Anthony Kaldellis: Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, Rise & Fall of Empires | Lex Fridman Podcast #498

The Eastern Roman Empire as a Continuation of Rome00:00

The Eastern Roman Empire is the direct continuation of the ancient Roman Empire in the East. All historical sources are clear about this fact. The Western Empire fell in the fifth century, but the eastern half survived and continued to call itself the Roman Empire. Its subjects were Roman citizens who identified as Romans through to the end of the empire.

Western Europeans wanted to think that the Eastern Empire was something different for political reasons. For 1,000 years they called it the Empire of the Greeks, then later switched to calling it the Byzantine Empire. This view is now collapsing as historians recognize the history of the Roman state as a continuous polity lasting from antiquity down to the 15th century.

Timeline of the Full Roman State04:01

The Roman state lasted from its founding in 753 BC to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 AD, spanning over 2,200 years. The sequence of regimes includes:

• The Roman Kingdom (753 BC to around 510 BC), ruled by local kings
• The Roman Republic (509 BC onward), governed by an aristocracy with cooperation from the people, lasting about five centuries
• The Roman Empire beginning with Augustus around 27 BC, following civil wars and the transition from the republic

The imperial monarchy phase lasted for the next millennium and a half. The center of power shifted from Rome to Constantinople over a gradual transition period.

Late Roman Empire Characteristics06:03

The term Late Roman Empire applies to both east and west, starting around the reign of Diocletian (284 to 305 AD) and extending to the early seventh century. The principal characteristics of this period are the tax system and the administration or bureaucracy, which came from Diocletian's and Constantine's reforms.