History Summarized: Byzantine Empire - The Golden Age

What do you do when life takes away half of your empire? Well, if you're the Medieval Byzantines, you make comprehensive structural reforms to better manage a changing geopolitical landscape - And then you make an absolute crapload of mosaics.
Byzantines, Part 1: • History Summarized: By...
Sources & Further Reading: John Julius Norwich's "Byzantium: The Apogee"
This video was edited in part by Sophia Ricciardi, AKA "Indigo". sophiakricci.com
Our content is intended for teenage audiences and up.
FURTHER SOURCES: "A Short History of Byzantium" by John Julius Norwich.
PATREON: / osp
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OUR WEBSITE: www.OverlySarcasticProduction...
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[@galleryg998]

‘With enough gold to give a Protestant a seizure’ It’s comments like this which reminds me why I’m here

[@secondpsycho6577]

Speaking as a Protestant myself... I 100% agree with the assessment. This channel is amazing.

[@JohnSmith-ey6zy]

So that's why all the Protestant churches I've seen are painted with boring white and other drab colors

[@rationalroundhead6739]

@@JohnSmith-ey6zy I kinda like it actually. It still gives the same sensation as being in a catholic church despite their being no outward sign of grandeur. It's a very psychological experience; an inward focus rather then an outward one. Some of them are virtually indistinguishable from converted offices or modern art-chitecture, though.

[@raziyatheseeker]

@@rationalroundhead6739 That's a pretty cool way to look at it. No offense to Catholics, but having awesome stuff on the inside instead of the outside seems more Christian. It's a glorification of the Trinity that isn't outward, which I feel is a way to uphold Christian faith in general. After all, IIRC, Jesus wanted people to pray in private rather than in public (Matthew 6:5-6, as I looked up), and he wasn't exactly thrilled with the outward avarice associated with the temples of his time. Then again I'm also a polytheist pagan who worships an Egyptian war goddess, but hey. My pastor knew his stuff and I've retained knowledge and respect for Christians and their faith since.

[@IceQueen975]

As someone who's family is Eastern Orthodox: he's right ya know. XD

[@seatcheeks4242]

"Oops, all crusaders!" Sounds like the early medieval period in a nutshell.

[@rynemcgriffin1752]

“Medieval” heretic

[@crusader7659]

You called?

[@DIEGhostfish]

I mean they may not have done much to directly fight in Anatolia (Or outright feuded wit the people they were supposed to be helping!) but at least they opened a second front!

[@rynemcgriffin1752]

Crusader Crusaders, not singular crusader

[@jennytool1348]

A truly terrible type of captain crunch

[@merrittanimation7721]

11:06 "So they didn't go crusading all over his empire instead." _Foreshadowing_

[@TerLoki]

Oh I've played enough Civilization V to know how THIS ends... *shakes fist* DANDOLO!!!!

[@awwee34]

@@TerLoki dandolo vult

[@GAndreC]

Well as long as you ask for military access first it is all good. Can’t really fight the Mamluk navy with a small kingdom in medieval, and the crusade target is past Roman lands.

[@ethanharvard9058]

@@GAndreC tell me ur an eu4 player without telling me ur ab eu4 player

[@flaviusbelisarius7517]

I prefer "constantly collapsing, but collapsing in style"

[@privateer_am]

That's gonna be my life motto from now on

[@clayxros576]

"Because it is impossible to tell when the middle of my life is, I have elected to have an ongoing crisis"

[@Specter_1125]

Essentially what the Roman Empire did for a millenium

[@dylanchouinard6141]

Belisarius! What are you doing? You’re wasting perfectly good conquering-Italia time.

[@itswar9709]

@@privateer_am P

[@typhaz]

" Which explains why the name skutatoi literally means... shield boys" ah yes, the mighty shield boys, protecting the Byzantine Emperor from their most powerful foes.

[@thatguy4084]

Sounds like something out of WarHammer.

[@titosfilippotis7039]

My main men the shield bois

[@cubaj8723]

Rising of the shield boyz

[@caintheweirdo9945]

I feel like the Imperium has become orkoid since the return of Vulkan...

[@garabic8688]

This is the Byzantines are the best empire

[@tylercarrington4369]

"Golden Disaster Empire" I love how it rolls off the tongue

[@wildharpy6435]

Ah yes, the GDE

[@HaloFTW55]

“Eastern Roman Empire” feels better

[@michaelscott6022]

Byzantium, 1095: "Hey, can you help us out a bit?" Rome: *"CRUUUUSAAAAAADE!!!"* Byzantium: "....Errors have been made."

[@TerLoki]

To paraphrase one of my favorite Extra History series: Why let a little miscommunication get in the way of a good crusade?

[@totalwartimelapses6359]

I've made a severe and continuous lapse in my judgement

[@QualityPen]

Byzantium: Hey western Europe, we’ve got a bit of a Muslim invasion in problem. Since we’ve held the line ourselves for several centuries, would you help us retake our provinces in Anatolia? Western Europe: Instructions unclear, took Jerusalem. Byzantium: No, what are you doing? I said help us retake our provinces! Western Europe: Instructions unclear, took Constantinople.

