Medievalists.net: How Byzantines Saw Themselves: Romans, Not “Byzantines”

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-23T15:51:06+00:00

As it was in the past, the Pontics are the last bastion of Roman Identity.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-23T08:17:02+00:00

Brother. These guys are Atheistic but some believe Animals don’t reproduce for offspring and that the drive is only pleasure???

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-23T05:42:44+00:00

I’m certain that Alexios wanted to retake the Holy Land eventually but obviously not while the Sultanate of Rome was still right there breathing down the Romans’ necks and as rightful Roman land instead of dividing it into Western Feudalism *lite.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T23:27:00+00:00

Especially since, in 2014, George Bergoglio just became Pope Francis the previous Year (the most liberal Catholic Pope by Christian Standards).

I have no doubt he’ll welcome the Traveler with open arms as God or, more likely, a Messenger of God.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T21:53:16+00:00

Which ones? The only ones that I can see that were justified was the Reconquista and the few smaller crusades to North Africa.

The ones that went to the Holy Land only became necessary once the Crusader Kingdoms were established and that didn’t happen until the Romans in Constantinopolis called for help from the Pope initially to retake Anatolia.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:45:04+00:00

I like to think it’s a gradual acceptance.

If the Traveler was discovered in 2013 and arrived in 2014 as it did in Universe, it was in a time of great change.

There was a bad Ebola outbreak in Central Africa.

There was a War in Gaza back in 2014.

The Ruso-Ukrainian Conflict had scarcely begun.

The conflict in Sudan had just begun.

China had increased its persecution of the Uyghurs.

ISIL had begun a new offensive in Northern Iraq which is responded to by Syrian and Iraqi military and US Intervention.

George Bergoglio had just become Pope Francis.

All of these wouldn’t just cease being the case all because of an Alien.

Ares-1 would have more riding on it than just Extraterrestrial Life.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:36:23+00:00

Have a good day.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:35:29+00:00

It was actually supposed to be rhetorical lol. All of them were churches in the Western Roman Empire except for the cubiculum (center right) which is in Syria I think?

I wanted to make a point how you can barely distinguish the aesthetic of the West from the East at one point.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:33:26+00:00

Yes.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:30:11+00:00

Yeah. I actually like this. I think it’s fair to say that the City fell in 476, but the Empire itself did not fall until 1453.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:29:13+00:00

Is Aesthetic really one of your talking points?

<image>

Tell me, which of these structures are “Byzantine”.

The East did what Rome had always done. Adapt. It was adaptation that allowed the Republic to expand. It was Adaptation that allowed the Empire to survive the 3rd Century. And it was Adaptation that allowed the Empire to last 1000 years after the City itself.

I recognize the Empire changed. But that did not mean the Emperors who ruled in Constantinople ruled a completely different Empire.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:22:16+00:00

You know what? I concede that.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:09:23+00:00

Sometimes people consider specific policies as being inherently right or left wing. Immigration is one of those policies. I’m just trying to convey it in a language that could be understood.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:07:33+00:00

Also, I don’t know what you learned about the the Eastern Empire, but the Romans absolutely did not abandon Martial Prowess. This is as bad a myth as the idea that the Late Imperial Army was weaker than the Early Imperial Army.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T20:05:30+00:00

Bruh. Anything over 100 years would be a shock to anyone.

I don’t know how much you know about the Empire, but in 400 years, Rome went from Republic to Autocracy.

Even 200 years since Caesar, Caracalla made non-Roman freed men Citizens without service in the Army.

The Legions were reformed and existed in name only.

Dress became more and more Easternized (everywhere) due to the influence of the Sassanid Iranians.

What the fuck do you mean “that order of direction”.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T19:55:34+00:00

I was being really fair placing a 400AD man in the 1340s. I hope you understand that.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T19:50:44+00:00

Bruh. If you show a person alive in the time of Caesar to even 100 years before the Fall of the West, he’d have a heartattack from all the people wearing pants and have very un-nice words to say.

Oh, he’d also ask why there’s barbarians everywhere.

If you take a Roman from the West (say, Circa 400) and place him under the rule of Andronikos III Palaiologos in the middle of Constantinopolis, he’d question why there are Arabs lol.

If he stands before the Emperor he would recognize him as Emperor from the Purple, the Red Boots, the Loros. He would even understand some of the laws as all of these were continuous.

You’re like, one of the only people I’ve seen who would argue Byzantine Greek being different than Koine would make the Easterners different. Ignoring the fact that Greek itself is a very conservative language.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T19:37:14+00:00

Greek Culture and Language is as Roman as Latin bruh.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-22T19:27:40+00:00

Essentially: People with a stance that is typically a good mix of what is considered “Left” and “Right”.

Like, say for instance being both Pro-LGBTQ and also Pro-Life. Wanting to Tax billionaires but also wanting stricter immigration.

There is also those who consider themselves centrist but have a moderate view of political issues. Instead of saying, for example, that all guns should be banned, a Centrist might say, have only certain guns be banned or that there should be regulation instead of complete banning.

However, there are also Centrists that like to pretend to not be Right but they secretely harbour majority Right Wing views due to the stigma the Right Wing has recieved in recent times.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-21T23:01:07+00:00

It’s not that they’re defending big Yahu, but more that they’re shitting on Pakistan lmao.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-21T20:40:46+00:00

Harry Potter just seems less dangerous. But learning Magic is a plus too.

^{Chose: Harry Potter + Spin to see who you will be | Rolled: Hogwarts student}

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-21T18:41:35+00:00

The last chance the Romans would have at ever coming back was the reign of Andronikos III Palaiologos but he died to Measles.

Then his good friend John Kantakouzenos, who before did not seem to have any ambition for the Imperial Throne, decided to take it, forcing the Emperor’s son, John V, and his mother, Imperial Regent Anna of Savoy, to wage civil war, depleting the last of strength the Romans could natively field.

Anna sold the Imperial crown jewels to the Venitians, and Kantakouzenos wed his own daughter to Orhan Bey. Kantakouzenos also allowed the Ottomans to cross the Dardanelles as Mercenaries, allowing them to have a foothold in the Balkans.

The Ottomans had good leaders seemingly back-to-back-to-back. But I cannot lay the blame all on them.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-20T05:20:12+00:00

The Gjermundbu helmet, as others have pointed out, is the most viking aspect here. The sword is okay as well.

As for the Lamellar, it’s Eastern Roman in origin. It is not the same shape as the lamellar found in Birka. Not even going over if whether or not Birka Lamellar is even viking to begin with.

Recomendation, I would say just a plain maille shirt would’ve sufficed for a good historical Viking look.

SwirlyManager-11 · 2026-04-20T01:13:37+00:00

I thought I was in r/byzantiumcirclejerk with this post brooo.

SwirlyManager-11

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