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| Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamatera | |
|---|---|
.png) Seal of Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamatera | |
| Empress consort of the Byzantine Empire | |
| Tenure | 1195–1203 |
| Born | c. 1155 |
| Died | 1211 |
| Spouse | Alexios III Angelos |
| Issue | Irene Angelina [bg] Anna Angelina Eudokia Angelina |
| House | Doukas |
| Father | Andronikos Doukas Kamateros |
| Mother | ... Kantakouzene |
Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamaterina or betterKamatera (Greek:Εὐφροσύνη Δούκαινα Καματερίνα ἢ Καματηρά,romanized: Effrosýni Doúkaina Kamaterína í Kamatirá,c. 1155 – 1211) was a Byzantine Empress by marriage to theByzantine EmperorAlexios III Angelos.[1]
Euphrosyne was the daughter ofAndronikos Doukas Kamateros, a high-ranking official who held the titles ofmegas droungarios andpansebastos and his wife, an unknownKantakouzene.[2] She was related to the EmperorConstantine X andIrene Doukaina, empress ofAlexios I Komnenos. Both of her brothers had rebelled againstAndronikos I Komnenos; one was imprisoned and the other was blinded.
Euphrosyne married Alexios Angelos, the older brother of the future EmperorIsaac II Angelos in c. 1169 CE.[2] Although Isaac II bestowed many titles and honors upon his brother, Alexios seized the throne on April 8, 1195, deposing Isaac and proclaiming himself emperor. In this he was assisted by Euphrosyne, who had organized a party of aristocratic supporters.[3] Euphrosyne took control of the palace and quelled the opposition herself, securing the accession of her husband to the throne by wholesale bribery.
Euphrosyne was recognised as the true power behind the throne.[4] Intelligent, determined, skilled in communication and organization, she had a talent for politics, and virtually ruled the Empire in the name of Alexios III, who had a reputation for being concerned primarily with pleasure and idle pursuits.[5] She issued commands herself and even altered Alexios' decrees when it suited her, and secured the recall of the capable ministerConstantine Mesopotamites.
Euphrosyne and Alexios were criticized for their love of finery and the enrichment of their relatives at state expense. Her own brother,Basil Kamateros, and her son-in-law,Andronikos Kontostephanos, possibly driven by anger at her apparent curtailing of overall familial power, accused Euphrosyne of adultery with one of her ministers, a nobleman named Vatatzes.[5] Alexios III believed the allegations and had Vatatzes executed. Euphrosyne was stripped of her imperial robes and banished to a convent at Nematarea in October 1196. However, her relatives convinced Alexios to reinstate her, and she was recalled six months later in spring 1197.[6]
In 1203, faced with theFourth Crusade and the return of his nephew,Alexios IV Angelos, Alexios III fledConstantinople with a magnificent treasure and some female relatives, including his daughter Irene. Euphrosyne was left behind and was immediately imprisoned by the new regime. Alexios IV was soon strangled byAlexios Doukas Mourtzouphlos, the lover of Euphrosyne's daughter Eudokia, who then proclaimed himself emperor as Alexios V. In April 1204 Euphrosyne fled the city along with her daughter and Alexios V, and they made their way toMosynopolis, where Euphrosyne's husband Alexios III had taken refuge.[7] Alexios III had Alexios V blinded and abandoned to thecrusaders, who had him executed.
Euphrosyne and Alexios III fled across Greece toThessalonica andCorinth, but were finally captured byBoniface of Montferrat and imprisoned. In 1209 or 1210 they were ransomed by their cousinMichael I of Epirus, and Euphrosyne spent the remainder of her life inArta. She died in 1210 or 1211.
By her husband, Alexios III Angelos, Euphrosyne had three daughters:
Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamatera Born:c. 1155 Died: 1211 | ||
| Royal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Byzantine Empress consort 1195–1203 | Succeeded by |