Theoderic In Italy (Oxford University Press academic monograph reprints) [Hardcover]

John Moorhead (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 18, 1993 | Series: Oxford University Press academic monograph reprints

The career of Theoderic the Ostrogoth is one of the great success stories of antiquity. From being a ruler of a barbarian people wandering around the Balkans, he became king in Italy (493-526) and established one of the most powerful of the post-Roman states. Due to its ample documentation, the Italy of Theoderic allows detailed examination of a period on the frontiers of ancient and medieval, Roman and barbarian. And due to his success in attracting the attention of some of the major literary figures of the time, new light is cast on Boethius, Cassiodorus, and Ennodius when they are considered in the context of their connections with the government. Yet Theoderic's reign, so praised by contemporaries, ended amid tension and discord. In this study, Moorhead considers whether the principles with which he governed brought about the impermanence of his achievement.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 18, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198147813
• ISBN-13: 978-0198147817
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,889,354 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Gothic king of the Romans!, October 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Theoderic In Italy (Oxford University Press academic monograph reprints) (Hardcover)

King Theodoric the Great is a figure of transition. His displaced Goths occupied the Roman Western Empire in 493, meshing with Romans and recently-arrived barbarians to create a state not quite Roman and not quite medieval--a land of Roman law with a rapidly devolving civil society dominated by illiterate barbarians and heretical faith. John Moorhead revives the study of Theodoric with this readable and informative account. It goes far to update the foundational study of Theodoric by the 19th-century historian Thomas Hodgkin.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Theoderic takes his place beside Clovis and Charlemagne, July 31, 2007

By 

Douglas E. Libert "howitt" (parkersburg wv) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Theoderic In Italy (Oxford University Press academic monograph reprints) (Hardcover)

Theoderic,king of the Osrogoths, ruled over Italy for about 33 years in the early 6th century.Initially the Goths were "invited "into Italy as a mercenary force by the what was left of the Roman ruling class at this time because of the troubles involved from the East/west schism of the empire.Also from foreign invasion from any number of rising powers such as the Franks under Clovis and others.This is where the book begins trying to sort out the complex political relationships in a thoroughly scholarly way. Apparently the Romans were not able to keep the Goths from acting with their own interests in mind,and the Gothic capital of Ravenna,Italy became more or less a rival of Rome.The personality of Theoderic in the book is represented as at times savagely brutal mixed with compassion and respect for wisdom and the classics.Since the Goths were non-trinitarian christians,and there is no separation of church and state at this time,the rivalries between the Goths,the Popes,The Romans and other trinitarian nation states such as the Franks,make the book seem confusing at times.Theoderic is described as a ruler who basically looked "backward into antiquity rather than forward into the middle ages"The Gothic ruler had bitter controversies with two major christian religious figures of the time.One was Boethius,the christian philosopher and writer of the classic Philosophiae Consolation which he wrote while in prison under the death sentence of Theoderic. the other was the pope Symmachus.Both of these figures were accused by Theoderic of delving too far into politics to be respected as true religious figures and he felt little sorrow at taking them down a notch or two (or three).The source for most of the info on Theoderic is the Roman scholar Cassiodorus,who was a cautious player at Theoderic's court so some of his information could be open to bias.Theoderic was building a massive fleet which would have made Italy the major European seapower at the time of his demise.When the long haired bearded Theoderic died from diahrrea around 527 some anti-Theoderic scholars compared it to the "bursting of Judas' bowels at death.Actually from the way he is portrayed in the book,he rivals Clovis or Charlemagne,a strong ruler of his times not to be denied his place.