Professor of Global History at Oxford. Director, Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research. Silk Roads. Environment & Climate Change. Co-host of the Legacy podcast
Mar 20 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
Here's a long thread about a book I co-edited with my colleague and friend (the brilliant) Jonathan Shepard a couple of months ago. It looks at the Byzantine state and parallel empires in the past...
The inspiration was partly from the 50th anniversary of Dmitri Obolensky's seminal, provocative and perhaps uneven book The Byzantine Commonwealth: eastern Europe 500-1453.
Mar 20 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
New episode has just dropped in our series on Great Environmental disasters in history on #Legacy 1/5
We have mega-eruptions 2/5
Mar 1 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
The strikes on Iran have been devastating. 24 hours ago, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said 'almost all officials are safe and sound.' Today, a swathe of Iran’s military, political and clerical leadership is confirmed dead 1/5
Among those confirmed killed: the Supreme Leader, the Defence Minister, the IRGC commander, senior intelligence chiefs and many more. This is not symbolic targeting. It is systemic decapitation. 2/5
Jan 11 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
Iran is seeing some of the most serious protests since 1979. Assessing what is actually happening is extremely difficult: internet and phones are down; Starlink is being jammed, thanks (presumably) to tools from allies 1/6
Reliable information is scarce; in such an environment, disinformation thrives 2/6
Dec 13, 2025 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
In recent days, leaks linked to the US National Security Strategy have caused near-panic in some European capitals 1/6
Not just because of the tone - but because they suggest a fundamental rethinking in Washington of how the world works, and the future of Europe 2/6
Aug 19, 2025 • 100 tweets • 16 min read
There’s been a lot of chatter about the #SilkRoads lately. Some of it a little muddled. Here’s a (long) thread to untangle a few things 🧵
The Silk Roads weren’t a creation of the Middle Ages. Networks of exchange along the proto-Silk Road go back millennia — shaped even by megadroughts 4000+ years ago.
May 13, 2025 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
A short 🧵on Rivers.
We think of rivers as natural, ancient forces — winding through landscapes, sustaining life. But what if they're no longer what they seem? 1/5
Across the world, our waterways are being transformed into silent test labs for human pharmaceuticals. And the results are deeply alarming. 🌍💊 2/5
Apr 4, 2025 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Some thoughts on the tariff disaster:
1. Tech bros took pride of place at Trump's inauguration two months ago 2. They showed up in the expectation that the new administration would help their companies soar even higher
1/33. They figured that Trump would push Europe to loosen regulation - and put pressure on China. 4. To show fealty, some dropped DEI policies (Meta), others interfered with editorial policy (WaPo) and others prepared to serve (DOGE)
Mar 24, 2025 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
On one of the worst intelligence failures of the modern era. Four points stand out 1/4 theatlantic.com/politics/archi…1. The sheer sloppiness. Proper amateur hour. 2. the use of an unapproved app to do government business
Mar 17, 2023 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
Very proud of colleagues and friends who have published outstanding books in the last few weeks - and these four in particular:
1. The West: A New History of an Old Idea by @nmacsweeney - a wonderfully ambitious and outstanding sweep across millennia that asks important questions about how we think about the past waterstones.com/book/the-west/…
Sep 30, 2022 • 32 tweets • 3 min read
Here we go: Putin explaining who Russia is fighting (and why)
The West has been leading Russians into poverty and death. Apparently.
Sep 21, 2022 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
A quick 🧵Putin’s address last night was (presumably) delayed so it could go out middle of the night NYC time - where most global leaders are attending the UN General Assembly.
This buys a few hours; but above all it dominates morning news schedules - which has some presentational value /2
Jul 7, 2022 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
Huge proportion of Russian war casualties from Tuva; Buryatia; Krasnodar Krai; Chechnya and other regions. Almost none from Moscow. In other words, Russia sacrificing minority peoples in the war against Ukraine. Fascinating discussion @Cambridge_Uni
Per capita casualties 300x lower for Moscow than Tuva - which has the highest median income of Russia's region.
Dec 8, 2021 • 10 tweets • 3 min read
Astonishing. A tragic accident that comes at a very difficult time.
Am beyond thrilled to announce the publication of first of a new mega-volume series on the History of Constantinople for @CambridgeUP - of which I am the Series Editor.
[Drum roll]:
1/4
The Statues of Constantinople by the brilliant Albrecht Berger 2/4
We’ve had global diseases for many centuries. So where do they come from? How do they get maintained of human societies asks @monicaMedHist@OxfordByzantine
2009 definition (by Dr Tony Fauci ) of pandemic: geographic extension, disease movement, high attack rate, minimal population immunity, contagiousness, and severity @monicaMedHist@OxfordByzantine
