A History of the Byzantine State and Society

by: Treadgold, W.

Price: 35,00 EURO

1 copy in stock

 A History of the Byzantine State and Society
Warren Treadgold

About this book
This is the first comprehensive and up-to-date history of Byzantium to appear in almost sixty years, and the first ever to cover both the Byzantine state and Byzantine society. It begins in A.D. 285, when the emperor Diocletian separated what became Byzantium from the western Roman Empire, and ends in 1461, when the last Byzantine outposts fell to the Ottoman Turks. Spanning twelve centuries and three continents, the Byzantine Empire linked the ancient and modern worlds, shaping and transmitting Greek, Roman, and Christian traditions—including the Greek classics, Roman law, and Christian theology—that remain vigorous today, not only in Eastern Europe and the Middle East but throughout Western civilization. Though in its politics Byzantium often resembled a third-world dictatorship, it has never yet been matched in maintaining a single state for so long, over a wide area inhabited by heterogeneous peoples. Drawing on a wealth of original sources and modern works, the author treats political and social developments as a single vivid story, told partly in detailed narrative and partly in essays that clarify long-term changes. He avoids stereotypes and rejects such old and new historical orthodoxies as the persistent weakness of the Byzantine economy and the pervasive importance of holy men in Late Antiquity. Without neglecting underlying social, cultural, and economic trends, the author shows the often crucial impact of nearly a hundred Byzantine emperors and empresses. What the emperor or empress did, or did not do, could rapidly confront ordinary Byzantines with economic ruin, new religious doctrines, or conquest by a foreign power. Much attention is paid to the complex life of the court and bureaucracy that has given us the adjective "byzantine." The major personalities include such famous names as Constantine, Justinian, Theodora, and Heraclius, along with lesser-known figures like Constans II, Irene, Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer, and Michael VIII Palaeologus. Byzantine civilization emerges as durable, creative, and realistic, overcoming repeated setbacks to remain prosperous almost to the end. With 221 illustrations and 18 maps that complement the text, A History of the Byzantine State and Society should long remain the standard history of Byzantium not just for students and scholars but for all readers.

Frontmatter

Contents

Tables and Maps

Preface

Note on Transliteration

Introduction

PART ONE THE ENLARGED STATE AND THE BURDENED SOCIETY
CHAPTER ONE The Refoundation of the Empire, 284-337

CHAPTER TWO The State Under Strain, 337-395

CHAPTER THREE The Danger of Barbarization, 395-457

CHAPTER FOUR The Formation of Byzantine Society, 284-457

PART TWO THE INTERRUPTED ADVANCE
CHAPTER FIVE The Eastern Recovery, 457-518

CHAPTER SIX The Reconquests and the Plague, 518-565

CHAPTER SEVEN The Danger of Overextension, 565-610

CHAPTER EIGHT A Divided Society, 457-610

PART THREE THE CONTAINED CATASTROPHE
CHAPTER NINE Two Fights for Survival, 610-668

CHAPTER TEN The War of Attrition, 668-717

CHAPTER ELEVEN The Passing of the Crisis, 717-780

CHAPTER TWELVE The Shrinking of Society, 610-780

PART FOUR THE LONG REVIVAL
CHAPTER THIRTEEN Internal Reforms, 780-842

CHAPTER FOURTEEN External Gains, 842-912

CHAPTER FIFTEEN The Gains Secured, 912-963

CHAPTER SIXTEEN The Great Conquests, 963-1025

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN The Expansion of Society, 780-1025

PART FIVE THE WEAK STATE AND THE WEALTHY SOCIETY
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN Erratic Government, I025-I08I

CHAPTER NINETEEN Improvised Reconstruction, I08I-II43

CHAPTER TWENTY Diminishing Security, I 143-1204

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE A Restless Society, 1025-1204

PART SIX THE FAILED RESTORATION
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO The Successor States, I204-I26I

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE The Restored Empire, 1261-1328

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR The Breakdown, 1328-1391

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE The End of Byzantine Independence, 1391-1461

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX The Separation of Society from State, 1204-1461

Conclusion

APPENDIX Lists of Rulers

Abbreviations

Bibliographical Survey

Endnotes

Index

A History of the Byzantine State and Society

by: Treadgold, W.

• ISBN-13: 9780804726306 / 978-0-8047-2630-6
• ISBN-03: 0804726302 / 0-8047-2630-2
• Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, 1997

Price: 35,00 EURO

1 copy in stock