Civilization V Leader | Theodora of Byzantium

Theodora (c. 497 AD - 548 AD), wife of Justinian I and Empress of the Byzantine Empire, ruled one of history's preeminent empires during the 1st millennium AD. Known today as the most influential woman of the Byzantine Empire, Emperor Justinian named Theodora co-ruler of the empire, trusting in her wise counsel to guide his reign. Rising from humble beginnings, Theodora would become known throughout the empire - and history - as a tactful, trusted advisor to her emperor. She would be so crucial to the progress of the empire that some think it was Theodora, not Emperor Justinian, who truly guided the people of Byzantium during her lifetime.
- from Civilopedia

[@wickedchild8501]

Me: I would never simp Theodora: Είμαι η Θεοδώρα φίλη του βυζαντινού Me: at your service my queen

[@nikoniortnike]

This is what Procopius has to say about her: "Forthwith, she became a courtesan, and such as the ancient Greeks used to call a common one, at that: for she was not a flute or harp player, nor was she even trained to dance, but only gave her youth to anyone she met, in utter abandonment. Her general favors included, of course, the actors in the theater; and in their productions she took part in the low comedy scenes. For she was very funny and a good mimic, and immediately became popular in this art. There was no shame in the girl, and no one ever saw her dismayed: no role was too scandalous for her to accept without a blush. She was the kind of comedienne who delights the audience by letting herself be cuffed and slapped on the cheeks, and makes them guffaw by raising her skirts to reveal to the spectators those feminine secrets here and there which custom veils from the eyes of the opposite sex. With pretended laziness she mocked her lovers, and coquettishly adopting ever new ways of embracing, was able to keep in a constant turmoil the hearts of the sophisticated. And she did not wait to be asked by anyone she met, but on the contrary, with inviting jests and a comic flaunting of her skirts herself tempted all men who passed by, especially those who were adolescent. On the field of pleasure she was never defeated. Often she would go picnicking with ten young men or more, in the flower of their strength and virility, and dallied with them all, the whole night through. When they wearied of the sport, she would approach their servants, perhaps thirty in number, and fight a duel with each of these; and even thus found no allayment of her craving. Once, visiting the house of an illustrious gentleman, they say she mounted the projecting corner of her dining couch, pulled up the front of her dress, without a blush, and thus carelessly showed her wantonness. And though she flung wide three gates to the ambassadors of Cupid, she lamented that nature had not similarly unlocked the straits of her bosom, that she might there have contrived a further welcome to his emissaries. Frequently, she conceived, but as she employed every artifice immediately, a miscarriage was straightway effected. Often, even in the theater, in the sight of all the people, she removed her costume and stood nude in their midst, except for a girdle about the groin: not that she was abashed at revealing that, too, to the audience, but because there was a law against appearing altogether naked on the stage, without at least this much of a fig-leaf. Covered thus with a ribbon, she would sink down to the stage floor and recline on her back. Slaves to whom the duty was entrusted would then scatter grains of barley from above into the calyx of this passion flower, whence geese, trained for the purpose, would next pick the grains one by one with their bills and eat. When she rose, it was not with a blush, but she seemed rather to glory in the performance. For she was not only impudent herself, but endeavored to make everybody else as audacious. Often when she was alone with other actors, she would undress in their midst and arch her back provocatively, advertising like a peacock both to those who had experience of her and to those who had not yet had that privilege her trained suppleness." From what it seems, she was also a prostitute. And a proud one at that.

[@lawrencium2626]

From what it seems, she was an Empress!

[@cloro9001]

@@nikoniortnike It fucking sucks but it is pretty sad that the only surviving sources of late antiquity and anything prior are pretty biased and survived only by pure luck or on purpose. I genuinely wish we could read the writings about many historical figures whose enemies would've been vehemently butthurt and of course published or secretly published shit like Precopius did lol

[@ginkiba3]

Justinian officially made Theodora his co-ruler and his equal. She had her own court and could implement laws and orders with as much weight as her husband. She's also the person that saved Justinian from a revolt and encouraged him to fight back, saving Byzantine if not all western civilization.

[@iSyriux]

@@donate_to_the_edhi_foundation So what you're saying is, if you're still loyal to the eastern roman empire, you will join the cult of this star wars Darth Revan? It somehow has to do with gayness, law, sparkles, peace, turkey, and roses?

