802 empress irene is deposed and banished to lesbos
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802 1224 years ago Historical Events October 31 4 sources

Empress Irene is deposed and banished to Lesbos. Conspirators place Nikephoros, the minister of finance, on the Byzantine throne.

On October 31, in the year 802, Empress Irene is deposed and banished to Lesbos. Conspirators place Nikephoros, the minister of finance, on the Byzantine throne. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of October 31, one of 445 recorded events on this date across all of history.

Irene of Athens, surname Sarantapechaena, was Byzantine empress consort to Emperor Leo IV from 775 to 780, regent during the childhood of their son Constantine VI from 780 until 790, co-ruler from 792 until 797, and finally empress regnant and sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire from 797 to 802. A member of the politically prominent Sarantapechos family, she was selected as Leo IV's bride for unknown reasons in 768. Even though her husband was an iconoclast, she harbored iconophile sympathies. During her regency, in 787, she called the Second Council of Nicaea which condemned iconoclasm as heretical and brought an end to the first iconoclast period (730–787). Irene's concluding five years of sole rule were unprecedented in Roman and Byzantine history. Her public figure in this period was polarizing, due to the setbacks faced by the Empire and her iconophilic stances, often attributed to her gender and the influence of her retinue.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on October 31, 802 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 4 Wikipedia articles.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 27 September 2026.

On This Date in History 445

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Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 David Manker Abshire, American commander and diplomat, United States Permanent Representative to NATO (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Michael Alsbury, American engineer and pilot (born 1975)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Brad Halsey, American baseball player (born 1981)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Hitoshi Motoshima, Japanese educator and politician (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Chris Chase (aka Irene Kane), American actress and author (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Gérard de Villiers, French journalist and author (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Trevor Kletz, English chemist and author (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Johnny Kucks, American baseball player (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Andres Narvasa, Filipino lawyer and jurist, 19th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Bobby Parker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 Gae Aulenti, Italian architect and designer (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 John Fitch, American race car driver and engineer (born 1917)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 John H. Reed, American soldier and politician, 67th Governor of Maine (born 1921)
Historical Events 2011 Oct 31 The global population of humans reaches seven billion. This day is now recognized by the United Nations as the Day of…
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 31 Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer and manager (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 31 Roberto Lippi, Italian race car driver (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 31 Ted Sorensen, American lawyer, 8th White House Counsel (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Mustafa Mahmud, Egyptian physician and author (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Tom Wheatcroft, English businessman, founded the Donington Grand Prix Exhibition (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Qian Xuesen, Chinese aerodynamicist and academic (born 1911)
Notable Deaths 2008 Oct 31 Studs Terkel, American historian and author (born 1912)
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 31 Erdal İnönü, Turkish physicist and politician, Prime Minister of Turkey (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 31 P. W. Botha, South African soldier and politician, State President of South Africa (born 1916)
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 31 Peter Fryer, English journalist and author (born 1927)
Notable Births 2005 Oct 31 Leonor, Princess of Asturias
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 31 Hal Anger, American biophysicist and engineer (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 31 Amrita Pritam, Indian author and poet (born 1919)
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Historical Events 2003 Oct 31 Mahathir Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia and is replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi,…
Notable Deaths 2003 Oct 31 Richard Neustadt, American political scientist and historian (born 1919)
Selected Events 2003 Oct 31 After 22 years in power, Mahathir Mohamad retired as Prime Minister of Malaysia.
Historical Events 2002 Oct 31 A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas indicts former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow on 78 counts of wire…
Notable Births 2002 Oct 31 Ansu Fati, Spanish footballer
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Lionel Poilâne, French banker and businessman (born 1945)
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek jurist and politician, President of Greece (born 1903)
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Raf Vallone, Italian footballer and actor (born 1916)
Notable Deaths 2001 Oct 31 Régine Cavagnoud, French skier (born 1970)
Historical Events 2000 Oct 31 Soyuz TM-31 launches, carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station. The ISS has been crewed…
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This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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