinus, a vicious and avaricious man. Having the entire control of the
army and an unbounded influence over the emperor, Rufinus cherished the
hope that he might himself become a wearer of the purple as the
colleague of Arcadius. To facilitate this end he fostered the scheme of
uniting Arcadius in marriage to his only daughter; once the emperor's
father-in-law, it would be but a step further to become a sharer of the
purple.
While Rufinus, in secret with his confidants, nurtured this idea, the
wily head of the opposite party of the court, getting an inkling of it,
set everything in motion to turn the eyes of the inexperienced youth
toward another maiden. The eunuch Eutropius, the grand chamberlain of
the palace, a bold old man with Oriental craftiness, determined that to
himself, and not to Rufinus, should the emperor be bound. Hence, while
the old warrior was on a journey to Corinth avenging a private injury,
Eutropius fixed the attention of the emperor upon Eudoxia, a maiden of
singular beauty, the daughter of Bauto, a distinguished Frankish
general, and reared since her father's death by the family of the sons
of Promotus, an ancient Roman patrician. Eudoxia was at that time at the
dawn of perfect womanhood. Her education had been received under the
auspices of her rich and noble patrons, and in native gifts, as well as
in beauty, she seemed destined by the Fates to be the consort of an
emperor. Eutropius, by showing him her portrait and by glowing
descriptions of her charms, inflamed the heart of the young ruler with
his first passion, and he entered eagerly into the plans of Eutropius to
make Eudoxia his wife.
Rufinus meanwhile returned, and prepared the ceremonies of the royal
nuptials, as he fancied, of his daughter. "A splendid train of eunuchs
and officers issued, in hymeneal pomp, from the gates of the palace,
bearing aloft the diadem, the robes and the inestimable ornaments of the
future empress. The solemn procession passed through the streets of the
city, which were adorned with garlands and filled with spectators; but
when it reached the house of the sons of Promotus, the principal eunuch
(Eutropius) respectfully entered the mansion, invested the fair Eudoxia
with the imperial robes and conducted her in triumph to the palace and
bed of Arcadius." The particulars of the ceremony show that the hymeneal
rites of the ancient Greeks, in which the bride was, as it were,
forcibly conducted to the house of her husband, were still practised,
though without idolatry, by the early Christians.
The secrecy and success of the conspiracy brought great chagrin to the
overconfident Rufinus. He felt keenly the insult to himself and his
daughter, and he feared the growing power of Eutropius and the new
empress. Yet he merely tightened his grip upon the government and
continued to be a formidable factor in the intrigues of the palace.
The Empress Eudoxia rapidly adapted herself to her new life and
displayed a superiority of sense and spirit which enabled her to
maintain over her fond and youthful husband the ascendancy that her
beauty had at first created. She soon made it evident that she would be
under the control of no intriguing courtier, but that she herself would
be a dominant factor in the life of the court. Rufinus continued his
plots against the throne of Arcadius, but was constantly thwarted by the
empress, assisted by Eutropius, and their counterplays finally brought
about the minister's assassination.
After the murder of Rufinus, the empress endeavored to hold the balance
of power between the three political parties of the day--the German
party, headed by Gainas the Goth, which largely embraced the military
forces of the Empire; the party of Eutropius, who had under his control
the civil officers of the state; and the senatorial party, under the
leadership of the prefect Aurelian, who abhorred alike the growing
influence of the Goths and the bed-chamber administration of Eutropius.
Eudoxia naturally inclined to the third of these parties: she
strenuously opposed the Germans, who, under the leadership of Gainas,
demanded freedom for Arian worship, and she sought to overcome the
influence of her quondam benefactor Eutropius, that she herself might
have absolute dominion over her imperial husband. Hence, these three,
the empress, Eutropius, and Gainas, as Hodgkin remarks, "kept up a vivid
game of court intrigue and disputed with varying success for the chief
place in that empty chamber which represented the mind of the emperor."