[@bendackins7211]

They did many crusades, some of which almost didn’t fail

[@feliciaf8]

Well The first one was a succes, the fourth one though was a disaster

[@Alias_Anybody]

The Middle Ages: Let's fight half a century for a small province! The Colonial Age: Let's casually add half a continent to our glorious empire!

[@Wubbeyman]

That’s mainly due to the claim system. Casus belia only let you take up to a duchy at a time from 769 to 1453.

[@garabic8688]

@wubbey man bruh, then the Arabs use 1000 piety to invade you occasionally

[@alphonser272]

@@Wubbeyman tell that to Poland Lithuania after the mongols disintegrated lol

[@aaronmyers2509]

@@Wubbeyman Damnit, now I really wanna see Blue play EU4

[@beezyo3042]

@@aaronmyers2509 or try to keep Byzantium from collapsing into civil war in CK2

[@yoschiii]

“The Byzantine Empire has long maintained a delicate balance of simultaneously doing fantastic and also being constantly in peril” Ah yes, my mental state summed up.

[@Shady22]

Kole Williamson saaaaaaame

[@JaelaOrdo]

Good description of bipolar disorder

[@dennisdomnig3601]

@@JaelaOrdo not at all

[@gododoof]

Eastern Romans are the most relatable Romans.

[@donatodiniccolodibettobardi842]

So, you trying to say it was a good empire, question mark. =)

[@zenebean]

Byzantines weren't just balancing on a knife's edge, they were running along one. And they got further than anyone possibly should have. They were so awesome

[@user-ti8bv6by1m]

As Greek-Rum myself,thank you a lot for your comment ,is the absolute truth about our history, Personaly I am From Constantinople. Thank you again I am proud Greek-Rum from my bottom of my heart! May the God be with you!

[@baroqueariadacapo3294]

@@user-ti8bv6by1m Me too!

[@Cecilia-ky3uw]

@@user-ti8bv6by1m what does a greek rum mean, like I remember the ottoman emperors taking the title kayser i rum(fuck to their definitely not highnesses)

[@SpartanLeonidas1821]

@@Cecilia-ky3uw Rum is what turks callled Greek Speaking Romaioi or "Romans"

[@kargaroc386]

from 753bc all the way to 1453 it was kinda their thing.

[@turbowolf302]

Ahh yes, Basil the First, with his best advisers, Pine Nuts The Third and Olive Oil the First Press.

[@mynameismud8596]

i love this comment more than i should

[@mirinewman]

Olive Oil the Extra Chaste.

[@dominiccenteno1233]

Pesto

[@matthewodonnell6906]

Sounds like the pest-o’ friends...no need to clap

[@nicolebragg1171]

Okay, this makes me giggle.

[@Alkiviadis_]

Basil II was so gentle with the Bulgarians that he was given the title "The Bulgar slayer", whenever he had Bulgarian prisoners, he would devide them into groups of 100, gouge the eyes out of 99 of them, and leave one "lucky guy" with only 1 eye, ya know, to send a message.

[@user-it2hc6bx5t]

That was the case for one instance. He didn't go blinding people for a hobby.

[@Alkiviadis_]

@@user-it2hc6bx5t True, but still, fucking brutal. He got furious at the Bulgarians for killing one of his generals if I remember correctly, idk though, they didn't go in that much depth in middle school.

[@IceQueen975]

@Alkis Daispyros okay you HAVE to not be an American. Cause in the US school system, Bulgaria doesn't exist until WW2.

[@Alkiviadis_]

@@IceQueen975 Yeah I'm Greek.

[@MHChrono]

Basil II is just two leaves in the video. Two tasty sprigs of Basil xD

[@ItsOnlyRocknRoll13]

Fun fact: the Byzantines and Bulgarians had been frenemies basically until the end. They'd been fighting on and off again since the start and in a few cases even fought together.

[@Veellinn]

Good enemies are better than good friends.

[@tylerellis9097]

Tod No only 1 annexed the other though for 170 years hue hue hue. Byzantines and HRE were also often friendimies.

[@Toonrick12]

Well, DUH. Both claimed THEY were the Roman Empire. (Byzantines actually were the ones with proof to back them up)

[@historyrhymes1701]

It was definitely a more of a love-hate relationship rather than only a rivalry. At some point we saw ourselves as the people who could return the christian empire back to its former glory. A common misconception about Bulgaria's greatest and most ambitious ruler(Simeon the Great) is that he wanted to conquer Byzantium. That is not the case he claimed to be the rightful heir to the Byzantine throne. His main goal was to establish a Bulgaro-Byzantine orthodox empire. Infact Simeon almost became a regent to the young byzantine emperor Constantine VII as a deal which the Bulgarian emperor made with Nicholas Mystikos (a byzantine patriarch and an extremely influential political figure). However Constantine s mother Zoe managed to enable this plan from happening. Was this to happen, we probably would have seen the emergence of one of Europe's greatest empires.

[@Vahki100]

Yes, we fought together and against each other. Bulgaria also played an important role in saving Constantinople against the Arabs.

