The Horoscope of Emperor Baldwin II : Political and Sociocultural Dynamics in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople

"In The Horoscope of Emperor Baldwin II Filip Van Tricht presents a microstudy of political, social and cultural life in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople and Romania. A 'new' set of sources is used to question the traditionally negative view of the Byzantine capital under Latin rule. Combined with an analysis of other underused historical materials, mid-13th century Latin-Byzantine Constantinople is redefined as a city that--in spite of the Western conquest during the Fourth Crusade--remained dynamic, with vibrant internal and international politics, and with interesting developments in the social, religious, artistic, and scientific spheres. Against the background of a shared Roman past the metropolis on the Bosporus became a fascinating laboratory of Latin-Byzantine interaction."-- Publisher's website "In The Horoscope of Emperor Baldwin II Filip Van Tricht presents a microstudy of political, social and cultural life in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople and Romania. A 'new' set of sources is used to question the traditionally negative view of the Byzantine capital under Latin rule. Combined with an analysis of other underused historical materials, mid-13th century Latin-Byzantine Constantinople is redefined as a city that--in spite of the Western conquest during the Fourth Crusade--remained dynamic, with vibrant internal and international politics, and with interesting developments in the social, religious, artistic, and scientific spheres. Against the background of a shared Roman past the metropolis on the Bosporus became a fascinating laboratory of Latin-Byzantine interaction"--From back cover The Horoscope of Emperor Baldwin II: Political and Sociocultural Dynamics in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople 3 Copyright 4 Dedication 5 Contents 7 Preface 9 Introduction 11 1 Manuscript Tradition, Authorship, Date & Aim 16 Part 1: Political Dynamics 35 2 A Byzantine-Style Imperial Ideology 37 3 Internal Rivalries at Court 60 4 Attempts at Geopolitical Restauration 91 Part 2: Cultural Dynamics 105 5 The Astrological Corpus: Western and Byzantine Influences 107 6 Literature and Sciences in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople 141 7 The Arts and Artistic Production in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople 196 Conclusion 218 Part 3: Appendixes 225 1 Astrological poem 227 2 Horoscope of Baldwin II of Courtenay 238 3 Introductoire d’Astronomie: Selected Chapters 245 Bibliography 263 Index 302 In this book Filip Van Tricht presents a microstudy of political, social and cultural life in Latin-Byzantine Constantinople and Romania in the mid-13th century. __In The Horoscope of Emperor Baldwin II__