Strategos: Born in the Borderlands (46 page)
Author’s Note
First of all, I would like to thank you warmly for reading my book and I hope it was enjoyable for you. The following is intended for those interested in the history, to shed a little light on some of the thinking and choices I made over how to present certain elements of the period in which the story is set.
In researching this book I soon came to the conclusion that Byzantium simply refuses to be defined. I quickly realised that this probably sums up why I find the empire so intriguing, in that you can look at any aspect of its history time and again, and each time come away with new meanings or ideas. This isn’t the easiest basis for writing historical fiction, but I found it fascinating nonetheless, trying to envisage how the devout Christians of the empire would have seen the world they lived in, pursuing the ideals of old Rome without the means or circumstance to uphold them.
In my anachronistic use of the terms ‘Byzantine’ and the ‘Byzantine Empire’ (first coined by modern historians), my aim was to steer the reader away from any preconception or imagery that may have been conjured by the terms that the Greek-speaking inhabitants of the empire would have used to refer to themselves, namely Romans or Romaioi. Although Byzantium was absolutely and seamlessly the heir to the Roman Empire, it also became very, very different and far removed from the position of might and power of the high principate and the classical Caesars.
The Byzantine military underwent numerous reforms in its long history, starting as something akin to the classical Roman legions and ending up as a desperate handful of medieval militia fighting on the walls of Constantinople at the dusk of the empire. Thus, when I write of the armies of the
themata
, I am aware that there are many definitions of exactly how these armies were composed, based on time-period and information source. In putting shape to this shifting world I would like to offer my sincere thanks to Dr Timothy Dawson, whose knowledge of the period is quite simply astounding. In this aspect I have used the bandon as the standard battlefield infantry unit of the time, despite some evidence that suggests that by the 11
th
century AD, the thousand-strong chiliarchy may have been preferred to, or used in conjunction with the bandon following the reforms of Nikephoros Phokas and Nikephoros Ouranos in the 10
th
century AD. I preferred the bandon for the simple reason that the structure seemed more mature and aligned to the historical reference materials detailing the period in which the story is set.
For my use of the shadowy wing of imperial agents known as the
Agentes
, I admit a hearty dose of speculation, though not without foundation: in the classical Roman Empire, the
Frumentarii
served as a secret service for the Caesars, spying, informing, sowing dissent and assassinating on the emperor’s command. They grew to be hated by the populace of the empire and its armies until they were disbanded by Diocletian in the 3
rd
century AD. How substantial this disbandment was is questionable though, as Diocletian almost immediately went on to form the
Agentes in Rebus
, a group thought by some to have been personal messengers for the emperor, and by others to have been a rebranded and far more effectively organised version of the
Frumentarii
. Both theories have their merits, but that their title means ‘
those who are active in matters’ tells me all I need to know
. The
Agentes in Rebus
remained in existence as Rome fell, and served the Byzantine Emperors until they were officially abolished in the 9
th
century AD. However, given that subterfuge had been inherent in Rome and Byzantium for over a millennia, and the word ‘duplicitous’ had become synonymous with the word ‘Byzantine’, I find it hard to believe that an organisation like the
Agentes
of this book were not still in existence in some form.
At this point I would once again like to thank you for reading. If you could spare five minutes to review my book online, it would be greatly appreciated as reviews are extremely valuable to independent authors.
Apion will return, and I hope that you will join me for the next instalment of his story. Until then, please feel free to visit my website where you can find out more about me and my writing.
Yours faithfully,
Gordon Doherty