Perspectives of Power: Byzantine Imperial Women
By Carina Nilsson
The Graduate History Review, Vol. 1 (2009)
Abstract: This paper offers a brief overview of my preliminary M.A. thesis research into the lives of Byzantine imperial women and their political authority and influence. While identifying the lack of attention Byzantinists past and present have paid to these women, and redefining the notion of what constitutes “power,” this article aims to incorporate experiences of Byzantine imperial women into the larger historical narrative.
Introduction: When examining the political power and position of Byzantine imperial women from the sixth until the twelfth century, it becomes quite apparent that there is a clear omission of powerful imperial women within contemporary Byzantine historiography. Despite their visibility within the primary sources, the traditional definition of “power” within the current field overwhelmingly places legitimate authority solely in the hands of a male, while the lives of imperial women remain absent within most texts. Through this exclusion a distorted version of history has been created, where the considerable position and influence of imperial women in politics has been largely ignored. Rather than being relegated to a specialized field, or chronological compilations of biographies, the lives of imperial women need to be made visible once again and incorporated into the larger historical narrative. It is in this way that their authority and political involvement can finally be recognized as being integral to the history of the Byzantine Empire as a whole.
When a field of historical study has been carved out, the frameworks chosen to represent it are arguably more important than the material itself. Analytical structures can either provide a path into an expanded understanding of the subject or they can misrepresent the material by subordinating it to the scholar’s preconceived ideas. This can lead to the unfortunate result of a field remaining saturated by an exclusive mentality and a narrowly defined perspective. It is from the inception of the Byzantine historical discipline that the Byzantines and their Empire began to be constructed as something other than what they actually were.
Click here to read/download this article from the University of Victoria
By Carina Nilsson
The Graduate History Review, Vol. 1 (2009)
Abstract: This paper offers a brief overview of my preliminary M.A. thesis research into the lives of Byzantine imperial women and their political authority and influence. While identifying the lack of attention Byzantinists past and present have paid to these women, and redefining the notion of what constitutes “power,” this article aims to incorporate experiences of Byzantine imperial women into the larger historical narrative.
Introduction: When examining the political power and position of Byzantine imperial women from the sixth until the twelfth century, it becomes quite apparent that there is a clear omission of powerful imperial women within contemporary Byzantine historiography. Despite their visibility within the primary sources, the traditional definition of “power” within the current field overwhelmingly places legitimate authority solely in the hands of a male, while the lives of imperial women remain absent within most texts. Through this exclusion a distorted version of history has been created, where the considerable position and influence of imperial women in politics has been largely ignored. Rather than being relegated to a specialized field, or chronological compilations of biographies, the lives of imperial women need to be made visible once again and incorporated into the larger historical narrative. It is in this way that their authority and political involvement can finally be recognized as being integral to the history of the Byzantine Empire as a whole.
When a field of historical study has been carved out, the frameworks chosen to represent it are arguably more important than the material itself. Analytical structures can either provide a path into an expanded understanding of the subject or they can misrepresent the material by subordinating it to the scholar’s preconceived ideas. This can lead to the unfortunate result of a field remaining saturated by an exclusive mentality and a narrowly defined perspective. It is from the inception of the Byzantine historical discipline that the Byzantines and their Empire began to be constructed as something other than what they actually were.
Click here to read/download this article from the University of Victoria
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