Byzantium: The Early Centuries

John Julius Norwich is the definitive English language historian of Byzantium, and he writes with an engaging style. Definitely to be recommended.

How can you not love them?

Absolutely fantastic. If you have an interest in Byzantine history, this book (along with the other two, which I have also read) are, as far as I'm concerned, the seminal books on the subject. Lord Norwich conveys his love for the subject through his language, and his knowledge. It is difficult to find fault with this book; if I had to find fault, however, I'd say that the book focuses heavily on...more

Absolutely fantastic. If you have an interest in Byzantine history, this book (along with the other two, which I have also read) are, as far as I'm concerned, the seminal books on the subject. Lord Norwich conveys his love for the subject through his language, and his knowledge. It is difficult to find fault with this book; if I had to find fault, however, I'd say that the book focuses heavily on personalities, and less on trends; whilst this is justified to a degree - after all, in a world where you often have several people claiming the title of Emperor of the Romans, King of the Greeks, and Lord of Time, its difficult NOT to focus on personalities, it would be good to see a little bit of reference to census records, military manpower figures, tax returns, and all the other information that must of been generated by the Roman bureaucracy.   hide

Great overview of Byzantine History. Probably the most accessible book in print about Byzantine History.

Amazing history! Fantastic entertaining read.