1st Edition
Studies on the History and Topography of Byzantine Constantinople
Constantinople originated in 330 A.D. as the last great urban foundation of the ancient world. When it was sacked by the Fourth Crusade in 1204 it was the greatest city of the European Middle Ages. Its transition from the one to the other was determined partly by its continuous function as an imperial capital, partly by the steady proliferation of churches, monasteries, and Christian philanthropic institutions, and partly by the widespread urban disruption and depopulation that affected what was left of the Roman Empire in the east from the sixth to the eighth centuries. The studies in the present volume examine aspects of this long and complex process as reflected in the topography, monuments, self-image and political status of medieval Constantinople. They include a revised English version of a monograph published in French ten years ago, nine reprinted articles, and two published here for the first time.
Biography
Paul Magdalino is the Bishop Wardlaw Professor of Byzantine History at the University of St Andrews, Scotland.
’Throughout the collection what impresses is Magdalino’s range as a scholar, as he crosses the borders of traditional subjects and disciplines. ...His skill in avoiding both wild surmise and pedantic nitpicking to arrive at conclusions that are realistic and satisfying will ensure that this book will be off the shelf and in the hands of scholars and students for many years to come.’ English Historical Review
