CONSTANTINE IX  . Monomachus, emperor 1042-1054, owed his elevation to an old admirer, Zoe, the widow of Romanus III . Argyrus (1028–1034) and of Michael IV. the Paphlagonian (1034–1041), who, after the brief reign of Michael V . Calaphates (December 1041–April 1042), was proclaimed empress with her sister, Theodora . Quarrels broke out between the sisters, and, in order to secure her position, Zoe married Constantine, with whom she shared the throne till her death in 1050 . In his old age Constantine, who had once been a famous warrior, utterly neglected the defences of the empire and reduced his army by disbanding 50,000 of his best troops; on the other hand, he spent extravagant sums on luxuries and the erection of magnificent buildings . Rebellions broke out at home and abroad; the Normans conquered Lombardy, which subsequently (1055) became the duchy of Apulia, and thus Italy was lost to the empire; the Petchenegs (Patzinaks) crossed the Danube andattaeked Thrace and Macedonia; and the Seljuk Turks made their appearance on the Armenian frontier .