Eudokia Ingerina (c. 1840 – c. 882)
Mistress of: Emperor Michael III Tenure: c. 856 - 867. Royal Bastards: Two. Fall From Power: The emperor was murdered.
Eudokia Ingerina was the daughter of a guardsman in Emperor Michael’s service; her mother was some sort of distant relative to the imperial family and that was enough for Eudokia to be a member of Michael’s court. She began a relationship with the emperor when they were around fifteen or sixteen, which in turn earned them the wrath of Michael’s mother, Empress Theodora. Her son had become emperor when he was only two years old, though his mother served as regent alongside an official named Theoktistos. Eudokia’s family was iconoclastic, thus making her an unsuitable choice in wife. The Empress instead arranged for a bride-show and paraded a selection of women in front of Michael; Eudokia was even allowed to enter, though Michael was unable to pick her per his mother’s command. In fact, the entire show was rigged as the Empress had already decided upon a suitable woman for him to marry. Michael, being the good son that he was, did not want to cause a scandal and so dutifully married his mother’s choice: Eudokia Dekapolitissa (yes, the two women had the same first name). What the Empress didn’t expect; however, was for Michael to promptly abandon his wife and quickly return to his mistress. Unsurprisingly, his marriage remained childless.
In order to preserve appearances, Michael arranged for his lover to marry his best friend, a horse-trainer named Basil. No matter that Basil was already married with two children; Michael easily secured a divorce for him and, since Michael intended to continue sleeping with Eudokia, arranged for his sister Thekla to be brought back from a convent to serve as Basil’s mistress (her opinion on the matter is lost to history). In September 866, Eudokia gave birth to a son named Leo, followed by another son, Stephen, in November 867. Though officially regarded as the children of her husband, it is almost certain that they were fathered by Michael. Basil, for accepting the bastards as his own, was promoted to co-emperor in May 867, after convincing the emperor that Michael’s uncle (and heir) had too much influence at court and needed to be killed off. Michael agreed and allowed Basil to murder the poor man, thus becoming the new heir.
When Michael began to show favor to another courtier, Basil decided the emperor needed to be eliminated as well and so arranged for his assassination on September 24th, 867 when Eudokia was seven months pregnant with Stephen. There is some implication that Eudokia was involved in the plot; she encouraged Michael to get very drunk (making him an easy target) and was then escorted to the palace “with great honor” as the new empress following Basil’s succession the throne as Basil I. Michael’s widow was returned to her family and the royal couple had another son and at least three daughters, who were all made nuns by their father. In the meantime, Basil actually proved to be an effective ruler and Michael's murder was promptly forgotten.
Around 877, Eudokia began to tire of Michael and began an affair with a man named Xylinites, whom Basil ordered to be tonsured as a monk after the affair was revealed. Eudokia died around 882, but not before seeing her son Leo move up in ranks as next in line to the throne when Basil’s eldest son from his previous marriage died. She also arranged for a bride-show for Leo, and like Michael’s mother had before her, she had predetermined the “winner” in what would become another disastrous arranged marriage.
Sources
Gold solidus featuring Eudokia (right) and his firstborn son, Constantine, dated either 868 (on her coronation) or 882 (commemorating her death). (top image)
”Portrait of Eudokia Ingerina”, engraving from Usi e Costumi di Tutti i Popoli dell'Universo via Getty Images. (bottom image)
Bauer, Susan Wise. The History of the Medieval World. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. (2010). ISBN: 9780393059755.
Garland, Lynda. Byzantine Empresses: Women and Power in Byzantium AD 527-1204. Routledge (1999). ISBN: 9780415146883.