The Social History of Byzantium by John F. Haldon [Paperback]

Western civilization owes an incalculable cultural and historical debt to the Byzantine Empire. Before falling to the Ottoman Turks in the mid-fifteenth century, the empire flourished for more than a thousand years, bridging the ancient and modern worlds. Byzantium profoundly influenced the pattern of cultural and political development in the lands it occupied and had an enduring influence on neighboring societies. A Social History of Byzantium delves into a crucial and often neglected strand of Byzantine studies - the social history of the eastern Roman Empire. Drawing on a wealth of new research and with original essays by leading scholars, this groundbreaking work addresses a wide range of interconnected topics and offers illuminating insights into our knowledge of Byzantine society. Exploring such issues as family life, social structure, religion, class, gender, and imperial power, this book reveals the complex social structure woven throughout the Byzantine world.

John Haldon is Professor of Byzantine History and Hellenic Studies at Princeton University, and is an internationally recognized scholar in the field of late Roman and Byzantine social, economic, and institutional history. His books include Warfare, State, and Society in the Byzantine World (1999), Byzantium: A History (2000), Byzantium at War (2002) and The Oxford Handbook of Byzantium Studies (editor with E. Jeffreys and R. Cormack, 2008).

Foreword. List of Abbreviations. 1. Towards a Social History of Byzantium: John Haldon (Princeton University). 2. Men, Women, Eunuchs: Gender, Sex and Power Liz James (University of Sussex). 3. Family Structure and the Transmission of Property Angeliki Laiou (University of Harvard). 4. The Social Function of the Law Bernard Stolte (University of Groningen). 5. Social Relations and the Land: the Early Period Peter Sarris (University of Cambridge). 6. Land and Power in the Middle and Later Period Peter Frankopan (University of Oxford). 7. The Producing Population Michel Kaplan (University of Paris 1). 8. Social Élites, Wealth and Power John Haldon (Princeton University). 9. Court Society and Aristocracy Paul Magdalino (University of St Andrews). 10. The Church and Society Michael Angold (University of Edinburgh). 11. A Monastic World Alice-Mary Talbot (Dumbarton Oaks). Glossary of Byzantine/Medieval Terms. Maps. Indices