The Lost World of Byzantium

by Jonathan Harris

A fresh, concise, and accessible history of one of the medieval world’s greatest empires

For more than a millennium, the Byzantine Empire presided over the juncture between East and West, as well as the transition from the classical to the modern world. Jonathan Harris, a leading scholar of Byzantium, eschews the usual run-through of emperors and battles and instead recounts the empire’s extraordinary history by focusing each chronological chapter on an archetypal figure, family, place, or event.
 
Harris’s action-packed introduction presents a civilization rich in contrasts, combining orthodox Christianity with paganism, and classical Greek learning with Roman power. Frequently assailed by numerous armies—including those of Islam—Byzantium nonetheless survived and even flourished by dint of its somewhat unorthodox foreign policy and its sumptuous art and architecture, which helped to embed a deep sense of Byzantine identity in its people.
 
Enormously engaging and utilizing a wealth of sources to cover all major aspects of the empire’s social, political, military, religious, cultural, and artistic history, Harris’s study illuminates the very heart of Byzantine civilization and explores its remarkable and lasting influence on its neighbors and on the modern world.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Art, Politics, Historical, Audiobook

280 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2015

About the author

Jonathan Harris is professor of the history of Byzantium at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Research interests: Byzantine History 900-1460; relations between Byzantium and the west, especially during the Crusades and the Italian Renaissance; the Greek diaspora after 1453.

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Melisende · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy to read history of the Byzantine Empire to its fall in 1453. This is a great starting point for the beginner to Byzantine studies.

[Liviu · Rating 3 out of 5]

nice illustrations but stick with the JJ Norwich masterpiece (preferably the 3 volume complete edition) as this is like the Cliff Notes of that, very short, sketchy and not really succeeding to describe a millennium and more of vanished history

[Sem · Rating 5 out of 5]

O călătorie superbă în lumea creștinătății antice, a bizanțului. O prezentare extrem de detaliată a moștenirii bizantine, elaborată într-o manieră ușor de cititi, informativă și antrenantă.
Avem multe de învățat din istorie!

[Italo Italophiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Byzantium is the name we give to the Eastern Roman Empire, but they called themselves Romans. They carried on the traditions of the Roman Empire until they were defeated after 1000 years (the book spans from 330 to 1453). The Byzantine Empire was the Christian Roman Empire. The author offers not a comprehensive history, but "a personal journey through the long history of Byzantium".

He tries to explain how it managed to last as long as it did during very tumultuous times, and why it seemingly disappeared so completely. The book reads like a one-sided conversation with someone who loves the Byzantine era and know pretty much all there is to know about it. The author presents some questions and possible answers, some personalities, and some events that stand out.

To appreciate this book, it is best to have a basic grounding in the Byzantine Empire's history. Think of this book as a text to accompany an advanced seminar at university, after you've taken all the introductory courses. The writer adds greater detail to the framework of what you already know, fleshing it out, and sharing his enthusiasm for all things Byzantine. History is storytelling, and this book is full of stories, and characters.

The starting date set for this Byzantium is the inauguration of Constantinople in the year 330, a city ordered constructed by the Roman Emperor Constantine so he could have a monumental base in the east of the empire, to match Rome in the west. The ending date used is the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

So why did the empire last so long? The author offers lots of examples of how the Christian faith was a unifying and inspiring force in an empire made up of disparate people spread out over many lands. The Emperor was the chief defender of the faith. The Emperors also provided for smooth succession from one emperor to the next, something Western Rome rarely managed.

Other things helped, like having many talented leaders and soldiers, the great wealth which helped when bribing bad guys to behave, a magnificent and intimidating capital city that was amazingly defensible, practical plans for organized integration and resettlement of the inevitable migrants to the safe and wealthy empire, and skillful foreign relations which forged friendships and alliances.

Interestingly, the author points out that the powerful church and the popular holy men and women played the role of a check & balance institution on the Emperor's powerful military and civic administration. The church leaders checked excesses, provided social services, and even took on various positions in the State when necessary during times of crisis.

The perceptive reader of history will always find in the past, parallels to the present, which is part of the fun of reading histories, and this book is full of those parallels. The author doesn't bang you over the head with them, but the very fact that he includes certain stories in the book suggests that he understands the parallels very well.

