George Akropolites The History

This is the first English translation and study of George Akropolites' History, the main Greek source for the history of Byzantium between 1204 and 1261. Akropolites relates what happened to Byzantium after the Latin conquest of its capital, Constantinople, by the Fourth Crusade in 1204. He narrates the fragmentation of the Byzantine world, describing how the newly established 'empire' in Anatolia prevailed over its foreign and Byzantine enemies to recapture the capital in 1261. Akropolites was an eyewitness to most of the events he relates and a man close to the emperors he served, and his account has therefore influenced modern perceptions of this period. It has been an essential source for all those studying the eastern Mediterranean in the thirteenth century. However, until now historians have made use of his History without knowing anything about its author. Ruth Macrides remedies this deficiency by providing a detailed guide to Akropolites' work and an analysis of its composition, which places it in the context of medieval Greek historical writing.

Ruth Macrides is Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman, and Modern Greek Studies, University of Birmingham.

List of Maps	p. viii
Preface	p. ix
Acknowledgements	p. x
Note on Transliteration and Citation	p. xi
Note on the Translation and Commentary	p. xi
Note on the Studies	p. xii
Abbreviations	p. xiii
Genealogical Tables	p. xv
Introduction
The thirteenth century in historical writing	p. 3
The man and his work	p. 5
Promotions and titles	p. 19
Chronology of George Akropolites' life	p. 28
The History	p. 29
Organization of the narrative	p. 34
Sources	p. 35
Accuracy and reliability	p. 39
Names and naming	p. 41
Dating and chronology	p. 42
Content	p. 43
Influences on Akropolites	p. 46
Classicizing features of the History	p. 51
Divine providence	p. 54
The emperors at 'Nicaea': Akropolites' Kaiserkritik	p. 55
Akropolites and later writers	p. 65
Theodore Skoutariotes	p. 65
George Pachymeres	p. 71
Other writings	p. 76
Published works	p. 76
Unpublished work	p. 77
Lost works	p. 78
Works of uncertain attribution	p. 78
Studies	p. 78
The conquest of Constantinople	p. 78
Alexios III	p. 79
The foundation of the 'empire of Nicaea'	p. 81
Nicaea-Nymphaion	p. 87
The Latins	p. 89
The Bulgarians	p. 90
The Turks	p. 92
The Epirots	p. 94
The army	p. 97
The navy	p. 100
Translation and Commentary
The History of George Akropolites	p. 105
Bibliography	p. 389
Index	p. 419
Maps
Asia Minor	p. xx
The Balkans	p. xxi
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George Akropolites The History

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

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