[@donate_to_the_edhi_foundation]

[@@iSyriux] Maybe ... ? ;)

[@Diogolindir]

encouraged him to massacre the greens and blues but yea, she saved him.

[@zippyparakeet1074]

@@Diogolindir the city was burning, the rioting masses were too large. Justinian was looking to abandon the capital and run away. Theodora encouraged him to stay and fight to save his throne or die trying which he did and his generals- especially Belisarius- ended up crushing the revolt. Eventually his reign would go on to the greatest period in Eastern Roman history rivalled only by that of Basil II The Bulgarslayer.

[@maaz322]

when you have a spineless ruler more interested in art, even a woman will seem brave and appealing

[@Vityvikt0r]

Looks like she's trying to seduce the player.

[@ironchancellor1]

+Vity viktor Well, Theodora was essentially a stripper before Justinian married her.

[@Differindividual]

+Vity viktor She looks like a mermaid trying to seduce the player.

[@mikek.1250]

+Vity viktor Kathy of Russia is better at it though :D

[@johanngaiusisinwingazuluah2116]

+Mike K. Lol no

[@moisepicard3417]

Vity viktor TRYING?

[@77msnemesis]

Nice to see that they not only casted a native Greek voice actress for Theodora's part, but gave her a medieval Greek dialogue.

[@olbiomoiros]

Agreed, though a modern Greek would have easily been able to tell there are grammatical mistakes in this though.

[@paulb3482]

@@olbiomoiros yeah like "φίλτατος" is incorrect vocative should be "φίλτατε" when saying "Ναι, φίλτατε;"

[@Stoirelius]

@@paulb3482Just like in latin

[@sakinou851]

"Eimai i Theodora, i fili tou Byzantiou" : "I am Theodora, the loved of Byzantium". The greek accent is beautifull !!!

[@kolbasdragonborn2457]

"fili" literally means friend, not loved.

[@nikolaoskal7438]

@@kolbasdragonborn2457 In Koine Greek, it means loved.

[@kolbasdragonborn2457]

@@nikolaoskal7438 ti einai "Koine Greek" re?

[@nikolaoskal7438]

@@kolbasdragonborn2457 It's the language of Hellenistic times and early Eastern Roman Empire, that Theodora would speak.

[@kolbasdragonborn2457]

@@nikolaoskal7438 well that would depend on the orthography of the word then.

[@furkanarslan7653]

Background is Hagia Sophia

[@Spilia4]

Furkan Arslan Yup. It used to be a Greek Orthodox church right

[@VLAD-yu6ul]

Hendra Gunawan What the Wall Breaking you talking about? The Byzantines built the Hagia Sophia during Justinian’s rule and after the collapse of Byzantium the Turks came in and renamed Constantinople witch is now Istanbul and recreate The Hagia Sophia because the Church looked very beautiful to be destroyed so they made it into a mosque. The years later during Kemal Ataturk’s run he reopened the Hagia Sophia to become a museum. The blend between two religions. Christianity and Islam

[@hitrapperandartistdababy]

The Amazing Tatsuo wow never knew they decided to not destroy it for its beauty. I gotta say I respect that in a world where it was common to destroy buildings like a church

[@metalyuncle3106]

Jim papaD what? Why are you mad

[@Discontinuedalready7372]

@@Spilia4 _Now its a museum_

[@nathangrimes4071]

why does greek sound so good?

[@muhammetemirkaskc6482]

not literally greek

[@_Nasduck]

Ancient Greek have same sounds as modern greek but we use different word syntax and grammar

[@diocles1743]

@@muhammetemirkaskc6482 I mean, being Greek i can understand it completely so ya know

[@muhammetemirkaskc6482]

@@diocles1743 I'm not talking about here. I'm talking about the real Byzantine language. Not in the game

[@diocles1743]

@@muhammetemirkaskc6482 The byzantine language was just an older form of Greek that is still taught in Greece.

[@M.S.0079]

Her dialogue is a mix of modern and Ancient Greek (midievel greek

[@Vazel]

It's actually medieval greek

[@olbiomoiros]

It’s medieval Greek, something in between ancient and modern Greek, which makes sense.

