Constantine IX Monomachos

Constantine IX Monomachos, Latinized as Constantine IX Monomachus (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Θ΄ Μονομάχος, Kōnstantinos IX Monomakhos; c. 1000 – January 11, 1055), reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 11, 1042 to January 11, 1055. He had been chosen by the Empress Zoe as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring against her previous husband, Emperor Michael IV the Paphlagonian. They ruled together until Zoe died in 1050.
Early life
Constantine Monomachos was the son of Theodosios Monomachos, an important bureaucrat under Basil II and Constantine VIII. At some point Theodosios had been suspected of conspiracy and his son's career suffered accordingly. Constantine's position improved after he married his second wife, a niece of Emperor Romanos III Argyros. Catching the eye of the Empress Zoe, Constantine was exiled to Mytilene on the island of Lesbos by her second husband, Michael IV. The death of Michael IV and...