[@Artur_M.]

I'm almost impressed by how you represented Basil II, an Emperor with probably the most *metal* nickname ever - the Bulgar Slayer, as a small, green, aromatic plant. Also, if you love the "golden disasters" so much, I think you might enjoy reading about Poland-Lithuania.

[@The-Samuil]

The entirety of the Byzantine-Bulgarian history is metal. 1) A small addition about Basil. After receiving the news of what Basil had done to the Bulgarian army (blinding them, leaving only 1 per every 100 with one eye, so they could return home) the Bulgarian Tzar suffered a heart attack and died. 2) In the early 800s Khan Krum led an attack on the Byzantine army, which were marching home after having burned the Bulgarian capital of Pliska. He won and captured Emperor Niciphorus. Let's just say that his skull had the perfect properties for drinking cup. 3) The last story is from after the period covered in the video. After the Latin Empire was established, the Bulgarian Tzar Kaloyan managed to seize some support from Byzantine aristocracy in Thrace with the hopes of expanding there and claiming Constantinople. That alliance didn't last long, though and the Byzantines in his lands rebelled. He dealt with that in the most polite of manners and buried them alive,thus gaining the nickname "Roman-slayer"

[@Sol-cx8dw]

Oh, it would have been a great video, even 2-3!

[@gododoof]

I'm just imagining an army taking orders from a potted plant carried around on a royal purple cushion.

[@Artur_M.]

@sisyphus Basil the II was also represented as a plant in the video, only with a double amount of leaves at 6:45. ;)

[@ignacejespers8201]

Still prefer Michael IV 'the drunkard' cuz everything for the booze. I think there was also an emperor nicknamed the 'dongfaced' somewhere around 900

[@darkpurpleinsanity9461]

"You'd think the Greeks would know a little thing or two about Hubris but apparently NOT!" That burn was so hot it melted Icarus' wings off

[@Smoothbluehero]

The struggle and perseverance of the Byzantines always makes me feel sad when Constantinople inevitably falls. I feel like “thats not whats supposed to happen”

[@Bronasaxon]

Oh good I’m not the only one then.

[@jessejamesmoore1443]

I always weep for the Byzantine empire. They kept fighting until the bitter end unlike the western half. It was the last connection we had to the ancient world they bridged the old and new and kept fighting hard for another thousand years it makes great narrative although I wish the Byzantines didn’t fall I’m glad what they gave to the world and they deserve their place in history not just as the successor to the romans but as their own unique empire that we still talk about to this day heck the Middle East is still messed up because of how history went, Greeks are still making claims to this day.

[@a-drewg1716]

@Hammody Ahmed The situation with the Middle East basically starts with the fall of the Byzantines in the region and Muslim conquests. Of-course it managed to eventually stabilize under the Ottomans but again the same issues repeated when the Ottoman Empire collapsed and the issue was made worse when the Europeans got involved. Then when the European colonial Empire collapsed the issue was made even worse again by the US and Soviet messing around in the region until once again when the Soviet Union fell the region got worse as the US ended up getting involved more.

[@freemarketspeople3514]

Western Europe owes so much to the Byzantines. They were the bulwark against Muslim expansionism during the European Dark Ages. The Byzantine brain drain to the Italian city-states seeded the ground for the Renaissance. What did they get for their efforts: marauding Crusaders tearing up the Empire.

[@technics291]

@Hammody Ahmed It was the study of ancient Greek literature that contributed in an extreme way. That was what byzantine scholars brought with them. And it is not something we can argue in a corner of youtube. It is a fact

[@Self-replicating_whatnot]

"Oh boy, here we go again" - Byzantine national motto, probably.

[@tylerellis9097]

“Oh boy, here we go conquering again” said Nikephoros, John Tzimeskes and Basil II.

[@thanosdrv6250]

p.s barbarian pls take my money and leave me alone

[@smoothmasterz]

"Brought to you by Bethesda" That's a deep Oblivion-level cut. Well played.

[@bartvieveen4730]

"Golden disaster empire" Yup. Played CK2 as the Byzantines once. Can confirm.

[@tylerellis9097]

Laughs in 867 and 936

[@NerAlia]

*laughs in revolt*

[@bomblazetheknight3086]

Byzantine Revolt Revolt

[@pyroshrimp4073]

@@tylerellis9097 laughs in 681

[@tylerellis9097]

@@pyroshrimp4073 .....that’s not a start

[@americana_incarnate1717]

"Stylized paintings with enough gold to give a protestant a seizure." As a protestant myself I find this hilarious.

[@swordrist8845]

americana_incarnate well, did you get seizure?

[@americana_incarnate1717]

@@swordrist8845 define seizure.

[@swordrist8845]

americana_incarnate “A sudden attack of illness, especially a stroke or an epileptic fit.”

[@americana_incarnate1717]

@@swordrist8845 oh, is that why I started convulsing on the floor?

[@samrevlej9331]

@@americana_incarnate1717 ... still alive down there?

