The Work of a Young Empress

Βάσσου καὶ Φιλίππου ὑπατευόντων, τελευτᾷ τὸν βίον Ἀρκάδιος, διὰδοχον τῆς ἡγεμονίας Θεοδόσιον τὸν οἱέα καταλιπὼν, ἀρτίως γάλακτι τρέφεσθαι πεπαυμένον· Θυγατέρας δὲ, Πουλχερίαν καὶ Ἀρκαδίαν καὶ Μαρίναν, ἔτι κομιδῇ νέας. ᾝ μοι δοκεῖ μάλιστα τὸν Θεὸν ἐπιδεῖξαι, μόνην εὐσέβειαν ἀρκεῖν πρὸς σωτηρίαν τοῖς βασιλεύουσιν· ἄνευ δὲ ταύτης, μηδὲν εἶναι στρατεύματα καὶ βασιλέως ἰσχυν, καὶ τὴν ἄλλην παρασκευήν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν εὐσεβέστατον τὸν βασιλέα ἔσεσθαι προεϊδεν ἡ τῶν ὅλων οἰκουρὸς θεία δύναμις, ἐπίτροπον αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίας κατέστησε Πουλχερίαν τὴν ἀδελφην. Ἡ δὲ, οὔπω πεντεκαιδέκατον ἔτος ἄγουσα, ὑπερ τὴν ἡλικίαν σοφώτατον καὶ θεϊον ἔλαβε νοῦν. Καὶ πρῶτα μὲν τὴν αὐτῆς παρθενίαν τῷ Θεῷ ἀνέθηκε, καὶ τὰς ἀδελφὰς ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν ἐπαιδαγώγησε βίον, ὅπως μὴ ἄλλον ἄνδρα ἐπεισαγάγῃ τοῖς βασιλείοις, καὶ ζήλου καὶ ἐπιβουλῆς πᾶσαν ἀνέλῃ ἀφορμήν. Ἐπιβεβαιῦσα δὲ τὰ δόξαντα, καὶ Θεὸν αὐτὸν, καὶ ἱερέας, καὶ πάντα ἀρχόμενον μάρτυρας ποιουμένη τῶν αὐτῇ βεβουλευμένων, ἐκ χρυσοῦ καὶ λίθων τιμίων θαυμάσιόν τι χρῆμα θεαμάτων κάλλιστον, ὑπὲρ τῆς ἰδίας παρθενίας καὶ τῆς τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡγεμονίας, ἱερὰν ἀνέθετο τράπεζαν ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ Κωνσταντινουπόλεως· καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ μετώπου τῆς τραπέζης, ὡς ἄν πᾶσιν ἔκδηλα ᾗ, τάδε ἐπέγραψεν. Ὑπεισελθοῦσα δὲ τῆς ἡγεμονίας τὴν φροντίδα, ἄριστα καὶ ἐν κόσμῳ πολλῷ τὴν Ῥωμαίων οἰκουμένην διῴκησεν· εὖ βουλευομένη, ὡς ἐν τάχει τὰ πρακτέα ἐπιτελοῦσα καὶ γράφουσα. Ἠκρίβωτο γὰρ λὲγειν, καὶ γράφειν ὀρθῶς κατὰ τὴν Ῥωμαίων καὶ Ἑλλήνων φωνήν. Τῶν δὲ πραττομένων τὴν δόκησιν εἰς τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἀνέφερε· καὶ ἐπεμελεῖτο, ὡς ἄν μάλιστα βασιλικῶς ἀναχθείη τοῖς καθ' ἡλικίαν παιδευομένοις μαθήμασιν. Ἀλλ’ ἱππικὴν μὲν καὶ τὴν ἐν τοῖς ὅπλοις καὶ τοῖς λόγοις ἄσκησιν, παρὰ τῶν ἐπιστημόνων ἐξεδιδάσκετο. Περὶ δὲ κόσμιος εἶναι καὶ βασιλικὸς, παρὰ τῆς ἀδελφῆς ἑῥῥυθμίζετο· ἐσθῆτα ᾗ χρὴ περιστέλλειν μανθάνων, καὶ πρόπῳ τίνι καθῆσθαι, καὶ βαδίζειν, καὶ γέλωτος κρατεὶν, καὶ πρᾶος καὶ φοβερὸς ἐν καιρῷ εἶναι, καὶ ἁρμοδίως πυνθάνεσθαι τῶν περί του δεομένων. Ούχ ἤκιστα δὲ εἰς εὐσέβειαν αὐτὸν ἦγε, συνεχῶς εὔχεσθαι, καὶ ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις φοιτᾷν ἐθίζουσα· καὶ ἀναθήμασι καὶ κειμηλίοις τοὺς εὐκτηρίους οἴκους γεραίπειν· καὶ ἐν τιμῇ ἔχειν τοὺς ἱερέας, καὶ ἄλλους ἀγαθοὺς ἄνδρας, καὶ τοὺς νόμῳ Χριστιανῶν φιλοσοφοῦντας. Οὐ μὴν ἀλλά καὶ ὑπὸ νόθων δογμάτων νεωτερίζεσθαι κινδυνευούσης τῆς θρησκείας, σπουδῇ καὶ σοφῶς προύστη. Καὶ τοῦ μὴ καινὰς αἱρέσεις ἐν τοῖς καθ' ἡμᾶς χρόνοις κρατεῖν, μάλιστα αὐτὴν αἰτίαν εὑρήσομεν, ὡς ἐν τοῖς μετὰ ταῦτα εἰσόμεθα. Δὲει δὲ πολλῷ τὸ Θεῖον θρησκεύουσα, μακρὸν ἂν εἴη παρὰ τίσι λέγειν, καὶ πόσους εὐκτηρίους οἴκους μεγαλοπρεπῶς ἐτεκτήνατο· πόσα δὲ καταγώγια πτωχῶν καὶ ξένων, καὶ μοναστικὰς συνοικίας συνεστήσατο, διηνεκῆ τάξασα τὴν εἰς ταῦτα δαπάνην, καὶ τὸ σιτηρέσιον τῶν ἐνοικούντων.  Ἑρμείος Σωζομενός, Ἐκκλησιαστίκη Ἱστορία, Τομ Θ´ Κεφ Α´

