Rating: 
Summary: From Constantine to Charlemagne
Review: The first volume of Norwich's three volume set on Byzantium begins with the Roman emperor Constantine the Great, around the fourth century A.D., and ends with the rise of Charles the Great (Charlemagne) in the ninth century. Some memorable events covered include:
- The reign of Constantine I
- The sacking of Rome by Alaric the Goth, and the related story of Stilicho the Vandal.
- Atilla the Hun
- The fall of the Western Empire
- Justinian's reconquest of the Empire, and the exploits of the brilliant hero Belasarius.
- The tragic hero Heraclius, who fends off invasion on two fronts only to see all he worked for undone and to die sick in mind and body, a shadow of his former self.
- The unfortunate reign of the depraved Irene, the Empire's first reigning Empress.Norwich isn't an expert historian, but this set was written with great grace and humor and was a pleasure to read. It calls attention to a part of history that has been notoriously neglected. Byzantium is a watershed in the history of Christianity, and we of course shouldn't forget that the Byzantines were responsible, in part, for the Westernization of Christianity and that the preservation of Western culture rested solely on her shoulders at least for a short, crucial period. This first volume witnesses the fall of the Roman empire in the West and the struggle for the surviving East to come to its own identity. I tend to agree with Gibbon about the frustrating nature of the history, though: a lot of the it, and subsequently this book, deals with the petty little questions of Christianity (the nature of the Holy Trinity, the place of icons). Norwich does a good job of trying to make it appear not-so ridiculous, but it is a necessary interference in an otherwise good read.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent History
Review: This book is a fascinating history of the origins of the Byzantine empire. The only thing that surprised me a bit is how slowly it got into the main subject. It dwelt at great length on Constantine and the pre-Byzantine period. However, having said that, I should say that the history of Constantine was itself interesting. The book also conveyed very well how the Roman empire transitioned gradually into the Byzantine empire. For hundreds of years the people of the Byzantine empire thought of themselves as part of the Roman empire, although today we realize that the Roman empire as such had already disappeared. Altogether, very well done. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A great book and a great series!
Review: This is the perfect book and series for the lay-person. If you love Byzantine history, but don't read Latin, this is a great book set to have!
Rating:
Summary: Constantine's New Rome
Review: Under the reign of Constantine, the previously obscure (but strategically-situated) city of Byzantium became the new capital of the Roman empire; thus was born what was to be known as the Byzantine empire; thus also begins John Julius Norwich's epic. The story of the "early centuries" incorporates many of characters that are familiar to students of the late (Western) Roman empire: Constantine himself, the introducer of Christianity, Julian the Apostate (who tried to reverse the religious tide), the Theodosian emperors and Valens. By the time we reach Justinian, however, the Western empire has collapsed and the main question is whether it can be reconquered by Belisarius (which, of course, it wasn't). At which point, Norwich takes us through the 300 years between Justinian's times and the revival of a Western empire under Charlemagne. These 300 years contain some of the most fascinating religious and political power-plays in world history and Norwich delights in relating their more salcious aspects. As but two examples, we meet Emperor Heraclius, a hugely underrated military and historical figure who decisively blocked Muslim aggression, plus the wonderfully-named Emperor Justinian II Rhinometus - who, as Latin scholars will already have inferred, was the Emperor whose nose got cut off. The entire series is a tour de force and a decisive riposte to Gibbon's notion that Byzantium didn't matter.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining history
Review: While clearly not written for specialists on Byzantium, nor for specialists in warfare during this period, the book (the first of 3) is an enjoyable read nonetheless. Covering the rise of Constantine the Great through the rise of Charlemagne in the West, Norwich does a very good job of creating a readable story of the confusing nature of alliances and political double dealing that was the essence of the Byzantine Empire. Speaking from a military perspective, I would have like to have seen greater depth in the battles, which shaped the empire (along with some better maps), but I still enjoyed Norwich's humor and ability to create a gripping narrative. If you are looking for something more serious and scholarly, look elsewhere. But if you are looking for an enjoyable history of a complex political dynamic and era, this is the book for you.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining history
Review: While clearly not written for specialists on Byzantium, nor for specialists in warfare during this period, the book (the first of 3) is an enjoyable read nonetheless. Covering the rise of Constantine the Great through the rise of Charlemagne in the West, Norwich does a very good job of creating a readable story of the confusing nature of alliances and political double dealing that was the essence of the Byzantine Empire. Speaking from a military perspective, I would have like to have seen greater depth in the battles, which shaped the empire (along with some better maps), but I still enjoyed Norwich's humor and ability to create a gripping narrative. If you are looking for something more serious and scholarly, look elsewhere. But if you are looking for an enjoyable history of a complex political dynamic and era, this is the book for you.
Rating:
Summary: Why not what works?
Review: Why can't all histories, especially school textbooks, be written more like this? I studied Byzantine history in high school and that was the most boring class I can remember. However, these were some of the most interesting and exciting books I've ever read. If school texts were written like this, parents would have a hard time dragging the kids away from their homework to watch some TV. Oh, No! That would be parental abuse! But why not some common sense in the selection of books for students? What could be wrong in having them read something that would spark some interest? We've tried everthing else--why not what works?
| 
