 Despite this triumph , the downfall of Kourkouas , as well as of his friend and protector , Emperor Romanos I Lekapenos , was imminent . The two eldest surviving sons of Romanos I , co @-@ emperors Stephen and Constantine , were jealous of Kourkouas and had in the past tried to undermine him , albeit without success . Following the success of Kourkouas in the East , Romanos I considered marrying his trusted general into the imperial family . Kourkouas 's daughter Euphrosyne was to be wedded with the emperor 's grandson , the future Romanos II ( r . 959 – 963 ) , the son of his son @-@ in @-@ law and junior emperor Constantine VII . Although such a union would effectively cement the loyalty of the army , it would also strengthen the position of the legitimate Macedonian line , represented by Constantine VII , over the imperial claims of Romanos 's own sons . Predictably , Stephen and Constantine opposed this decision and prevailed upon their father , who was by this time old and ill , to dismiss Kourkouas in the autumn of 944 . 
