Marozia also known as Mariuccia, given the unprecedented titles senatrix ("senatoress") and patricia of Rome by Pope John X, was born about 890, and died, imprisoned by her son Alberic II, duke of Spoleto, between 932 and 937. She was the daughter of the Roman consul Theophylact, Count of Tusculum and of Theodora, the real power in Rome, whom Liutprand characterized as a "shameless whore...[who] exercised power on the Roman citizenry like a man." City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC (mythical), early 1st millennium BC (archaeological) Region Latium Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,553,873 almost 4,300,000 1. ... John X, Pope from 914 to 928, was deacon at Bologna when he attracted the attention of Theodora, the wife of Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, the most powerful noble in Rome, through whose influence he was elevated first to the see of Bologna and then to the archbishopric of Ravenna. ... Events The sovereignty of prince Svatopluk I in Bohemia is confirmed. ... Alberic II was ruler of Rome from 932 to 954, after deposing his mother Marozia and stepfather, King Hugh of Italy. ... The independent Duchy of Spoleto was a Lombard territory founded about 570 in southern Italy by the Lombard dux Faroald. ... Events Foundation of the St. ... Events Athelstan wins the Battle of Brunanburh September 21 - Magdeburg is now the capital of the Holy Roman Empire, after a Diet held by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor Births Duke William IV of Aquitaine (d. ... In the early 10th century, Theophylact, Count of Tusculum and his beautiful and unscrupulous wife, Theodora controlled the city of Rome and the Papacy. ... Theodora was a senatrix of Rome, mother of Marozia, and concubine to Pope Sergius III, whose pontificate, so far as is known, was remarkable for nothing but the rise of the pornocracy of Theodora and her daughters, a period also called the Rule of the Harlots. ... Liutprand (Liudprand, Luitprand) (c. ...

Edward Gibbon (though confusing Theodora (the mother of Marozia) with Theodora (the sister of Marozia)) wrote memorably of her that the "influence of two sister prostitutes, Marozia and Theodora, was founded on their wealth and beauty, their political and amorous intrigues. The most strenuous of their lovers were rewarded with the Roman mitre, and their reign may have suggested to darker ages the fable of a female pope. The bastard son, the grandson, and the great grandson of Marozia—a rare genealogy—were seated in the Chair of St. Peter." From this inaccurate description the term pornocracy has become associated with the effective rule in Rome of Theodora and her daughter Marozia through male surrogates. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Papess, a Marseilles tarot card of the 18th century, depicts a female Pope. ... Illegitimacy was a term in common use for the condition of being born of parents who were not validly married to one another; the legal term was bastardy. ... The Pope is the Catholic Bishop and patriarch of Rome, and head of the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches. ... Pornocracy is a term that has been used to mean government by or domination of government by prostitutes. ...

Life

The alleged mistress of Pope Sergius III, her first husband was Alberic I, duke of Spoleto (died 926). In order to counter the influence of Pope John X (who Luitprand alleges was another of her lovers) she married Guy of Tuscany, who loved his beautiful wife as much as he loved power. Together they attacked Rome, arrested Pope John X, and jailed him in the Castel Sant'Angelo. Guy had him smothered with a pillow in 928, and Marozia seized power in Rome in a coup d'état. Pope Sergius III, scion of Benedictus, of a noble Roman family, reigned in two intervals between 897 and April 14, 911, during a period of feudal violence and disorder in central Italy, where the Papacy was a pawn of warring aristocratic factions. ... Alberic I (d. ... Events Bohai is conquered by the Khitan Births Emperor Murakami of Japan Deaths Categories: 926 ... John X, Pope from 914 to 928, was deacon at Bologna when he attracted the attention of Theodora, the wife of Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, the most powerful noble in Rome, through whose influence he was elevated first to the see of Bologna and then to the archbishopric of Ravenna. ... Liutprand (Liudprand, Luitprand) (c. ... Guy (also Guido or Wido) (d. ... John X, Pope from 914 to 928, was deacon at Bologna when he attracted the attention of Theodora, the wife of Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, the most powerful noble in Rome, through whose influence he was elevated first to the see of Bologna and then to the archbishopric of Ravenna. ... ß Castel SantAngelo from the bridge. ... Events Dao Kang Di succeeds Gong Hui Di and is followed in the same year by Tai Zu, all of the Dali Gu Dynasty in southeast China. ... A coup détat (pronounced ), or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government through unconstitutional means by a part of the state establishment that mostly replaces just the top power figures. ...

