As Constantinople's special protector the Virgin Mary plays an important role in the history of the Byzantine Empire and also in its wars. This article uses the Virgin's miraculous intervention on the walls of Constantinople in 626
in order to study the unique Byzantine conception of war that relied on Old Testament
models of defence. The Virgin as the new Deborah reflects certain Byzantine
ideas of war, but even more of peace. My argument is thal the divine rescue in 626
was not only a military necessity, but the theological response to a new challenge for
imperial ideology.
