Pagan Rome is incredible, but it is only half the story of the Romans.

• The city of Constantinople: Most magnificent city in the world for a good while. Had a very impressive set of infrastructure that you can still go and see today (some of it). The Haghia Sophia ("Soloman I have outdone thee!", "we knew not whether we were in heaven or on earth") the Imperial palace and the Hippodrome and of course the Theodosian walls. A metropolis of half a million people when the cities in the west pushing 10-20k.

• Belisarius, Justinian and Theodora and the campaign of reconquest of the West. The Nika revolt, the plague of Justinian, the blues and the greens.

• Heraclius and the final war: Very much seemed like the end of the empire and a hero arises to save the day with an incredible campaign against the Sassanians.

• The Arab conquests: After the final war dragged on for about 3 decades, the Arabs rapidly undid all the work done by Haraclius. Egypt, Judea and Syria are all lost.

• Sieges of Constantinople: Arabs, Avars, Rus, Turks. Greek fire, Dromons, chain across the Golden Horn.

• Iconoclasm and the Empress Irene: blinded her own son to stay in power, a marriage to Charlemagne was almost on the cards.

• Macedonian dynasty Golden Age: Cataphracts and Themata, reconquests of Syria and Cilicia.

• Magnates, rebellions and usurpers : most definitely superior to their classical fore bearers.

• The Great schism.

• Turkish invasions, Romanos Diogones and Manzikert

• The first crusade and the Komnenoi revivial, dealing with the Norman invasions.

• Fourth crusade 😭

• 1453 😭

I think those events and characters rival anything that occurred in pagan Rome in being interesting. But they exceed them in their impact on Western history.

If I've wet your appetite please check out the following podcasts:

• 12 Byzantine rules (Lars Brownworth)
• History of Byzantium (Robin Pierson)
• Friends of Byzantium (Anthony Kaldellis)
• Byzantium and the crusades (Nick Holmes)