Once enticed by their supposed sophistication, I have come to understand the Byzantines as a symbol of how relatively democratic government can transform into a stupefyingly autocratic theocracy
What literary splendor! Even as someone comfortable with his “lowly position on the socio-academic hierarchy”, I had quite the appetite for this. My ‘knowledge’ of the Byzantines was merely a nominal familiarity (based on Age of Empires campaigns), and now I’m slightly the wiser.
While so many excerpts resonated with me, this one sums it up well:
“But those who champion the Byzantines by pointing to their material achievements, or to their political stability relative to the destruction of the Western Empire, have missed the true meaning of darkness.“
What literary splendor! Even as someone comfortable with his “lowly position on the socio-academic hierarchy”, I had quite the appetite for this. My ‘knowledge’ of the Byzantines was merely a nominal familiarity (based on Age of Empires campaigns), and now I’m slightly the wiser.
While so many excerpts resonated with me, this one sums it up well:
“But those who champion the Byzantines by pointing to their material achievements, or to their political stability relative to the destruction of the Western Empire, have missed the true meaning of darkness.“
Thanks so much for your kind comment! I too have some old memories of leading the Byzantines through Age of Empires campaigns