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Empire of God: How the Byzantines Saved Civilization Hardcover – November 21, 2023


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Without the Byzantine Empire, there never would have been Western civilization.

Western civilization is generally regarded as the child of Athens, Jerusalem, and Rome. That is, in the West, our philosophical and political thought is derived from that of the ancient Greeks; our Christian religion comes from the Jewish religion, and both of these came to us via the Roman Empire and the civilization and culture it created.

Western society has other forefathers as well: we would be unwise to give the Byzantine Empire short shrift. The ways in which it has influenced our world for the good, and indeed, created the parameters of our society at its healthiest and strongest, are insufficiently appreciated today. In its confusion, uncertainty, and lack of direction, the West has lost its way. There is a great deal it can, and should, learn from Byzantium.

If the United States were to last as long as the Roman Empire, including its Byzantine period, it would have to continue as an independent country, with political and cultural continuity, until the year 2899. To maintain a unified nation state for over eleven hundred years is a remarkable achievement by any standard, and the Romans accomplished it while facing existential threats and efforts to extinguish their polity during virtually every period of their existence. Now, nearly six hundred years after the demise of the empire, its influence still resonates in a number of fields, albeit almost entirely unnoticed and unappreciated.

There is no arguing with success. It’s time we took notice.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Spencer is director of Jihad Watch and a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He is the author of twenty-eight books, including bestsellers The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades), The Truth About Muhammad, The History of Jihad, and The Critical Qur’an. Spencer has led seminars on Islam and jihad for the FBI, the United States Central Command, United States Army Command and General Staff College, the US Army Asymmetric Warfare Group, the Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council, and the US intelligence community. He has discussed jihad, Islam, and terrorism at a workshop sponsored by the US State Department and the German Foreign Ministry. He is a senior fellow with the Center for Security Policy and is a regular columnist for PJ Media and FrontPage Magazine. His works have been translated into numerous languages.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bombardier Books (November 21, 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1637587422
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1637587423
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.42 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.4 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:

About the author

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Robert Spencer
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ROBERT SPENCER is the director of Jihad Watch and a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He is the author of twenty-eight books, including the New York Times bestsellers "The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades)" (Regnery Publishing) and "The Truth About Muhammad" (Regnery Publishing) and the bestsellers "The History of Jihad From Muhammad to ISIS" (Bombardier Books) and "The Critical Qur’an: Explained from Key Islamic Commentaries and Contemporary Historical Research" (Bombardier Books). His forthcoming book is "Muhammad: A Critical Biography" (Bombardier Books).

Spencer has led seminars on Islam and jihad for the FBI, the United States Central Command, United States Army Command and General Staff College, the U.S. Army’s Asymmetric Warfare Group, the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), the Justice Department’s Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council and the U.S. intelligence community. He has discussed jihad, Islam, and terrorism at a workshop sponsored by the U.S. State Department and the German Foreign Ministry. He is a senior fellow with the Center for Security Policy.

Spencer is a regular columnist for PJ Media and FrontPage Magazine, and has written many hundreds of articles about jihad and Islamic terrorism. His articles on Islam and other topics have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Examiner, the New York Post, the Washington Times, the Dallas Morning News, Fox News Opinion, National Review, The Federalist, Human Events, American Greatness, The Hill, the Detroit New, Real Clear Religion, the Daily Caller, the New Criterion, the Journal of International Security Affairs, the UK’s Guardian, Canada’s National Post, Middle East Quarterly, WorldNet Daily, First Things, Insight in the News, World Israel News, Aleteia, and many other journals. He has also served as a contributing writer to the Investigative Project on Terrorism and as an Adjunct Fellow with the Free Congress Foundation.