When her husband died in 929, Marozia negotiated a marriage with his half-brother, Hugh of Arles, who had been elected King of Italy. Hugh was already married, but Marozia's son Pope John XI annulled that marriage so Hugh and Marozia could be wed. Alberic II, Marozia's son, led the opposition to the rule of Marozia and Hugh. After deposing them in 932, at the very wedding ceremonies, Alberic II imprisoned his mother until her death. Hugh escaped the city. Events Emir Abd-ar-rahman III of Cordoba declares himself caliph. ... Hugh of Arles was born sometime before 887, the son of Theobald of Arles and of Bertha, illegitimate daughter of Lothar II of Lotharingia. ... King of Italy is a title adopted by many rulers after the fall of the Roman Empire. ... John XI (910?–936) was a pope from 931 to 936. ... Alberic II was ruler of Rome from 932 to 954, after deposing his mother Marozia and stepfather, King Hugh of Italy. ... Events Foundation of the St. ...

Marozia had the great misfortune of having eloquent detractors. The Liber Pontificalis recorded that by Pope Sergius III she was mother of Pope John XI, whose pontificate marked the complete supremacy in Rome of the house of Theophylactus. From Pope John X she received the extraordinary titles of senatrix and patricia, yet she had him assassinated in 928. The Book of the Popes or the Liber Pontificalis is a major source for early medieval history but was also met with intense critical scrutiny. ... Pope Sergius III, scion of Benedictus, of a noble Roman family, reigned in two intervals between 897 and April 14, 911, during a period of feudal violence and disorder in central Italy, where the Papacy was a pawn of warring aristocratic factions. ... John XI (910?–936) was a pope from 931 to 936. ... Benedict VIII, né Theophylactus (died April 9, 1024), pope (1012-1024), of the noble family of the counts of Tusculum, descended from Theophylact, Count of Tusculum like his predecessor Benedict VI, was opposed by an antipope Gregory, who compelled him to flee from Rome. ...

By her first husband, Alberic I, she was mother of Alberic II, Duke of Spoleto and Prince of the Romans, who appointed four popes in the years 932 to 954, and who in his turn was father of Octavian, who became Pope John XII in 955. Popes Benedict VIII, John XIX, and Benedict IX, of the House of Tusculani, were also her descendants. By Guy of Tuscany she had a daughter named Berta Theodora, who never married. Events Foundation of the St. ... Events King Malcolm I of Scotland is killed in battle against Highlanders. ... John XII (born in Rome circa 937, died May 14, 964), was Pope from 955 to 963, was the son of Alberic II, whom he succeeded as patrician of Rome in 954, being then only eighteen years of age. ... Events August 10 - Otto I the Great defeats Magyars in the Battle of Lechfeld Edwy becomes King of England. ... Benedict VIII, né Theophylactus (born in Rome, died April 9, 1024), pope (1012-1024), of the noble family of the counts of Tusculum (son of Gregory, Count of Tusculum, and Maria, and brother of John XIX), descended from Theophylact, Count of Tusculum like his predecessor Benedict VI, was opposed by... John XIX, né Romanus (died October 1032) was pope from 1024 to 1032. ... Benedict IX, né Theophylactus (Rome, c. ...

Marozia died in prison, sometime between 932 and 937.

Sources

Williams, George. Papal genealogy, the families and descendants of the popes, 1998. Chamberlin, E.R. The Bad Popes, 1969.

References

• http://womenshistory.about.com/library/bio/blbio_marozia.htm
• http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0831924.html