years of his reign her word exerted a deep influence on the course of
government. When he was called away from Constantinople by the wars that
demanded his personal attention, he left his mother as regent during his
absence.

The first offspring of the union of Alexius and Irene was a daughter,
Anna Comnena. She was in her infancy affianced to Constantine, and the
two were regarded as heirs to the throne, much to the delight of the
ex-Empress Maria. In the ceremonies of the court, the names of
Constantine and Anna immediately followed those of Alexius and Irene.

Finally, in 1088, the empress bore a son, the third of her children. The
joy of Alexius was unbounded. Seeing the possibility of his son carrying
on the dynasty and perpetuating the name of Comnenus, Alexius determined
to set aside the claims of Constantine and his eldest daughter. An
estrangement with Maria Ducas followed. In 1092, John in his fourth year
was proclaimed emperor, and Constantine was deprived of his rights. The
rupture between Alexius and Maria was a source of enmity to the reigning
house. Chagrined at the failure of her plans, and at the usurpation of
one to whom she had shown every kindness, the ex-empress took part in a
conspiracy against Alexius. But the plot was exposed in time, and all
who were engaged in it were severely punished, except the ex-empress,
who was permitted by her adopted son to go into peaceful retirement.

Constantine, though no longer associated on the throne, was still
affianced to Anna, but an early death removed him from the scene of
action and the intrigues of the court. In 1097, Anna was married to
Nicephorus Bryennius, scion of a noble house. The mother, Anna
Dalassena, continued for some time to be a powerful factor at court,
but, becoming unpopular and realizing that she was losing her hold on
her imperial son, she finally followed the usual custom of retiring to a
monastery.

Thus the ex-Empress Maria and Anna--the real founder of the fortune of
her house--found in religious retirement and meditation a life of peace
and tranquillity after the turmoils of revolutions and the intrigues of
imperial politics. The one had seen the failure of her plans and the
downfall of her house; the other could look with pride upon the full
fruition of her plots for the elevation of the Comneni.

The reign of Alexius I.,--Comnenus,--occupies a considerable place not
only in Byzantine, but, also, in general history. It inaugur