[@aokiaoki4238]

Her dialogue is plain Greek

[@wankawanka3053]

@@aokiaoki4238 nope

[@aokiaoki4238]

@@wankawanka3053 yep

[@Kylephibbsky]

I don't see why she wasn't a good choice. Yes, the Byzantine Empire had quite a few good male rulers, but you have to admire the cunning of Theodora, rising up from a mere courtesan to co-regent of the Empire and doing well at it too. Not anything to balk at.

[@Rocinante2300]

Quite

[@skyfeelan]

agree, still better than the decision of putting Kristina as the leader of Sweden in civ6

[@connorhilchie2779]

Not to mention she helped keep the Empire together when Justinian caught the plague. I hope the two of them are happy together on the afterlife, they certainly deserve it

[@mapost2]

"I don't see why she wasn't a good choice." Let's see, KZbin, gamers, 10 years-ago. My money's on misogyny.

[@savannaha5038]

Pretty sure the reason is just sexism. A lotta male gamers don't like acknowledging that there have been some pretty badass women throughout history, they just wanna see Justinian for the 10,000th time

[@nyotaliafan3583]

Omg i am greek and she is a beauty

[@fburakproductions1162]

greetings from turkey neighbor

[@yetlin8386]

why does you being greek have anything to do with your comment?

[@jaegar2786]

yetlin because she is Greek.....

[@evang7252]

@@yetlin8386 and she is speaking Greek

[@jamesr.g.2320]

JaegarBager102 she wasn’t Greek. She was a miaphysite from Syria.

[@ReCreso]

I still don't get why Theodora and not her husband, the greatest and most powerful Byzantine emperor ever, Justinian I.

[@minimantis5916]

Im guessing its meant to represent the time of the plague when she took charge for a long time, then Justinian eventually healed and ruled again into old age.

[@bohnbaratheon1695]

ReCreso Because thanks to her, he is the most badass and powerful emporor. She managed to convince him to stay and fight the rebels and saved his dynasty

[@hortonbryce1]

Bohn Baratheon Not to mention, she also was a poor prostitute that worked her way up to the ranks of High Empress, she DESERVES to be the Byzantines spoke person.

[@bohnbaratheon1695]

Bryce Horton Started from the bottom and now she's an empress 😂😂 major respect to her

[@Synystr7]

I'd much rather deal with Theodora, personally. That silky, smokey voice... *purrrrr*

[@gre8]

I am in love with her greek speech.

[@VChong1991]

So...here's my story. I started out next to her as China. We did trades and embasy... you know usual diplomatic stuff. Then Atilla the Hun came and attacked her, ransacked her to the point he reached her capital. She requested aid so being the good ally I was. I helped. Launched a campaign against the Huns to the point I reached a crucial point of taking the Hun capital after 8 hrs of battling the bastard through his lands to the point that I've exhausted all my resources, rebels causing an uprising in my city for the long era of war and negating their happiness all in order to finish Atilla off and go back rebuilding my empire. All i did was ask her to attack with me...and what did she do? She said she has no interest in joining the attack. So I DEMANDED SHE SEND REINFORCEMENTS. She scoffed at me saying im in no position to demand things from her. I ended up abandoning the Hun campaign recalled all my troops, surrounded her one and only remaining city and lad waste to her and her misbegotten byzantine race. Take that Byzantine bitch! XDDDDD As for Atilla we conquered the world and I nuked him in the end after having no more use for him :X

[@khoapham816]

lol same i wanna play peacefully but always get declared war upon XD

[@hitrapperandartistdababy]

This game sounds really fun, is there any chance to find it on a console?

[@medika9651]

lmao you need to tell more stories like those pls

[@15XG]

I have to admit, with all due respect to everyone, but transforming Hagia Sophia into a mosque was the worst crime against humanity that the Ottomans could have committed!

[@farhanahmed2508]

15XG Even greater than the Armenian genocide was the turning of a brick and stone building into some other brick and stone building. Seriously?

[@fakhrianirsali6380]

Well, Spanish Inquisition and Cathedral of Cordoba couldn't be less worse.

[@principetnomusic]

I personally think it looks better with the minarets.

[@sdoaiza]

@@farhanahmed2508 people genocide each other all the time

[@MadMamluk88]

Yeah because preserving it instead of tearing it down is the worst crime.

[@Varstfoethr]

Yes, the minarets were constructed within 70 years after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinopolis. Also, Theodora speaks Medieval Greek perfectly in this game :D

[@Differindividual]

she looks like a mermaid.

