8. Background to the Fourth Crusade
Goals for this week (November 1st/ 3rd)
On Wednesday and Friday , the professor will lecture about the history of the East Roman Empire - an entity that modern historians would come to refer to as the "Byzantine Empire", named after the port city of Byzantium which was made into a new capital by Emperor Constantine. For the Middle Ages and most of modern history, this city would be known as Constantinople, only become Istanbul ("the City") in 1930.
The lectures will have two purposes:
outline the history of the East Roman Empire
define the idea of a 'crusade' and the political background of the Fourth Crusade
Read/Watch/Listen
Giebfried, John J., and Kyle C. Lincoln. The Remaking of the Medieval World, 1204 : the Fourth Crusade. Chapel Hill, N.C: University of North Carolina Press, 2022.
Read Section II: Historical Background
Harris, J. (2004), "The Debate on the Fourth Crusade." History Compass, 2: 1-10. https://doi-org.proxy.library.carleton.ca/10.1111/j.1478-0542.2004.00114.x
Practice
There are no written assignments due this week.
Students should reread their character sheet and be sure to add deadlines for character specific written assignments and verbal presentations. All students should begin work on researching their topics by the end of this week.
Going Further
Tyerman, Christopher. The Crusades a Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
read chapter 1, "definition"
Kaldellis, Anthony. The New Roman Empire : a History of Byzantium. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2024.
read chapter 30, "Disintegration and Betrayal", p. 696-729.
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