This is a study of how and why the Byzantine Empire lost many of its most valuable provinces to Islamic (Arab) conquerors in the seventh century, provinces which included Syria, Palestine, Mesopotamia, and Armenia. It investigates conditions on the eve of those conquests, mistakes in Byzantine policy toward the Arabs, the course of the military campaigns, and the problem of local official and civilian collaboration with the Muslims. It also seeks to explain how, after terrible losses, the Byzantine government achieved some intellectual rationalisation of its disasters and began the complex process of transforming and adapting its fiscal and military institutions and political controls in order to prevent further disintegration.

This book examines how the Byzantine Empire came to lose so much of its territory to Islamic conquerors in the seventh century.
Reviews
'An important contribution to the debate on the Arab Islamic conquests of the eastern Roman provinces in the seventh century.' John Haldon, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society



Book Information
ISBN 9780521484558
Author Walter E. Kaegi
Format Paperback
Page Count 328
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 530g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 153mm * 23mm