Latins in Roman (Byzantine) Histories: Ambivalent Representations in the Long Twelfth Century(127 The Medieval Mediterranean)

Samuel P. Müller offers here the first book-length study of the image of Latins in Byzantine historiography of the long twelfth century, a crucial period that witnessed an unprecedented intensification of Byzantine-Western relations. He notably argues against popular assertions that the image of Latins is “negative” and reflective of steadily mounting tension. Instead, Müller shows that Byzantine historiography can hardly be taken as evidence that the conquest of 1204 was the inevitable outcome of previous interactions. The representation of Latins is complex, ambivalent, and reflective of fickle and multifaceted Byzantine-Western relations. The book also highlights the need to focus on Byzantine identities and crucial, introspective motivations to which the image of Latins is subordinated.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements Introduction  1 Methodological and Theoretical Approach  1.1 Identity and Alterity Intertwined  1.2 The Complex Relationship between (Literary) Representations and Attitudes  2 State of Research  2.1 Relations between Romania and the West  2.2 The Image of Latins part 1 Identities of Byzantine-Roman Literati and Their Representation of “Others” and Westerners 1 Identities of Byzantine-Roman Literati and Their Representation of “Others” and Westerners  1 Identities and Representations of “Others”  2 The West and Westerners in Greek Literature: Historiographers of the Komnenian Period and Other Sources  2.1 Anna Komnene  2.2 Ioannes Kinnamos  2.3 Eustathios of Thessalonike  2.4 Niketas Choniates  2.5 Ioannes Zonaras and Michael Glykas  2.6 Shorter Literary Works Devoted to a Historical Event: Manasses and Mesarites  2.7 Histories Devoted to the Period before 1081  2.7.1 Additional Sources  2.8 Oratory, Poetry, Letters, Novels  2.9 Theological and Religious Writings  2.10 Imperial and Patriarchal Documents  2.11 Non-textual Sources part 2 The Portrayal of the Western Presence within the Empire and of Westerners in Imperial Service 2 Ambiguous Relations with Italians  1 The Close and Fluctuating Relationship with Βενέτικοι (Venetians)  1.1 Proximity and Difference Prior to the Second Crusade  1.2 Cooperation, Coexistence, Conflict, and the Coup of 1171  1.3 An Uneasy Restoration of Relations Marked by Imperial Failure  2 Πισσαῖοι (Pisans) and Γενουῖται (Genoese) in Venice’s Shadow  2.1 A Very Generic Portrayal of Their Ascendancy and Integration  2.2 “Anti-Latin”? The Accounts of the So-Called Latin Massacre in 1182  2.3 The Equally Contingent Character of Later Attacks in the Capital  2.4 Μεγαρείτης (Margaritone) and Καφούρης (Gafforio)  3 Encomiastic Praise and Approval with Hindsight of the Byzantine Network in Italy  3.1 Other Alliances with Italian Cities  3.2 The Ἀγκωνῖται (people of Ancona) and Their Supporters 3 Compatibility, Superiority, and Introspection Reflected in Empresses  1 Alliance with Οὐγγρία (Hungary): Eirene (Piroska) and Maria (Margaret)  1.1 The Exploitation of Eirene’s (Piroska’s) Origin in the Service of Imperial Propaganda  1.2 The Similar Case of Maria (Margaret)  2 Eirene (Bertha of Sulzbach) as an Exception to the Rule of Easy Integration  3 Maria/Xene (Margaret-Constance) of Antioch and the Myth of the “Hated Latin” in the Scholarship  4 Anna (Agnes) and the Unequal Alliance with France 4 The Brothers from Μόντη Φεράντη (Montferrat) as a Male Counterpart  1 The Beauty and Virtue of Ioannes (Renier of Montferrat)  2 Korrados (Conrad of Montferrat): Role Model and Savior 5 The Integration of Princes into the Imperial Hierarchy  1 Tentative Heir, Client Ruler, Ally: Alexios/Βελᾶς (Bela)  2 The Successful and Not So Successful Management of Hungarian Royals 6 The Special Case of the “Barbarian Ax-Bearers” 7 Other Illustrative Cases  1 In the Imperial Army  1.1 The Importance of Mercenaries  1.2 Ourselios (Roussel De Bailleul)  2 In Various Contexts  2.1 The Differing Degrees of “Romanization” of Ἀλέξανδρος (Alexander of Gravina) and Βασαβίλας (Robert of Bassonville)  2.2 Cultural Disinterest, Integration, and Acceptance  3 The Foundation of Aristocratic Dynasties 8 “Xenophobia”? Remarks about Recruitment in Government and the Army part 3 The Portrayal of External Relations with the West 9 The Importance of “Kelts” and “Sicilians” (Normans) More Genericism, Introspection, Ambivalence, and Proximity  1 Anti-heroes of the Alexiad: Rompertos and Baïmountos  1.1 The First Phase: Rompertos (Robert Guiscard)  1.2 The Long Struggle against Baïmountos (Bohemond) and Tangre (Tancred)  2 “Tyrants” and Kings  2.1 Rogerios (Roger ii): Usurper of Byzantine Rights, Symbol of Imperial Decline  2.2 Kaiserkritik and Its Personally Inclined Counterpart in Two Differing Accounts of the Italian War (1155–58)  2.3 Differing Motivations behind the Portrayal of the Byzantine-Sicilian War 10 The Hero’s Challenge Incursions of “Franks,” “Latins,” and “Kelts” 11 Imperial Propaganda versus Kaiserkritik in the Accounts of the Second Incursion 12 The Staufers as a Rivalling Threat and a Model to Byzantine Emperors  1 Frederikos (Frederick Barbarossa)  2 Amerrigos (Henry vi) and Choniates’s Kaiserkritik 13 Victories over “Huns” (Hungarians) Diminished and Magnified 14 Divine Retribution, Disruption, and Continuities The Conquerors of Romania (Fourth Crusade)  1 Shattering Pillars of Identity: the Capture and Sack of the Imperial City  2 Instrument and Victims of Divine Retribution, a Model against Which to Be Measured  2.1 The First Year after the Fall of the City until the Turning Point of Adrianople  2.2 Between Resignation, Hope, and Exhortation: The Last Pages of Choniates’s History 15 (Potential) Alliances  1 Enerichos (Henry iv) versus the Pope (Gregory vii)  2 Anna’s Hindsight and Ἰσαγγέλης (Raymond of Saint-Gilles)  3 The Hohenstaufen and Austrian Alliance  4 Antioch  4.1 The Praise of Raimountos  4.2 Different Perspectives on Renaldos (Raynald) and Rituals in Antioch  5 The Imperial Protectorate on Display in the Holy Land  6 Amerrigos (Amalric of Jerusalem) as a Foil  7 The Praise of Frederikos (Frederick Barbarossa)  Conclusion  1 Results of the Investigation  2 Desiderata for Future Related Research  Note on Transliteration and Translations  Bibliography   Primary Sources   Secondary Sources  Index

About the Author :
Samuel P. Müller is an independent scholar who worked as a research assistant and lecturer at the University of Zurich (2012–15). He has presented his research, which focuses on medieval and Byzantine studies, at numerous international conferences.