Theophylact Simocatta: Last Historian of an Age

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the life and work of Theophylact Simocatta, the last major historian of late antiquity. Writing under the emperor Heraclius, Simocatta chronicled the wars with the Avars and Slavs, the Persian campaigns of Maurice, and the coup of Phocas. His 'Ecumenical History' survives as a unique window into the seventh-century crisis that transformed the Byzantine Empire. Lucas unpacks Simocatta's rhetorical style, his biases, and the fragmentary transmission of his texts. They also discuss the 'Questions on Natural History', a lesser-known philosophical dialogue by Simocatta, and his role in the cultural life of Constantinople. Along the way, they touch on the reign of Heraclius, the siege of Constantinople in 626, and the debate over whether Simocatta was a historian or a propagandist. A must-listen for anyone curious about how history is written in times of upheaval.

#TheophylactSimocatta #ByzantineHistory #Heraclius #EcumenicalHistory #SeventhCentury #Avars #Slavs #Phocas #Maurice #Constantinople #Historiography #LateAntiquity #ByzantineLiterature #SiegeOf626 #QuestionsOnNaturalHistory #History #FexingoHistory #Podcast

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