Nicaea, the site of the First Ecumenical Council (325) and the capital of the Byzantine Empire in exile during theLatin occupation of Constantinole (1204 - 1261) following the Fourth Crusade has an important, albeit neglected, role in ecclesiastical and political history. With he book, Professor Clive Foss, a meticulous historian, takes a significant step in rectifying that neglect. As he tells us, his initial objective was to provide a comprehensible English translation of the two thirteenth century encomia delivered by Theodora Laskaris and Thodore Metochites. The intent was to make these important sources accessible to the contemporary reader; amd in this he has succeeded notably. But, in addition, there is a major bonus. The initial objective blossomed into a history of Nicaea from the third to the fourteenth centuries, which will interest general readers of history and the specialist as well. |
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