I’m still reading Byzantium: The Early Centuries by John Julius Norwich. It gets better and better. I love this book. Anybody interested in ancient history should read this. Less detailed (and less laborious for a poor English as a second language reader like me) than the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon.
Byzantium: The Early Centuries by John Julius Norwich
Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon
As I said previously, however, my copy of the “Penguin History” book has missing pages. Better order it from a local bookshop and check before you buy it, instead of ordering it online.
It’s fascinating to think how the Byzantines could rise in revolt and come close to civil war because of such intriguing questions as to whether Christ’s nature was both divine and human (Wikipedia:Orthodoxy), just human (Wikipedia:Nestorianism), just divine (Wikipedia:Monophysitism), or whether he was actually created by God (Wikipedia:Arianism)... Yay for bloodshed in the name of religious fervor!
No matter whose side you’re own, however, *Wikipedia is teh bestest*! 😄
It may not be perfect. It sure beats trying to find other easily accessible texts to link to.
#Books #Byzantium