Eudoxia first combined with Gainas to get rid of their powerful rival
Eutropius, though she owed her own position to the machinations of the
wily chamberlain. Gainas instigated a revolt among the Ostrogoths under
their commander Tribigild, and when sent out against them he took no
active measures to suppress their incursions; the Goths, at the
instigation of Gainas, finally sent word to the emperor demanding the
death of Eutropius as the condition of their retiring. Eudoxia, from the
palace, joined in the demand and presenting her infant children,
Flacilla and Pulcheria, to their father, with a flood of forced tears,
implored his justice for some real or imaginary insult which she
attributed to the audacious eunuch. The tears of the empress succeeded
where the demand of Tribigild had only caused hesitation, and Arcadius
signed the death warrant of his favorite. The people rejoiced at the
downfall of the minister, whose venality and injustice had aroused the
public hatred. Eutropius fled for refuge to the Church of Saint Sophia,
where he was protected by the patriarch Chrysostom. So good an
opportunity, however, for impressing the lesson of the fatuity of human
greatness was not to be lost, and while the cowering chamberlain lay in
humiliation before the altar, Chrysostom preached to a crowded
congregation from the text: "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity,"
illustrating every argument of his sermon by pointing to the fallen
Eutropius--yesterday prime minister of the emperor--to-day a hounded
criminal. Chrysostom finally gave him up on condition that he be not put
to death, and Eutropius was banished to Cyprus; but the empress and his
enemies would not be satisfied with anything less than his death, and he
was later recalled and executed at Chalcedon in A. D. 399.
Not long afterward, Gainas met with a like evil destiny, and Eudoxia was
left without a rival to dispute her control over the emperor. The weak
Arcadius was permitted to spend the remaining years of his life in ease
and tranquillity under her mild but absolute control. Henceforth the
empress was the most conspicuous figure of the court. Possessing
limitless power, it was natural that she should become haughty and
rapacious. Endowed with rare beauty and remarkable cleverness, she gave
the tone to the court society of Arcadius's reign. Unfortunately, she
was fond of all the frivolities of life, and sought at the same time to
promote worldliness and religion. Hence, her influence on the ladies of
the court was such as to bring upon her the censure of the austere
Patriarch of Constantinople, Chrysostom, to whom we are indebted for
many glimpses into the life and manners of the fifth century.
The empress was surrounded in the royal palace by a splendor which
rivalled that of Persia. Oriental richness and luxury characterized all
its appointments. We find exhibited in the court life of the day a
blending of the voluptuousness of the East with the refinement of the
Greeks and the luxury of the Romans. Thousands of eunuchs, parasites and
slaves, carried out the wishes of the empress. In her royal apartments
"the doors were of ivory, the ceilings lined with gold, the floors
inlaid with mosaics, or strewed with rich carpets; the walls of the
halls and bedrooms were of marble, and wherever commoner stone was used
the surface was beautified with gold plate. The beds were of ivory or
solid silver, or, if on a less expensive scale, of wood plated with
silver or gold. Chairs and stools were usually of ivory, and the most
homely vessels were often made of the most costly metal; the
semicircular tables or sigmas were so heavy that two youths could hardly
lift one. Oriental cooks were employed; and at banquets the atmosphere
was heavy with the perfumes of the East, while the harps and pipes of
the musicians delighted the ears of the feasters."
Equal attention was paid to the details of dress. The empress was
renowned for the gorgeousness of her toilets, which enhanced her
personal charms and made her appear the most fascinating lady of her
court. Her imperial robes were of the richest character, consisting of
purple fabrics, embellished with gold and precious gems.
Such was the external splendor of the court. The Bishop Synesius
censures the elaborate court etiquette which surrounded the emperor and
empress, keeping them from the knowledge of outside affairs and making
them the victims of eunuchs and courtiers. He criticises severely the
sensual retirement in which they lived and attributes it to the desire
to appear semi-divine.
Some idea of the importance of the empress in affairs of state and of
the court etiquette which attended an audience with her can be gained
from the extant narrative of Marcus the deacon, who recounts incidents
in the visit of Porphyrius, Bishop of Gaza, when he and others came to
Constantinople to seek redress from the emperor for injuries inflicted
by the heathen on the Christians in Palestine. Knowing that the empress
was the real power, the bishop appealed to her, and the narrative tells
of his audiences with her and how she obtained for him a favorable
answer to his petition. As nothing is more effective in conveying an
idea of the ways and manners of an age than the actual words of a
contemporary writer, I present a rather free translation of Marcus's
narrative.
Upon their arrival at Byzantium, the bishop and his party were honorably
received by the Patriarch John Chrysostom, who expressed regret that he
could not in person present them to the emperor, because of the royal
indignation the empress had excited against him. But he secured the
services of the eunuch Amantius, chamberlain of the empress, who
arranged for them an audience with Eudoxia.
