MEDIEVAL
Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint by Peter Sarris Basic Books, 544 pages, £30
Some readers will be familiar with Justinian – or at least with the unforgettable caricatures sketched by the sixth-century historian Procopius of the eastern Roman emperor, his wife and his astonishing victories. With this new book, though, Peter Sarris triumphantly delivers a highly intelligent and up-to-date account of a tumultuous reign. He covers Justinian’s rise from nowhere, his scandalous marriage, his conquests in north Africa, Italy and Spain. And he explores the periodic political resistance that punctuated Justinian’s reign – one outbreak in Constantinople killed 20,000 and burned out the city centre – and his occasionally disastrous wars against Persia.