Synopsis
The reign of Basil II (976-1025), the longest of any Byzantine emperor, has long been considered as a 'golden age', in which his greatest achievement was the annexation of Bulgaria. This, we have been told, was achieved through a long and bloody war of attrition which won Basil the grisly epithet Voulgartoktonos, 'the Bulgar-slayer'. In this new study Paul Stephenson argues that neither of these beliefs is true. Instead, Basil fought far more sporadically in the Balkans and his reputation as 'Bulgar-slayer' was created only a century and a half later. Thereafter the 'Bulgar-slayer' was periodically to play a galvanizing role for the Byzantines, returning to centre-stage as Greeks struggled to establish a modern nation state. As Byzantium was embraced as the Greek past by scholars and politicians, the 'Bulgar-slayer' became an icon in the struggle for Macedonia (1904-8) and the Balkan Wars (1912-13).

First Sentence
The principal historians of the Byzantine empire writing in the first half of the twentieth century agreed that the reign of the emperor Basil II (976-1025) marked the apogee of the medieval Byzantine state, the culmination of a recovery initiated with the establishment on the throne of the Macedonian dynasty by his grandfather's grandfather, Basil I. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews   12 of 13 people found the following review helpful: Superb revisionist study., 30 Mar 2004 By  Mr. Gtj Charmley "gerardtjcharmley" (Cardiff, Wales) - See all my reviews    This book is somewhat pricey, at more than thirty pounds for just over 200 pages. It is, however, worth every penny. The book constitutes a serious re-examination of the famous (or infamous) Emperor. Stephenson, like Mark Whittow before him, is able to show, with evidence, that Basil's Bulgarian campaigns were less extensive than previously believed, even suggesting that Basil contemplated allowing the continued existence of a Bulgarian state, based in Macedonia. Stephenson then goes on to trace the formation of the legend, based on later events, taking the stories up to the present day. For anyone who wishes to understand more about the way that history has shaped the Balkans, this book is a good read, bringing to Byzantine studies the same revisionism that has been brought to bear on Britain's medieval history. If you thought history was set in stone, think again!  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) › See all customer reviews...		Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

• Biography > Historical > Countries & Regions > Europe
• History > Europe > Vikings, Dark Ages, Medieval Europe 501-1500
• History > World History

European history: c 500 to c 1500
Modern period, c 1500 onwards