Emperor Constans II and the Battle of the Masts (654 / 655) - A Critical Analysis and the Broader Historical Context
Podcast
About this episode
Almost an entire millennia before the famous "Battle of Lepanto" (1571) was fought against the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League, another decisive naval engagement took place on the high seas of the Mediterranean —the fateful "Battle of the Masts" (aka: the Battle of Phoenix) in the year of 654 / 655 AD.
This major conflict between the forces of the (Medieval) Roman Empire led by then Emperor Constans II and the Rashidun Caliphate led by then Caliph Muawiyah I would inaugurate centuries of prolonged struggle for geopolitical hegemony of the Mediterranean Sea (which had itself prior up until that point been a Roman Lake for centuries) between the great powers who respectively championed the Christian & Islamic religion, at least ostensibly.
Despite the former being only possible due to the latter taking place prior —the Battle of the Masts is in contrast to the Battle of Lepanto far less documented in regards to the available professional scholarship and even casual creators of digital material such as myself who tend to frame it (if at all) only within the narrow context of the event itself and not the broader historic factors which the causes and outcomes of battle are even themselves relatively few and far between.
This particular segment aims to at least begin rectifying a situation which tends to minimize the topic into being little more than a footnote in the wider struggle of "Christianity vs. Islam" or "The Occident vs. The Orient" (aka: "The West" vs. "The East"). It is far more impactful and interesting than the simplified polemics that often are (unfortunately) contrived from modern sentiments that prioritize self-interest over the actual truth of such matters
Join Tom as he provides an overview of the conflict, dives deeper into the transformative era of the 7th century with a particular focus on the political circumstances which the Eastern Roman / Byzantine Empire was facing (along with some side notes on its geographic neighbors such as the Arabs and the Persians), and also contextualizes the evolving nature + composition of the Roman military system with an emphasis on naval warfare as the Roman Navy of antiquity concluded its transition into the Byzantine form it took in the Middle Ages.
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Important Programming Notes: Description will be further improved after I finish work this week with additional links and notes. An update segment is also forthcoming clarifying the future of #GetNuanced and also a vague schedule / sneak-peak of what is yet to come. Appreciate your patience!
*1: John Kourkouas, not John Axouch.
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RECOMMENDED RESOURCES:
Video Edition of this Podcast Segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRV6M2ccnEI
Written Version of this Podcast Subject: *Coming Soon!*
Primary Source for this Historical Period (Theophanes the Confessor): *Coming Soon!*
WATCH + LEARN More:
• #AugustusCaesar, the #RomanEmpire, and Our #ModernWorld: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiVQ-msKhao
• #Anthemius, Praetorian Prefect of the East: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_jShHkEdQ4
• Understanding the #FallOfConstantinople: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8HsJ3C6iDk
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TAGS: #ConstansII #NewRome #BattleOfPhoenix #MilitaryHistory #NavalWarfare #Byzantium #Geopolitics
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STAY SAFE & PEACE OUT,
-@TJC
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