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Age of Justinian
Detail of a contemporary portrait mosaic in the Basilica of San Vitale,Ravenna.
Justinian I
The nephew of Justin I, Justinian made a brilliant career under his uncle, who appointed him co-emperor on 1 Apr. 527. Prokopios of Caesarea describes Justinian as an individual of medium height, with a round face ruddy even after two days of fasting (SH 8.12), an approachable and gentle man who never showed his anger and who, in a quiet voice, would order the death of thousands of innocent men (SH 13.1–3). Justinian was simple in his tastes, indifferent to splendor, able to work day and night, and crafty in displaying sympathy and even tears.
A man of low origin, Justinian came into conflict with the aristocracy. He was surrounded by energetic, unscrupulous, but loyal people who did not belong to the upper crust of society—his wife Theodora, his nephew Germanos, the generals Belisarios and Narses, and the administrators John of Cappadocia and Tribonian. The aim of his policy was to create a strong empire, based on a unified administrative system and a single creed, encompassing the whole Mediterranean and ostensibly brilliant. To this end he promulgated the Corpus Juris Civilis. To increase the state's income, he often guided reform of the tax system: he developed the emphyteusis, tried to eliminate the difference between adscripticii and slaves, and developed land ownership of the fisc. He also subsidized the development of trade and attempted to find new trade routes circumventing Persia. Among secrets acquired by the Byz. under Justinian was that of silk production.
Justinian was personally involved in theological disputes; he sponsored the fifth ecumenical council and pressured Pope Vigilius. Proclaiming the principle that the emperor's will is law, Justinian suppressed political and ideological resistance, quashing the movement of the Samaritans and the Nika Revolt.
He built or reconstructed more than 30 churches in Constantinople alone (G. Downey, ArtB 32 [1950] 262–66) including that of the Virgin of Pege, at the site of a spring whose waters he believed had cured him of a kidney ailment, and above all Hagia Sophia, the altar cloth of which, according to Paul Silentiarios, bore images of hospitals and other foundations of Justinian. Legends concerning his role in the construction of the Great Church, including the revelation of its plan to him by an angel, are collected in the Patria of Constantinople. Justinian's equestrian statue stood in the Augustaion; extant contemporary portraits of the beardless emperor are preserved in S. Vitale and S. Apollinare in Classe in Ravenna. A 9th- or 10th-C. mosaic in Hagia Sophia shows him bearded, presenting his foundation to the Virgin.
Justinian's international policy was intended to restore authority over the western part of the Roman Empire: North Africa was occupied in 533–34, Italy only after a long and costly war in 535–55; in Spain his army was able to occupy only some coastal areas. The situation in the East was more dangerous, and Chosroes I managed to seize several regions; tactics on the Danube were defensive and the empire ensured peace by paying tribute and stationing troops on the frontiers to repel invading bands.
Justinian's evaluation has been contradictory since Prokopios, who sometimes debases Justinian and at other times praises him highly. The problem is whether Justinian attempted to retain obsolete institutions that wasted the resources of his country or established enduring values that laid the foundation for the long existence of a mighty empire. (See genealogical table.) Walter Emil Kaegi, Alexander Kazhdan, Anthony Cutler
Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. oxfordreference
Procopius and the Sixth Century by
Call Number: DF505.7.P7 C35 1985ISBN: 9780415142946Publication Date: 1985-01-01Professor Cameron emphasises the essential unity of Procopius' three works and, starting from the `minor' ones, demonstrates their intimate connection with the Wars. Procopius' writings are seen to comprise a subtle whole; only if they are understood in this way can their historical value be properly appreciated. The result is a new evaluation of Procopius which will be central to any future history of the sixth century.
Constantinople in the age of Justinian by Call Number: DR729 .D6 1960Publication Date: 1960The book provides the general reader with a picture of Constantinople as the center of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Justinian, AD 527-565, and shows how the city became the setting for a new synthesis of culture, which radiated from it over the Graeco-Roman world and beyond.
The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Justinian by Call Number: DF572 .C35 2005ISBN: 0521520711Publication Date: 2005-04-18This book introduces the Age of Justinian, the last Roman century and the first flowering of Byzantine culture. Dominated by the policies and personality of emperor Justinian I (527–565), this period of grand achievements and far-reaching failures witnessed the transformation of the Mediterranean world. In this volume, twenty specialists explore the most important aspects of the age including the mechanics and theory of empire, warfare, urbanism, and economy. It also discusses the impact of the great plague, the codification of Roman law, and the many religious upheavals taking place at the time. Consideration is given to imperial relations with the papacy, northern barbarians, the Persians, and other eastern peoples, shedding new light on a dramatic and highly significant historical period.
Byzantine Chronicles and the Sixth Century by Call Number: DF505 .S36 2012ISBN: 9781409441106Publication Date: 2012-08-21Byzantine chronicles have traditionally been regarded as a somewhat inferior form of Byzantine history writing, especially in comparison with 'classicizing' historians. The aim of many of these papers is both to rescue the reputation of the Byzantine chroniclers, especially Malalas and Theophanes, and also to provide some examples of how these two chroniclers in particular can be exploited usefully both to reveal aspects of the past itself, notably of the period of Justinian, and also of how the Byzantines interpreted their own past, which included on occasions rewriting that past to suit altered contemporary needs. For the period of Justinian in particular, proper attention to aspects of the humble Byzantine chronicle can also help achieve a better understanding of the period than that provided by the classicizing Procopius with his emphasis on war and conquest. By considering more general aspects of the place of history-writing in Byzantine culture, the papers also help explain why history remained such an important aspect of Byzantine culture.
