A military history of the campaigns of belisarius, the greatest general of the eastern roman byzantine emperor justinian. The series revolves around reallife historical figure flavius belisarius and a war between two societies that finds its way to 6th century earth. Continuing the popular belisarius saga, with two fulllength novels in one volume. He twice defeated the persians and reconquered north africa from the vandals in a single year at the age of 29, before going on to regain spain and italy, including rome briefly, from the barbarians. Originally published in 1829, its a bit outdated it continues the myth of belisarius blinding, but remains the standard if only for want of a serious rival. Just as gravess claudius novels i, claudius and claudius the god and his wife messalina were based on the twelve caesars of suetonius. Its protagonist is a real historical figure, the late roman general flavius belisarius 505565 ad the saga is published by baen books wherein an overarching theme ties each book together. The series revolves around reallife historical figure flavius belisarius and a war between two societies that finds its way to. Invaders threatened on all fronties, but they grew to re.
Guided by visions from a future that may never be, he and a band of comrades penetrate the malwa heartland, seeking the core of the enemys power. Gravess researches for the golden fleece led him into a wideranging study of myths and to what was his. Leading its defense was the byzantine general belisarius, a man who earned the grudging respect of his enemies, and who rose to become the emperor justinians greatest military leader. Finding history whats the best book about belisarius. Count belisarius was the last general of the roman empire to be given a triumph. Earth have sent a crystal, aide, to halt their advance. The scope of the book is massive encompassing religious controversy and cultural developments as well as military history yet, throughout, graves succeeds. Count belisarius won the prix femina in april 1938, shortly after it was published, and although some consider it among his best novels,10 others do not. Belisarius was his third such novel, and while it is a ripping yarn of a book, gravess rich knowledge of the history of christianity and his grasp of the theological conflicts of the day infuse this story of the exploits of one of the greatest generals in history with the byzantine complexities of emperor justinians reign.
But let me assure you, if you are perhaps christians of the monkish sort who read. Count belisarius robert graves, historical novels, books. Robert gravess vivid novel count belisarius 1938 is the best fictionalized treatment of the generals life. Count belisarius is a historical novel by robert graves, first published in 1938, recounting the. I think the brilliance of writers like robert graves and hilary mantel is there ability through historical fiction to capture something more than history. Its marketed as a book about the outbreak of justinians plague that put a halter on his plans of reconquering the western roman empire. Count belisarius does justice to such a character, and its narrative force is at least as strong as vidals julian, though neither are. Aug 03, 2006 count belisarius is a magnificent combination of creativity and history. Loosely based on procopiuss history of the justinian wars and secret history, this novel tells the belisariuss story through the eyes of eugenius, a eunuch and servant to the generals wife. Read count belisarius by robert graves available from rakuten kobo. His wife was an intimate of the empress theodora, and he shows well in history, having also defended the empire from invasions by the persians and the huns.
Belisarius is a series of science fiction novels written by david drake and eric flint. I, claudius is one of my favourite books of all time, and all quiet needs no introduction either. However, its a broader book than that, as most of the book is spent esta. Belisarius is arrested and imprisoned on trumpedup charges of corruption. Unlike claudius, the events of the book are related by the eunuch eugenius, who is a trusted slave to the family of antonina. The sixth century was not a peaceful time for the roman empire. May 23, 2017 retelling belisarius in all these different ways, changing history, changing the end, letting belisarius win, let people play with stories of staving off the collapse of civilization through a. At the same time, 4,000 ostrogoths left the city through the flaminian gate and headed north to ravenna, the capital of their italian kingdom. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read count belisarius.
Ostensibly written from the viewpoint of the eunuch eugenius, servant to belisarius s wife, but actually based on procopiuss history, the book portrays belisarius as a solitary honorable man in a corrupt world, and paints a vivid picture of not only his startling military feats but also the. Belisarius, the finest general of his age, must save the world. Its protagonist is a real historical figure, the late roman general flavius belisarius 505565 ad. Pardoned by justinian and restored to former position. Belisarius is the hero of two great bits of genre fiction from my adolescence. Belisarius is primarily science fiction though some might describe it more accurately as alternative history. Mar 11, 2020 on december 9, 536 ad, byzantine count belisarius entered rome through the asinarian gate at the head of 5,000 troops. Count belisarius is a historical novel by robert graves, first published in 1938, recounting the life of the byzantine general belisarius ad 500565 just as gravess claudius novels i, claudius and claudius the god and his wife messalina were based on the twelve caesars of suetonius and other roman sources, count belisarius is largely based on procopiuss history of. It chronicles the war between two competing societies. During his career, he will receive little support from the suspicious emperor justinian, but when he is put on trial on what appear to be trumped up charges of corruption, justinian will pardon him. May, 2017 one of the defining features of belisarius career was his success despite varying levels of support from justinian. Livy, thucydides, herodotus, and certainly xenophon in the persian war sections. Count belisarius 564 pages a history of the classical age and into the romantic age. Count belisarius isnt in the same league, but still a worthwhile read.
Both readers of history and readers of historicalfiction can enjoy this book. With this book robert graves again demonstrates his command of a vast historical subject. Leading its defense was the byzantine general belisarius, the emperor justinians greatest military leader. His reconquests of north africa, and sicily in the 530s ce were the high mark of the reign of justinian i. One big reason for this is that he was accompanied by procopius, who wrote a history of his campaigns and then took all the unscholarly bits and put. Listener gary asks which of the few books on belisarius are the best. Retelling belisarius in all these different ways, changing history, changing the end, letting belisarius win, let people play with stories of staving off. Except for a few pages by agathias on belisariuss defence of. Robert gravess sources for count belisarius include some of the great historical works of classical antiquity. Count belisarius is a magnificent combination of creativity and history. The last roman general by ian hughes is a good biography of him.
