Basil II and the Testimony of John Skylitzes: Contexts

Abstract This chapter examines John Skylitzes' Synopsis Historion within the context of the late 11th-century period when the text was composed. It draws attention to the extent to which Skylitzes' preoccupations with the Byzantine aristocracy and martial culture have parallels in other Byzantine literature of the later 11th centuries. Such also were the interests of the principal audience for whom Skylitzes wrote. However, the chapter goes beyond seeing Skylitzes' preoccupations as a mere reflection of contemporary social and cultural contexts. Instead, it argues that Skylitzes' narrative belongs to an important political context: the restoration of imperial authority during the reign of Emperor Alexios Komnenos. The chapter ends with a discussion of how these late 11th-century compositional contexts distorted any understanding of the political and social structures of the earlier periods of Byzantine history about which Skylitzes writes, including the reign of Basil II.