The Byzantine Empire Paper 2 (1600 words)

Due March 18 by 10:45 am

One of the most fascinating outsider views we have of the Byzantine Empire comes from Bishop Liudprand of Cremona. Liupdrand was sent by the western Emperor Otto, who had been trying to bring about a marriage alliance with the Byzantine Empire. At one point Otto’s niece had been engaged to Romanos the son of Constantine VII, but Romanos rejected the girl. Otto again tried with Nicephoros II, but misunderstandings thwarted this in 967. Otto in turn seized Apulia in southern Italy, but failed to take the important Byzantine city of Bari. In early summer 968 he dispatched Liudprand, an experienced diplomat who had earlier been in Constantinople as an emissary, to again try negotiation. Otto was looking for a marriage between his son and a Byzantine princess. The embassy met with failure - Nicephoros demanded huge territorial concessions for such a privilege which, as Nicephoros certainly knew, Liudprand could not grant.

On his return to Italy Liudprand wrote a detailed account of his trip to Constantinople, with particular emphasis on court ritual and the treatment he received at the hands of the emperor. Read this first, along with the excerpt from the Book of Ceremonies and Liudprand’s earlier description of the court in Constantinople that we read for class. Your assignment is to write a memo as if you were Nicephoros, detailing to your subordinates the exact treatment that Liudprand is or is not to receive, and why. Some points you might wish to consider:

• Lodging and food • Court protocols • Events to invite Liudprand to • Meetings with Liudprand - who, what, where, and when • Travel privileges and customs protocols • Ways in which Liudprand’s treatment differs from the procedures described in the

Book of Ceremonies and his previous experiences • Relations of the Eastern and Western Churches • Relations of the Eastern and Western Empires

For this paper, as you describe what Liudprand is or is not to experience, cite the specific passages in his works or in the Book of Ceremonies that describe them. Cite parenthetically by chapter number, ie (Embassy 10) or page number (Ceremonies 569). It is not enough to just describe the treatment Liudprand does or does not receive - what are the Byzantines trying to convey about the nature of their power, their relationship with the west, and how are they trying to convey this? What are they revealing about their skills as diplomats?

Use Times New Roman or a similar font, 1” margins all around, double-spaced with no extra space between paragraphs. Include a page number at the bottom of each page and your name on the top of the first page. Liudprand uses a number of Greek terms, which you may transliterate into English according to either the Latin or Greek methods found here: http://comp.uark.edu/~cmuntz/teaching/transliteration/transliteration.html

Papers are due on March 18 by the start of class. Send your paper as an attachment (in Word, RTF, or PDF formats) to cmuntz@uark.edu. Late papers will not be accepted except in cases of documented emergencies.