[@toolworks]

The four minarets were each added separately by different architects at different times, all much after Theodora.

[@mariaisabelrodriguez4580]

She is strong elegant and beautiful she is Theodora the empress of the Byzantine Empire

[@lebronsames963]

Back in the day, men who wanted an audience with her had to bow before her and kiss her feet.

[@nikoniortnike]

I wouldn’t mind kissing her feet.

[@lebronsames963]

@@nikoniortnike Those were great times.

[@88kstrat]

Amazing how they actually used the Greek that they would of spoke during Eastern Roman/Byzantine times! And the woman speaking is even Greek herself. Her dialect is giving her away.

[@Fabel555]

Yeah she sounds like the rich people from Athens exactlym

[@0miaumiau]

most beautiful language ever!

[@HillBillyNanners]

It is nice to see Hagia Sophia without minarets.

[@kelamullah1999]

cope

[@HillBillyNanners]

@@kelamullah1999 huh

[@the-letter_s]

@@kelamullah1999 lol your internet words don't work on him, he's got a life outside of the internet unlike you and me, get bent

[@kelamullah1999]

@@the-letter_s cope my g, cope with the minarets

[@Jeyeyeyey]

cope

[@BrookeDakota]

It's great to see Hagia Sophia without minarets.

[@delta2372]

Damn shame that Byzantium fell and the architectural marvel that was the hagia sophia was turned into a mosque

[@alexandrostheodorou8387]

Delta 23 at least it still exists.

[@Jeyeyeyey]

cope lmao

[@dalcomaroni9837]

@@delta2372 mosques are also nice

[@iverylovepizza]

​@@Jeyeyeyey Don't try to troll when your father fucks you while the donkey screams ALAH AKBAR

[@redokstepkimesi6187]

something is rising and it's not jesus

[@steelflesher]

😨

[@kilink9599]

My proudest fap

[@fakhrianirsali6380]

The hottest Civ V leader ',:-)

[@fakhrianirsali6380]

Have no mean for any disrespect.

[@GriimX]

IDK catherine tho...

[@Jeyeyeyey]

*Catherine :^)

[@oborkot]

Boudicca

[@dalcomaroni9837]

@@Jeyeyeyey no, for me she's third, second is dido

[@SuperGreatSphinx]

God Save The Empress!

[@pallasathena7372]

Thats medieval greek, but modern greek is very similar. All greeks can understand this.

[@Suralin0]

Man, I was hoping you'd get her saying MELLIMA, as per the minor meme.

[@Godunow100]

Funniest thing in all that is that she is revered as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

[@Chachy1337]

Wasn't she a prostitute?

[@kolbasdragonborn2457]

more like a "celebrity saint" rather than a saint saint lmao. because she did many reforms that in these times were considered unthinkably progressive like women rights.

[@angelb.823]

I don't see the problem. There is also Mary of Egypt who was revered as a saint despite being a prostitute in her earlier life. However, it is the actions of a person that rever him as a saint. As such, they endured hard challenges and tests in order to atone for their previous lives they lived.

[@nikolaoskal7438]

She is definetely NOT revered as a Saint of the Orthodox Church. You are confusing her with Saint Theodora the wife of Emperor Theofilos.

[@alminjusic2867]

@@nikolaoskal7438 Just wanted to say that..

[@Krafanio]

Great Roman Empress.

[@DiviAugustus]

That is actually a good explanation. I had thought about that when I wrote that comment, but I decided to post it anyway because I still think it is a legitimate criticism. If I were designing an Eastern Roman faction for Civ V, unless I were choosing some of the later emperors I would have made the language Latin out of respect for the fact that Justinian's primary language was Latin, and that it was still, technically, the official language around that time.

[@ylstorage7085]

... maybe call yourself Rome instead of "Byzantium"?

[@nathanieltheartist9616]

The way she moves her hands about in the air is strange, saw the painting Empress Theodora at the Colosseum and this is creppier than THAT...being a Classical painting...

[@AnGrYGrEeKGuY]

FINALLY one good pronounciation and speech!!!

[@PaxAmericana24]

I'm sure they'd recognize it. After all, Constantinople was originally referred to as Byzantion (Byzantium) before it had been rechristened (no pun intended) Constantinople. So naturally they'd be familiar with it. The Yankee analogy is a good one, though not exactly the same. I doubt the United States will ever be anachronistically referred to as the Yankee Empire.

