Fourteen Byzantine Rulers: The Chronographia of Michael Psellus

Synopsis

A vivid account of the decline of the byzantine empire after the death of basil ii in 1025 a. D. After fifty glorious years as sole emperor, the death of basil ii ushered in decades of turbulence, corruption, and incompetence. Michael psellus, one of the greatest courtiers and men of letters of the age, chronicled the following half-century of extraordinary decline. His vivid and forceful account, full of psychological insight and deep understanding of power politics, is a historical and literary document of the first importance.