As long as the Empress Euphemia was alive, Justinian could not
contrive to marry Theodora. Though she did not oppose him on any other
point, she obstinately refused her consent to this one thing. She was
altogether free from vice, although she was a homely person and of
barbarian descent, as I have already said. She never cultivated any
active virtues, but remained utterly ignorant of State affairs. She
did not bear her own name, which was a ridiculous one, when she came
to the palace, but was re-named Euphemia. Soon afterwards, however,
she died.
Justin was in his second childhood and so sunk in senility that he was
the laughing-stock of his subjects. All despised him utterly, and
disregarded him because he was incompetent to control State affairs,
but they paid their court to Justinian with awe, for he terrified them
all by his love of disturbance and reckless innovations.
He then resolved to bring about his marriage with Theodora. It was
forbidden by the most ancient laws of the State that anyone of the
senatorial order should marry a courtesan; so he prevailed upon the
Emperor to repeal the existing law and introduce a new one, whereby he
was allowed to live with Theodora as his legitimate wife, and it
became possible for anyone else to marry a courtesan. He also
straightway assumed the demeanour of absolute despot, veiling his
forcible seizure of power under the pretext of reasons of State. He
was proclaimed Emperor of the Romans, as his uncle's colleague.
Whether this was legal or not may be doubted, since he owed his
election to the terror with which he inspired those who gave him their
votes.
So Justinian and Theodora ascended the Imperial throne three days
before Easter, at a time when it is forbidden to make visits or even
to greet one's friends. A few days later Justin was carried off by
disease, after a reign of nine years, and Justinian and Theodora
reigned alone.
Thus did Theodora, as I have told you, in spite of her birth and
bringing-up, reach the throne without finding any obstacle in her way.
Justinian felt no shame at having wedded her, although he might have
chosen the best born, the best educated, the most modest and
virtuously nurtured virgin in all the Roman Empire, with outstanding
breasts, as the saying is; whereas he preferred to take to himself the
common refuse of all mankind, and without a thought of all that has
been told, married a woman stained with the shame of many abortions
and many other crimes. Nothing more, I conceive, need be said about
this creature's character, for all the vices of his heart are
thoroughly displayed in the fact of so unworthy a marriage. When a man
feels no shame at an act of this kind, and braves the loathing of the
world, there is thereafter no path of wickedness which may not be
trodden by him, but, with a face incapable of blushing, he plunges,
utterly devoid of scruple, into the deepest baseness.
However, no one in the Senate had the courage to show dissatisfaction
at seeing the State fasten this disgrace upon itself, but all were
ready to worship Theodora as if she had been a goddess. Neither did
any of the clergy show any indignation, but bestowed upon her the
title of "Lady." The people who had formerly seen her upon the stage
now declared themselves, with uplifted hands, to be her slaves, and
made no secret of the name. None of the army showed irritation at
having to face the dangers of war in the service of Theodora, nor did
anyone of all mankind offer her the least opposition. All, I suppose,
yielded to circumstances, and suffered this disgraceful act to take
place, as though Fortune had wished to display her power by disposing
human affairs so that events came about in utter defiance of reason,
and human counsel seemed to have no share in directing them. Fortune
does thus raise men suddenly to great heights of power, by means in
which reason has no share, in spite of all obstacles that may bar the
way, for nothing can check her course, but she proceeds straight on
towards her goal, and everything makes way for her. But let all this
be, and be represented as it pleases God.
Theodora was at this time handsome and of a graceful figure, but she
was short, without much colour, but rather of a pale complexion, and
with brilliant and piercing eyes. It would take a life-time to tell of
all her adventures during her theatrical life, but I think what little
I have selected above will be sufficient to give an indication of her
character. We must now briefly set forth what she and her husband did,
for during their married life neither ever did anything without the
other. For a long time they appeared to all to be at variance both in
their characters and in their actions; but afterwards this
disagreement was seen to have been purposely arranged between them, in
order that their subjects might not come to an agreement and rise
against them, but might all be divided in their opinion. First, they
split up the Christians into two parties and brought them to ruin, as
I shall tell you hereafter, by this plan of pretending to take
different sides. Next they created divisions amongst the State
factions. Theodora feigned to be an eager partisan of the Blues, and
gave them permission to commit the greatest atrocities and deeds of
violence against the opposite faction, while Justinian pretended to be
grieved and annoyed in his secret soul, as though he could not oppose
his wife's orders; and often they would pretend to act in opposition.
The one would declare that the Blues must be punished because they
were evil-doers, while the other pretended to be enraged, and angrily
declared that she was overruled by her husband against her will. Yet,
as I have said, the Blue faction seemed wondrously quiet, for they did
not outrage their neighbours as much as they might have done.
In legal disputes, each of them would pretend to favour one of the
litigants, and of necessity made the man with the worse case win; by
this means they plundered both the parties of most of the disputed
property. The Emperor received many persons into his intimacy, and
gave them appointments with liberty to do what they pleased in the way
of violent injustice and fraud against the State; but when they were
seen to have amassed a considerable amount of wealth, they straightway
fell into disgrace for having offended the Empress. At first Justinian
would take upon himself to inquire kindly into their case, but soon he
would drop the pretence of good-will, and his zeal on their behalf
would throw the whole matter into confusion. Upon this, Theodora would
treat them in the most shameful way, while he, pretending not to
understand what was going on, would shamelessly confiscate their
entire property. They used to carry on these machinations by appearing
to be at variance, while really playing into each other's hands, and
were thus able to set their subjects by their ears and firmly
establish their own power.