Fausta (; c. 630 – after 668) was the

Byzantine empress The term Roman empress usually refers to the consorts of the Roman emperors, the rulers of the Roman Empire. The duties, power and influence of empresses varied depending on the time period, contemporary politics and the personalities of their h ...

as the wife of

Constans II Constans II (; 7 November 630 – 15 July 668), also called "the Bearded" (), was the Byzantine emperor from 641 to 668. Constans was the last attested emperor to serve as Roman consul, consul, in 642, although the office continued to exist unti ...

, who she married in 642.

Family

Fausta was a daughter of

Valentinus Valentinus is a Roman masculine given name derived from the Latin word "valens" meaning "healthy, strong". It may refer to: People Churchmen *Pope Valentine (died 827) *Saint Valentine, 3rd century Christian saint *Valentinus (Gnostic) (died c. 1 ...

, a general of

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

origins, reputedly a descendant of the Arsacids. Valentinus enters historical record as an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

of Philagrius, the ''

sakellarios A ''sakellarios'' () or ''sacellarius'' is the title of an official entrusted with administrative and financial duties (cf. ''sakellē'' or ''sakellion'', "purse, treasury") in a government or institution. The title was used in the Byzantine Empi ...

'' (treasurer) of

Heraclius Heraclius (; 11 February 641) was Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the Exarch of Africa, led a revolt against the unpopular emperor Phocas. Heraclius's reign was ...

. Heraclius died on 11 February 641. His will left the throne to two of his sons, as co-rulers to each other. The first son was

Constantine III Constantine III may refer to: * Constantine III (Western Roman emperor), self-proclaimed western Roman Emperor 407–411 * Heraclius Constantine, Byzantine Emperor in 641 * Constans II, Byzantine emperor 641–668, sometimes referred to under this ...

, his only known son by his first wife Eudokia. The second son was

Heraklonas Heraclius (; 626 – 642), known by the diminutive Heraclonas or Heracleonas (), and sometimes called Heraclius II, was briefly Byzantine emperor in 641. Heraclonas was the son of Heraclius and his niece Martina. His father had stipulated in ...

, eldest son of Heraclius by his niece and second wife Martina. Martina was to remain Augusta and thus maintain influence at court. Constantine was the only one of the two co-emperors to be old enough to rule by himself. He was about twenty-nine years old at the time but already suffered from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

. Chances were that he would not survive long and Heraklonas would remain as sole emperor. However Constantine set about to secure the loyalty of the

Byzantine army The Byzantine army was the primary military body of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct continuation of the East Roman army, Eastern Roman army, shaping and developing itself on the legac ...

for himself. His father had entrusted Patriarch Pyrrhus I of Constantinople with the administration of a treasury fund for Martina. Constantine confiscated the fund and used it for the spring military payroll and substantial donations to the army, estimated to about two millions coins. Valentinus was appointed commander of the eastern divisions of the Byzantine army at about the same time. The extent of his actual jurisdiction is uncertain due to an ongoing war with the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a member o ...

under

Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...

. He was appointed by Constantine and would remain loyal to him.

Marriage

Constantine III died between April and May 641, after a reign of three to four months. Heraklonas was left the senior emperor by default and was placed under the

regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of Martina. However partisans of Constantine in the army spread the rumor that their emperor had been poisoned. Valentinus took control of the troops in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

and before long started a revolt in the name of

, eldest surviving son of Constantine III. The boy was barely eleven years old but was proclaimed the rightful heir to his father by the rebels. Valentine led a march to

Chalcedon Chalcedon (; ; sometimes transliterated as ) was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, Turkey. It was located almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Üsküdar) and it is now a district of the city of Ist ...

and thus set camp almost directly opposite

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. The revolt by the Anatolian forces was soon matched by a revolt within the capital. Both sharing the same goal of placing Constans on the throne. Martina had to agree to concessions. Constans was proclaimed co-emperor and her ally Patriarch Pyrrhus was forced to resign. He was replaced by

Patriarch Paul II of Constantinople Paul II of Constantinople (Greek: Παῦλος; died 27 December 653) was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1 October 641 to his death. He assumed regency for Byzantine emperor Constans II after a succession crisis in 641. Stephan ...

who was an acceptable choice for the rebels. Valentinus was offered the title ''

comes excubitorum The Excubitors ( or , , i.e. 'sentinels'; transcribed into Greek language, Greek as , ) were founded in as an imperial guard-unit by the Byzantine emperor Leo I the Thracian. The 300-strong force, originally recruited from among the warlike moun ...

