Outlandish knight : the Byzantine life of Steven Runciman

ECONOMIST AND SPECTATOR BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2016 'An extraordinary book ... exceptionally fascinating, always readable and penetratingly intelligent' David Abulafia 'As rich, funny and teemingly peopled as Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time ... Dinshaw writes with wit and elegance, and the most elegiac passages of Outlandish Knight evoke a lost society London and way of life' Ben Judah, Financial Times 'This dazzling young writer is a mine of fascinating, memorable and totally useless information... I have been riveted by this book from start to finish, and leave the reader with one word of advice. Watch Minoo Dinshaw. He will go far' John Julius Norwich, Sunday Telegraph The biography of one of the greatest British historians - but also of a uniquely strange and various man In his enormously long life, Steven Runciman managed not just to be a great historian of the Crusades and Byzantium, but Grand Orator of the Orthodox Church, a member of the Order of Whirling Dervishes, Greek Astronomer Royal and Laird of Eigg. His friendships, curiosities and intrigues entangled him in a huge array of different artistic movements, civil wars, Cold War betrayals and, above all, the rediscovery of the history of the Eastern Mediterranean. He was as happy living in a remote part of the Inner Hebrides as in the heart of Istanbul. He was obsessed with historical truth, but also with tarot, second sight, ghosts and the uncanny. Outlandish Knight is a dazzling debut by a writer who has prodigious gifts, but who also has had the ability to spot one of the great biographical subjects. This is an extremely funny book about a man who attracted the strangest experiences, but also a very serious one. It is about the rigours of a life spent in the distant past, but also about the turbulent world of the twentieth century, where so much that Runciman studied and cherished would be destroyed. Sir Steven Runciman's History Of The Crusades (1951-4) Remains Widely Read And Influential To This Day But Represents Only A Part Of His Wide-ranging, Erudite And Immensely Readable Literary Activity. His Early Work Focused On Byzantium In The Tenth Century (the Emperor Romanus Lecapenus) And The History Of The First Bulgarian Empire. Later He Wrote With Authority On Ecclesiastical Relations Between The Eastern And Western Churches (the Eastern Schism), More Generally On Byzantine Culture (byzantine Style And Civilization), With Forays Into Medieval Diplomacy (the Sicilian Vespers) And British Colonial Society (the White Rajahs). With A Diplomatic Past Which Informed His Studies, He Was The Doyen Of Byzantine Studies In Britain. This Volume Of Essays On Topics Relevant To Sir Steven's Interests, Long Planned In His Honour By British Byzantinists Of All Generations, Includes A Memoir Of His Life And A Full Bibliography Of His Work. -- Publisher Description. James Cochran Stevenson Runciman Anthony Bryer -- Part I. Style -- 1. The Christian Topography (vat. Gr. 699) Revisited: Image, Text, And Conflict On Ninth-century Byzantium / Leslie Brubaker -- 2. Byzantine Enamels In The Twentieth Century / David Buckton -- 3. The Rise And Fall Of Towns, Loci Of Maritime Traffic, And Silk Production: The Problem Of Thisvi-kastorion / Archibald Dunn -- 4. Women In Serbian Politics, Diplomacy And Art At The Beginning Of Ottoman Rule / Zaga Gavrilovic -- 5. Byzantium-venice-manchester: An Early Thirteenth-century Carved Marble Basin And British Byzantinism At The Turn Of The Twentieth Century / Lucy-anne Hunt -- 6. Manners Maketh Romans? Young Barbarians At The Emperor's Court / Jonathan Shepard -- 7. Byzantine And Crusader Art: Sir Steven Was Right / D.c. Winfield -- Part Ii. Religion -- 8. The Discovery Of The Relics Of St Grigor And The Development Of Armenian Tradition In Ninth-century Byzantium / Timothy Greenwood -- 9. The Image Of Edessa: Some Notes On Its Later Fortunes / Paul Hetherington -- 10. Photios As Theologian / Andrew Louth -- 11. Magic At The Cross-roads In The Sixth Century / J. Nimmo-smith -- 12. 