Amantius took the two bishops and introduced them to the empress, and
when she saw them she saluted them first and said: "Give me your
blessing, fathers," and they did obeisance to her. Now she was sitting
on a golden sofa, and she said to them: "Excuse me, priests of Christ,
on account of my situation, for I was anxious to meet your sanctity in
the antechamber. But pray God in my behalf that I may be delivered
happily of the child which is in my womb." And the bishops, wondering at
her condescension, said: "May He who blessed the womb of Sarah and
Rebecca and Elizabeth, bless and quicken the child in thine." After
further edifying conversation she said to them: "I know why ye came, as
the castrensis Amantius explained it to me. But if you are fain to
instruct me, fathers, I am at your service." Thus bidden, they told her
all about the idolaters, and the impious rites which they fearlessly
practised and their oppression of the Christians, whom they did not
allow to perform a public duty, nor to till their lands, "from which
produce they pay the dues to your imperial sovereignty." And the empress
said: "Do not despond; for I trust in the Lord Christ, the Son of God,
that I shall persuade the emperor to do those things that are due to
your saintly faith and to dismiss you hence well treated. Depart, then,
to your privacy, for you are fatigued, and pray God to cooperate with my
request." She then commanded money to be brought, and gave three darics
apiece to the most holy bishops, saying: "In the meantime take this for
your expenses." And the bishops took the money, and blessed her
abundantly, and departed. And when they went out they gave the greater
part of the money to the deacons who were standing at the door,
reserving little for themselves.
And when the emperor came into the apartment of the empress, she told
him all touching the bishops, and requested him that the heathen temples
of Gaza should be thrown down. But the emperor was put out when he heard
it, and said:
"I know that city is devoted to idols, but it is loyally disposed in the
matters of taxation and pays a large sum to the revenue. If then we
overwhelm them with terrors of a sudden, they will betake themselves to
flight, and we shall lose so much of the revenue. But if it must be, let
us afflict them partially, depriving idolaters of their dignities and
other public offices, and bid their temples be shut up and be used no
longer. For when they are afflicted and straitened on all sides, they
will recognize the truth; but an extreme measure coming suddenly is hard
on subjects." The empress was very much vexed at this reply, for she was
ardent in matters of faith, but she merely said: "The Lord can assist
his servants, the Christians, whether we consent or decline."
We learned these details from the chamberlain Amantius. On the morrow
the Augusta sent for us, and having first saluted the holy bishops
according to her custom, she bade them sit down. And after a long
spiritual talk, she said: "I spoke to the emperor, and he was rather put
out. But do not despond, for, God willing, I cannot cease until ye be
satisfied and depart, having succeeded in your holy purpose." And the
bishops made obeisance. Then the saintly Porphynus, pricked by the
spirit, and recollecting the word of the thrice-blessed anchoret
Procopius, said to the empress: "Exert yourself for the sake of Christ,
and in recompense for your exertions he can bestow on you a son whose
life and reign you will see and enjoy for many years."
At these words the empress was filled with joy, and her face flushed,
and new beauty beyond that which she already had passed into her face;
for the appearance shows what passes within. And she said: "Pray,
fathers, that, according to your word, with the will of God, I may bear
a male child, and if it so befall, I promise you to do all that ye ask.
And another thing, for which ye ask not, I intend to do with the consent
of Christ; I will found a church at Gaza in the centre of the city.
Depart then in peace, and rest quiet, praying constantly for my happy
delivery; for the time of my confinement is near." The bishops commended
her to God and left the palace, and prayer was made that she should bear
a male child; for we believed in the words of Saint Procopius the
anchoret.
And every day we used to proceed to the most holy Johannes, the
archbishop, and had the fruition of his holy words, sweeter than honey
and the honeycomb. And Amantius the chamberlain used to come to us,
sometimes bearing messages from the empress, at other times merely to
pay a visit. And after a few days the empress brought forth a male
child, and he was called Theodosius, after his grandfather Theodosius,
the Spaniard, who reigned together with Gratian. And the child
Theodosius was born in the purple, wherefore he was proclaimed emperor
at his birth. And there was great joy in the city, and men were sent to
the cities of the Empire, bearing the good news, with gifts and
bounties.
But the empress, who had only just been delivered and arisen from her
chair of confinement, sent Amantius to us with this message: "I thank
Christ that God bestowed on me a son on account of your holy prayers.
