Antonina and Belisarius

Antonina was the wife of the roman general Belisarius who was the conquerer of Persia and North Africa and responsible for the reconquest of Italy. Highly indulgent Antonina was the opposite of the virtuous and noble Belisarius and she indulged in sensual and luxurious pleasures and was best friends with the equally lustful Theodora wife of Emperor Justinian. Antonina and Belisarius adopted young Theodosius the Thracian into the family - he had fought with honours in Africa which impressed them both. The elderly Antonina fancied the young man and they started an illicit affair. During a stay at Carthage, General Belisarius came home to catch his wife in bed with her young lover. Belisarius being the man that he was, sort of turned a blind eye at the time as Antonina pleaded a certain innocence, coming out with a bit of a ridiculous excuse saying she was trying to obtain some private information by seduction.  Later some housemaids confirmed that they had seen Antonina in bed with Theodosius on other occasions. Belisarius became very angry at this news and sent some guards to have Theodosius put to death. Alarmed and afraid, Theodosius ran off to Asia. Antonina was in tears and implored her husband not to kill him so Belisarius relented and sent orders to withdraw the soldiers.
   Antonina summoned the housemaids who had been telling tales about her and had their tongues cut out and their bodies cut up into small pieces and scattered into the sea of Syracuse. Theodosius returned to Constantinople and they carried on the affair despite the rigours of political life with its concomitant tongues wagging. Antonina's son Photius was exiled. She was never fond of him, partly because he was the son of an ex-lover.
   Despite a nice pad and plenty of money the love of Antonina and court life got a bit too much for Theodosius so he sailed away to Ephesos in Ionia and shaved his head and resumed a monastic life. On his disappearance, Antonina once again burst into tears; even the imploring prayers of her husband Belisarius could not tempt Theodosius back. He eventually returned albeit for only two years and the friendship resumed from where they left off.
   During a visit to Persia, Belisarius listened to the displeasures of Photius who said that Antonina had been a bad mother and wife. On his return from Persia, Belisarius, a bit out of character,  locked up his wife and warned her he would kill her for being so cruel to her son and for her lascivious ways. Photius travelled to Ephesos and found out about his mum's affair from a eunuch who knew all the details. Theodosius was subsequently imprisoned by Photius.
   After Empress Theodora had sent orders to kill the Pope, she reconciled the faltering relationship of her favourite friends Antonina and Belisarius and she somehow arranged to have Theodosius brought back to the Royal palace at Constantinople. One day she invited Antonina over for tea and swung open the doors of a regal bedroom where Theodosius was lying naked in a luxurious bed. Antonina, surprised and tremendously relieved that he was still alive, promptly ravaged the young monk and the love making was supposedly so intense that directly afterwards Theodosius died.
   Antonina was so upset she automatically blamed her son Photius for everything and had him tortured on the rack and imprisoned in the dungeons, while she feasted on buns with the Empress! He escaped twice to various churches in Constantinople, including St Sophia's, but he was dragged back to prison from the altar by clerics loyal to Antonina. He escaped a third time and made it to Jerusalem, possibly with the help of Zachariah, and after the death of Emperor Justinian he was conferred as the abbot of Egypt.