'the Angelic Life': Monasteries For Eunuchs / Shaun Tougher -- 13. Armed Pilgrimage And The Reign Of The Anti-christ: Steven Runciman And The Origins Of The First Crusade / F.r. Trombley. Part Iii. Civilization -- 14. Wine For Immortality And Immortality For Wine: Reflections On The Dionysiaca Of Nonnos Of Panopolis / David Frendo -- 15. 'greek Fire' Revisited: Recent And Current Research / John Haldon -- 16. Constantinople In The Reign Of Basil Ii / Catherine Holmes -- 17. A Short Piece Of Narrative History: War And Diplomacy In The Balkans, Winter 921/2-spring 924 / J.d. Howard-johnston -- 18. Restoration Of Orthodoxy, The Pardon Of Theophilos And The Acta Davidis, Symeonis Et Georgii / Patricia Karlin-hayter -- 19. Freestanding Towers In The Countryside Of Rhodes / P.w. Lock -- 20. The Campanopetra Re-considered: The Pilgrimage Church Of The Apostle Barnabas? / A. Megaw -- 21. The Travels Of Paul Lucas / Lynn Rodley -- 22. Aristocrats And Aliens In Early Byzantine Constantinople / Peter Sarris. Elizabeth Jeffreys. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Sir Steven Runciman: A Bibliography--p. [xx]-xxxviii. In his enormously long life (he was born in 1903 and died in 2000), Steven Runciman managed not just to be a great historian of the Crusades and Byzantium, but Grand Orator of the Orthodox Church, a member of the Order of Whirling Dervishes, Greek Astronomer Royal and Laird of Eigg. His friendships, curiosities and plottings entangled him in a huge array of different artistic movements, civil wars, Cold War betrayals and, above all, the rediscovery of the history of the Eastern Mediterranean. He was as happy living in a remote part of the Inner Hebrides as in the heart of Istanbul. He was obsessed with historical truth, but also with tarot, second sight, ghosts and the uncanny. Outlandish Knight is a dazzling debut by a writer who has prodigious gifts, but who also has had the ability to spot one of the great biographical subjects. This is an extremely funny book about a man who attracted the strangest experiences, but also a very serious one: about the rigours of a life spent both in the distant past and in the harsh world of the twentieth century in which so much of what he studied and cherished across the Balkans and Asia Minor was subjected to rapid and often catastrophic change. Sir Steven Runciman's History of the Crusades (1951-4) remains widely read and influential to this day but represents only a part of his wide-ranging, erudite and immensely readable literary activity. His early work focused on Byzantium in the tenth century (The Emperor Romanus Lecapenus) and the history of the first Bulgarian empire. Later he wrote with authority on ecclesiastical relations between the eastern and western churches (The Eastern Schism), and more generally on Byzantine culture (Byzantine Style and Civilization) with forays into medieval diplomacy (The Sicilian Vespers) and British colonial society (The White Rajahs). With a diplomatic past which informed his work, he was the doyen of Byzantine studies in Britain. This volume of essays on topics relevant to Sir Steven's interests, long planned in his honour by British Byzantinists of all generations, includes a memoir of his life and a full bibliography of his writings. Sir Steven Runciman's History of the Crusades (19514) remains widely read and influential but represents only a part of his wide-ranging, erudite and immensely readable literary activity. His early work focused on Byzantium in the tenth century (The Emperor Romanus Lecapenus) and the history of the first Bulgarian empire. Later he wrote with authority on ecclesiastical relations between the eastern and western Churches (The Eastern Schism), more generally on Byzantine culture (Byzantine Style and Civilization), with forays into medieval diplomacy (The Sicilian Vespers) and British colonial society (The White Rajahs). With a diplomatic past which informed his studies, he was the doyen of Byzantine studies in Britain. This volume of essays explores topics relevant to Sir Steven's interests, long planned in his honour by British Byzantinists of all generations, and includes a memoir of his life and a full bibliography of his work.