I have a degree in History, but I am ignorant of Byzantine History and am struggling to find information.

by Templonis

As I stated I have a degree in history. I can wax for hours on Canon Law, Hellenism, Carthage, etc. But I know next to nothing about Byzantium/Eastern Roman Empire. I do not even know what to properly name it. So I went to try to find information, sources, books and the like, and I am struggling. I don't know authors to trust, or even really where to begin. So I was hoping to get some recommendations.

If this is not a proper question to ask on this sub-reddit then I beg forgiveness, but I do not know where would be proper. The book list on the sidebar lacked information on this specific era also. Thanks in advance.

Do you have a specific interest, such as in religion, economy or politics? I can probably recommend something more suitable if I know that, but for general narratives I think Treadgold's A History of Byzantine State and Society (1997) and Norwich's A Short History of Byzantium are pretty solid, but they are a bit old. For something different and newer, try Herrin's Byzantium: The Surprising Life of a Medieval Empire (2007). She approached the history of Byzantium through various themes and covered things that are being explored more and more by historians nowadays rather than the standard political stuff, so I think it's a great introduction. The Cambrige History of the Byzantine Empire is also useful if you can access it for free from a university library.

I'm a fan of the earlier period in particular, so I have a few more recommendations for that. Whittow's The Making of Orthodox Byzantium (1996) is really peerless in terms of its accessibility, whilst Haldon and Brubaker's Byzantium in the Iconoclast Era, c. 680–850 (2011) is an amazing piece of work revising everything we thought we know about the empire during its darkest period (so keep that in mind, not everyone agrees with it!), it's very academic, but if you are interested in the Iconoclasm it is definitely the book to read. Hoyland's In God's Path (2014) is possibly also necessary here, since the Arab Conquests are key to understanding the transformation of the late-antique Roman Empire into medieval Byzantium. Plus it's just a great read. Frankopan's The First Crusade: The Call from the East (2012) is also great if you are interested in the later period - he basically looked at the First Crusade from a Byzantine perspective, very cool stuff.

For primary sources, try Procopius' Wars and Secret History, the Chronographia of Michael Psellus, and the Alexiad by Anna Komnena, probably the three most famous sources from Byzantine history. All of them have modern translations from Penguin Classics and so are very accessible. Procopius and the Alexiad also have new introductions from Peter Sarris and Peter Frankopan respectively, so you'd get a sense of what modern scholarship is like as well.