Rome and Constantinople, Popes and Patriarchs, 1204-1453
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Empires Reshaped and Reimagined: Rome and Constantinople, Popes and Patriarchs, 1204-1453 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in History by Natalie Sherwan 2016 © Copyright by Natalie Sherwan 2016 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Empires Reshaped and Reimagined: Rome and Constantinople, Popes and Patriarchs, 1204-1453 by Natalie Sherwan Doctor of Philosophy, History University of California, Los Angeles, 2016 Professor Patrick Geary, Co-chair Professor Claudia Rapp, Co-chair This dissertation discusses the politics of conquest and the strategies of legitimization pursued by Latin, Greek and Slav contenders for hegemonic rule in the northeastern Mediterranean after the collapse of the Byzantine Empire in the wake of the fourth crusade. It reevaluates the relationship between the concepts of empire and Christendom as played out in the process of political realignment, and closely examines the ways in which the key actors claiming to represent these concepts - emperors, popes, patriarchs - fought or cooperated with one another in order to assert regional preeminence. ii The first part of the dissertation focuses on the tension between the Roman/Byzantine ideal of universalism, which entailed a sole holder of imperial power, and the concrete reality of several empires coexisting within the same geographical area. Chapters one and two provide a survey of the main theoretical issues encountered in the study of medieval empires, and an assessment of the relationship between Byzantine basileis, patriarchs, popes and Western emperors prior to 1204. Chapters three and four investigate the competing but interconnected ruling systems which emerged in the Balkans, the Aegean and Asia Minor after 1204, tracing their policies of war and appeasement until the recovery of Constantinople by the Nicene Greeks in 1261.
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