[@chowyee5049]

"You're excommunicated!" Ok, Sinner

[@JackRackam]

Last time I was this early Istanbul was Constantinople

[@benjaminmclaren8782]

Yes, but now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople

[@JackRackam]

@@benjaminmclaren8782 Are you saying that if I've got a date in Constantinople she'll be waiting in Istanbul?

[@elg6197]

Hey. Its Jack! In an OSP comment section. My two favorite channels together.

[@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933]

Fancy seeing you here, Jack!

[@Tytoalba777]

Last time _I_ was this early old New York was old New Amsterdam. why they changed it, I can’t say

[@dylanchouinard6141]

Funny thing about Iconoclasm, the one odd thing about the Iconoclastic period is that the one thing that survived the most were images of the Virgin and Child. The reason for this was due to a legend that the Virgin Mary commissioned Saint Luke to make the first Virgin and Child image after the death of Jesus. So the Iconoclasts were so paranoid that maybe THIS Virgin and Child was the OG version that they just left them all alone. Also, gotta love some shield boys 🛡

[@abthedragon4921]

"Golden Disaster" That should be on your next T-Shirt. You could make the shirt purple with golden letters, it would be symbolic and awesome.

[@josiahklein70]

And have part of it casually on fire.

[@PocketHexapod]

I hate to be that guy but did you mean "symbolic"

[@abthedragon4921]

@@PocketHexapod Yeah, Symbolic, stupid auto correct

[@hiddenshadow2105]

@@abthedragon4921 I now wonder what word it was initially.

[@abthedragon4921]

@@hiddenshadow2105 I meant to type symbolic but my phone autocorrected to symbiotic somehow.

[@Count.Saruman]

5:25 'Ballistae'. Thank you. I can lie down in peace now.

[@OverlySarcasticProductions]

Miss me with "Ballistas"

[@Count.Saruman]

@@OverlySarcasticProductions That will warrant quite the ballistic reaction.

[@ajohnymous5699]

"I don't just love the Byzantines in spite of their setbacks, I love them *BECAUSE* they are a Golden Disaster Empire, Dammit!" Oof, as someone who loves Russia and Eastern European history from the introduction of the slavs to the cold war, as someone who admires the Soviets during WW2 for similar reasons, I both felt and completely understand that sentiment.

[@qaiser648]

Ajohnymouse Read Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder

[@vetabeta9890]

Hopefully you admire them genuinely and not to be edgy

[@ajohnymous5699]

@@vetabeta9890 ​ God no, I used to play ice hockey and my best friend from when I started was a Russian guy and his family are some of the sweetest people I have ever met. Then after a while I realize, despite the fact I was told as a child to hate Communists and be suspicious of Russians, I knew next to nothing about either Communists or the Russian people. I knew I was Czech and learned we were both slavs, but again I didn't know what that meant. So I set out to learn and found a treasure trove of interesting things unknown to the rest of those around me, and I became so invested that when I invite that same Russian friend to sit with me during a WW2 course during a quiz on the Eastern front, he knew little about it and his grandparents half-jokingly, half seriously yelled at him for not knowing who Georgy Zhukov was and encouraged him to spend more time around me so he could learn his history. Its not edge, its a genuine curiosity and fascination with a region American schools completely ignore until you actively look for it at university. I like the folklore, I like the people, from the Rus in Kiev to now. I get asked about the Soviet era a lot though, and I hate that WW2 is the only thing people really focus on in regards to any attention paid to the area. It would be like having a Korean-American learning about far east Asia in it's entirety but then being asked about Japan all the time. Sure, the Japanese empire and the Soviet Union were big in WW2 but theres much more to Russians than Cossacks, more to Japanese than Samurai, and no one asks about the leader that never lost a battle native to MY people's particular region, Jan Zizka for Czechs and Admiral Yi for Koreans.

[@ajohnymous5699]

@@qaiser648 I had to read parts of it for my WW2 history class since our professor was Polish and it was brutal, but Eastern Europes a brutal place and Stalin, Beria, and the NKVD were an exceptionally brutal bunch. Not condoning it but that was easily the most brutal front of the entire war and with anti-axis AND anti-Soviet partisans being a threat to both sides, Poland and the Red Army fighting in the 1920s, it doesn't surprise me that people either cruel in unique circumstances or pragmatic people prioritizing the war being won and threats in the west being subdued by any means necessary resulted in atrocities.

[@ajohnymous5699]

@@vetabeta9890 The big thing I learned, and this hypothetical Korean American likely learned, is that people don't ask about the smaller nations next to giants and that bothers me a bit since Czechs and Koreans are very interesting in their own right.

[@gentlesirpancakebottoms6692]

Been having a little Byzantine...ahem, Eastern Roman* craze lately. Playing as them in Both Europa Universalis, Medieval 2 Total War. This is just what I needed:)

[@thatlonelygiraffeinc.6989]

They're really good in m2tw

[@sulphuric_glue4468]

@@thatlonelygiraffeinc.6989 They are, but don't be deceived by the elite Varangian Guard, who because of the two-handed animation bug usually do worse in battle than basic spearmen

[@thatlonelygiraffeinc.6989]

@@sulphuric_glue4468 really? I didn't know that at all. Spearmen are pretty op in that game too

[@thatlonelygiraffeinc.6989]

@@sulphuric_glue4468 can you educate me on what said bug is?

