The Alexiad

The Alexiad (1928)
by Anna Komnene, translated by Elizabeth A. S. Dawes

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The Alexiad describes the political and military history of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of her father (1081-1118), making it one of the most important sources of information on the Byzantium of the Middle Ages. As well as this, within the Alexiad, the First Crusade's interaction with the Byzantine Empire is documented (despite being written nearly fifty years after the crusade), which highlights the conflicting perceptions of the East and West in the early 12th century.

Anna Komnene82536The Alexiad1928Elizabeth A. S. Dawes

Contents edit

Introduction by the translator
Preface
Book I - From Alexius' Youth to the Last Months of Botaniates' Reign
Book II - The Revolt of the Comneni
Book III - The Accession of Alexius and Interfamily Power Struggles
Book IV - War with the Normans (1081-2)
Book V - War with the Normans (1082-83) (i-vii) • Alexius' First Battle with Heretics - John Italus (viii-ix)
Book VI - Norman West • Death of Robert Guiscard • The Turks
Book VII - War with the Scyths (1087-90)
Book VIII - War with the Scyths (1091) • Victory at Levunium (29 April 1091) • Plots against the Emperor
Book IX - Turkish War • Dalmatian Interlude (1092-4) • Conspiracy of Nicephorus Diogenes (1094)
Book X - Second Battle with Heresy • The Cuman War • First Crusade (1094-97)
Book XI - The First Crusade (1097-1104)
Book XII - Domestic Conflicts • Second Norman Invasion (1105-7)
Book XIII - The Conpiracy of Aston • The Final Defeat of Bohemond • The Treaty of Devol. (1107-8)
Book XIV - Turks, Franks, Cumans and Manichaeans (1108-15)
Book XV - Victory over the Turks • The Orphanage • Heresy of the Bogomils • Last Illness and Death of Alexius (1116-18)

This work is a translation and has a separate copyright status to the applicable copyright protections of the original content.

Original:

This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.

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Translation:

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was legally published within the United States (or the United Nations Headquarters in New York subject to Section 7 of the United States Headquarters Agreement) between 1929 and 1977 (inclusive) without a copyright notice.

The longest-living author of this work died in 1154, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 869 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.

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