'', commander of the

Excubitors The Excubitors ( or , , i.e. 'sentinels'; transcribed into Greek as , ) were founded in as an imperial guard-unit by the Byzantine emperor Leo I the Thracian. The 300-strong force, originally recruited from among the warlike mountain tribe of ...

, and thus promoted to a position of great power in the Byzantine court. All concessions were in vain. In September, 641, Valentinus entered the city. Heraklonas and Martina were deposed and subjected to

mutilation Mutilation or maiming (from the ) is Bodily harm, severe damage to the body that has a subsequent harmful effect on an individual's quality of life. In the modern era, the term has an overwhelmingly negative connotation, referring to alteratio ...

: the nose of Heraklonas and the tongue of Martina were cut, and both were exiled to

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

. Constans was left the only Emperor, and was soon after bethrothed to Fausta. The marriage took place in 642. According to the chronicle of

John of Nikiû John of Nikiû (fl. 680–690) was an Egyptian Coptic bishop of Nikiû (Pashati) in the Nile Delta and general administrator of the monasteries of Upper Egypt in 696. He is the author of a ''Chronicle'' extending from Adam to the end of the Musli ...

, Valentinus tried to become co-emperor, his argument being that an adult emperor was needed against the Caliphate. The people of Constantinople rose again in defense of Constans and the general had to be content with the offer of general command of the army. His second attempt to rise to the throne in 644 was also stopped by revolt.

Theophanes the Confessor Theophanes the Confessor (; 759 – 817 or 818) was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy who became a monk and chronicler. He served in the court of Emperor Leo IV the Khazar before taking up the religious life. Theophanes attended the Second C ...

reports this second attempt cost Valentinus his life.

Empress

The first known son of Fausta and Constans was

Constantine IV Constantine IV (); 650 – 10 July 685), called the Younger () and often incorrectly the Bearded () out of confusion with Constans II, his father, was Byzantine emperor from 668 to 685. His reign saw the first serious check to nearly 50 years ...

. He was born c. 652, ten years following the marriage of his parents. He was proclaimed co-emperor in 654. Two younger sons are known,

and

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus ( ; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was Roman emperor from AD 14 until 37. He succeeded his stepfather Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC to Roman politician Tiberius Cl ...

, because of being proclaimed co-emperors in 659. In 661, Constans II left Constantinople for

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

where he set his residence for the rest of his reign. Constantine IV, Heraclius and Tiberius remained in the capital. There is some uncertainty over the location of Fausta. On September 15, 668, Constans II was assassinated in his

bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

by his chamberlain. Fausta likely survived him. Constantine succeeded to the throne with his brothers as co-emperors. Constantine had Heraclius and Tiberius deposed in 681. Fausta could still be alive at the time.

De Ceremoniis The or (fully ) is the conventional Latin name for a Greek book of ceremonial protocol at the court of the Byzantine emperors in Constantinople. Its Greek title is often cited as ("Explanation of the Order of the Palace"), taken from the work' ...

Constantine VII Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Byzantine emperor of the Macedonian dynasty, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe Karbonopsina, an ...

mentions the grave of Fausta in the

Church of the Holy Apostles The Church of the Holy Apostles (, ''Agioi Apostoloi''; ), also known as the Imperial Polyandrion (imperial cemetery), was a Byzantine Eastern Orthodox church in Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. The first structure dated to ...

but not the date of her death.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

Warren Treadgold, "Two Fights for Survival: 610–668," Chapter 9 of his A History of the Byzantine State and Society, Stanford University Press, 1997, pp. 287–322.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fausta (Wife Of Constans 02) 630s births 7th-century deaths 7th-century Byzantine empresses Burials at the Church of the Holy Apostles Heraclian dynasty Augustae Mothers of Byzantine emperors