The beautiful, literate English style of writing makes the long book a reading pleasure, but the sheer volume of stories and eras and events means it is best to take the book slowly. Battles, betrayals, theological disputes, invasions, truces, and treaties can become monotonous without a break now and then. I found the middle section of the book less interesting just for that reason: I should have taken a break from reading but I didn't!

A rough summary of the book's contents would be to say that it touches on the most active and known leaders: Constantine, Justinian, Heraclius, Leo III, Constantine V... And in the book, you'll get good explanations of:
-why the feudal system developed,
-how the trading city-states of the late middle ages and the early Renaissance shaped the Mediterranean,
-how the texts saved over time by the Byzantines fueled the High Renaissance,
-why the Catholic Church split between Orthodox and Church of Rome,
-the continual threat from military leaders to secular leaders,
-why there is always strain between the cities and the heartland, and
-what the heck icons were really about.

One strong message in the book, as in any book about the past, is that we are all bastard peoples created from massive mixing of genes and cultures. The era of the nation-state has fueled the false nationalistic belief that we form unique peoples and cultures. This book show that to be utter nonsense.

Another message that comes across is that much of the present world still behaves and reasons as if the early middle ages never ended. Western policy makers of today would benefit from reading this book so they could better understand the savage so-called reasoning the crazies of today use to justify their massacres, hatreds and utter barbarism.

The third message, that is very timely, is that the Byzantine Empire survived over 1000 years because they were able to integrate outsiders, to reward them for their efforts, and to harness their skills for the society's good. That is a not-so subtle message to rich countries today that resist migrants, and marginalize them when they do let them enter the countries.

Please visit my full and illustrated review at Italophile Book Reviews. I received a review-copy of the book. This is my honest review.
http://italophilebookreviews.blogspot...

[Kolya Terletskyi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Для бажаючих отримати швидкий курс по історії Візантії. Зрозуміти як Константинополь став турецьким, звідки взялись греко-католики, поглинути у протистояння католицької та проваславної церков, хто були спадкоємці Римської імперії, та й взагалі спробувати осягнути більш ніж 1000-літню історію могутньої імперії - це все можна отримати, прочитавши цей короткий екскурс по візантійській історії.

[Olia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed how Harris presented this part of our story. Byzantine Empire lasted over a thousand years and proved that isolation and wars are not always the way to prevail. However, Walls of Constantinople held strong whenever these tactics failed.

[Rosemary Standeven · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
This is an exceptional history book about an exceptional empire. Before reading this book, like most people, I knew that the Byzantine empire started in Constantinople as a Christian state, then the Turks arrived and the city became Istanbul and the empire the Muslim Ottoman empire, and now it is secular Turkey. What I never appreciated before was how vast the Byzantine empire was, how long it existed (over 1000 years) and the enormous influence it had on Europe as a whole, and also on the Middle East, not to mention the incredible artistic wealth that was produced, and unfortunately, much of it lost.
Jonathon Harris is not just a very knowledgeable historian, he is also a great, and witty, story teller. The book reads as an exciting novel rather than a dry history tome. It is not often that you would describe a history book as compelling and difficult to put down – but this book is that.
The tale of Byzantium grabs you from the first chapter, which is mainly dedicated to the jaundiced grumblings of Zozimus – a pagan whose nose was really put out of joint by “upstart ... son of a harlot” Constantine, with his “natural malignity”, becoming a Christian ( in order to be pardoned for the murder of his son and wife) and creating Constantinople, “a new and completely unnecessary city”, as his imperial capital.
Byzantium appears to have been an empire of very strong women. Although generally officially ruled by men, if the new emperor was under-aged it was usually his mother that became the regent until he reached his majority, although in later centuries, uncles and strong men tended to take over.
While mainly hereditary, the emperor had to have the support of the populace or be deposed – and deposition happened rather frequently in the millennia of history. I eventually lost track of all the families and the names of the emperors, but luckily there is a list in the back of the book and also a chronology.
Byzantium defined Christianity – from the time of Constantine in the 4th century CE through to probably Martin Luther in the 16th century (we still use the Nicean creed) – and still defines Orthodox Christianity throughout Greece and Eastern Europe today. The great schism between Rome and Byzantium is probably only of interest to theologian nowadays, but for many centuries was of vital importance to Christians throughout Europe, and the cause of much conflict and anguish.
In England we have a very western biased view of history. I was very impressed with how much influence the Bulgarians had on Central Europe. They were at different times enemies, vassals, allies and invaders of the Byzantine empire. The Russians seem to be of secondary importance.
While Byzantium did conquer through military might, it achieved much more by dazzling their enemies into submission with the splendour of its churches and buildings, by bribery (money, land, princesses... ), by playing enemies off against each other and by outright lies and deception. It definitely helped having an impregnable capital city, behind whose land walls the emperor and his people could wait until times improved.
I always thought the Ottoman Turks must have sacked Constantinople after a long battle, but actually they were pretty much allies for most of their joint history, and just wandered in and took over when Byzantium was on its last legs.
So, so much went on in a thousand years. There is so much fascinating information here. I underline so many passages in my kindle, that I almost have another book’s worth of notes. I want to list more and more fascinating facts, but there isn’t room – you just have to read it for yourself. I read the book on my kindle, but have now bought the hardback copy so I can dip in and out more easily, see the maps clearly (not so good on the kindle) and refer back to the chronology and emperor list. When I have more free time, I will reread this book again – and probably again.
Even if you are not a historian – this book is a real pleasure. It will especially appeal to anyone who loves the empire building novels of high fantasy and “Game of Thrones” fans. This history is real, but no less absorbing, bloody and Machiavellian.
The only problem I have with the book, is that the pictures of the mosaics are not in colour. Otherwise it is near perfect.