Pray then, fathers, for his life and for my lowly self, in order that I
may fulfil those things which I promised you, Christ himself again
consenting, through your holy prayers." And when the seven days of her
confinement were fulfilled, she sent for us and met us at the door of
the chamber, carrying in her arms the infant in a purple robe. And she
inclined her head and said: "Draw nigh, fathers, unto me and the child
which the Lord granted to me through your holy prayers." And she gave
them the child that they might seal it with God's signet. And the holy
bishops sealed both her and the child with the seal of the cross, and,
offering a prayer, sat down. And when they had spoken many words full of
heart pricking, the lady said to them: "Do ye know, fathers, what I
resolved to do in regard to your affairs?" (Here Porphyrius related a
dream which he had dreamed the night before: then Eudoxia resumed:) "If
Christ permit, the child will be privileged to receive the holy baptism
in a few days. Do ye then depart and compose a petition and insert in it
all the requests ye wish to make. And when the child comes forth from
the holy baptismal rite, give the petition to him who holds the child in
his arms; but I will instruct him what to do. And I trust in the Son of
God that He can arrange the whole matter according to the will of His
loving kindness." Having received these instructions we blessed her and
the infant and went out. Then we composed the petition, inserting many
things in the document, not only as to the overthrow of the idols, but
also that privileges and revenues should be granted to the holy Church
and the Christians; for the holy Church was poor.
The days ran by, and the day on which the young emperor was to be
illuminated (_i. e._, baptized) arrived. And all the city was crowned
with garlands and decked out in garments entirely made of silk and gold
jewels and all kinds of ornaments, so that no one could describe the
adornment of the city. One might behold the inhabitants, multitudinous
as the waves, arrayed in all manner of various dresses. But it is beyond
my power to describe the brilliance of that pomp; it is a task for those
who are practised writers, and I shall proceed to my present true
history. When the young Theodosius was baptized and came forth from the
church to the palace, you might behold the excellence of the multitude
of the magnates and their dazzling raiments, for all were dressed in
white, and you would have thought they were covered with snow. The
patricians headed the procession with the illustres and all other ranks,
and the military contingents, all carrying wax candles, so that the
stars seemed to shine on earth. And close to the infant, which was
carried in arms, was the emperor Arcadius himself, his face cheerful and
more radiant than the purple robe he was wearing, and one of the
magnates carried the infant in brilliant apparel. And we marvelled,
beholding such glory. Then the holy Porphyrius said to us: "If the
things which vanish possess such glory, how much more glorious are the
things celestial, prepared for the elect, which neither eye hath beheld
nor ear heard, nor hath it come into the heart of man to consider!"
And we stood at the portal of the church, with the document of our
petition, and when he came forth from the baptism we called aloud,
saying, "We petition your Piety," and held out the paper. And he who
carried the child seeing this, and knowing our concernment, for the
empress had instructed him, and when he received it halted, and he
commanded silence, and having unrolled a part he read it, and folding it
up, placed his hand under the head of the child, and cried out: "His
majesty has ordered the requests contained in the petition to be
ratified." And all having seen did obeisance to the emperor,
congratulating him that he had the privilege of seeing his son as
emperor in his lifetime; and he rejoiced thereat. And that which had
happened for the sake of her son was announced to the empress, and she
rejoiced and thanked God on her knees. And when the child entered the
palace, she met it and received it and kissed it, and, holding it in her
arms, greeted the emperor, saying: "You are blessed, my lord, for the
things which your eyes have beheld in your lifetime." And the emperor
rejoiced thereat. And the empress, seeing him in good humor, said:
"Please let us learn what the petition contains that its contents may be
fulfilled."
And the emperor ordered the paper to be read; and when it was read, he
said: "The request is hard, but to refuse it is harder, since it is the
first mandate of our son." Thus the petition was granted, and the
empress herself saw to it that all its provisions were fulfilled; and
the bishops returned to Palestine well supplied with funds, having
obtained all they desired by working on the superstition of the empress,
and through her skill in managing the emperor.
The narrative is highly instructive and interesting in the picture it
gives of the empress, her outward piety, her joy at the birth of a son,
her superstitious acceptance of the prophecy of the anchoret, and her
cleverness in the ruse she devised to win the consent of the emperor. It
is an altogether pleasing picture of a religious queen and a devoted
mother, and we could wish that all her conduct had conformed to these
high ideals. The worldly side of Eudoxia's character appeared in the
open war between the empress and the patriarch, which disturbed the
later years of the reign of Arcadius.