[@hesitatingdissension4682]

The United States ought to stop being the world police.

[@Kalupz]

It sounds really awesome :)

[@XxRokusasuxX]

I love Theodora's theme! It's my favorite of all the Gods and Kings expansion civs.

[@Diogolindir]

I don't even play this game but I come here because I love the music.

[@HoldmeRitz]

Actually, Theodora was Greek hence, im guessing, the language. Justinian was born and raised to speak Latin, however the lingua franca in the Byzantium was Greek.

[@Diogolindir]

was she? I though she was Syrian but Im a newcomer in this part of Roman history.

[@jimmygs2504]

@@Diogolindir She was born in cyprus

[@Diogolindir]

@@jimmygs2504 thank you for your reply. Is her place of birth not a contested topic?

[@jimmygs2504]

@@Diogolindir i've read about it, based on michael the syrian she was born in syria while others claim her birthplace to be either in paphlagonia or cyprus.Either way she was still very likely greek in descent since those regions especially the latter two had a greek majority population, syria was more multicultural with greek speaking populations living in coastal settlements.

[@Diogolindir]

@@jimmygs2504 thanks for the reply and info

[@TheExiledTexan]

She was referring to the city Byzantium, the original Greek name for the city called Constantinople.

[@zaruyko]

Not... really... It's like how literary works of few centuries ago depicted Vikings having horned helmets, when, in fact, there never was a horned Viking helmet. It's a thing that the Byzantines didn't use that term to describe themselves. They were what were the leftover of the Roman Empire, the Eastern Roman Empire. Might get a few things incorrect but thing is, Byzantines didn't call themselves Byzantines. Vikings had no horned helmets.

[@Cx10110100]

How did Kyiv Rus adress them thou? On modern teritorries of the latter they call it Byzantines

[@InternetLegends-fe6ty]

Oh so that’s where dovahatty got the Theodora line

[@lagrangepoint9386]

What does she exactly say as a greeting? I reckon it does not quite match the subtitles (like, there's no "kalos xenos" in the subs but it's present in her speech). So I'd like to know the exact translation.

[@Synystr7]

0:00 "Oh, mono peun therma. Peunono mono kee sayoh, cahlos skaylos." 0:46 "Vee vaxooma seh mafima" Man that sounds sexy.

[@jamesr.g.2320]

Synystr7 this transliteration was so off

[@Synystr7]

@@jamesr.g.2320 Its not a translation. It is phonetically spelled out in english.

[@Varstfoethr]

Culturally, the modern descendants of the Byzantine Empire are the Greeks, the Georgians and the Armenians while religiously ( if you still consider the Orthodox faith to be a culture ) it is continued by the Greeks, the Georgians, the Armenians, the Serbs, the Bulgarians, the Montenegrins, the Croats and the Russians.

[@radovanarezina5887]

Croats are chatolic

[@medika9651]

As a Bulgarian there is nothing on the fucking screen idk why

[@yazovgaming]

It ain't Basil II don't worry, it's the Theodora momm- i mean Empress.

[@Aethuviel]

How come she moves? :O I have this game, and none of the leaders move, they just sit/stand there.

[@Mantoire]

change it in the settings.

[@powmod1]

You have the leader quality set to low.

[@CarlosCrisps]

and 6 weeks after that revolt they started the hagia sophia and 5 years later the construction ended, and there it is, standing tall and proud.

[@espantalho93]

Hardly a small feat, a precedent in fact, how many women can you name that ruled an empire on their own? Her rule was definitely an interesting and controversial one, and while I do think there are Chinese rulers who deserve to be in CiV more, I am content with Wu Zetian.

[@EnigmaticNothing]

I thought a saint of the orthodox church wouldn't talk so seductively

[@Ctrekoz]

Best woman in the game.

[@Oppetsismiimsitsitc]

Is both, is also very different in terms of splendor and uniqueness.

[@dejanpopovic7903]

Correct me if I am wrong, but Justinian was the last Emperor to speak Latin as a first official language. This implies that Theodora would also speak Latin as an official language. Just because Theodora learnt to speak Greek after her ascension to the throne, doesn't necessarily mean it was used in official diplomatic dialogues. I would question if Greek would be used in diplomatic situations such as the one shown in the video.

