Empress Theophanu
| Theophanu | |
|---|---|
Statue at St Dionysius Church, Eschwege
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| Empress consort of the Holy Roman Empire | |
| Tenure | 973–983 |
| Queen consort of Germany | |
| Tenure | 972–983 |
| Coronation | 14 April 972 |
| Predecessor | Adelaide of Italy |
| Successor | Cunigunde of Luxembourg |
| Born | c 955 possibly Constantinople |
| Died |
15 June 991 Nijmegen |
| Spouse | Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Issue more... |
Adelaide I, Abbess of Quedlinburg Sophia I, Abbess of Gandersheim Mathilde, Countess Palatine of Lorraine Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor |
Theophanu (Greek: Θεοφανώ, Theophano; c. 955 – June 15, 991), also spelled Theophania (Θεοφάνια), Theophana or Theophano, was an Empress consort of the Holy Roman Empire by marriage to Holy Roman Emperor Otto II, and regent of the Holy Roman Empire during the minority of her son from 983 until her death in 991.
She was the niece of the Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes. Her name is derived from Medieval Greek Theophaneia (Θεοφάνεια), "appearance of God" (Theophany).
According to the marriage certificate issued on 14 April 972—a masterpiece of the Ottonian Renaissance—Theophanu is identified as the neptis (niece or granddaughter) of Emperor John I Tzimiskes (925–976) who was of Armenian descent. She was nevertheless of distinguished noble heritage: the Vita Mahthildis identifies her as augusti de palatio and the Annales Magdeburgenses describe her as Grecam illustrem imperatoriae stirpi proximam, ingenio facundam. Recent research tends to concur that she was most probably the daughter of Tzimiskes' brother-in-law (from his first marriage) Constantine Skleros (c. 920–989), and of Sophia Phokaina, who was Tzimiskes' cousin as the daughter of Kouropalatēs Leo Phokas, brother of Emperor Nikephoros II (c. 912–969).
Holy Roman Emperor Otto the Great had requested a Byzantine princess for his son, Otto II, to seal a treaty between the Holy Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire. A reference by the Pope to Emperor Nikephoros II as "Emperor of the Greeks" in a letter while Otto's ambassador, Bishop Liutprand of Cremona, was at the Byzantine court, had destroyed the first round of negotiations. With the ascension of John I Tzimiskes, who had not been personally referred to other than as Roman Emperor, the treaty negotiations were able to resume. However, not until a third delegation led by Archbishop Gero of Cologne arrived in Constantinople, were they successfully completed.
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