In the consulate of Bassus and Philip the Emperor Arcadius died, leaving Theodosius, his son, who was just weaned, as his successor to the empire, and also three daughters of tender age, named Pulcheria, Arcadia, and Marina. It seems to me that God here showed that piety alone suffices for the salvation of rulers, and that without it, neither armies, nor a powerful empire, nor any other thing, are of use. The Divine Power which watches over all things, foresaw that the Emperor would be distinguished by his great piety, and therefore established Pulcheria, his sister, as  protectress of him and his rule. She was not yet fifteen years of age, but was wise beyond her years and possessed of divine intent. She first dedicated her virginity to God, and she taught her sisters to do the same, and no man was allowed to enter the palace that there be no cause for jealousy and intrigue. In confirmation of her resolution, she took God, the priests, and all those ruled as witnesses to her self-dedication, consecrating a holy table of gold and precious stones, a remarkable fabric and very beautiful to see, in token of her virginity and the headship of her brother, in the church of Constantinople, and she inscribed these things on the front of the table, that they be clear to all. Resuming the care of government, she governed the Roman empire excellently and with great order; what she decided was quickly decreed and brought to realisation. She was able to write and to converse with perfect accuracy in the Greek and Latin languages. The value of all that was done she attributed to her brother. She took great care to raise him as a prince, educating him as befitted his years. Though in horsemanship, and the practice of arms and in letters he was taught but the wisest men, in conduct and princely bearing he was taught by his sister; she showed him how to gather up his robes, how to take a seat, how to walk, how to restrain laughter, how to assume a gentle or a formidable aspect for the occasion, and how to inquire fittingly into petitions. And no less did she lead him into piety, and continual prayer; she taught him to frequent the churches regularly, and to honour the houses of prayer with gifts and treasures; and to have reverence for priests and other good men, and for those who, in accordance with the law of Christianity, took to philosophy. And that religion might not be endangered by the innovation of spurious dogmas she provided zealously and wisely. That new heresies have not prevailed in our times, we shall find to be due especially to her, as we shall subsequently see. With how much fear she worshipped God, it would take long for any one to say, and also how many houses of prayer she built magnificently, and how many houses for the poor and strangers she set up, and the monastic communities she established, and the arrangement for the expenses for their perpetual support, and for the provision of the inhabitants. Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, Book IX, Chapter 1