[Andrey Maksymenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Отличная книга, читается на одном дыхании, как детектив. Конец этого детектива, увы, печальный.
Кто-то из комментаторов пишет, что эта книга хороша для вхождения в тему, а так - простовата. Возможно и так, если вы историк и прочли по теме кучу монографий и спец литературы. Для просто любопытного читателя это прекрасная история тысячелетней империи, которая, как никто, повлияла а нас.

[Christopher · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jonathan Harris is professor of the History of Byzantium at Royal Holloway, University of London. In The Lost World of Byzantium, he promises to describe what gave the eastern heir to Ancient Rome its remarkable longevity: even if it shrunk from an empire to hardly more than the city of Constantinople over that time, Byzantium managed to survive as an institution from the 4th century to the 15th -- and that's in the face of hostile foreign powers on every side, and economic and social upheavals over the centuries.

But really, what this book mainly is, is an overview of Byzantine political and military history: who succeeded who as emperor, and which powers Byzantium fought on the battlefield when. Having read John Julius Norwich's classic three-volume history of Byzantium for a layman readership, I was disappointed to find Harris's book very much a retread. Harris gives us only the same view of the political elite and battles that Norwich did, even as people have been complaining for years since Norwich's work that such an approach ignores the ordinary people in society and the daily life of the population.

A thought-provoking way in which this book differs from its predecessors is that it evinces modern social trends in academia. Earlier English-speaking scholars, even if they had a distaste for features of late Byzantine society or the Orthodox Church, were nonetheless writing within the context of a (Nicaean) Christian society that could ultimately be traced back together with Byzantium to Constantine and the early Church. Harris, on the other hand, voices very early on his distaste for Byzantium's prohibition of homosexual acts and its sanctions against Arianism and other heretical movements. He later returns to this theme to again deplore his object of study. For Harris, a symphonia of spiritual and secular leadership isn't a beautiful ideal, it's a horrible thing. It's just how things are in our time, and we'll probably be seeing a lot more books with this negative tone, but it is a big turnoff for a distinct demographic of consumers of books about Byzantium, namely Orthodox Christians.

All in all, I would recommend a combination of books published earlier. If you want the kind of concise introduction to Byzantine politics that Harris's book ended up being, and you don't want to read three bulky volumes that Norwich originally published, then get Norwich's single-volume abridgement (ISBN 0679772693). For a look at how the Byzantines spent most of their time -- it wasn't wars and intrigues all the time -- Marcus Rautman's Daily Life in the Byzantine Empire is a fun book. Finally, when it comes to the theme of how Byzantium managed to hold out against the Slavs through "soft power" cultural exports (taming your enemies by making them want to live like you do), the work of Dmitri Obolensky (e.g. Byzantium and the Slavs) is more insightful than Harris's book.