[@Manouil_III]

Heraclius was the emperor who introduced the Greek as the official state language, 55 years after Justinian's death. So no, Justinian wasn't the last (four emperors intercede). Despite that Latin was official up to 620, Greek was already the lingua franca of the whole eastern Mediterranean, the key fact that led to the change. Also note that Theodora was Greek. Hence, she did not need to ascend to the throne first, in order to learn the Greek language, as you mentioned. In any case, your argument (strictly about the diplomatic dialog at that time) has reasonable basis. Regards

[@Godunow100]

+Dejan Popovic Theodora was was of Greek Cypriot descent, she probably was greek native speaker. But yeah, official language of (eastern) Roman Empire at that time was still latin.

[@dyasion]

Justinian was bilingual, some of his laws were issued in Greek. Likely by his time Greek has already become the language of government. According to Procopius (Belisarius's chronicler), one Latin-speaking official who came to Constantinople from Africa was made fun for his clumsy Greek.

[@barkasz6066]

@@Godunow100 And she wouldn't have called it the Byzantine Empire or Byzantium, she would have referred to her realm as the Roman Empire.

[@olbiomoiros]

@@Godunow100 there was no such thing as Greek Cypriot back then, because frankly only Greeks populated Cyprus.

[@ossamamostafa5139]

Is it just me or does the music sound sinister?

[@martindouge4504]

Well they took Phos Hilaron, a Greek Christian choir song, and kind of turned it into an ominous Star Wars-like theme. The composer always does a damn good job at turning random folk songs into the mos tthreatening war themes ever. Songs like Napoleon, Bismarck, Wu Zetian or Nobunaga's war themes are respectively a sexy dance song, an opera composition and 2 very contemplative musical poems.

[@dieterbohm9700]

@@martindouge4504 Do you know the name of the composer?

[@elijahgreybosh7882]

My dad

[@Oppetsismiimsitsitc]

I did mean to say "Latin script", apologies - character limit stopped this. It is true that Byzantium is descendant of Classical Greece and Rome, however these two are not in the same. Culturally speaking all European peoples have been influenced by Classical culture somewhat (in the same way that Arabs were influenced by Persian, despite being no direct descendant), but modern Western and Orthodox cultures are completely different from Classical culture.

[@johnmars5282]

As a greek I wonder how greek must sound to foreigners, since it is an ancient language.

[@redquoter]

Listen here lady, as long as my boy Belisarius can keep slapping barbarian shit, we're in business.

[@giorgikolxicolchian9581]

greek language is most beautiful language on the earth!

[@WongKinYuenHK]

Just curious, is this Greek different from Alexander's Greek in terms of accent? I know they're different periods of time historically but I'm just asking about the voice acting here.

[@squares4u]

Kin Yuen Wong Yes. Although Alexander's voice actor mispronounces his lines.

[@WongKinYuenHK]

Interesting! Can you tell what accent they're from?

[@constantinossavva6656]

The actor that speaks greek in Alexander must be a foreigner...he is not using a different greek accent he just mispronounces everything ;p. The actress that said Theodoras line is clearly Greek telling from.her accent speaking in ancient greek. (Even though no one can really tell how ancient greek pronounciation really sounded like)

[@WongKinYuenHK]

Interesting. Thank you!

[@olbiomoiros]

@@constantinossavva6656 no, there’s a reason as for his prononciation. Medieval Greek and modern Greek have the same prononciation, but ancient Greek, of which Macedonian is a dialect, had a slightly different pronunciation. it would be absurd to think that the pronunciation remained the same all these years, I mean grammar changed so did other aspects. For example in modern Greek prononciation ι υ η ει οι υι ηι are all pronounced as ι and this is called ιωτακισμός. Ancient Greek had different sound for each. Ancient Greek also properly pronounced rough breathings, eg Ἡ Ἑλλάς would be pronounced hē Hellás and not i Ellás.

[@bradley6357]

Basilinna kai Autokrateira Rhomaion!

[@TheInfectiousZombie]

What I meant was they at least could have made him a choice as well. He is very iconic to the Byzantine Empire and I think it's awful to leave him out of the game.

