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David Parnell

Oct 14 • 5 tweets • 3 min read

Welcome to new followers who found me through my thread on whether the Byzantine Empire was Roman! 👋 I am a historian with a research focus on the sixth-century Roman world, although my interests broadly range from the founding of Rome to the fall of Constantinople.

This is a professional account and most of my tweets are about my research. I tweet a lot about my upcoming book, #BelisariusAndAntonina, which analyzes the relationship and careers of this sixth-century power couple: a famous Roman general and his powerful and capable wife.

If you think my book sounds intriguing, you can get an early preview of some of my thoughts on Belisarius and Antonina by listening to my recent interview with the YouTube channel Eastern Roman History here:

@EpicHistoryTV

I also consulted for @EpicHistoryTV on their Belisarius series, which is well worth viewing if you enjoy historical documentaries of high quality AND entertainment value:
youtube.com/playlist?list=…

Finally, if you enjoy academic writing and want to read something I have written, I suggest starting with this article on the clemency of the emperor Justinian I (yes, it uses that "B" word; I have already done penance for it 😉):
researchgate.net/publication/34…

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More from @byzantineprof

David Parnell

@byzantineprof

Oct 12

I am shocked at the passionate response to my tweets about the Byzantine Empire being the Roman Empire. So today, a related issue: not recognizing the #Roman identity of the #Byzantine Empire creates problems for our understanding of the early Middle Ages. 🧵 #History

While many specialists of Byzantine history may assume that everyone knows that the people we call "Byzantines" were actually Romans, this knowledge has not fully permeated to the level where most people encounter the Byzantines: secondary school and university survey textbooks.

At this level, in classes like European History, Western Civilization, or World History, the early Middle Ages is sometimes presented as the era of the "three heirs" of Rome. These heirs are identified as the Byzantine Empire, the early medieval West, and the Islamic caliphate.

Read 12 tweets

David Parnell

@byzantineprof

Oct 10

Was the Byzantine Empire really just the Roman Empire? In a word, yes. In this thread, I explore some arguments for and against that answer, as well as alternatives to the use of the term "Byzantine." Read on. 🧵 #Roman #Byzantine #History

The people that modern historians call "Byzantines" referred to themselves as Romans and to their state as the empire of the Romans. They were Romans, through and through. Then why have modern historians adopted the terms "Byzantine" and "Byzantine Empire?"

In the medieval west, standard terms for the "Byzantine" Empire were "empire of Constantinople" and "empire of the Greeks." They were used to avoid calling the "Byzantines" Romans, because westerners wished that label for themselves.

Read 37 tweets

David Parnell

@byzantineprof

Jul 1

In the month of July, I will be reading "The Eternal Decline and Fall of Rome" by Edward Watts (2021). I will provide a free mini-review by tweeting out observations on the book as I go, adding to this thread over the course of the month. #AHAReads

In the introduction, Watts makes clear that he will be showing us both "good" and "bad" * uses of the language of Roman decline and renewal (page 6). This is a bold choice, as it probably will invite lots of disagreement over which examples get placed in which category.

* He does not literally use the words "good" and "bad" but rather "enhancing the bonds that held imperial subjects together" and "with the intention of dividing their society." Good and bad seemed like reasonable shorthand for a tweet, but I want to clarify.

Read 28 tweets

David Parnell

@byzantineprof

Dec 13, 2021

@EpicHistoryTV

It has been a few days since @EpicHistoryTV dropped the new episode, "Belisarius: The Battle of Rome." Did you want to learn more? How about a behind the scenes glimpse at some of the decisions for the episode? Read on!

The map ca. 6:49 shows a good overview of what might have been Justinian's strategy for Italy in 535: military pressure on the Goths in Sicily (Belisarius) and Dalmatia (Mundus) and diplomatic pressure on Theodahad to cede Italy to him.

The order of battle (ca. 9:11) of necessity includes a number of estimates. The total number of bucellarii on the campaign is unknown, and the number of men left as garrison in Sicily is also unknown.

Read 11 tweets