Being Byzantine (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780521871815)

In 1204, the Byzantine Empire was conquered by troops from western Europe ostensibly taking part in the Fourth Crusade. This was a hugely significant event for the subjects of the Empire, radically altering the Byzantines' self-image and weakening their state for the later conflict with the Ottoman Turks. Using the theory of ethnicity - a comparatively recent tool with regard to the pre-modern era - Gill Page provides fresh insight into the late Byzantine period, providing a corrective to nationalistic interpretations of the period of Frankish rule and more broadly to generally held assumptions of ethnic hostility in the period. A systematic analysis of texts in Greek from the period 1200-1420, from both ends of the social spectrum, is backed up by an in-depth study of Frankish rule in the Peloponnese to reveal the trends in the development of Byzantine identity under the impact of the Franks.

Author: Gill Page
ISBN-10: 0521871816
ISBN-13: 9780521871815
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 10/30/2008
Pages: 344
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.49lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 1.00d