[@Ambarenya13]

She likely would have spoken both Greek and Latin. Latin was still the language of the court under Justinian and was not abolished until Emperor Heraclius nearly 100 years later. However, due to the prevalence of Greek in regular society and since Theodora was a local entertainer before she became empress, she would have likely spoken Greek as well. Also: Byzantium was renamed to Constantinople when emperor Constantine I moved the capital of the Roman Empire there in 330AD.

[@Junuxx]

Seems plausible that the artist used it as a reference. Also compare William of Orange with the painting "The Geographer" by Vermeer.

[@vallrikstone9420]

It is nice to see the Hagia Sophia without the Minarets.

[@Oppetsismiimsitsitc]

Yes, this is actually my point that you have made for me regarding the great amount of mixture between very similar Western and Orthodox cultures. Greek influence and scholars did start Italian Renaissance. Opposite example (of Western effecting Orthodox) would be Pyotr Velikiy, who attempted to drag his empire kicking and screaming into the Faustian (Western) culture.

[@malahamavet]

I watched Polymathy's video yesterday and youtube recommended this. damn youtube, you scary

[@joeywild2011]

Oh mon opion favma! Pyonono my apimi say o kalos ksenos. E me Theothora, e filly du Vyzantio... Neh fill tatos? Omolohiteh. Oo veepoo. Neh fill tatos? Oo veepoo. Ninfileh, etara heru pre prosin. Vevaksumeh seva fema. Tutu desieris. (Based on heard pronunciation. I obviously don’t speak Byzantine Greek)

[@olbiomoiros]

You’ve got some serious listening skills!!!

[@Realmasterorder]

The Best Greek Language Dub !

[@JagzRevolutionary]

yes they all spoke greek until turks invaded

[@heatherwhite1042]

there are so many civs where they could've chosen females that were awesome but chose males instead so it's nice to see a mix. It's still heavily dominated by male rulers so I don't know why people are complaining so much seeing female leaders. There are so many civs where the male figurehead was actually listening to female opinions so their 'ruling' was kind of shared. Whoever said Elizabeth shouldn't have been the English ruler is kind of crazy. History isn't just a 'men' thing...

[@MiguelSagunto]

True. But there a lot of autistic kids here who don't know History and with no research start yelling "FeMiNisM"

[@arthegor]

I can't believe civ 6 doesn't have yet Byzantium shame!

[@MiguelSagunto]

Yeah :( But don't worry they will add it.

[@dango6266]

Now it does :)

[@nicogadea8044]

@@dango6266 and have some so badass like Basil II

[@daphnesapci]

We should bring her back

[@EnigmaticNothing]

oh wait, i just remembered she worked at a brothel once

[@TheLarhf]

They could've given some leaders their native names, such as "William of Orange" actually being "Willem van Oranje" and such. That's the only gripe I've got with William, they took the English variant of the name instead of the Dutch variant.

[@donate_to_the_edhi_foundation]

_Erit beatior Augusto, melior Traiano._ 🛡️ ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felicior_Augusto%2C_melior_Traiano )

[@Srythian]

She was married to Justinian. Who was also a great emperor in his own right (sort of).

[@skoomamuch356]

just heard this from Dovahatty.lmfaooo

[@FIYOS]

same lmao i was so confused but damn the midieval greek sounds beautiful

[@byzantinehoney3384]

@@FIYOS if a girl speaks modern Greek like this it sounds just as good

[@slashingraven]

oh look it's Cameron Diaz

[@judekanawati7467]

slashingraven More like Angelina Jolie to me

[@Varstfoethr]

... of the empire until Heraclius' reign in the 7th century but was changed afterwards due to the dominance of the Greek culture within the empire. Western Europe trully began to rise after 1204 when massive amounts of gold, art and scripts were taken from Constantinople and distributed throughout the west. Especially in Venice and generally Italy, something that eventually caused the Renaissance ( which began in Italy ).

[@iwillfollow24]

Dont know what she saying but im in love.....

[@judekanawati7467]

Theodora used to do dance and entertain high status people in her time. So, it's quite obvious she's acting in a seductive way a little bit.

[@justus7867]

Bruh i thought dovahatty link was a new vid :/

[@bacon_8330]

We got Rick rolled... by Theodora

[@rundelbellen4791]

Theodora Rolled

[@espantalho93]

Why is Wu Zetian a cop-out exactly?

