ABSTRACT
Chronologically, Byzantium is the most of the several investigations into the diplomacies of place, but it is a useful place to start because this system incorporated many previous practices, and passed down many more to succeeding ‘European’ empires. Utilizing both trade and culture as the ‘coin of the realm,’ the Byzantine Empire existed for one thousand years, approximately 330 CE to 1453 CE, as both a trading giant and cultural expansionist. Byzantine diplomacy helped maintain this power by controlling the political development of those under its rule, contributing to active exchanges through commerce and trade and supporting the spread of religion and education across this huge space. The Byzantine Empire is an example of Bozeman’s somewhat more blunt argument that “the international history of diplomacy is indivisible”, as both trade and culture enabled them to expand and solidify its position of power.