[@gooblaster17]

If you haven't already, I heartily recommend playing as them in Crusader Kings 2, as they have a unique, incredibly fun event chain where you can reconquer old Roman territories and proclaim the Roman Empire reborn. Also you can go mad, burn down the Holy See and bring back a reformed Hellenic faith if that's your thing.

[@mesektet5776]

It is amazing how much effectively having napalm and Ironman armor SHOULD make an empire invulnerable yet it just barely kept the Byzantines above water.

[@Sevofthesands]

Superior tech only gets you so far when you make to many large oofs

[@mesektet5776]

@@Sevofthesands As August/Octavius taught us. Being mighty may win the battles, but being bureaucratic wins you empires.

[@Sevofthesands]

@@mesektet5776 remember kids don't be just smart or powerful be powerfully smart.

[@tylerellis9097]

Mese Ktet 1.Greek Fire can’t be used on field Campaigns and the Arabs also used it. 2. Cataphract Armor was so Heavy it made them easy targets for Norman crouched lance charges which is why Cataphract armor often got lighter as time went on after the 1000s.

[@streamofthesky]

The Byzantine Empire was basically under constant attack from all sides for their entire existence. They were effectively a "sponge" that kept all sorts of potential invaders from reaching Western Europe. Having some high tech weapons only goes so far, if anything it's amazing that some napalm, armored cavalry, and a nigh imprenetrable capital city enabled them to survive for a millennium against an endless parade of new rivals.

[@justanothermichigander4683]

Knowing that in some point history there was a military unit actually called the shield boys makes my life

[@pathfindersavant3988]

"Kievan Rus" Blue, you know this now means you're obligated to do a video of Saint Olga of Kiev, right? AKA one of the most metal Eastern Orthodox saints there ever was

[@stormrunner1177]

“Bruh, she said it was okay we didn’t pay our taxes. She just wants birds for some reason.” “Dude, the village is on fire.”

[@jamesdriscoll9405]

@@stormrunner1177 And the guys who killed her husband? Scalded to death. What a sweetie!

[@zarifsafwanhoque4127]

"saint"

[@hiddenshadow2105]

What about Svjatoslav, her son, who said 'Mom, I am going to be rebel pagan punk teenager my whole life" and then did so?

[@pathfindersavant3988]

@@hiddenshadow2105 and then HIS son rebelled against him and became a Christian

[@yetanother9127]

The name "Basil" derives from the Greek word _basileus_ meaning "monarch". This means that the several Byzantine emperors called "Basil" are more-or-less called Emperor Emperor.

[@biliminsrlar5752]

_Golden Disaster Empire_ pretty much sums up the whole Byzantine history,they were bad and great at the same time.

[@bluebthebluebifullest1688]

I really wanna learn about all this, but the long fall just chrushes my heart everytime...

[@Sevofthesands]

As horrid as it was. At least they fell with style doing a few flips on the. Way down

[@greymagic857]

"nooo, that's not how it's supposed to go. you got this-" oh.

[@NPC-kv6ee]

last time i was this early, Carthage hadn't been destroyed yet

[@symmetrymilton4542]

badum tisssss

[@dylanchouinard6141]

*C A R T H A G O D E L E N D A E S T*

[@bannermanigans]

Ceterum censeo Cartaginem esse delandam lmao

[@bees4106]

How... How old are you?

[@The-Samuil]

At 6:24 I believe the ruler of the Kievan Rus is referred to as a Knyaz (Crowned Prince). The title of Tzar had been mainly used by Bulgarian rulers until the Ottomans came, Constantinople did the falling and Muscovy proclaimed itself Third Rome.

[@randomguy4167]

Samuil Terziyski isn’t the title “velikiy Kynaz” or Grand Prince?

[@The-Samuil]

@@randomguy4167 for that I'm unsure (I'm Bulgarian). I think Muscovy did use Great Knyaz, but for the Rus I'm uncertain

[@noraarcadia635]

@@randomguy4167 1.

[@sodinc]

@@randomguy4167 the main guy is Grand, others - not

[@yoghurtmaster1688]

@@randomguy4167 it was but it's not"tsar"

[@mythosandlogos]

THANK YOU for understanding that Icons aren’t interested in realism! My pet peeve is people claiming medieval people were stupid because their images of babies looked like old men. When that was a very intentional design choice (portraying the fullness of Christ even as a baby.)

[@jonotwist]

In church I could never withhold laughter. Baby Jesus always looks like he is having none of your bull. "My child, I am not enthused."

[@Punaparta]

@@jonotwist My mother possesses an image of baby Jesus that, to me, looks utterly and completely smug. Yes. Smug baby Jesus.

[@rileyknapp5318]

"Golden Disaster Empire" is the new name of the Byzantine Empire and nothing you can do will convince me otherwise.

[@darkrose7774]

My history class just literally went over this, so for once, I actually know what you're talking about! Learning even more is a plus! I'm definitely going to ace that test!