[@PaxAmericana24]

Hmm I don't think it's necessarily worth dispute whether or not the word "Byzantine" was ever thrown around during the time of the Empire. What some of the people may have referred to themselves colloquially speaking is not really relevant. Officially, the State was maintained and referred to as the Roman Empire, the citizens of which were referred to as and referred to themselves as Romans.

[@bubbub165]

🛐🛐🛐🛐 MOMMY

[@kittybacon1857]

im here bcuz im a sophmore in WH honors and i have a crush on a long dead emperess. also hows this game

[@delilahdelaura]

Kitty Bacon Same except the crush part.

[@formerunsecretarygeneralba9536]

lol me too but damn it, I don't know how accurate civ 5 portrays their characters but if you look up the only available depiction of her, she isn't really as hot as civ 5 portrays it. So if we are able to travel through time, it will be a waste of fuel to go back during her reign. www.google.com/search?q=theodora+of+byzantine+empire&oq=theodora+of+by&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0l3.4245j0j4&client=ms-android-samsung&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=9SJFtLn1pPmsmM:

[@Tortellobello45]

@@formerunsecretarygeneralba9536 well she was a prostitute so probably she was beautiful enough for people to throw money at her

[@KaosuHaze]

Elizabeth the first is an extremely popular and well regarded leader, frankly I can't think of anyone better for England.

[@sufficientmagister9061]

😂

[@boone4531]

And so Justianian slaughtered the rioters

[@theescapologist2110]

her eye and crown looks like Cleopatra

[@olbiomoiros]

Hmmm... i wonder why? Maybe they were both Greek?

[@slayer19978]

she reminds me of a girl who i went to hs with they look similar

[@Varstfoethr]

If by Pyotr Velikiy you mean Peter the Great then yes, I agree.

[@ginkiba3]

I think it would've been creative if Civ had put the two of them together, but when most people think Byzantine, they probably thing either or Justinian or Theodora. Had they picked the former, people would certainly complained about not adding the latter.

[@MiguelSagunto]

Paul Hanson Thats a great idea!

[@etozhemadtwitch]

guys, with a drawing of the actress Theodora?

[@anuragrsimha]

0:48 Theodora looks like Kannada movie actresses in this pose.

[@Luzitanium]

the first time I heard greek the sound seemed italic, but i know is very diferent.

[@TellEmB290]

Obey Theodora, or no more "dance classes" for you...

[@Diogolindir]

did you have to go that hard bro?

[@deNNyTheWiseMAN1]

I guess Justinian wasn't available for the civilization producers.

[@zupergozer]

haha I think they were more like "we need TITS!"

[@houndoom1234]

Evening out the female:male ratio

[@graspiloot72]

NNeither justinian nor theodora deserve it. Only basil II would.

[@Ambarenya13]

Robin Schreurs Nikephoros II Phokas, John I Tzimiskes, Basil II Boulgaroktonos, Alexios I Komnenos, John II Komnenos, or Manuel I Komnenos would be my choices.

[@sandydallas3397]

Dennis Pillar nope cuz his wife had more power

[@Gunnarr123abc]

I agree. So many better rules to choose from, and I see things like picking females from so many countries! A huge waste for Byzantines to pick Theodora. Constantine I, Theodosios, Justinian, Alexios Komemnos, Basil II, Michael VIII... and worst, they depict Theodora based off of a modern painting!

[@Ambarenya13]

Let me quote Princess Anna Komnena, The Alexiad, Book III, Chapter XI in the original phrasing: Οὓς οἱ Βυζάντιοι ὁρῶντες ἀφόβως πάντη ἐνδιατρίβοντας ἐν τοῖς περὶ τὰς ἀκτὰς διακειμένοις πολιχνίοις καὶ ἱεροῖς τεμένεσι μή τινος ἐκεῖθεν αὐτοὺς ἀπελαύνοντος ἔντρομοι διὰ παντὸς ὄντες διηποροῦντο ὅ τι δεῖ διαπράξασθαι. "The Byzantines saw them living fearlessly in all the little towns along the coasts and in the sacred precincts even, as nobody drove them out..." If needed I can quote others.

[@DiviAugustus]

Regardless of whether or not Theodora was appropriate to use here in place of a more pivotal Roman, there is still one major flaw here--Greek wasn't made the official language of the Eastern Roman Empire until later! She should be speaking Latin.

[@PoisonYouth]

She's so pretty! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[@adhamwaelhafez7547]

From dovahhatty