Procopius

Excerpt from Secret History Published in Secret History, 1927

"To me, and many others of us, these two seemed not to be human beings, but veritable demons, and what the poets call vampires: who laid their heads together to see how they could most easily and quickly destroy the race and deeds of men."

The writings of the Greek historian Procopius (proh-KOH-pee-us; died c. 565), including History in Eight Books and On Buildings, have certainly inspired much admiration from scholars of the medieval world. Yet these works, respectable as they are, are not nearly as entertaining—nor do they receive as much attention today—as a gossipy, scandalous book called Secret History, which Procopius never intended to publish. Chock-full of tall tales, and so slanted with the writer's own opinions that it barely qualifies as a serious historical work, Secret History is nonetheless more intriguing than the hottest soap opera on television.

In Procopius's time, the Byzantine (BIZ-un-teen) Empire, which grew out of the Eastern Roman Empire in Greece, was ruled by the emperor Justinian (483-565; ruled 527-565). Justinian, often considered the greatest Byzantine emperor, set out to reconquer lands that had once belonged to the Western Roman Empire, and in this undertaking he relied on his brilliant general Belisarius (c. 505-565). Procopius, who served as Belisarius's advisor, wrote an account of these wars in his History in Eight Books, which presented Justinian and

Procopius

One of the most noted historians of the Byzantine Empire, Procopius came from the region of Caesarea (se-suh-REE-uh) in what is now Israel. He spent his early career as advisor to one of the empire's greatest generals, Belisarius (bel-i-SAHR-ee-us; c. 505-565), serving alongside him in a series of military expeditions from 527 to 531, and again from 536 to 540. During this time, the Byzantines waged war with the Persians in what is now Iran; with the Goths in Italy; and with the Vandals—who, like the Goths, were a barbarian tribe that had helped bring down the Western Roman Empire—in North Africa.

Out of this experience came History in Eight Books, a highly acclaimed book. In it, he lavished praise on Justinian (ruled 527-65), the emperor who had ordered

Belisarius's conquests. He also wrote On Buildings, a six-volume work concerning buildings erected under the reign of Justinian—and again, the book was full of nothing but kind words for the man whom historians consider the greatest of Byzantine emperors.

Privately, however, Procopius held deep grudges against Justinian, Justinian's wife Theodora (c. 500-548), and others in the imperial court. These grudges found expression in Secret History, which, as its name implies, was something Procopius wrote without the intention of ever publishing it. Indeed, it was not published until centuries after his death; if it had appeared in Procopius's own lifetime, Justinian would certainly have had Procopius imprisoned or even executed for writing it.

Belisarius as great leaders. Their portrayal in Secret History, however, was quite different.

Secret History depicts Belisarius as a fool whose wife cheated on him constantly; as for Justinian, Procopius made him out to be a sort of gangster who helped himself to other people's wealth and killed anyone who got in his way. Even worse was Procopius's depiction of Justinian's wife, Theodora (c. 500-548), who he portrayed as a lustful, scheming woman. Chapter titles from Secret History say it all: "How Justinian Killed a Trillion People"; "How Justinian Created a New Law Permitting Him to Marry a Courtesan" (or prostitute—referring to Theodora); and the title of the chapter from which the following excerpt is drawn, "Proving That Justinian and Theodora Were Actually Fiends [demons] in Human Form."