How Did Empress Theodora Affect Queen Elizabeth 1

“ The belief that women were inherently inferior in intelligence, strength, and character was so persuasive that for men like Knox, a woman ruler was almost a contradiction in terms” (“Documents for Chapters 5&6”). In the 16th century, women were looked upon as a gender that should stay in the house and work, not have power and rule over a country. Discussing the govern of Queens during the 16th century, such as Mary Tudor, Lady Jane Grey, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Elizabeth I, allowed prejudices to be lessened but never completely be erased. No matter how these four notable ladies came into power, the accomplishments they overcame, achieved and wrote about proved to be great and substantial in making history as it is written today.

As the millenniums pass and years go by, the world continues to evolve each day. Across the world, in every society, men and women have specific roles that they carry out. During ancient times, in most cultures, women were inferior to men. This is still true in many countries today. It has taken American women many centuries to have gained the rights and privileges they have today. Women have made many immense achievements, fought for their rights and stood up for what they believed in during the past century. It is very important to understand the role of women in history because they have played an imperative part of how each society functioned. In Classical Athens, women and men were citizens however men were superior to the women.

The birth of an eastern circus woman attracted no attention at all in mid-millennium year 500. No one could ever imagine that this baby would grow up to be one of the most remarkable women in history of the World. She was the daughter of the bear keeper, a public performer,wife of Justinian, Empress of the Byzantine Empire and a natural beauty whose name became the one name in the voluminous annals of the Byzantine empire known to almost everyone; Theodora. Once the former show girl settled down to respectable married life, she touched every branch of life in the Empire. She had her finger on everything including military campaigns, architectural developments, and government policy and law reforms.

Theodora was the Empress of the Byzantine Empire from 527, when she was crowned, until her death in 548. Procopius was the appointed historian to record what was happening in the Empire, but mostly to focus on Theodora and Justinian. The Secret History was written by Procopius, but not published in the West until about a millennium after it was written. As it was ‘a venomous pamphlet of dubious merit’, The Secret History is hardly a reliable historical source. It criticises Justinian and Theodora for all of their actions as Emperor and Empress, as well as create a story, possibly based on nothing, about the origins of Theodora. While Procopius is considered a significant historian for the sixth century, it is notable that his treatment of Theodora is biased in an unfavourable way. Procopius adopts a perceptibly hostile attitude toward Theodora. Much of this bias against Theodora can be explained by Procopius’ view of women in power and gender roles.

In the stories of “Mary Queen of Scots” and “Elizabeth I”, it is known that Mary and Elizabeth I are two different people, but also the similar in some ways. Both Elizabeth and Mary lived within the same time period and were even related, although their lives ended up completely different. Elizabeth was a well-respected queen with an interesting personal life. Mary on the other hand was convicted of aiding a homicide and had many problems in her personal life. Therefore, Elizabeth and Mary both had some similarities and differences between their early lives and their personal lives.

Women have played important roles throughout history. They have been responsible for the rise and fall of nations, sustaining families, and have been the focal point of worship in ancient religions. Moving forward in history, women's roles have continually changed. Their status as matriarchs changed as the more advanced ancient civilizations rose. The patriarchal societies of ancient Greece and Rome viewed women differently from some societies of past eras. The study of the economic and political status of women, their rights, and their contributions to both these ancient societies reveals how views change throughout history.

Throughout most of Mary’s life she had a unique relationship with Elizabeth Queen of England.

an image of the role of woman in the past, and how she contributed to

The biggest main idea of this article was that women are not remembered in history. As said by Ulrich, “Many people think women are less visible in history than men because their bodies impel them to nurture” (658). Although, women were

While her husband Justinian I was an orthodox Christian, Theodora remained a monophysite Christian. She was considered Justinian’s most trusted advisor. She

Theodora was the empress of the Byzantine Empire and wife of Emperor Justinian. She is known for her strong influence towards her husband Justinian during the ruling of the Byzantine Empire. In the beginning of her life she was known as an actress. When Justinian met Theodora he fell in love but could not marry her because at the time his uncle, Uncle Justin I, along with a roman law prevented government officials from marrying actresses. Soon after his uncle died and Justinian took over as emperor he changed the law so he could marry Theodora. As a woman in the Byzantine time she had no real power over the empire. But through her husband she was able to help rule the Byzantine Empire. Theodora was known for many influential reforms. “Through

After Edwards’s death in 1553 his half-sister Mary I (1516-58) became Queen. Mary who was a devout Catholic began to undo the changes that Edward and Henry had started and set the nation back to the Catholic faith. During her reign (1553-1558) hundreds of Protestants, who refused to turn Catholic, were burned at the stake, this led to Mary acquiring the nickname ‘Bloody Mary’ (Steele & MacDonald, 2007).

The role of women throughout mankind has been a dynamic and ever changing role, marked by a constant struggle for equality and respect with the male counterpart. Hatshepsut, the female pharaoh of the ancient Egypt conquered her brothers for access to the throne! Cleopatra, a Hollywood phenomenon, actually partnered with Caesar of Rome and led her land to great prosperity. Joan of Arc, who continually inspires literature and works of art today, started as a peasant woman in France. At the young age of sixteen she became the commander of the French army. All three of these women took very different paths to reach their positions of authority. And yet, one of the most prominent strands of similarity they hold

In the Medieval Era, there were two women greatly advanced for their time. One was Matilda of Scotland also known as “The Good Queen Maude” who in times of crisis was always there for her kingdom. The other was “Christine de Pizan” who used her love for writing to help her family move forward when they were economically struggling. (Rodriguez) These women even though born in different decades both where able to successfully get an education and do achievements other women wouldn’t have the opportunity to do or even the resources to start in the first place. They are to an extent very similar, but even they have their slight differences. In a time were The Good Queen Maude was able to show that women could successfully have a part in the government, Christine de Pizan believed that even though women should have rights it doesn’t necessarily mean they could change the position society has given them. (Rodriguez)

She ruled for more than seventy years. However, women were struggling and striving to find the “ideal woman” and what is the ideal woman. The Queen’s opinion as to the ideal woman was “a pure, original child house keeper,” mainly because women were not considered equal to men and therefore they couldn’t vote in elections, sew or have ownership of any property. They were also restricted from having any profession, other than a