Byzantine emperor 797-802. The wife of Leo IV
(750-80), she became regent for their son
Constantine (771-805) on Leo's death. In 797
she deposed her son, had his eyes put out,
and assumed full title of basileus
(`emperor'), ruling in her own right until
deposed and exiled to Lesvos by a revolt in
802. She was made a saint by the Greek
Orthodox church for her attacks on
iconoclasts.