[Anatolikon · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this accessible and readable book, Harris seeks to answer the question of why Byzantium lasted as long as it did, and why did it disappear so completely. He suggests that Byzantium's survival is all the more surprising because it sat on a crossroads of moving peoples, and that since there would always be another group at the door, Byzantium had to adopt a non-military approach to the problem. This assumes a certain soundness of state - after all, the main antagonistic force in Byzantine history to Harris are outside peoples migrating towards the empire. This approach unfortunately results in a very narrow conception of Byzantine history and leaves little room for internal tensions. In Harris's view in this book, the state is fundamentally sound and only pressure from outsiders can shake it.

The bulk of the book is a chronological survey around a number of prominent figures designed to answer this question. It's pretty straightforward, and Harris sees the beginning of a non-military approach to survival beginning in late antiquity and encapsulating factors such as courtly awe, which is certainly part of the picture but it is something intangible and impossible to measure. However, once the non-military approach to problems is set out that's about it for the book, and Harris largely repeats the same arguments for each period (with the exception of iconoclasm, which he notes had no bearing on the Arab and Bulgar wars, but did on self-perception, art, and culture, but how this fits into the grand scheme is never explained.) Harris sets of the final downfall on a narrowing of horizons after 1204. Nicaea and Arta did not have the some mystical pull as Constantinople, and intellectually Byzantium turned inward and lost its earlier ability to absorb peoples.

General readers will find this useful and well-written, and while it may be less entertaining than Norwich's travesty, it's certainly built upon a much more solid foundation.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

A review of The Lost World of Byzantium by Jonathan Harris is near impossible to write. The book, incidentally, is far from impossible to read, despite its rather dry style. The problem is the breadth and sheer extent of its subject, an issue the author confronts with both enthusiasm and competence. Often history presents the casual reader with a hard-to-negotiate problem, being the straightjacket of preconception. And it’s often a problem of which we are unaware, precisely because we are rarely conscious of the assumptions we bring to any experience. And this is precisely why we need books like this one by Jonathan Harris, because it can cut through what we clearly do not understand. We need to confront preconceptions, because the process is always enlightening. But the process is often challenging as well. Rest assured, however, because this challenge is rewarding throughout.

The challenge in the Lost World of Byzantium is met head on and early on. We talk a lot of Rome, and much less of Byzantium. We hail the achievements of the former, and generally list the shortcomings of the latter. We see Rome as somehow noble, correct and classical, whereas Byzantium is often corrupt, degenerate, knavish and unsuccessful. And, as Jonathan Harris points out, we are constantly explaining why the Byzantine Empire eventually failed. What we rarely acknowledge is that at its height it was a more extensive empire than Rome’s and, importantly, it actually lasted longer than its precursor. And it was Christian from the start.

It is this perception of Byzantium as eventual failure that Jonathan Harris dispels at the start. It is also essential that he does this, since then we can appreciate the detail of the empire’s history in its own context, rather than in another imposed by our own preconceptions about a future it never saw. In many ways, the history of the Byzantine Empire was the history of Europe from the fourth to the fifteenth century. The Ottoman expansion westwards and its eventual conquest of the empire served to provide a wake-up call for concerted action to defend Christianity. At least one previous attempt had dissolved into anarchy as the Crusaders sacked the very place they had set out to defend. The fall of Byzantium, however, rendered any future sectional gain irrelevant, for if the edifice fell, there would be nothing for anyone. And thus the continent changed a little after Lepanto.

Any reader of such a long and complex history as that of the Byzantine Empire, however, must bear in mind the size and scope of the author’s task. The Lost World of Byzantium may comprise about 150,000 words, but it is trying to cover more than a millennium of European history, not to mention swathes and eras of Middle Eastern, Central Asian and North African history as well. We soon learn not to regard the Byzantine Empire as a purely or even primarily European phenomenon, as regular conflicts are fought to the south and east as well as to the north and west. What becomes clearer, however, is that an empire may wage war at its periphery, and that war may result in expansion or contraction of its territory. But if the empire wages war against itself at the centre, then the threat to its security is existential. Jonathan Harris’s book relates several occasions when Byzantium survived such complete and wounding internecine transformations.

