Project Gutenberg 2004-07-16 Public domain in the USA. 411 Procopius Procopius, of Caesarea Procopius, Caesariensis The Secret History of the Court of Justinian Produced by Ted Garvin, Project Manager; Keith M. Eckrich, Post-Processor; the PG Online Distributed Proofreaders Team "The Secret History of the Court of Justinian" by Procopius is a historical account likely written in the 6th century. This work offers a revealing and scandalous look into the reign of Emperor Justinian I and his wife, Theodora, as well as the intrigues of the Byzantine court, encapsulating its political machinations and personal scandals. The author, Procopius, having served under Justinian's general Belisarius, provides a critical perspective on the events and characters of this tumultuous era. The opening of the text sets the stage for a deep dive into the Byzantine court's dark and often sordid dynamics. Procopius introduces himself and outlines his dual role as a historian—one who has previously documented the wars and triumphs of the empire while now intending to expose the hidden corruptions and atrocities committed by its leaders. He sketches the character of key figures like Justinian, portrayed as an inept tyrant, and Theodora, depicted as a cunning manipulator, alongside other notable figures caught in a web of deceit, such as Belisarius and his wife Antonina. The beginning establishes a narrative tone that blends personal accounts with a broader critique of the political state of the empire, hinting at the chaos that ensues from the blend of ambition, desire, and treachery within the imperial household. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 46.2 (College-level). Difficult to read. en Byzantine Empire -- History -- Justinian I, 527-565 Justinian I, Emperor of the East, 483?-565 DF Text Category: History - Ancient Category: History - Royalty 300682 2025-07-05T16:34:10.725426 text/html 300695 300543 2024-11-06T05:17:35.452982 2023-10-06T07:05:46.852209 text/html text/html 182410 2025-07-05T16:34:16.876373 application/epub+zip 184674 2025-07-05T16:34:13.453395 application/epub+zip 180031 2025-07-05T16:34:12.395389 application/epub+zip 399262 2025-07-05T16:34:19.902384 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 363609 2025-07-05T16:34:16.225416 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 333382 2022-09-06T23:10:56.410929 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 282454 2025-07-05T16:34:10.440420 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 262645 2024-10-28T19:57:13 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16972 2025-07-05T16:34:20.021347 application/rdf+xml 17040 2025-07-05T16:34:12.877371 image/jpeg 3745 2025-07-05T16:34:12.635388 image/jpeg 177484 2025-07-05T16:34:10.748408 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia