Emperor and Priest: The Imperial Office in Byzantium (Past and Present Publications)

This is a revised and translated edition of Gilbert Dagron's Empereur et prtre, an acknowledged masterwork by one of the great Byzantine scholars of our time. The figure of the Byzantine emperor, a ruler who sometimes was also designated a priest, has long fascinated the western imagination. This book studies in detail the imperial union of 'two powers', temporal and spiritual, against a wide background of relations between Church and state and religious and political spheres. Presenting much unfamiliar material in complex, brilliant style, it is aimed at all historians concerned with royal and ecclesiastical sources of power. The Figure Of The Byzantine Emperor, A Ruler Who Sometimes Was Also Designated A Priest, Has Long Fascinated The Western Imagination. This Book Studies In Detail The Imperial Union Of 'two Powers' Against A Wide Background Of Relations Between Church And State And Religious And Political Spheres. While In The Medieval West The Empire Was Broken Down Into Its Various Temporal Realms, Leaving Spiritual Matters To The Papacy, The Byzantine East Preserved The Structures Of An Empire Whose Ruler - The Anointed Successor Of David - Received Directly From God His Mission To Lead His Christian Subjects. In This Sense, The Emperor Was A Priest, Albeit 'of Another Priesthood' Or A Quasi-bishop. Historians Have Continued The Debate On This Subject Since The Time Of The Reformation, Declaring 'caesaropapism' To Be A Malady Of The East. Yet The Ambiguities And Nuances Of This Divided Imperial Role Can Still Be Perceived Today. Presenting Much Unfamiliar Material In Complex, Brilliant Style, As Much For Western Medievalists As For Byzantinists, It Will Attract All Historians Concerned With Royal And Ecclesiastical Sources Of Power.--jacket. Heredity, Legitimacy, And Succession -- Proclamations And Coronations -- Ceremonial And Memory -- Constantine The Great : Imperial Sainthood -- Leo Iii And The Iconoclast Emperors : Melchizedek Or Antichrist? -- Basil The Macedonian, Leo Vi, And Constantine Vii : Ceremonial And Religion -- The Kingship Of The Patriarchs (eighth To Eleventh Centuries) -- The Canonists And Liturgists (twelfth To Fifteenth Centuries) -- Caesaropapism And The Theory Of The Two Powers -- Epilogue : The House Of Judah And The House Of Levi. Gilbert Dagron ; Translated By Jean Birrell. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Translated From The French. The figure of the Byzantine emperor, a ruler who sometimes was also designated a priest, has long fascinated the western imagination. Written by one of the world's leading Byzantine scholars, this classic book studies in detail the imperial union of "two powers," temporal and spiritual, against the broad background of the relationship between church and state and religious and political spheres.