Spencer has appeared on the BBC, ABC News, CNN, OANN, Newsmax, Steve Bannon’s War Room, FoxNews’s Tucker Carlson Show, the Sean Hannity Show, the Ingraham Angle, the O’Reilly Factor, Megyn Kelly’s The Kelly File, Geraldo Rivera Reports, the Glenn Beck Show, Fox and Friends, America’s News HQ and many other Fox programs, PBS, MSNBC, CNBC, C-Span, CTV News, Bill O’Reilly’s No Spin News, France24, Voice of Russia and Croatia National Television (HTV), as well as on numerous radio programs including The Sean Hannity Show, Bill O’Reilly’s Radio Factor, The Mark Levin Show, The Laura Ingraham Show, The Herman Cain Show, The Joe Piscopo Show, The Howie Carr Show, The Curt Schilling Show, Bill Bennett’s Morning in America, Michael Savage’s Savage Nation, The Alan Colmes Show, The G. Gordon Liddy Show, The Neal Boortz Show, The Michael Medved Show, The Michael Reagan Show, The Larry Elder Show, The Peter Boyles Show, Vatican Radio, and many others.

Robert Spencer has been a featured speaker at the University of California-Irvine, Temple University, Dartmouth College, Penn State University, the University of California-Los Angeles, Stanford University, New York University, Brown University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Virginia, State University of New York-Binghamton, State University of New York-Stony Brook, Florida State University, DePaul University, the College of William and Mary, Washington University of St. Louis, the University of Wisconsin at Madison, the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, Boise State University, Cal Poly, Portland State University, and many other colleges and universities. He has also addressed the Heritage Foundation, Westminster Institute, the Gatestone Institute, the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Museum of Tolerance in New York City, the Hudson Institute, the Temple of the Arts in Los Angeles, the San Diego Jewish Book Fair, the Christian Rights and Freedom Institute, the Young Presidents’ Organization, Calvary Chapel Pacific Coast, the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), FreedomFest, Young America’s Foundation, Hershey’s Sweet Retreat, the John W. Pope Civitas Institute, the Conservative Forum of Silicon Valley, Train the Trainer, and many other audiences.

A complete listing of Robert Spencer’s books:

1. Islam Unveiled: Disturbing Questions About the World’s Fastest Growing Faith (Encounter Books, 2002)

2. Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West (Regnery Publishing, 2003)

3. Inside Islam (with Daniel Ali) (Ascension Press, 2003)

4. The Myth of Islamic Tolerance: How Islamic Law Treats Non-Muslims (Prometheus Books, 2004)

5. The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades) (Regnery Publishing, 2005)

6. The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerant Religion (Regnery Publishing, 2006)

7. Religion of Peace? Why Christianity Is and Islam Isn’t (Regnery Publishing, 2007)

8. Stealth Jihad: How Radical Islam is Subverting America without Guns or Bombs (Regnery Publishing, 2008)

9. The Complete Infidel’s Guide to the Koran (Regnery Publishing, 2009)

10. The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration’s War On America (with Pamela Geller) (Threshold Editions/Simon & Schuster, 2010)

11. Did Muhammad Exist? An Inquiry Into Islam’s Obscure Origins (ISI Books, 2011)

12. Not Peace But A Sword: The Great Chasm Between Christianity and Islam (CA Press, 2013)

13. Arab Winter Comes to America: The Truth About the War We’re In (Regnery Publishing, 2014)

14. The Complete Infidel’s Guide to ISIS (Regnery Publishing, 2015)

15. The Complete Infidel’s Guide to Iran (Regnery Publishing, 2016)

16. The Complete Infidel’s Guide to Free Speech (and Its Enemies) (Regnery Publishing, 2017)

17. Confessions of an Islamophobe (Bombardier Books, 2017)

18. The History of Jihad From Muhammad to ISIS (Bombardier Books, 2018)

19. The Palestinian Delusion: The Catastrophic History of the Middle East Peace Process (Bombardier Books, 2019)

20. Rating America’s Presidents: An America-First Look at Who Is Best, Who Is Overrated, and Who Was An Absolute Disaster (Bombardier Books, 2020)

