Project Gutenberg 2004-07-16 Public domain in the USA. 810 Procopius Procopius, of Caesarea Procopius, Caesariensis The Secret History of the Court of Justinian Reading ease score: 46.2 (College-level). Difficult to read. Produced by Ted Garvin, Project Manager; Keith M. Eckrich, Post-Processor; the PG Online Distributed Proofreaders Team "The Secret History of the Court of Justinian" by Procopius is a historical account likely written in the 6th century. This work offers a revealing and scandalous look into the reign of Emperor Justinian I and his wife, Theodora, as well as the intrigues of the Byzantine court, encapsulating its political machinations and personal scandals. The author, Procopius, having served under Justinian's general Belisarius, provides a critical perspective on the events and characters of this tumultuous era. The opening of the text sets the stage for a deep dive into the Byzantine court's dark and often sordid dynamics. Procopius introduces himself and outlines his dual role as a historian—one who has previously documented the wars and triumphs of the empire while now intending to expose the hidden corruptions and atrocities committed by its leaders. He sketches the character of key figures like Justinian, portrayed as an inept tyrant, and Theodora, depicted as a cunning manipulator, alongside other notable figures caught in a web of deceit, such as Belisarius and his wife Antonina. The beginning establishes a narrative tone that blends personal accounts with a broader critique of the political state of the empire, hinting at the chaos that ensues from the blend of ambition, desire, and treachery within the imperial household. (This is an automatically generated summary.) en Byzantine Empire -- History -- Justinian I, 527-565 Justinian I, Emperor of the East, 483?-565 DF Text Browsing: History - European Browsing: History - General 300702 300550 2024-10-06T05:17:48.963759 2023-10-06T07:05:46.693217 text/html text/html 300695 300543 2024-10-06T05:17:49.202638 2023-10-06T07:05:46.852209 text/html text/html 182351 2024-10-06T05:17:56.222576 application/epub+zip 184705 2024-10-06T05:17:52.245582 application/epub+zip 180063 2024-10-06T05:17:51.064758 application/epub+zip 399324 2024-10-06T05:17:59.666548 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 363667 2024-10-06T05:17:55.354592 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 333382 2022-09-06T23:10:56.410929 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 282592 282491 2024-10-06T05:17:48.657646 2023-10-06T07:05:46.477350 text/plain; charset=us-ascii text/plain 282447 2020-12-15T06:50:02 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 103443 2020-12-15T06:50:02 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 282475 2020-12-15T06:50:02 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 103445 2020-12-15T06:50:02 text/plain; charset=us-ascii application/zip 20941 2024-10-06T05:17:59.796546 application/rdf+xml 17040 2024-10-06T05:17:51.600589 image/jpeg 3745 2024-10-06T05:17:51.329588 image/jpeg 177433 2024-10-06T05:17:49.229607 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia