this post was submitted on 24 Jun 2024
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[โ€“] [email protected] 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

That said, there absolutely were empresses-regnant of the Byzantine empire, and there's no reason to consider that a separate entity. Irene Sarantapechaena and about four or five others absolutely were ruling Roman empresses

[โ€“] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

TIL. Did the Greeks get less patriarchal over time? In the classical era they were Taliban-tier and complained they even had to see women.

[โ€“] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

I'm afraid I am completely unqualified to answer this beyond that Irene's reign was a very messy one, ending with a rebellion against her. Her own son (the legal heir to the throne for who she was originally just regent) also rebelled against her earlier, and she had his eyes put out. It seems to me like Irene specifically was just absolutely ruthless enough to get past whatever societal rules may have been levelled against her