An enduring insight from The Lost World of Byzantium relates to the general role of religion in these transfers of power, and in particular the ability of theology to create empires, rulers, dynasties and perhaps states. Byzantium was founded on Constantine’s embracing of Christianity. But this was only the beginning of the story as we perceive it. The early church was riven by schisms and heresies, notably the Arian interpretation of the nature of Christ. From the perspective of our own age, these theological differences might appear to have the significance of disagreements on the exact count of angels on a pinhead. But at the time, theological disagreements could lead to persecution, exile and war. A long time after the early church had solved some of its self-generated conundrums, new theological differences emerged with similar consequences. It is a great achievement of Harris’s book that it manages to raise what we now might regard as arcane to the status of living political debate. If economic advantage granted by the achievement and tenure of power, as ever, remained the goal, the political and ideological battleground where that status was secured was often theological and only when we appreciate that role do we understand the history of this empire, and perhaps also the history of the first and much of the second millennium of the Christian era.

If there is a criticism of this monumental work, it is that the necessity of chronicling the incumbents of the throne sometimes make the history a mere list of tenants, a procession of kings who merely seem to come and go. The Johns, the Michaels and the Constantines keep coming, forever counting, and it seems sometimes that only the numbers change, as each incumbent suffers his own conspiratorial fate, often remarkably similar to that of his predecessor. There are numerous child emperors, all with their own nakedly ambitious protectors. And also history seems to reproduce itself as yet another incumbent marries to secure peace and alliance, or pursues yet another catalogued military campaign against north, south, east or west, as ever only partially successful. The muddle, it seems, tends to continue.

Overall, the book deserves some criticism for not including enough description of the social and economic conditions within the empire. Such diversity, both ethnic and religious, needs more detail to provide a picture of its complexity. There is little that conveys any feeling of what it was to live even in Constantinople, itself, let alone the Byzantine Empire as a whole. But then, with a task of this size, any author needs to be selective. Jonathan Harris simply could not have included material of this type without doubling the size of an already massive book. And, given the author’s commitment and dedication to his subject, this absence ought to provoke most readers to explore more of his output. This aspect surely has also been covered elsewhere.

What is included are descriptions of greens and blues, Pechenegs, Basils, various Phokases and numerous Theodoras, alongside Abbasids, Seljuks, Fatimids and hordes of Constantines. If even one of these hits a blind spot, then Jonathan Harris’s book will help provide the missing understanding. If anything, it is surely comprehensive. History is always about much more than our preconceptions and all good writing on the subject should remind us of this fact. The Lost World of Byzantium provides a superb opportunity to learn much about this neglected, but crucial era of history.

[Yaroslav Kotyshov · Rating 2 out of 5]

В потоке немного однообразных историй в формате "не слишком интересное о неизвестном" хотелось разглядеть какое-то осмысление византийского периода и авторское видение исторического процесса. Этого я так и не дождался. В концовке, правда, автор выдал внезапный манифест, но для того, чтобы у меня поменялось впечатление от книги, было уже поздновато

[Pinko Palest · Rating 5 out of 5]

a very good read. Not only does the book bring Byzantium to life, it presents the byzantines as creatures of flesh and blood whose thought processes are not all that removed from ours. One of the very best shorter books on Byzantium

[Natalia Bajeva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Визания у меня была совсем уж размытым пятном - примерно представляла сроки существования империи, влияние ее на культуру и причинно-следственные связи, но завитки политики, бытовой уклад, персоналии - совсем были в тумане.

С точки зрения закрытия этого пробела книга зашла отлично. Но, то ли от того, что Византия была мне всегда менее Рима интересна, то ли из-за пулеметной манеры автора в перечислении имен и событий, но почти любая книга про Рим радовала больше.

А тут еще всех императоров звали то Константин, то Роман, то Михаил, и на 7 итерации Михаилов как-то немного прекращаешь их различать.

Но веселого много - например, деталь про то, как самый первый Константин перешел в христианство после того, как пожег жену и как-то еще замысловато изничтожил сына за предполагаемый совместный блуд. Римские жрецы уверенно говорили, что грех этот не отмолить, и на тот свет Константину лучше не спешить, боги с ним ой что сделают, совсем неприятно будет. И тут христианин приблудный - псс, парень, а хочешь прощение всех грехов? Так и порешилось.

