Theophanu

Theophanu
Theophanu
	Christ blessing Otto (left) and Theophano (right), ivory book cover, dated 982/3, Musée de Cluny, Paris.
Holy Roman Empress
Tenure	7 May 973 – 7 December 983
Queen consort of Germany
Tenure	14 April 972 – 7 December 983
Coronation	14 April 972
Born	c. 955; Constantinople; (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey)
Died	15 June 991; Nijmegen; (modern-day Netherlands)
Spouse	Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor; (m. 972; died 983)
Issue; more...	Adelaide I, Abbess of Quedlinburg; Sophia I, Abbess of Gandersheim; Mathilde, Countess Palatine of Lorraine; Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor
Father	Constantine Skleros
Mother	Sophia Phokaina
Religion	Chalcedonian Christianity

Theophanu (German pronunciation: [te.o.fa.ˈnuː]; also Theophania, Theophana, or Theophano; Medieval Greek Θεοφανώ;^[1] c. AD 955 – 15 June 991) was empress of the Holy Roman Empire by marriage to Emperor Otto II, and regent of the Empire during the minority of their son, Emperor Otto III, from 983 until her death in 991. She was the niece of the Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes. She was known to be a forceful and capable ruler. Her status in the history of the Empire in many ways was exceptional. According to Wilson, "She became the only consort to receive the title 'co-empress' (coimperatrix augusta), and it was envisaged she would succeed as sole ruler if Otto II died without a son."^[2]

^ Θεοφανώ is a Greek diminutive of Θεοφάνεια "Theophany". G. S. Henrich, "Theophanu oder Theophano? Zur Geschichte eines 'gespaltenen' griechischen Frauennamensuffixes' in: Euw and Schreiner (eds.), Kaiserin Theophanu II (1991), 88–99.
^ Wilson, Peter H. (28 January 2016). The Holy Roman Empire: A Thousand Years of Europe's History. Penguin Books Limited. p. PR17. ISBN 978-0-14-195691-6. Retrieved 6 July 2022.

[1] Θεοφανώ is a Greek diminutive of Θεοφάνεια "Theophany". G. S. Henrich, "Theophanu oder Theophano? Zur Geschichte eines 'gespaltenen' griechischen Frauennamensuffixes' in: Euw and Schreiner (eds.), Kaiserin Theophanu II (1991), 88–99.

[2] Wilson, Peter H. (28 January 2016). The Holy Roman Empire: A Thousand Years of Europe's History. Penguin Books Limited. p. PR17. ISBN 978-0-14-195691-6. Retrieved 6 July 2022.

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