Customer Reviews

Byzantium and Its Army, 284-1081

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"Byzantium and Its Army" covers the evolution of the (Eastern) Roman army from the time of Diocletian until the decline of the Byzantine military after the battle of Manzikert. During this period (284-1081 A.D.) the Byzantine army displayed incredible adaptability and managed to hold its own whether fighting axe-wielding barbarians or nimble nomad horsemen, protecting the extensive frontiers of the Empire, while remaining a major factor of the political stage. This work is unique, because it is focused on the army itself and gives answers to many questions arising from the cursory treatment of the Byzantine military history by many other scholars. As far as I know it is the only book about the Byzantine army (except Bartusis' "The Late Byzantine Army: Arms and Society, 1204-1453", which, however, covers an other period, when the fractured remains of the Empire could do nothing more but bid for time). It is an excellent piece of work that has filled a major gap in the field of Byzantine studies and helped me a lot. Personally, even though I liked the book a lot (besides its uniqueness, it is sensibly laid out and well produced, provided with nice maps and interesting statistical tables), I would have preferred a more extensive study of the army's impact on Byzantine politics, as it focuses mainly on issues such as organization, size and pay. However, I would have underestimated this book's importance and its author's contribution to the subject by giving it any lower rating.

'Byzantium and Its Army' is an incorrectly titled book. It lacks just about everything that one would expect from a book entitled as it is. There is scant mention of equipment or the armies' actual performance in warfare. Treadgold focuses primarily on two things: the pay and the size of the army, and much of it in the Diocletianic to Justinianic periods, although other important names such Constantine VII Porphyrogenitos, Theophilos and Basil II Bulgaroktonos do get a mention. Many of Treadgold's numbers regarding troop sizes are very large and taken directly from the sources with little or no modification; however Byzantine army sizes are one thing that we just don't know much about. Tourmai from the same theme called up for the same campaign are known to have had radically different sizes, so to just accept figures given by the historians and subtract 10% in acceptance of the fact that they likely weren't up to full strength isn't terribly erudite. Treadgold's thesis on the creation of the thematic system dating to Constans II based entirely on new methods of payment and coin finds is also a leaky boat and has very little to commend it, as John Haldon has demonstrated in his 'Warfare, State and Society in the Byzantine World'.

Nonetheless, there are some good things to be found in the book. There is some excellent work done here in the structure of the army. Treadgold presents a very detailed analysis of the issues that the Notitia Dignitatum presents to scholars of the Late Antique army. There are also some useful tables regarding state expenditure. The problem ultimately stems from where these numbers come from and how accurate they are. Much of the work surrounding them is good, but the reliability of the figures is this book's downfall.

This isn't a bad work, although it is good to keep your sources and an open mind with you when reading it. The misleading title is probably more of an issue than the occasionally haphazard scholarship. If you're looking for anything regarding arms, armour, or battles of the period, look elsewhere. (To one of John Haldon's books, or in the case of equipment, to one of Timothy Dawson's.)

This book is NOT what you'd expect. It has quite little information on strategy, weapons and all other "military" aspects, and 80% of the book is devoted to things such as size, pay and organization.

If you want to find out about byzantine warfare, just read "Strategykon" of Mavrikios and "Taktika" of Nikephoros Phocas... (Last one is sold as "Sowing the dragon's teeth").