21. Mass Migration in Europe: A Model for the U.S.? (Center for Security Policy Press, 2020)

22. Islamophobia and the Threat to Free Speech (Center for Security Policy Press, 2021)

–. Did Muhammad Exist? An Inquiry Into Islam’s Obscure Origins — Revised and Expanded Edition (Bombardier Books, 2021)

23. The Critical Qur’an: Explained from Key Islamic Commentaries and Contemporary Historical Research (Bombardier Books, 2022)

24. The Church and the Pope (Uncut Mountain Press, 2022)

25. Who Lost Afghanistan? (Center for Security Policy Press, 2022)

26. The Sumter Gambit: How the Left Is Trying to Foment a Civil War (Bombardier Books, 2023)

27. Empire of God: How the Byzantines Saved Civilization (Bombardier Books, 2023)

28. Muhammad: A Critical Biography (Bombardier Books, 2024)

Spencer’s books have been translated into many languages, including Spanish, Italian, German, Finnish, Korean, Polish, Portuguese and Bahasa Indonesia.

Spencer (MA, Religious Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) has been studying Islamic theology, law, and history in depth since 1980.

What They’re Saying About Robert Spencer

“My comrade-in-arms, my pal, my buddy.” — Oriana Fallaci

“A hero of our times and one of the bravest defenders of liberty that I have ever met.” — Geert Wilders

“No one has upset the Islamophobia cabal more than Robert Spencer. First, he knows more about Islamic doctrine than they do. Next, he has outed all the tricks they use in their taqiyyah bag to disinform the public. Finally, and most importantly, Robert will not be cowed.” — Ayaan Hirsi Ali

“One of the top two or three experts in the world on this great war…against fundamental Islam. One of the top two or three experts in this nation about trying to suppress speech. People should know that Robert Spencer has been the tip of the spear in warning America, in fighting against radical Islamic jihad, not just here in this country – where you’ve done an amazing job – but throughout the world. Robert, you’re one of the true patriots in this country, and you’ve risked so much, including your life, your fortune, and your sacred honor, and your pursuit of happiness. You’re a great patriot to this country.” — Stephen K. Bannon, former Trump Administration Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor

“One of the most important writers living today…his books should be required reading.” — Dennis Prager

“A brave crusader against the dopier multiculti illusions.” — Mark Steyn

“I highly recommend that you listen to this guy.” — Glenn Beck

“A very savvy and knowledgeable critic.” – Dinesh D’Souza

“One of the most acclaimed counter-jihad scholars.” — Asian Tribune

“J’apprécie beaucoup ce que vous écrivez sur l’Islam.” — Fr. Samir Khalil Samir, S.J., internationally renowned Islamic scholar

“Robert Spencer incarnates intellectual courage when, all over the world, governments, intellectuals, churches, universities and media crawl under a hegemonic Universal Caliphate’s New Order. His achievement in the battle for the survival of free speech and dignity of man will remain as a fundamental monument to the love of, and the self-sacrifice for, liberty.” — Bat Ye’or

“A leader in this war for over a decade, documenting not just what is happening but explaining why.” — PJ Media

“A leading figure of the conservative movement in the US.” — Limerick Leader (Ireland)

“Distinguished scholar.” — Akbar Ahmed, Ibn-e-Khaldoon chair of Islamic Studies, American University, Washington, D.C.

“One of the most insightful and learned scholars of Islam.” — Catholic Insight

“Robert Spencer is indefatigable. He is keeping up the good fight long after many have already given up. I do not know what we would do without him. I appreciate all the intelligence and courage it takes to keep going despite the appeasement of the West.” — Ibn Warraq

