John II Komnenos
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John II Komnenos or Comnenus was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as "John the Beautiful" or "John the Good", he was the eldest son of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and Irene Doukaina and
Mosaic of John II at the Hagia Sophia
John II (left) and his eldest son Alexios, crowned by Christ. Minuscule 157, early 12th century
Isaac Komnenos, mosaic of from the Chora Church
A letter from John II to Pope Innocent II
Irene of Hungary
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Irene of Hungary was the Byzantine empress by marriage to John II Komnenos. The Byzantine Empire was at its height during this period, and her husband, John II, has been regarded as the greatest of th
John II Komnenos
…crowned by Christ on the obverse. Alexios I arranged a dynastic marriage for John. In 1104 or early 1105 John was married to the Hungarian princess Piroska, daughter of King Ladislaus I of Hungary. She was given the Greek name Irene, meaning 'peace', in Byzantium. This marriage sealed a political alliance…
Mosaic portrait of Empress Irene on the Comnenos mosaic in the Hagia Sophia, Constantinople (now Istanbul), (c. 1118)
Komnenos mosaic at Hagia Sophia: Mary the Virgin in the center, Emperor John II Komnenos on the left, and Empress Irene on the right (c. 1118)
Monastery of Christ Pantokrator (now Zeyrek Mosque, Istanbul)