Justinian II of Byzantium.

by Constance Head

This is the first complete book on the Emperor Justinian II, who despite having had one of the most colorful and tempestuous careers of any historical figure, remains largely enigmatic. Ruler of the great Byzantine Empire from 685 to 695, Justinian was deposed by the usurper Leontios, who severed the emperor's nose in a brutal warning to him never again to return to Constantinople. Defeated, disfigured, and alone, Justinian wandered among barbarian tribes beyond the far borders of the Empire. Finally, after 10 years in exile he gathered together an army of Bulgar mercenaries and returned victorious to Constantinople where with the adornment of the Golden nose, he ruled again until 711. In that year he fell to a mutinous army and was captured and slain. Little has been written about Justinian II since relatively little source material from the period is available. And the sketchy picture historians have traditionally held of Justinian has been blackened by early chroniclers who sought purposely to malign the Emperor. These two circumstances, believes Professor Head, have painted an incomplete and inaccurate picture of an important historical figure, a picture which she seeks to set straight in this engaging work. It is thus a revisionist case that Professor Head pleads, seriously challenging the commonly held belief that Justinian was little more than an inept, amoral, self-gratifying and cruel figure who clung to power through bloody persecution and betrayal. Justinian's career spanned a time of critical changes in Byzantine history, changes in administrative structure, in military and diplomatic affairs, and in theology. The author presents evidence showing that JustinIan was very much involved in these changes, in both his first and second reigns. When his record is weighed in true balance, just any and it emerges as an emperor who made serious mistakes, but who was nonetheless a ruler of considerable ability and genuine concern for the Empire.

Genres: History

Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

Reviews

[Andrew Dockrill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arguably my favorite book on an emperor I have yet to read, right up their with Seager's book on Tiberius or the biography on Caligula. In this biography Head takes a similar approach and tries to debunk the slanderous reputation he has from such writers as Theophanes. It was quite interesting to see why it was likely that his name was drug through the mud, she compared the situation to Richard III reputation. When a new monarch, in this case Leo III took over, he likely wanted to shame the name of Justinian to make his reign more legitimate much like the Tudor king Henry VII did to Richard III whether it was warranted or not.

Justinian was overall quite a good king I personally think, he was a good administrator, supposedly creating the farmers law and really trying to be the hero for the common people rather then the aristocracy which he would tax heavily which would lead to his first dethronement by Leontois is commander in chief who would have his nose cut off "Rhinokopia" (I think thats how it was spelled), while also cutting off Justinians tongue or at least mutilating it. Interestingly enough this may seem like a terrible punishment to suffer but in the context of the time it was better then being put to death and was seen as showing mercy. Justinians uncles Tiberius and Heraclius were given this punishment when they tried to overthrow Justinians father Constantine IV.

All in all I think this was a phenomenal book an extremely readable, I would recommend it to anyone who wants a fun read and a good story, while also learning a bit about a good but not great leader.

[Anatolikon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forty years on much of Constance Head's work here is quite dated. However, it remains the only historical biography of the reign of the Byzantine emperor Justinian II. Head's goal in this book beyond providing a narrative is to rescue Justinian from the tyranny of the source material. The two main sources in Greek for his life, the later chroniclers [[ASIN:0812211286 Theophanes]] and Nikephoros are virulently hostile to Justinian. Head's goal is to present in the format of popular history an argument that Justinian, despite his faults, was in fact a competent and determined statesman. Although much of this book is simply a narrative of Justinian's life, the core of it is based on why Theophanes and Nikephoros have this particular attitude. She does an admirable job given the material available to her at the time of writing. The tale told is lively and interesting. It is easy to read, and the short chapters mean you can glance at the book for only a few moments and yet still finish a chapter. The physical book itself is quite interesting. When I removed the dustcover, I found that Justinian's monogram was embossed on the front cover which was a nice touch. Despite being a popular history, the publisher allowed the use of footnotes, something that too many books for strictly academic audiences these days still do not have. The problem with the book is its age. While one can pick it up for a decent read on Justinian's life and his empire, much of Head's scholarship is extremely dated. Even if she was citing material from the late 1960s it would be considered dated today, but many of her references at this point are now a century old. So long as this book is just enjoyed for its narrative and careful use of the sources, it is a perfectly good book. Readers should be aware, however, that it is not a good place to find out what scholars think of the 'Farmer's Law' in Byzantium today, though.

[Graham Podolecki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, but brief, look at the life of one of Byzantium’s most remarkable Emperors. Justinian’s story deserves to be made into a mini-series, it’s just so amazing. Alas, our sources from this period are scarce and thus the majority of our information on this amazing figure can be tucked into this small volume. Still, it is well worth the read!

[Eileen Iciek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Constance Head did some outstanding research into the life of the infamous Justinian II, producing a much more nuanced picture of the "nose-less" emperor than we typically see. She broadened her sources from the usual Chronicle of Theophanes and Nikephoros, into papal records in Rome, sources in Ravenna, and Arab accounts. Her explanations behind his initial overthrow by the usurper Leontios, and the drive that he must have had to finally regain the throne 10 years later despite a terrible facial disfigurement lead me to believe that Justinian's reputation may have been trashed over the years. I don't know where the historical research has gone in the forty-five years since this book was published, so maybe there's more information available.

If you're interested in learning more about this much-maligned emperor, this would be a great place to start.