The History of Byzantium

Michael Komnenos Doukas would have had a forgettable career if it wasn't for the chaos which followed Manuel Komnenos' death.But the twists of fate allowed him to found a new state in Epirus (Western Greece) which would eventually seize huge parts of the Roman world.Period: 1204-15

We follow Theodore Laskaris as he escapes from Constantinople and establishes a new state at Nicaea. Crowned as the new Roman Emperor he must face down rivals on every side including the Turks.Period: 1204-12

With Baldwin and Boniface dead the Bulgarians run riot across Thrace. Their Tsar Kaloyan attempts to capture Thessalonica and ponders whether he could become the new Roman Emperor.Period: 1204-07

After throwing a huge strop Boniface, the Marquis of Montferrat, is made King of Thessalonica.He sent his men to conquer most of Greece but the Bulgarians were on his tail.Period: 1204-07

The Latins agree to stay for another year and to conquer the whole of the Roman Empire. They elect Count Baldwin of Flanders and Hainaut to be their Emperor and all seems well. It only takes a year for everything to fall apart.

The narrative returns as we head back to 1204 and the sack of Constantinople. The arrival of the Latins had actually splintered the Roman world into at least 13 different states.With a little help from the 2008 film 'Vantage Point' we will be following the different perspectives of these actors as they deal with the fallout from the sack.We begin with the story of Alexios V Doukas who fled the city just before it fell.Period: 1204

I speak to Rob and Jamie from the podcast Totalus Rankium. Their show is a light hearted ranking of every Roman Emperor from Augustus to Constantine XI. It's a really fun listen and they include all the amusing stories which I edited out of Byzantine history.They have a sister show where they rank American Presidents. Find both shows here.

Alexander Christie-Miller was the Turkish correspondent for the Times Newspaper between 2010 and 2017. He has written a book called ‘To the City’ about the people who live along the Theodosian Walls in Istanbul today. He tells the story and charts the sweeping changes they've experienced in Turkey over the past 50 years. It's a brilliant read, ideal for those of you who have visited Istanbul or plan to.Alexander Christie-Miller is from Wiltshire in the UK, studied in Dublin and was then in Istanbul for 7 years. He was the Times Turkish correspondent during that period and his writing has also appeared in Newsweek, The Atlantic, Der Spiegel and the White Review amongst other publications.

Professor Kaldellis' new history of Byzantium is out now in the USA and on Kindle everywhere.In the final episode in this series he answers more of your questions. Amongst the topics we cover are citizenship, class, counter-factuals, academia and AI.