v50_0076 - PULCHERIA Solidus

PULCHERIA

(+453)

Augusta -sister of Theodosius II

Pulcheria is the daughter of Arcadius and Eudoxia. Born in 399, she was created augusta in 414. She had a strong ascendancy over her brother Theodosius II. After the consecutive death of her parents, in 404 and 408, she became regent of the Eastern Empire, at a time when the Barbarians crossed the limes and ravaged Thrace and the western provinces. Rome is taken in 410. It is she who will be the true monarch throughout the reign of Theodosius II, she again who chooses a wife, Eudocia. After the death of her brother, Pulchérie chooses a successor, Marcien, and marries him, after devoting her existence to chastity. She died in 453, a virgin, leaving her property to the poor.