[@elizabethsmith1421]

DarkRose 777 good luck! 🍀

[@simonafflerbach3388]

I'm becoming a history teacher and I sincerely hope you'll Smash that test! Good luck!

[@darkrose7774]

@@simonafflerbach3388 I did! Thanks to you guys and Blue

[@thesittingacheroraptor7565]

@@darkrose7774 I know I'm 5 months late but, yay

[@zam5487]

"Like trying to stab your enemies with a limp spaghetti" Blue I'd really appreciate if you left accurate descriptions of my love life out of your videos

[@jacksonwaters2009]

*Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Sassanids, Crusaders, and literally the whole world*: "Why won't you die!" Byzantines: "Nanomachines Son! They harden in response to imperial trauma!"

[@rey-ji1qj]

"-a delicate balance of simultaneously doing fantastic and also being constantly in peril." this just perfectly described my mood swings i- 💀💀

[@clockworkkirlia7475]

I hope that 2020 has been as kind to you as is feasible, in that case. I get the feeling.

[@angelosdaresis1477]

"The Byzantine empire was clearly, despite its multinational dimension, a GREEK empire while its neighbours considered it so, and whose unity was based on the power of authority, in the dominance of Orthodoxy and the use of Greek as the official language." Sylvain Gouguenheim, "La gloire des Grecs", 2017, pp. 73

[@phosphoros60]

Fullmetal Cavalry - Two Brothers, on a mission... to get their Empire back! Will they make it? Find out next century...

[@doranconall9995]

i legitimately face palmed at "fullmetal cavalry"....my face hurts now...

[@gododoof]

SHIELD BOYS SHIELD BOYS SHIELD BOYS

[@user-lf9sv8gw7k]

They protecc They attack But most importantly They push Arabs back

[@jenniferbtoo9344]

I lost it at “shieldy bios”

[@Lunictd]

Ah, yes! The Byzantine Empire! One of the most interesting historical periods of Greek and European history and the one constantly getting the short end of the stick in the school subject of History. Let the cartoon people teach you (or remind you) of all the interesting facts about that time period! Seriously, you and Extra History videos made this part of history fun and interesting for me. Good job on that one! Keep up the good work!

[@IemandIemandus]

Blue: No matter what period in Greek history [ANGRY ROMANOISES]

[@clayxros576]

The people and talent was roman, the region was greek. Really calling them Roman or Greek is inaccurate at this point since after awhile they just turned into Greece 2.0

[@IemandIemandus]

@@clayxros576 I know, but the memes

@@clayxros576 The "people" were Roman citizens but majorly Greek ethnically and culturally as the time passed for the ERE.

[@tylerellis9097]

Desū Gun more like majorly ethically Anatolian and Armenian with Hellenic Roman culture.

@@tylerellis9097 There is truth to that but the heart of the empire was comprised of the Greek mainland and the Anatolian coast which were predominantly Greek.

[@louiscallahan3720]

Blue, can I just comment on your endings? They're so thoughtful and inspirational, especially this one. You really put something into those and they need some recognition dammit

[@talknight2]

Fun fact: Basil means "king". His official title was King King :D

[@caspianhorlick4529]

So does that mean Basil the Second was King 2: Electric Boogaloo?

[@clockworkkirlia7475]

Fun fact: So does Theoden, of Lord of the Rings fame! Most of his ancestors too. Tolkein couldn't innovate *all* the time.

[@artofthepossible7329]

@@clockworkkirlia7475 As far as names go Tolkien had no problem yoinking directly.

[@dylanjwagner]

It’s like the Latins naming a kid “Rex.”

[@achintyanaithani889]

*Emperor* King.

[@matthewneuendorf5763]

Roman empire in 1400: When fifteen hundred years old you reach, look as good you will not.

[@biliminsrlar5752]

_It's the Seljuk Turks!_ *Ah!* said the Byzantine Empire.

[@lizardlegend42]

How did this happen?

[@ellerykingston1077]

So they called a Crusade

[@lizardlegend42]

@@ellerykingston1077 actually they called a couple cruasades, some if which almost weren't failures

[@byzantineempire3618]

*Ah!*

[@LeFaisDoDo]

lol

[@benslinghoff1365]

Pope Innocent the Third: Go take the holy land No one Literally no one Fourth crusaders and Venetians: Constantinople=holy land

[@theyoungottoman3533]

Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes: "Don't worry, with the Pecheneg mercenaries we outnumber the Seljuks almost 5 to 1." Alp Arslan: ""I'm gonna do what's called a pro gamer move."

[@valonyaver600]

Alp Arslan after winning:"ooh someone's salty."

[@weldonwin]

Alo Arslan: I WILL DRINK FROM YOUR SKULL! No seriously, I't going to be hollowed out, decorated with silver and gems, you're going to be the most FABULOUS emperor turned drinking vessel this side of the Mongol Khanate

[@Solon1581]

Sultanate of Rum: It's free real estate.

