A Comparison of the Regents of Otto III

In 983 in Ottonian Germany, when Otto II died leaving a three year old son (Otto III) as his heir, this situation occurred. The regency was to be shared between his wife, Theophano, his mother, Adelheid, and his aunt, Mathilda. Only two of these women ruled actively: Theophano, from 983 to her death in 991, and Adelheid, from 991 to Otto’s coming of majority in 998. They were constant r

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According to Sean Gilsdorf in Queenship and Sanctity, queens could “be expected to organize military action against hostile forces” even when their husbands were alive, so it would not be unusual on the part of the regents. The purpose of the regency was to maintain political control of the kingdom until Otto III reached majority, and both regents were successful in this respect.

Theophano and Adelheid both had experience with ruling before their regencies. ” During her reign, she formed alliances with Mieszko I of Poland, Boleslav II of Bohemia, and the Danes. Theophano appointed the abbot of Memleben, Unger, bishop of Poland, “as if Memleben were to serve as a bridgehead to Poland”

One way that Adelheid dwarfed Theophano was in reputation. What sets Theophano apart is that she acted as a successful ruler, making active decisions for the kingdom. Theophano appointed the abbot of Memleben, Unger, bishop of Poland, “as if Memleben were to serve as a bridgehead to Poland”

One way that Adelheid dwarfed Theophano was in reputation. Ironically, she didn’t, dying less than a month later.

One of the queen’s traditional roles as the head of the household was to accommodate foreign guests, so Adelheid and Theophano would already have had some knowledge of diplomacy. This could be because of the xenophobic attitudes of the German people at the time- for instance, in his Epitaph for Adelheid, Odilo of Cluny only ever refers to Theophano as “a Greek woman”, and “that Greek empress” .

In the tenth century, the highest position a woman could fill was that of queen, and even that was dependent on a man- a woman could only be a queen if she married a king. “Her role was often transformed from that of partner or co-adjutant to that of guarantor of dynastic continuity, managing the politics of succession and/or acting as regent for her minor son. She would often delegate the clergy, such as Gerbert of Aurillac and Bishop Notker of Liège, as her agents, and even used ecclesiastical centres for political control. Only two of these women ruled actively: Theophano, from 983 to her death in 991, and Adelheid, from 991 to Otto’s coming of majority in 998.

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Approximate Word count = 2330
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)

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