Theodora Komnene, Duchess of Austria

Theodora Komnena or Theodora Comnena (Greek: Θεοδώρα ἡ Κομνηνή, died 2 January 1184) was a daughter of Andronikos Komnenos and his wife, Eirene (?Aineiadissa). Based on the writings of Niketas Choniates, it is likely Theodora was Andronikos' second daughter. The year of Theodora's birth is unknown.

Life and Death

Little is known of Theodora's early life, except that her father died in 1142. She does not appear in the historical record again until the late 1140s, when she was betrothed to and married Henry II of Austria, whose first wife, Gertrude of Supplingenburg had died in 1143. The marriage had been arranged by her uncle, Manuel I and her eventual husband's half-brother, Conrad III of Germany, during the latter's stay in Constantinople.

Theodora and Henry were married in Constantinople, and subsequently granted the Duchy of Austria by Frederick I Barbarossa in 1156.

Theodora died on 2 January 1184.

Family

Theodora had three children by her husband Henry:

• Agnès (?1154 – 13 January 1182) married to Stephen III of Hungary
• Leopold V, Duke of Austria (1157 – 31 December 1194)
• Henry, Duke of Mödling (1158 – 31 August 1223) married Richeza of Bohemia.

Ancestry