Product Description

Drawing on over a quarter of a century of the author's research and experience, this book, illustrated with ninety-two photographs and eight maps, is the standard work on the man and his life for scholars, students, and all those interested in Roman imperial, early Christian, and Byzantine imperial history.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #526338 in Books
• Published on: 2005-12-22
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 424 pages

From the Back Cover
Under Constantine, Christianity was transformed from a persecuted cult into an established religion, and pagan Rome became the Christian empire of Byzantine times. This biography is a detailed, comprehensive, and compelling portrayal of the life and times of arguably the greatest Roman emperors.
In a seamless combination of vivid narrative and historical analysis, the crisis of the Roman Empire and the Great Persecution, Constantine's political manoeuvres and military campaigns, his conversion to and patronage of Christianity, and his church buildings programs in Rome, Jerusalem, and Constantinople are brought to life and made understandable for modern readers.
The author's comprehensive knowledge of the literary sources, and his extensive research into the material remains of Constantine's reign, mean that this volume provides a more rounded and accurate portrait of the emperor than ever before. Extensively illustrated and fully documented, Constantine and the Christian Empire is a landmark publication in Roman imperial, early Christian and Byzantine imperial history.

About the Author

Charles Matson Odahl is Professor of Ancient and Medieval History, and Classical and Patristic Latin at Boise State University. His main research interests are Cicero and the late Republic, early Christianity, and Constantine and Late Antiquity. Previous publications include fifteen articles on Constantine and a textbook on Early Christian Latin Literature (1993). He has travelled extensively in Europe and the Mediterranean basin examining extant texts, coins, monuments and historical sites of the Constantinian era.