Chronicon Paschale 284-628 AD by Call Number: D17 .C7713 1989ISBN: 085323096XPublication Date: 1990-01-02The Chronicon Paschale is one of the major constituents of the Byzantine chronographic tradition covering the late antique period.
Economy and Society in the Age of Justinian by Call Number: DF568 .S37 2006ISBN: 0521865433Publication Date: 2006-09-28The reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian (527–65) stands out in late Roman and medieval history. Justinian re-conquered far-flung territories from the barbarians, overhauled the Empire's administrative framework and codified for posterity the inherited tradition of Roman law. This work represents a modern study in English of the social and economic history of the Eastern Roman Empire in the reign of the Emperor Justinian. Drawing upon papyrological, numismatic, legal, literary and archaeological evidence, the study seeks to reconstruct the emergent nature of relations between landowners and peasants, and aristocrats and emperors in the late antique Eastern Empire. It provides a social and economic context in which to situate the Emperor Justinian's mid-sixth-century reform programme, and questions the implications of the Eastern Empire's pattern of social and economic development under Justinian for its subsequent, post-Justinianic history.
The Age of Justinian by Call Number: DF568 .E83 2000ISBN: 0415022096Publication Date: 1996-05-15The Age of Justinian examines the reign of the great emperor Justinian (527-565) and his wife Theodora, who advanced from the theatre to the throne. The origins of the irrevocable split between East and West, between the Byzantine and the Persian Empire are chronicled, which continue up to the present day. The book looks at the social structure of sixth century Byzantium, and the neighbours that surrounded the empire. It also deals with Justinian's wars, which restored Italy, Africa and a part of Spain to the empire.History of the later Roman Empire : from the death of Theodosius I. to the death of Justinian by
Call Number: DG311 .B98 1958Publication Date: 1958Generally acknowledged to be Professor Bury’s masterpiece, this panoramic and painstakingly accurate reconstruction of the Western and Byzantine Roman empire covers the period from 395 A.D., the death of Theodosius I, to 565 A.D., the death of Justinian. Quoting contemporary documents in full or in great extent, the author describes and analyzes the forces and cross-currents that controlled Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, the Persian and Teutonic regions; the rise of Byzantine power, territorial expansion, conflict of church and state, legislative and diplomatic changes; and scores of similar topics.
Detailed coverage of such important figures as Belisarius, Justinian, Procopius, Alaric, Attila, and many others is given as well as a complete contemporary account of a visit to Attila’s court. The Vandal empire, the Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Lombards, etc., are given extensive treatment. Professor Bury investigates the literary, cultural, and religious history of the period in great detail and relates it to the organization and development of the Eastern and Western empires and the diffusion of Byzantine culture into Italy.Justinian and the later Roman Empire by
Call Number: DF572|b.B35 1966Publication Date: 1966The eastern half of the Roman Empire, economically the stronger, did not "fall" but continued almost intact, safe in the new capital of Constantinople. This empire is the subject of John Barker Jr.'s book and the central focus of his examination of questions of continuity and change.
The Age of Justinian and Theodora by Call Number: DF572 .H7 2002ISBN: 1593330049Publication Date: 2002-01-01This is the story of the first notable husband-and-wife partnership in modern history, and an indispensable reference on the history of 6h century Byzantium, presenting a unique correlation of science and progress put in perspective with the ancient and modern world.
Justinian and Theodora by Call Number: DF572 .B76 1987ISBN: 1593330537Publication Date: 2003-01-01The story of the peasant's son who became an emperor and the dissolute actress who resided beside him on the throne is one of the greatest and most controversial romances of history. United, they presided over a key epoch in the formation of Europe.
Three Political Voices from the Age of Justinian by Call Number: DF531 .T47 2009ISBN: 9781846312090Publication Date: 2010-04-15This one-volume translation, with commentary and introduction brings together three important works. All three texts cast great, if generally neglected light on politics and ideology in early Byzantium.
The elements of Roman law : with a translation of the Institutes of Justinian by Call Number: KJA1088 .J8 2010ISBN: 9780421017801Publication Date: 2010Described by the author in his original preface as one of the great things which has happened in the world, Roman law is the foundation of all European legal systems. Lee's Elements of Roman Law was first published in 1944, and the fourth edition, now reprinted, appeared in 1956. After a brief introduction the book comprises a title by title translation of the Institutes of Justinian together with a detailed exposition of each topic.Justin the First : an introduction to the epoch of Justinian the Great by
Call Number: DF568 .V37 1950Publication Date: 1950“Although Professor Vasiliev does not state his aim in precisely these terms, his Justin I should really be regarded as a contribution towards a more integrated view of the history of the East Roman Empire in the sixth and seventh centuries. . . [He] sets out to stress the continuity between the reigns of Justin I and Justinian I, and he goes so far as to attribute to the nephew almost complete control of policy from 518 onwards.” Joan Hussey, The English Historical Review
Theodora by Call Number: DF572.5 .B7 1984ISBN: 0897333942Publication Date: 2005-08-30This is a biography of the Byzantine courtesan who rose from the gutter to the throne of an Empire. Theodora was a remarkable woman whose background and actions were scandalous.