Count belisarius project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Loosely based on procopius history of the justinian wars and secret history, this novel tells the generals story through the eyes of eugenius, a eunuch and. It feels a little laboured at times, as though graves heart wasnt quite in it. The story follows flavius belisarius, a real historical figure. The belisarius series is a alternate history scifi series by american novelists david drake and eric flint. Aide holds all human knowledge but he cannot act by himself.
For a variety of reasons, belisarius is one of the most compelling figures of late antiquity and byzantine history, and, as i stated earlier, unequivocally one of the very best military commanders in history. Robert gravess historical novel count belisarius and l. How rome held up during gothic wars realclearhistory. His more than 120 books also include a notable historical novel, i, claudius 1934. Same author has also written good books on stilicho and aetius. My favorite is the classic one by lord mahon philip henry stanhope called the life of belisarius. Mar 06, 2014 count belisarius ebook written by robert graves. And when belisarius leads the forces of good, only a fool would side with evil. Robert graves, english poet, novelist, critic, and classical scholar who carried on many of the formal traditions of english verse in a period of experimentation. Count belisarius, the greatest general of the age and perhaps of all ages, must outwit the evil empire and then, when there is no longer room to maneuver, to meet it.
It presents a compelling portrait of a man bound by a strict code of honor and unrelenting loyalty to an emperor who is intelligent but flawed, and. Leading its defense was the byzantine general belisarius, a man who earned the grudging. Anyone who enjoyed his more famous books, such as i claudius will probably enjoy this one too. Welcome,you are looking at books for reading, the count belisarius, you will able to read or download in pdf or epub books and notice some of author may have lock the live reading for some of country. Known as aide, this crystalline entity, when held in the hand of the roman general count belisarius, reveals enough of future technology and history that the roman army in a. His name is frequently given as one of the socalled last of the romans. The art of war is an enduring classic that holds a special place in the culture and history of east rs 250 rs 237. Count belisarius by robert graves, first edition abebooks. Robert graves takes historical personages and makes them live as no history book ever did.
Books like hercules, my shipmate deserve to be as popular as claudius and, likewise, count belisarius. Belisarius is perhaps the last loyal general the roman empire can still count on. Therefore it need a free signup process to obtain the book. The books were written by flint based on drakes plots. Count belisarius penguin modern classics robert graves, john julius. The belisarius series is a fictional saga in the alternate history and military history subgenres of science fiction, written by american authors david drake and eric flint. Whether or not he was true to the oath you shall judge after reading this story. Count belisarius does make me want to dig deeper into procopius history of the wars of justinian and the secret history. With this book robert graves again demonstrates his command of a vast historical subject, creating a startling and vivid picture of a decadent era. Count belisarius, which followed robert graves successful i claudius novels on the early roman empire, tells a fascinating tale of the age shortly after the. Invaders threatened on all fronties, but they grew to respect and fear the name of belisarius, the emperor justinians greatest general. If it available for your country it will shown as book reader and user fully subscribe will benefit by. Count belisarius by robert graves, 97801411883, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide.
Introduction count belisarius 1938 is somewhat different from robert gravess earlier claudius novels in that it was written as a response to a puzzle and controversy about its main source. Count belisarius by robert graves and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Count belisarius ebook by robert graves rakuten kobo. Count belisarius 1938, a sympathetic study of the great and martyred general of the byzantine empire. The malwa empire squats like a toad across sixth century india, commanded by ruthless men with depraved appetites. Robert graves threatened by invaders on all sides, the roman empire in the sixth century fought to maintain its borders. Read count belisarius online by robert graves books free 30. Threatened by invaders on all sides, the roman empire in the sixth century struggled to maintain its borders.
Count belisarius is a historical novel by robert graves, first published in 1938, recounting the life of the byzantine general belisarius ad 500565 just as gravess claudius novels i, claudius and claudius the god and his wife messalina were based on the twelve caesars of suetonius and other roman sources, count belisarius is largely based on procopiuss history of justinians wars. Belisarius puts down the nika uprising, slaughtering between 20,000 and 30,000 people. Belisarius saga audiobooks listen to the full series. Ostensibly written from the viewpoint of the eunuch eugenius, servant to belisariuss wife, but actually based on procopiuss history, the book portrays belisarius as a solitary honorable man in a corrupt world, and paints a vivid picture of not only his startling military feats but also the. Memoirs of hadrian, julian, and count belisarius one of the reasons i decided to do a masters degree in ancient history came from my interest in seeing the ruins around greece and italy during my travels there. With this book, robert graves again demonstrates his command of a vast historical. Count belisarius, the greatest general of the age and perhaps of all ages, must outwit the evil empire and then, when there is no longer room to maneuver, to meet it swordedge to sword. Eminent historical novelist and classicist robert graves presents a vivid account of a time in history both decadent and violent. The 18thcentury french writer jeanfrancois marmontel used the story of belisarius as a vehicle for an oblique attack on louis xv and for a plea for tolerance and justice, in his philosophical novel belisaire 1767. Other articles where count belisarius is discussed. Count belisarius ist ein 1938 erschienener roman des britischen schriftstellers robert graves. Anyone have recommendations for books on flavius belisarius.
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