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
44 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2024
We in the Western World have usually been taught that the ancient Roman Empire fell in 476 AD. Not so -- the headquarters of that Empire were moved to Constantinople in 324 AD and the government and people there considered themselves the true heirs of old Roman culture and traditions, even though the imperial court eventually ceased using Latin. The "Eastern Romans" were critical to the defense of early medieval Europe and had they not stood off the Muslim hordes for 5-8 centuries, Western culture never would have developed -- no Beethoven, no Renaissance, no John Locke, no scientific revolution, no Industrial Revolution -- none of it. The Eastern Romans also gave to the Slavs the Orthodox version of Christianity and the Cyrillic alphabet, and, after a late Emperor's daughter married an early Russian ruler, the Russian Monarchy assumed the title of "Roman Emperor" after Constantinople's fall to the Turks in 1453, as the Romanov Dynasty. The story is told well, although there are clumsy distractions such as references to modern circumstances in the Western World and a few proofreading blips. Well worth the money.
4 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2024
Spencer takes us on a grand tour of Byzantium spanning over a thousand years, sparing no criticism of inept or corrupt emperors but always demonstrating that the Romans preserved gains in education, the arts, and civil rights until the supremicist Muslims blasted their way into Constantinople in 1453. Even then, he says, the gains live on in the legacy that contributed to the development of Europe and the USA.
One person found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2023
This book didn't exactly explain "how the Byzantines saved civilization" - it was more of a breezy history of the 11 centuries that this civilization endured in about 400 pages than anything else. There are other books that have done the same thing such as those by Lars Brownworth and John Julius Norwich.

The material the author covered was pleasantly superficial but was occasionally interspersed with comments re: how the Byzantine Empire's situations are similar to certain modern ones. I certainly recognize those similarities, but having a history of the Byzantine Empire be interrupted by reminders of modern day foolishness defeats the purpose of avoiding thinking about modern things I can't fix.

Then there was the mistake of stating that Basil Lekapenos was the son of Romanos II, when he was actually the illegitimate son of Romanos I Lekapenos, so was Romanos II's half-uncle. Maybe a minor point, but one that Byzantinists will note.

I also take issue with his depiction of Romanos IV Diogenes. The author seems have swallowed Michael Psellos's acid description of Romanos III's reign and his battles against the Turks hook, line and sinker. There is no mention of the battlefield betrayals of Andronikos Ducas and another general of the Ducas affinity that led to the Manzikert defeat, nor does he seem to realize that Psellos's patron when he was writing his history was Caesar John Ducas, the father of Andronikos and the architect of said betrayal and defeat. Romanos Diogenes really deserves better!

Things I liked about the book included the translations of documents that haven't often made it into histories - letters by Julian the Apostate, a few patriarchs, and others. Julian's reign, as short and forgettable as it was, doesn't often get much info on why he was not mourned. I also appreciated the author's recognition of the very long-term impact of the tax benefits Alexios I Comnenus granted to the Venetians. Another history I read recently dismissed the impact of those "small" benefits without realizing how large they can accrue over a hundred years, which was to the detriment of the Byzantine people. Understanding how money issues are important throughout history is a plus!

As someone who loves Byzantine history, I always appreciate anyone bringing it into the limelight. This book is mostly ok, but to really grasp Byzantine greatness you have to dig deeper into individual eras rather than try to cover everything in 400 pages.
20 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2023
The way Robert relates the Byzantine mistakes of the past to the ill conceived policies of the present
is insightful.
5 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2024
I just purchased the kindle version, it does not contain any of the illustrations, this is very annoying, at least there should be a link to see them online. Too soon for me to post an accurate rating, so I’ll just put a 3 in.

Top reviews from other countries

AlexK77
4.0 out of 5 stars Decent Read for Byzantium Beginners
Reviewed in Canada on April 1, 2024
If you want a broad overview of the Byzantine Empire this book is for you. Not a bad read, but because of the complexity of the subject and the many people invoking its history, it is easy to get confused as to who is who. None the less, the author does a decent job giving the important details in a nicely written narrative.
One person found this helpful
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Kenneth Hosier
2.0 out of 5 stars Defective book! [copy]
Reviewed in Canada on December 27, 2023
This is a very good book, although not inexpensive. Unfortunately, my copy arrived DAMAGED! A number of leafs were not cut fully at the top.
One person found this helpful
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