Интересно было читать про отношения с Венецией, про Крестовые походы - один из которых не стесняясь завершился взятием Константинополя, про драму между Святым Престолом и православными патриархами (чтоб вы понимали, огромное количество дискуссий вызвал например вопрос, причащать пресным хлебом или на закваске. Блядь, у вас там чума, инфляция и арабские набеги по периметру, вам заняться нечем?). А вот политика описывалась довольно однообразно - и вот пришел один из полевых командиров и сверг к херам текущего императора. Через пять лет - начинай сначала. Другой гене��ал свергает предыдущего, который уже примерил корону и заказал новые визитки. Интересно, что все узурпаторы обычно сохраняли жизнь детям и родне правящей династии и через то легализовались. Одна там племянница Зоя четыре раза замуж ходила. Только веку к 12-ому придумали, что можно всех подрастающих багрянородных порешить в юном возрасте и не ломать голову о вопрос престолонаследия, когда те получат водительскую лицензию и смогут легально покупать сигареты.

И трогательное в финале - один из последних императоров короновался короной со стекляшками - настоящая была заложена Венеции в попытке кредитовать завоевательные походы.

Жалко, конечно, что в Стамбуле Константинополь и не разглядеть теперь невооруженным глазом.

[Socrate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Monumentele surpate ale Constantinopolului nu erau singurele urme rămase în anii 1540, la un secol după căderea Bizanţului. În întregul Apus european, bibliotecile regilor, ducilor şi cardinalilor erau pline de manuscrise cu texte în limba greacă, religioase şi clasice, copiate cu toată grija de scribii bizantini de odinioară. Odată cu dispariţia imperiului, turcii nu au pus mare preţ pe cărţile rămase în mâinile lor, fiind bucuroşi să le vândă unor trimişi ca Pierre Gilles, care le duceau în ţările lor. Şi refugiaţii scoteau din ţară asemenea codice, cu un conţinut cât se poate de divers, de la Evanghelii şi Psalmi până la preţioasele scrieri ale filosofilor greci din Antichitate, care de secole întregi nu fuseseră la îndemâna Occidentului.
Unul dintre aceste manuscrise este Codex Vaticanus Graecus 156, păstrat şi astăzi în Biblioteca Vaticanului de la Roma. Există sute de manuscrise bizantine la Vatican, dar acesta este diferit. Noii lui proprietari, fiind clerici, au preferat să nu fie public şi, până la mijlocul secolului al XIX-lea, accesul la el a rămas practic imposibil. La un moment dat, mai multe pagini din el au fost cu bună ştiinţă decupate, conţinutul lor fiind definitiv pierdut. De fapt, este uluitor că s-a păstrat şi în această formă, ţinând seama de mesajul lui subversiv şi opoziţionist. Manuscrisul datează din secolul al X-lea, fiind o copie târzie a unei relatări istorice scrise în greceşte la circa cinci sute de ani
după naşterea lui Iisus Hristos.

[W. Derek Atkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Rise and Fall and Rise of the Byzantine Empire

As someone who has taught Church History before, I wanted to learn more about the history of the Byzantine Empire. This book does a good job of tracing the ebb and flow of Byzantine history, including the many struggles for the Byzantine throne — struggles that give rise to the phrase Byzantine intrigues.

While this is a very detailed history, it also allows the reader to discern the broader patterns of Byzantine history. For example, the Byzantine Empire was on the verge of collapse repeatedly throughout its history, yet it managed not only to survive but also to recover lost territory time and again. This book explains how and why this pattern is one of the central features of Byzantine history.

If you’re interested in a detailed yet accessible history of the Byzantine Empire, then I recommend this book for your consideration.

[Sharon Healy-Yang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harris's book is a fascinating, well researched history of the Byzantine Empire. His book reveals the amazing durability of the Byzantines in keeping alive their civilization and power as he provides an eye-opening insight into the clashes of empires in the east, including the Balkans, north to Russia, west to the "Latins," and into the lands of the Arabs. It's fascinating to watch how the Byzantines manage to balance between savagely fighting off invaders, co-opting invaders into their ranks, and playing off enemies against one another. Just as amazing are the twists and turns of internal revolts and recoveries of power. Harris's detailed explanations bring alive both the people of the time and the cultural contexts and conflicts shaping their lives. To cap off the appeal of his book, his writing is clear and lively without trivializing his content.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perhaps were I more of a political/military history enthusiast, I would have enjoyed this book more. I was hoping it would describe in detail the lives and culture of the Byzantine world. However, the book got caught up in and bogged down by lengthy recitations of who was in power when, how they came into power, how the military campaigns changed the political landscape. Harris was at his best in synthesizing and interpreting the changes that came about, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the leaders and their policies. This might be a great, quick introduction to those who want to know who succeeded whom, why, and how they came to power. But I found myself wanting to just skim and get onto the next chapter.

