Justinian: The Last Roman Emperor [Paperback]

G. P. Baker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2002

Justinian (482-565 A.D.), who ruled the Roman Empire from his capital in Constantinople, was, along with his wife Empress Theodora, one of the most scandalous monarchs in history. During his reign, Justinian oversaw the construction of the Hagia Sophia, one of the wonders of the ancient world, and he strove to maintain Rome's territories. Yet despite the heights reached under his rule, the time was one of revolts, intrigues, and brutality to his subjects. Baker's biography takes a redemptive view of Justinian and his wife, both of whom were vilified by the chronicler Procopius, he for his despotism and she for her endless sexual escapades. Baker points out that Justinian also codified Roman law and brought other modern solutions to the problems that had plagued his empire for years. Baker also describes the battles of Justinian's famous general Belisarius, who waged successful wars against the Vandals, Goths, and Persians on behalf of his emperor.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Justinian and wife Theodora jointly helmed the Roman empire in its waning days, successfully quashing invasions from the Goths, the Vandals, and other assorted battle-ready challengers. Ultimately, their efforts to restore the empire's earlier grandeur failed, and the whole show collapsed around them. Baker adroitly chronicles it all in this 1931 biography.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Mr. Baker writes with a light and graceful touch. He does not hesitate to slip into slang and to use modern imagery to enforce his conviction that there is nothing so modern as the problems of the ancient world…. It is this that lifts Justinian out of the ordinary run of biography. (New York Times )

A vigorous and lively translation of scholarship into the vernacular. (New Statesman and Nation )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Cooper Square Press; 1st Cooper Square Press Ed edition (April 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0815412177
• ISBN-13: 978-0815412175
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #561,789 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Who was Justinian?, September 19, 2007

By 

David E. Blair (Columbia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Justinian: The Last Roman Emperor (Paperback)

George Phillip Baker, a British "arm chair" historian and biographer, was actively writing during the first half of the 20th Century. An author of "popular" treatments of his subjects, his work is a cut above much of that genre from the era. He is generally dependable and trustworthy and is able to move his narratives along briskly without resort to distortion of his underlying sources or gross fictionalization. Unfortunately, the question with which I head this review remains unanswered by this book. That being said, this book provides a fast paced retelling of the history of the Roman/Byzantine Empire during the era of Justinian. Drawing primarily on J. B. Bury's classic history of the later Roman Empire and Procopius's "histories" for information, Baker presents a balanced picture of the expansion of the Empire under Justinian. In large measure, this is a military history with secondary attention to political matters.

Belisarius, the great contemporary general of the Empire, is by far the most developed and discussed character within the book. This of course reflects Baker's reliance on the Procopian eight volume war histories. However, many other major events and trends were a foot during the reign of Justinian the Great. Adequate treatment is given to the codification and revision of Roman civil law which was a momumental accomplishment of the reign. The extremely important events in the history of the Christian religion that took place at this time are less well fleshed out. From the religious activities of Justinian and his empress, Theodora, far reaching consequences reverberate down to this very day. The interplay of interests represented by Justinian, Theodora, John of Lydia, John of Cappadocia along with Belisarius and his wife, Antonia, and Narses are never fully developed but all covered to some extent and never inaccurately. The important architectural, artistic and cultural trends of the reign are all but disregarded.

Despite all of these quibbles this is an important book that deserves the attention of anyone interested in the reign of Justinian. Larger questions such as whether Justinian was the last Roman Emperor or a transitional segue way from Late Antiquity to the Medieval world are left to other scholars. As another reviewer pointed out, the lack of footnotes makes the book of questionable use to a scholarly student of the period. However, having read most of the original source material from the period in translation, I believe that this book is a fair and relatively accurate portrait of its subject within the limitations I have described above. Baker's extremely judicious use of Procopius's volume twelve, "Anecdotes - The Secret History," is to be commended. All in all, I recommend this book highly, and it is an enjoyable and easy read.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful concise history of Justinian and his reign, January 5, 2005

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Florentius (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Justinian: The Last Roman Emperor (Paperback)

Whether or not you accept the idea that Justinian was indeed the "Last Roman Emperor," if you enjoy classical history, you'll get a lot out of this book. It is an excellent synopsis of the reign of that great emperor and his epic attempts to reconstitute the boundaries of the Roman Empire. Drawing mainly from Procopius and secondary sources like Bury, the author paints vivid portraits of the scenes and personalities involved: from Justinian himself, to Belisarius, Theodora, John the Cappadocian, Narses, and many others.

Originally published in 1931, this book is a handsome paperback reprint. The text appears to be abridged as it contains numerous elipses (...) throughout. The author's writing style will seem a bit archaic to the modern reader and this tendency is highlighted by the antique-looking typesetting used by the publisher. The author freely injects his own opinions into the text, but it is usually very clear when he is doing so. He also uses some turns of phrase that seem remarkably un-politically correct today--such as repeatedly referring to Belisarius's force in Italy the "Little Dago Army." In the author's defense, (and I say this as someone of Italian heritage myself) he was doing this in an attempt to mimic the Goth's deprecation of the Roman imperial army as "greeklings."

The only real drawback to this book is the dearth of footnotes, which makes it unsuitable for scholarly use. Having read much of Procopius already, I was curious where the author got some of the quotes and anecdotes he included which were not from that source.

All in all, I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a good, balanced overview of Justinian's reign that doesn't rely too heavily on the infamous 'Secret History.'

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really thorough, August 29, 2003

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Mel "Religious History Major" (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Justinian: The Last Roman Emperor (Paperback)

I liked it a lot, really, I did. I'm not just saying that because the author is dead either. He's really comprehensive in the way he covers Justinian's reign and doesn't, as some authors try, to cover up the pressure of the implications and effects of the Coucil of Chalcedon on Justinians reign. He doesn't talk too much about the building, or rather, the re-building of Hagia Sophia which is somewhat of a disappointment for me. He gives great insite into court intrigue and peronal decisions and friendships which reveal huge amounts about his personality such as his friendship and appointment of John as what we would today consider the head of the IRS and treasury combined. Plus, there's excellent information on Bellisarus and his character. The author makes it clear that, as sexist as it sounds, Justinian and Belisarus were just trying to get the job done and their skanky wives wouldn't stay out of it which only caused trouble. It's a real "behind the scene's look" at the person of Justianian and the people under him who made the empire work. A great read, very enjoyable, and intelligently written.