[@maddmaddox1648]

The two armies were actually about equal before the pecheneg desertion

[@smashing-3291]

@@maddmaddox1648 30.000 to 40.000 doesn't sound equal.

[@user-sc5iv2rp2t]

In Greece, there is a folk song about Digenis Akritas, a mythical thema champion.

[@loadeddice7831]

Can I just say how much I appreciate the on-screen stuff. I used to just listen to these, but watching them, wow there's a lot of info (and memes) on there too. A+ for informativeness and humour

[@Technodreamer]

He's Blue, Byzan-teen Byzan-tine...

[@adiduck3143]

The byzantine mosaics in Ravenna are stunning and I highly recommend them. This was an awesome recap!

[@Neptune0404]

Man, ever since my history teacher showed me the light I've been looking forward to your videos on the Byzantine Empire, and you haven't disappointed yet. I can't wait to hear more about my favorite golden disaster of an empire.

[@manifesttruth7645]

Finally! I've been waiting for this! I thoroughly enjoy this! Please continue making more of these video's on Byzantine/Eastern Roman History

[@absolite6]

I visited a church in Cyprus that had lots of Byzantine-style works. I can confirm that its main chapel does indeed contain enough gold to make a protestant faint (and possibly die of a heart attack). The amount of gold in that one room could feed an entire country. *SO MUCH GOLD!*

[@SaintAliaTheCat]

Came for the history, stayed for the motivational speech. Thank you for always making my day with those great videos!

[@drakebutler4079]

that final thought about never giving up was really meaningful man. thank you

[@LichsuhoathinhDrabattle]

Great video, looking forward to your next videos❣❣

[@joshuahengel6935]

Blue, I am a history major and your history memes are not only accurate but funny. I love it

[@Maribro4]

4:38 One of the reasons I love Blue as a youtuber so much

[@Lucky_Charm22]

I would love to see a video on some of Bulgarias history, since we have so much you have a lot to choose from and I think it would be interesting touch on how we had most of the balkans at some point. I hope you consider it. I love this video and you added more knowledge to things I already knew, thank you.

[@Bruh-ff2tw]

Cataphracts are epic. Nothing makes me giddy like heavily armored mobile units. From cataphracts to tanks.

[@Fiskarsmurfen]

I lost my Job today and have been feeling down the last 2 months. Thank you for the unexpected pep talk Blue. Ave Rhomanion!

[@FishBoneD14]

Fiskarsmurfen sorry you’re having such a difficult time. Hope things turn around soon.

[@lizardlegend42]

8:50 It's a bird It's a plane It's the Seljuk Turks "Ah!"

[@michaelnelson2976]

I am shocked and impressed with that applicable life lesson you ended on Blue, I love it.

[@Swolekamania]

I discovered this channel today. Yes, I have been steadily making my way through your video library over the past several hours.

[@jcorbo7518]

The Cataphracts were perhaps the first 'tanks' Heavy armored, yet mobile. Their offensive and defensive capabilities outclassed just about everyone for a while... until the 1000's

[@tylerellis9097]

J Corbo Then they got stomped by Norman Crouched Lance Charges

[@shogunbowgun1220]

Hope we get a video diving more into the Varangian Guard. Those sons of guns are AWESOME.

[@serrico0869]

My first taste of your channel, very well done. Subscribed! I love this painting 7:08 Wallpaper worthy!

[@bonnieamof7033]

The heck took you so long to make this video!!!! ANYWAY FINALLY!! THANKS!

[@SparrowFae]

"Iiiiit's the Seljuk Turks!" "AH!" said the Byzantine Empire.

[@michaelweiske702]

"We need help!" They need help, so they call their best friend, the pope "Hey can you help us stop the seljuks and maybe take back the holy lands along the way? Come on, I now you want to take back the holy lands" "Yes, I do want to do that actually. Let's do a crusade." _Crusade!_

[@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933]

They do a lot of crusades, some of which didn't fail

[@krankarvolund7771]

@@michaelweiske702 I mean, the first "help" they get from the Pope was thousands of starving fanatized peasants that made more damages in the Roman's lands than in the Turk's lands, the popular crusades it's called, they killed more european jews than they killed muslims XD

[@michaelweiske702]

@@krankarvolund7771 Uh oh! Someone didn't get the joke!

[@Archris17]

@@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933 *Some of which ALMOST weren't complete failures

[@NoName-kf5cu]

The Byzantine Empire was called the Roman Empire at that time "Byzantine Empire" was used by modern historians so after the fall of Constantinople

[@priamneville5899]

Roman Empire was used by the Byzantines, yes, because they were Eastern Rome, just changed a bit over the years. Nobody else really wanted to admit they were Romans though, so they used terms like "kingdom of the Greeks" or "empire of the Greeks" which is a little bit true but mostly false. (I'm no expert tho)

[@filipbatora7523]

@@priamneville5899 Muslims overall didn´t have problem with it and called them Romans. It´s just Catholics who claimed to have the Roman Empire (HRE) in Germany and Italy who didn´t like to admit ERE was Roman Empire. But this all varied depending on how friendly to each other they were so you can have Catholic in one century saying how they are just "kingdom of the Greeks" while in another century, they would have no problem in seeing them as Rome (and apparently, they were on the friendliest terms after fall of Latin Empire when multiple emperors visited western Europe and even tried to mend the schism).