[Elizabeth Grieve · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I lived in Istanbul for many years, the beautiful city which was the hub of the Byzantine empire, I was most interested to read this book. It's a chronological look at the rise and fall of Byzantium, but as it's a huge subject for one book, it is perhaps not as comprehensive as some. Nevertheless it's very good, not too dry for the non-academic reader. I would have liked perhaps more illustrations throughout the book, rather than those just at the beginning (and they were black and white in the copy I received).
Note: My thanks to Yale University Press, London for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

[William Gill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is more than a serviceable one volume history of the Eastern Roman Empire, it is actually quite good.
My only minor knock is that I would have liked more information. Granted, 1,100 years is a long time and you have to pick and choose for a one volume summary, but really just make the book longer.
More pages may fly against the grain of both publishing and conventional wisdom these days, but for lovers of history I don't think it's unreasonable to push another hundred or two hundred pages of damn good content, especially when the audience is built in.
Still, for those desiring a nice introduction to the world of Byzantium, you could do much worse.

[cee · Rating 4 out of 5]

this covers the same ground as j.j. norwich's work, but frankly if you're looking for an introduction to byzantine history i would rate this over "a short history of byzantium"—it has the same pitfalls (being mostly focused on military history and palace intrigue) but has a more engaging writing style, a more memorable treatment of non-military foreign policy, and leans a little less heavily on individual emperors. not for people who are looking to specialize, but in its own right it's a great time

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just fantastic. A thousand year city at the crossroads of so many cultures. Home of one of the world's greatest collection of ancient texts and holy relics. Ransacked, beseiged, its walls withstood invasions for centuries. Treasures and intrigue, incredible architecture, intrigue and plots, treachery, poison and ill-timed death. It is an endless saga and 100% true. Recommend you read in conjuction with Richard Fidler's "Ghost Empire".

[Sergiu S. Dobre]

An excellent history of Bizantium full of very interesting facts presented in a very attractive way! The book is, besides being highly informative, extremely readable and very well written (oops, I think I repeat myself but I am really impressed with the skill of the author!) I must say that I read the book in Romanian and it is excellently translated by Mihai Moroiu! Congrats!
Highly recommended!

[Joshua Wilkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely incredible book for learning about Byzantine history. It gives an incredible insight to the long and storied journey of Byzantium, and it does so in an exciting and colourful way. As I read, I got attached to the people and events going on, and as the book comes to a close I felt as though I was saying goodbye to an old friend. If I could experience reading this again for the first time, I would do so happily.

[Michael Michailidis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Great Book for a Great Empire

It’s truly astonishing that the only remnant of Byzantium in the English language is a term used as a synonym to “scheming,” “plotting,” “betraying,” “playing dangerous and complicated political games,” “the cloaked man in the dark corner of the palatial court” etc. But Byzantium was not that. Byzantium was bright when most Europe went dark, and this book helps to allow some of its light to illuminate our present...

[Becky Vandenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Impressive

I have read several books about the Byzantine empire. Of course, there is a lot of overlapping accounts between them. This one, however, is by far the most comprehensive and complete version of this unique history. I recommend this book to anyone studying world history or great empires. I would choose this book as a class textbook. It is also a well-written piece of Byzantine historiography.

[Jostein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting short history of Byzantium, from Constantine to Mehmed the Conqueror. It covers more than a millenium of history and so gives more of an overview than details, which was what I was looking for.

The best emperor was obviously Basil I who wrestled the bulgarian wrestling champion and totally kicked his ass!

[R.L. Leffingwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really a tour de force

A massive subject, covering over a thousand years, treated with great skill, and entertainingly. I read this in digital format, and was just wishing the author had provided notes, when I found (accidentally) that there is quite extensive end material (bibliographic notes, glossary, index, et al.). Glad I bought it.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting book, which is my first one focused on the Byzantine Empire. I knew a lot of this history going into the reading, but it definitely added more color. There was definitely an element of tragedy in Byzantium's history, especially when it became clear the backslide into oblivion was irreversible.

[Biblioworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Было интересно упорядочить в голове место Византии в истории Европы, Азии, России.

Заодно и сложные хитросплетения христианства.

И абсолютную бессмысленность обосновывать любые территориальные проблемы используя историю - очевидно что почти любой клочок земли в Евразии можно соотнести с почти любой ныне существующей страной..