Alexios I could not have anticipated this result when he signed his agreement with Venice in 1082. Guiscard’s menace was immediate and he had to address it, however he could manage it. Still, if Alexios’ understanding of economics had been better, he might have agreed to the concessions for a period of time, perhaps 10-20 years, limiting its impact on both the Byzantines and Venetians.
This week marks 1,485 years since some of the worst rioting the world has ever seen – the Nika riots that began on Jan. 13, 532 and lasted for five days.
Little remains of the Great Palace’s legendary buildings aside from part of a wall from the Bukoleon palace. However, the Museum of the Great Palace Mosaics houses some of the remaining mosaics unearthed by archeologists from where it once stood.
Hagia Irene had an eerie feel to it the overcast day we visited. With only one other visitor there, the birds swooping above us far outnumbered the people. It doesn’t take long to visit Hagia Irene, but if you have the time, I recommend it.
The greatest defensive element of the city of Constantinople were its walls, called the Theodosian Walls after the Emperor Theodosios, during whose reign the walls were built.
We visited the Pantokrator Church & Monastery (now the Zeyrek Mosque) on a rainy day in March. Empress Irene, the wife of John II Comnenus, began the building of the monastery and church on a hill close to the Blachernae Palace. Her husband finished it after her death in 1134. Irene was a Hungarian princess, and both husband and wife are Orthodox saints.
The Hagia Sophia has many important things to view when you visit. I thought I would share a few photos of lesser known aspects of this great museum. As it happens, I took all of them in the women’s gallery.
Almost from its earliest days, the Byzantine Empire had women who ruled – either in their own name or as regent.
Three great Byzantine historians – Michael Psellos, Michael Attaleiates, and John Skylitzes
The historical record says that a Syrian named Kallinikos developed the substance known as Greek fire in the 7th century. Prior to that time, liquid incendiaries were known to Persians and other civilizations in the Middle East. But it was Kallinikos who developed this mixture into a lethally effective weapon that protected the empire from invasions and rebels for centuries.
Imperial Passions #1
The Porta Aurea
Buy Imperial Passions #2
The Great Palace
Byzantine History in the 11th Century
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copyright 2018 Eileen Stephenson | designed by Avalon Graphics.