The Alexiad of Anna Comnena (The Penguin Classics)

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Summary: A very important Primary Source!
Review: Alexiad is a very important historical primary source for the understanding of the Byzantine culture and history of the era. Eventhough, there are some subjective material, due to the fact the writer is infact the doughter of the emperor Alexius I. I highly recommend the book for those who are interested in the history of the Eastern Roman Empire and the imperial capital of Constantinople.

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Summary: Thanks Anna
Review: Anna Comnena talks about her father's glorious administration of the Byzantine Empire in 1100's in this book. Thanks to her, we know what happened in those years in the Near East.
The book is especially important for those interested in the conquest (or invasion) of Anatolia by the Turks and the subsequent Islamization process of it. She gives first-hand information on the nature of Turkic conquest and its effects on Hellen and Armenio-Syriac Anatolia.
The book is also important for various reasons such as history of Byzantine Empire, Celtic, and Norman wars, the first Crusade.

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Summary: Writing in a language 1200 years old
Review: Her father, Alexios Komnenos, was called upon not only to pull together the rapidly disintegrating Byzantine Empire, but also to deal with what has been called (with a certain degree of justice) "The last barbarian invasion" - the western crusading movement - inadvertently touched off by Alexios's own request for military aid from the west.

Anna Komnena is certainly prey to the prejudices of her rank and station in the Byzantine Empire, and her account is clearly intended as an elegy and panygeric to her adored father - the Emperor Alexios I Komnenos. Nevertheless, the Alexiad is also a closely detailed and informed account of a pivotal period in the history of medieval europe and the middle east.

Together with Michael Psellos and Niketas Choniates, Anna represents the cream of middle-Byzantine historiography. Do not let the clearly deranged review posted earlier on this site put you off.

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Summary: History as told by a participant
Review: I was fascinated by Byzantine history anyway, but there is nothing quite like the Alexiad. Anna Comnena, daughter of the Emperor Alexius I, recalls in her old age the days of her father. Surely she is biased, but we can factor out the bias. She is also a surprisingly literary woman, more often quoting Homer than the Bible (though she quotes both, and her everyday language must have been much like the Greek of her quotations, by then 1000 to 2000 years old). She's also a great character. (She apparently tried to have her brother, the heir apparent, assassinated---well, where does one think the term "Byzantine" came from?) She also leaves us with a puzzle--she describes her father's fatal disease but she has no way of knowing what it was. It sounds like cancer to me. Read the book and get back to me on that!

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Summary: If Not True, It Could Be Literature
Review: The Alexiad is a great read both for the events described -- especially the emperor's battles of wits and might with a (from Anna's perspective) rogue's gallery of kingdoms and adventurers -- and for what the author reveals of herself, both overtly and unwittingly. By and large, Comnena is remarkably objective and a graceful writer, at least in this translation (where her occasional rambling asides are generally shifted into footnotes). The translator's footnoted comments are perceptive and unobtrusive.

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Summary: A rich and fascinating text
Review: The reviewer who cautions Comnena's readers to take her "with a grain of salt" should try to step out of his/her 20th-century shoes long enough to appreciate the astonishing accomplishment of this remarkable woman. As Emilie Amt says, "[M]edieval standards of truth, originality and accuracy were not the same as ours. Supernatural explanations of events were more widely accepted than they are today. Authors of literature and history borrowed freely from other works, and the boundaries between myth, story and history were not clear ones. Literary conventions can also distort the historical record; for example, the writers often invented dialogue freely. . . . One way to read such sources is to look for clues in accounts as to what might 'really' have happened. Another is to study the mind-set of the age, taking the belief itself as an important historical fact. A third is to enter into the mind-set of the age, taking the belief for granted. All three approaches can be illuminating for the student of medieval history."

The literary convention of using archaic language is hardly new with Comnena, and although one might argue its effectiveness, one can hardly say that all books must be written in the "language . . . in common usage at the time."

Personally, as a scholar in the field of medieval women writers, I found Comnena's epic, and especially her (inadvertant) revelations of her own personality so fascinating, that I wrote a young-adult novel based on her life (_Anna of Byzantium_). More than one teenage fan has written to tell me that reading the novel had inspired her to attempt to read the _Alexiad_. None of them made it very far, but several said they were going to try again when they were older!

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Summary: From a Woman's Point of View
Review: Written by Anna Comnena, the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I (1083-1153), this is the recollections by the princess of the Crusades as it occurred in her father's court during his reign.

The perspective not only of a member of the court but also a woman's view point makes this an interesting and exceptional view of the Crusaders, often describing them more realistically than some of the histories that were commissioned by the lords.

Ms. Comnena is perceptive in her observations. She notes details that are overlooked in other historical accounts. She starts with the history of her father the Emperor, the revolt that placed him on the throne, various families and their relationship with her father.

She then gives accounts of the wars with the Normans, the Scyths, the Turkish wars, and the First Crusade.

Ms. Comnena has a very good grasp of those things we would not expect a young lady of the court at that time to have. She knows politics, diplomacy and has a good grounding in science and mechanics.

Her accounts are dramatic but show a good grasp of the situations she is describing. We do not expect this from a woman of this time, but this book clearly illustrates we are not as aware as we thought we were about woman at that time and place. She has a strong writing style and presents us with a picture of a well educated and aware woman who knows well her position and the positions of those in her court.

We also experience first hand her hatred of her younger brother, whom she seems to resent and whom she actually tries to assassinate.

Court intrigues, physical accounts of the Crusaders as they appear in her fathers court, the feeling of the life and politics of the time are all preserved in this book as a slice of culture in Byzantine Empire at the time of the First Crusade. A good reference book and a wonderful read for those interested in a different perspective of the Crusades. medievalcrusadesbabe

Rating:
Summary: From a Woman's Point of View
Review: Written by Anna Comnena, the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I (1083-1153), this is the recollections by the young princess of the Crusades as it occurred in her father's court during his reign.

The perspective not only of a young member of the court but also a woman's view point makes this an interesting and exceptional view of the Crusaders, often describing them more realistically than some of the histories that were commissioned by the lords.

Ms. Comnena is perceptive in her observations. She notes details that are overlooked in other historical accounts. She starts with the history of her father the Emperor, the revolt that placed him on the throne, various families and their relationship with her father.

She then gives accounts of the wars with the Normans, the Scyths, the Turkish wars, and the First Crusade.

Ms. Comnena has a very good grasp of those things we would not expect a young lady of the court at that time to have. She knows politics, diplomacy and has a good grounding in science and mechanics.

Her accounts are dramatic but show a good grasp of the situations she is describing. We do not expect this from a woman of this time, but this book clearly illustrates we are not as aware as we thought we were about woman at that time and place. She has a strong writing style and presents us with a picture of a well educated and aware woman who knows well her position and the positions of those in her court.

We also experience first hand her hatred of her younger brother, whom she seems to resent and whom she actually tries to assassinate.

Court intrigues, physical accounts of the Crusaders as they appear in her fathers court, the feeling of the life and politics of the time are all preserved in this book as a slice of culture in Byzantine Empire at the time of the First Crusade. A good reference book and a wonderful read for those interested in a different perspective of the Crusades.