Situating Constantinople: The Byzantine Empire in the Mediterranean
Situating Constantinople: The Byzantine Empire in the Mediterranean
Paper given by Monique O’Connell
Given at Brigham Young University, on November 2, 2011
“Is there something inherently un-Mediterranean about the Byzantine Empire? Does it somehow not fit within the larger patterns and themes of medieval Mediterranean historyy?… to begin to approach the question we can look at Byzantine history through the lenses of three of the main themes of Mediterranean history. The three themes I depict here are long-term continuity versus change, cultural influence along the routes of commerce and connectivity, and cross-cultural conflict contrasted with co-existenece and accomodation.”
Monique O’Connell is an Associate Professor at Wake Forest College. Her book, The Mediterranean World: From the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Napoleon, written with Eric Dursteler, was just published by John Hopkins University Press.
You can learn more about Byzantium in the latest issue of Medieval Warfare magazine: Legacy of Ancient Rome.
