Reestablishment of the Western Empire? Peter Heather, The Restoration of Rome: Barbarian Popes and Imperial Pretenders (original) (raw)
Related papers
Book review - Theoderic and the Roman Imperial Restoration.
Jonathan J. Arnold makes his case by presenting, discussing and analysing the works of two main sources – Ennodius, a churchman in Liguria who became bishop of Pavia and Cassiodorus, who was a Roman noble senator with roots in Calabria and who occupied numerous and high ranking positions under Theodoric and his successors. Theodoric is essentially presented as a legitimate ruler because he embodied “Roman” values and meet all of the expectations of the “perfect” Princeps. Jonothan J. Arnold offers us with this volume a very high-quality historical writing and research. Although not an easy read, it has the merit that it contributes to our understanding of Ostrogothic Italy. The essence of this work proves us that there was no need for Justinian to restore the Western Empire: Theoderic had already done so. The invasion Italy by Belisarius, general of Justinian, in 535 meant the end of Ostrogoth Italy. The so-called Gothic War lasted until 554. The end of the conflict saw Italy devastated and considerably depopulated. The victorious Byzantines found themselves unable to resist the invasion of the Lombards in 568, which resulted in Constantinople losing control over large parts of the Italian peninsula. The real Dark Ages or Middle ages for Italy did not begin in 476 but in the mid-6th century.
2024
Several letters written by Cassiodorus deal with Ostrogothic borders, describing the forts that guarded the Alpine passes, discussing the administration of frontier areas or lingering on virtues and vices of the people who inhabited them. The evidence provided by the Variae indicates that frontiers were a crucial part of the Ostrogothic Kingdom, not only because they were the gates of Italy and had to be garrisoned to prevent hostile incursions, but also because they became a cornerstones of Theoderic's political communication, stressing the difference between ‘Romanized’ Goths and the savage tribes who lived beyond the Alps.
Rome and Byzantium in the Visigothic Kingdom: Beyond Imitatio Imperii
Rome and Byzantium in the Visigothic Kingdom: Beyond Imitatio Imperii, 2023
This volume interrogates the assumption that Visigothic practices and institutions were mere imitations of the Byzantine empire. Contributors rethink these practices not as uncritical and derivative adoptions of Byzantine customs, but as dynamic processes in dialogue with not only the Byzantine empire but also with the contemporary Iberian context, as well as the Roman past. The goal of the volume is to approach Visigothic customs not as an uncritical adoption and imitatio of contemporary Roman models (an "acculturation" model), but as unique interpretations of a common pool of symbols, practices, and institutions that formed the legacy of Rome. The contributors argue that it is necessary to reconsider the idea of imitatio imperii as a process that involved specific actors taking strategic decisions in historically contingent circumstances. 1. Céline Martin, Visigothic Spain and Byzantium. The story of a special (historiographical) relationship 2. Ian Wood, The development of the Visigothic court in the hagiography of the fifth and sixth centuries 3. Merle Eisenberg, Experiments in Visigothic Rulership: Minting and Monetary Reforms under Alaric II 4. Margarita Vallejo Girvés, A comparison of Roman and Visigothic Approaches towards Exile 5. Cecily Hilsdale, The Roman Jewel in the Visigothic Crown: A Reassessment of the Royal Votive Crowns of the Guarrazar Treasure 6. Damián Fernández, Capitalhood in the Visigothic Kingdom 7. Molly Lester, Making Rite Choices: Roman and Eastern Liturgies in Early Medieval Iberia 8. Erica Buchberger, Ethnicity and Imitatio in Isidore of Seville 9. David Addison, Re-imagining Roman Persecution in the Visigothic Passions 10. Santiago Castellanos, Romanness in Visigothic Hagiography 11. Graham Barrett, Empire and the Politics of Faction: Mérida and Toledo Revisited 12. Jamie Wood, The agents and mechanics of connectivity: The Mediterranean world and the cities of the Guadiana valley in the sixth century 13. Ann Christys, Staying Roman after 711?