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The History of Byzantium
Ask me anything and Tour Dates
I have another 3 things to tell you.
Tomorrow, as in Sunday 1st December, I will be hosting 3 Zoom Calls for Patrons, where you can ask me anything. This is a reminder for those of you already on Patreon. And if you’re not but want to get on the call then you could just sign up for $1 and join in the conversation.
The calls are at 2pm, 5pm and 8pm in Coordinated Universal Time. Which is essentially the same as Greenwich Mean Time but apparently we don’t want to show off too much about that. Anyway, hopefully you’ll be free then.
Second thing to tell you is that tour dates for 2025 have been provisionally agreed.
They are May 17-26th and Oct 11-20th. The first tour will be in Istanbul for five days before visiting Ephesus and other sites in Western Anatolia. While the October tour will also spend five days in Istanbul before visiting Nicaea and Cappadocia.
Remember these are provisional dates before you ink them into your diary. But they should be made official soon. Email me thehistoryofbyzantium@gmail.com to get on the mailing list so you can get booking information as soon as it’s available.
Finally you may have a heard an unfamiliar voice introducing this update. That was Kirin Tsang from Frugalflyer.ca. Kirin was on our last tour back in October and has written a review of our journey down Turkey’s west coast for FrugalFlyer.ca. You can read that review at frugalflyer.ca/blog and hear about what it’s like to be on one of our tours.
As the name suggests the folks at Frugalflyer try to help you gather points and rewards so you can travel better and cheaper. They have their own podcast where they share tips and ideas with you. It’s the Miles Ahead podcast so search for Miles Ahead wherever you get your podcasts to find out more.
I look forward to speaking to some of you tomorrow and seeing some of you in 2025.
More episodes
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Episode 329 - Buying Time
30:23|With the Ottoman civil war raging Manuel II Palaiologos tries to improve the Roman position and ensure his sons succeed him.Period: 1402-30Episode 328 - In the Nick of Timur
30:00|Manuel II Palaiologos refuses to play vassal to Sultan Bayezid. So the Ottomans set up a permanent blockade of New Rome. The siege would last for eight years and only a miracle could save the Romans.Period: 1391-1402Episode 327 - Vassals and Pawns
25:37|John V Palaiologos faces rebellions from his sons and Grandsons. Forcing the Romans to become both Ottomans vassals and the pawns of Venice and Genoa.Period: 1371-91Episode 326 - The Rise of the Ottomans, Part 2
25:30|We look at the details of how the Ottomans ran their state. Including the creation of loyalty to the ruling dynasty, succession policy, military recruitment and slave trading. Period: 1280-1371Episode 325 - The Rise of the Ottomans, Part 1
19:26|We follow the last century of narrative from an Ottoman point of view.Period: 1280-1371Episode 324 - Just Another Beylik
28:15|John V Palaiologos takes charge of the Empire but finds he has only one option left to save his state. He must travel West and beg for Latin help. Meanwhile the Turks conquer Thrace.Period: 1355-71Episode 323 - At Least Things Can’t Get Any Worse
28:30|Finally in sole control of the Empire John Kantakouzenos makes plans to restore the Roman world. His plans come to nothing though as he immediately faces war, invasion and plague.Period: 1347-55Episode 322 - The Worst Civil War, Part 2
22:52|In order to gain the throne John Kantakouzenos destroys what is left of the Roman Empire. He allows the Serbs to conquer Macedonia while his Turkish allies enslave his people.Period: 1343-47Episode 321 - The Worst Civil War, Part 1
28:15|Andronikos III Palaiologos died on the 15th June 1341. Four months later his nearest and dearest were at each others throats.His right hand man John Kantakouzenos declared himself Emperor but was rejected by the people at every turn. Refusing to give up he invited foreign powers to intervene on his behalf.Period: 1341-43