[@tylerellis9097]

Priam Neville They were the Roman Empire not Eastern Roman Empire and many realms called them Roman Empire or more specifically Romania(land of the Romans) even the Crusaders

[@michaels4255]

@@priamneville5899 It was not until the 9th century that Charlemagne's court start calling them "the Greeks" because the Carolingeans wanted to position themselves as the legitimate continuation of the Roman Empire, although only Constantinople was the capital of the uninterrupted Roman imperial state that had a continuous and traceable existence from Augustus in, I believe, 32 BC. Charlemagne (Carl or Charles the Great, Carolus Magnus in Latin, thus the "Carolingean" or lineage-of-Carl/Carol Empire) also ordered filioque inserted in the Nicene Creed and initiated the first schism (called by the West the "Photian" schism, after Ecumenical Patriarch Photios) over this issue, which receded after Charlemagne's death until it was revived in the 11th century by the Roman Pontiff's excommunication of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which was returned in kind. Charlemagne could not be satisfied with being the ruler of just another barbarian kingdom, and the consequences of that have shaped the world we live in today.

[@Punaparta]

@@michaels4255 After a quick fact-check, I noticed two patently false claims in your comment: 1. Although it is true that _filioque_ isn't in the original version of the Nicene Creed, and it is true that Charlemagne was an aggressive promoter of it (to the point of accusing Patriarch Tarasios of heresy over not reciting it), he cannot be the perpetrator of the edit since it predates him by several centuries, although the controversy over it was rejuvenated during his reign. 2. _Filioque_ was not what the Photian schism was about. It was over the deposing of St. Ignatius as the Patriarch of Constantinople by Emperor Michael III and his replacing by Patriarch Photios, which the Pope considered illegitimate. Charlemagne also can't be blamed for that, as he had already been dead for half a century when that happened.

[@Ghost-vi8qm]

Loved this video, cant wait for part 3

[@William-the-Guy]

I enjoy your videos. This is time period I don't know much about.

[@trueneutral8742]

Constantinople: HAHAHA we are the most defended city! We have the thickest walls, the best technology! How could we be beaten? The Ottomans *with cannons*: allow us to introduce ourselves

[@NoName-kf5cu]

With an army of 80k and with massive canons the romans defended the city with 7k men during 2 months

[@oliverschoneck7750]

The cannon didnt do much some dummy opened a gate.

[@KitsuneRogue]

@@oliverschoneck7750 I'm sure the gold they got helped grease the hinges.

[@krankarvolund7771]

@@KitsuneRogue Nope, apparently a stupid defender just forgot to shut the door XD

[@siprus]

At that point Constantinople had basically already fallen, it was only matter of time until the Turks size it. What was much more significant and unbelievable was the sack that happened 2 centuries earlier.

[@philip2009]

damn, the battle of manzikert and the fourth crusade are such disasterous events, but out of all of the things that the byzantines faced, these two were the most easy to avoid

[@spiritotter8963]

Ooo new history video yes please. Love your videos

[@oscarromarioflorezcamargo6342]

Ive been waiting for this!

[@thezeitos469]

Catastrophy happens for Eastern Rome. They recover. "BUT WAIT! There is moooore!" They crash even worse then last time. Repeat.

[@jrwhit1301]

It’s not about the lands won and lost, it’s about the friends we made along the way

[@Tbehartoo]

Well done Blue! This was awesome!

[@servantofthelord8147]

Wow, I've got my Byzantine midterm exam for Harvard's "Byzantine Civilization" class later today, your videos were so helpful - thank you!

[@ramuki9427]

Can't wait for the continuation Byzantine Empire: Electric Boogaloo when everything goes to shit because of a certain fourth crusade...

[@Septemberann101]

I wanna see Blue color the whole world so we can see where everyone is at a time, I think it would be cool to see how countries move into others on a global scale

[@Flybabyfish]

I love this video so soooo much!! Thank you for it!!! :D

[@AtamiskxIx]

Surprisingly motivating for the crappy day im having, Thanks again Red and Blue!

[@theoldcavalier7451]

Who do people think is the most underrated E.roman empire Mine are 1. Constans II (641-668) 2. Anastatius I (491-518)

[@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933]

The minute of Akatosh, 4:33 : "Brought to you by Bethesda"

[@dennismarquez7354]

this series is awesome. how did i not discover this channel existed before?

[@RatcatcherGaming]

I really hope for a part 3.

[@Wild_Card69]

Red should do a Classics Summarized for Ruyard Kipling's stories including The Jungle Book (the book) and Rikki Tikki Tavi

[@rbl4112]

I am a simple woman. I see osp, I click.

[@joaquinmarichal]

You mede me like history, i have always enjoy miths and legends so red´s videos and me fell in love in no time, but blue my man, thank you for making history fun for me.

[@pixelpixel499]

Great! This is what i'm reaserching at the moment for some worldbuilding! Thank youu~