The Secret History

A scandalous and vengeful cult favorite of the Byzantine Empire.


Procopius held a position of esteem in Justinian’s empire as an advisor to the military commander Belisarius. He even wrote the official histories of Justinian’s military conquests, lauding both the emperor and his commander. But secretly… Procopius hated them both, so he wrote Anecdota, later known as Secret History, in private.


Published a thousand years after it was written, Secret History labels Justinian as a demonic figure and a despot and takes huge shots at him, Belisarius, and both of their wives, Theodora and Antonina. This book was suppressed and hidden for hundreds of years because of its capacity to throw the whole empire into disarray, but it was eventually found in its full form in the Vatican Library and then published in 1623.


Filled with explosive revelations and the smart and sardonic voice of Procopius, Secret History will appeal equally to armchair historians and those just looking for a Byzantine way to throw an insult.