The Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes

The Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes PDF Author: Jesse W. Torgerson
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004516859
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 476

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Book Description
The ninth-century Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes is the most influential historical text ever written in medieval Constantinople. Yet modern historians have never explained its popularity and power. This interdisciplinary study draws on new manuscript evidence to finally animate the Chronographia’s promise to show attentive readers the present meaning of the past. Begun by one of the Roman emperor’s most trusted and powerful officials in order to justify a failed revolt, the project became a shockingly ambitious re-writing of time itself—a synthesis of contemporary history, philosophy, and religious practice into a politicized retelling of the human story. Even through radical upheavals of the Byzantine political landscape, the Chronographia’s unique historical vision again and again compelled new readers to chase after the elusive Ends of Time.

The Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes

The Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes PDF Author: Jesse W. Torgerson
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004516859
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 476

Get Book Here

Book Description
The ninth-century Chronographia of George the Synkellos and Theophanes is the most influential historical text ever written in medieval Constantinople. Yet modern historians have never explained its popularity and power. This interdisciplinary study draws on new manuscript evidence to finally animate the Chronographia’s promise to show attentive readers the present meaning of the past. Begun by one of the Roman emperor’s most trusted and powerful officials in order to justify a failed revolt, the project became a shockingly ambitious re-writing of time itself—a synthesis of contemporary history, philosophy, and religious practice into a politicized retelling of the human story. Even through radical upheavals of the Byzantine political landscape, the Chronographia’s unique historical vision again and again compelled new readers to chase after the elusive Ends of Time.

The Chronicle of Theophanes

The Chronicle of Theophanes PDF Author: Theophanes (the Confessor)
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN: 9780812211283
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
The most important illuminating source that survived from the two centuries termed "the dark ages of Byzantium" is the chronicle of the monk Theophanes (d. 817 or 818). In it Theophanes paints a vivid picture of the Empire's struggle in the seventh and eighth centuries both to withstand foreign invasions and to quell internal religious conflicts. Theophanes's carefully developed chronological scheme was mined extensively by later Byzantine and Western record keepers; his chronicle was used as a source of information as well as a stylistic model. It is the framework upon which all Byzantine chronology for this period must be based. Important topics covered by the Chronicle include: The Empire's struggle to repel explosive Arab expansionism and the Bulgar invasion. The iconoclastic controversy, which caused civil war within Byzantium and led to schism between the churches of Constantinople and Rome. The development of the Byzantine thematic system, the administrative and social structure that would bring the Empire to the height of its power and prosperity. Almost all the sources used by Theophanes have perished, leaving his chronicle as the most important historical literature from this period. Turledove's translation makes available in English this crucial primary text for the study of medieval Byzantine civilization.

John Skylitzes: A Synopsis of Byzantine History, 811–1057

John Skylitzes: A Synopsis of Byzantine History, 811–1057 PDF Author: John Skylitzes
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139489151
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This book was first published in 2010. John Skylitzes' extraordinary Middle Byzantine chronicle covers the reigns of the Byzantine emperors from the death of Nicephorus I in 811 to the deposition of Michael VI in 1057, and provides the only surviving continuous narrative of the late tenth and early eleventh centuries. A high official living in the late eleventh century, Skylitzes used a number of existing Greek histories (some of them no longer extant) to create a digest of the previous three centuries. It is without question the major historical source for the period and is cited constantly in modern scholarship. This edition features introductions by Jean-Claude Cheynet and Bernard Flusin, along with extensive notes. It will be an essential and exciting addition to the libraries of all historians of the Byzantine age.

History as Literature in Byzantium

History as Literature in Byzantium PDF Author: Ruth Macrides
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351930648
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 326

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Book Description
Although perceived since the sixteenth century as the most impressive literary achievement of Byzantine culture, historical writing nevertheless remains little studied as literature. Historical texts are still read first and foremost for nuggets of information, as main sources for the reconstruction of the events of Byzantine history. Whatever can be called literary in these works has been considered as external and detachable from the facts. The 'classical tradition' inherited by Byzantine writers, the features that Byzantine authors imitated and absorbed, are regarded as standing in the way of understanding the true meaning of the text and, furthermore, of contaminating the reliability of the history. Chronicles, whose language and style are anything but classicizing, have been held in low esteem, for they are seen as providing a mere chronological exposition of events. This book presents a set of articles by an international cast of contributors, deriving from papers delivered at the 40th annual Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies. They are concerned with historical and visual narratives that date from the sixth to the fourteenth century, and aim to show that literary analyses and the study of pictorial devices, far from being tangential to the study of historical texts, are preliminary to their further study, exposing the deeper structures and purposes of these texts.

The Fall of a Carolingian Kingdom

The Fall of a Carolingian Kingdom PDF Author: Charles West
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
ISBN: 1487545185
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
The Fall of a Carolingian Kingdom investigates how the first royal divorce scandal led to the collapse of a kingdom, changing the fate of medieval Europe. Through a set of annotated translations of key contemporary sources, the book presents the downfall of the Frankish kingdom of Lotharingia as a case study in early medieval politics, equipping readers to develop their own independent interpretations. The book tracks the twists and turns of the scandal as it unfolded over a crucial decade and a half in the ninth century. Drawing on primary sources such as letters, material culture, and secret treaties, The Fall of a Carolingian Kingdom offers readers a sharply defined window into one of the most dramatic episodes in Carolingian history, rich with insights on the workings of early medieval society.

Jews in Byzantium

Jews in Byzantium PDF Author: Robert Bonfil
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004203559
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 1059

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Book Description
Byzantine Jews: Dialectics of Minority and Majority Cultures is the collective product of a three year research group convened under the auspices of Scholion: Interdisciplinary Research Center in Jewish Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The volume provides both a survey and an analysis of the social and cultural history of Byzantine Jewry from its inception until the fifteenth century, within the wider context of the Byzantine world.

The Old Testament in Byzantium

The Old Testament in Byzantium PDF Author: Paul Magdalino
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780884023487
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 354

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Book Description
The Old Testament in Byzantium contains papers from a Dumbarton Oaks symposium based on an exhibition of early Bible manuscripts titled "In the Beginning: Bibles before the Year 1000." Topics include manifestations of the holy books in Byzantine manuscript illustration, architecture, and government, as well as in Jewish Bible translations.

Byzantium and Bulgaria, 775-831

Byzantium and Bulgaria, 775-831 PDF Author: Panos Sophoulis
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004206957
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 400

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Book Description
Drawing on written and material sources, the book offers a comprehensive analysis of Byzantium's relations with Bulgaria during the late eighth and early ninth centuries, one of the most crucial and formative periods in the history of both medieval states.

Theodore the Stoudite

Theodore the Stoudite PDF Author: Roman Cholij
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780199248469
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
Roman Cholij's study of the life and thought of Theodore the Stoudite provides a complete analysis of, and guide to, all the primary source material attributed to Theodore.

A Chronology of the Byzantine Empire

A Chronology of the Byzantine Empire PDF Author: T. Venning
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230505864
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 831

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Book Description
This work provides a clear and comprehensive chronology of the Eastern Roman Empire from the foundation of Constantinople in 324 AD to the extinction of the last Byzantine principality in 1461 AD, ultimately shedding light on a once-obscure period of Eastern Mediterranean and Balkan history whose events still resonate in world politics.