The History Book Club discussion

If you were lucky enough to have a conversation with Ms. Herrin, what kinds of questions would you ask her about the book Byzantium, about her craft, about the famous personages that make up this grand history, about the beautiful art woefully now in short supply or any other question about this glorious period in history?

Would you ask her about her various themes? About Empress Zoe and the strong women exemplified in the book or would you wonder how a glorious empire could have been vanquished?

Let us explore some of those questions here on this thread.

by Judith Herrin

I think a question that I might have for the author if I was fortunate enough to discuss the book with her really concerns the mindset of the Romans. Why did the Romans want Constantinople to be the new Rome or did they (although Herrin states that this was the case)? And did the church in Rome feel that their power was being eroded by this new and enviable city and location?

How did you make the assumption that the reader would have the background necessary to make sense of the thematic approach without a deep background knowledge of Byzantium?

Was Zoe the critical ruler who started the state down the slippery path to ruin? (her choices of emperors didn't seem that good to me) My other question (which may be answered in later chapters since I haven't read ahead)is "If this is such a great site, why hadn't the city come to power on its own before.

Could you explain the allegory in female form and how it relates to your themes in the book and which female characters?

Did the Fourth Crusades really ruin Constantinople and weaken her so substantially that she could not withstand the attacks from the Ottoman Turks. If she had not been sacked by the Christians themselves would she have been able to remain victorious and a Christian city?

And why did the Arabs after desiring Constantinople so much for themselves and for Islam decide much later that they were changing the capital to Ankara?