Uploaded March 2023 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
An introduction to the subject of Byzantine eunuchs. It details how they were made, the offices they held, social and legal status and their decline.
Basil Lekapenos
youtube.com/watch?v=6MsnSDPQtco&list=PLnPSYMHRkzkpJowhd1heAfrr7AGMtAwe3&index=2
John the Orphanotrophos:
youtube.com/watch?v=rE3-HjRhUm4
The Last Eunuchs:
youtu.be/E6E6-UzaCis
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
03:04 How Was a Eunuch Made?
05:30 Recruiting Eunuchs and Legal Status
09:37 Eunuchs in Society
13:52 Power and Responsibilities
16:43 Offices and Careers
18:39 The Decline of Eunuchs
Romaboo Ramblings:
youtube.com/@RomabooRamblings
Serapeum Historia:
youtube.com/@UCOlwrkJ15w8G-U_tXW49slQ
Bibliography:
Primary Sources
Agathias, Agathias: The Histories, Translated by J. D. Frendo (1975).
Basil of Caesarea, Letters, translated by B. Jackson in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. VIII, 1895).
Leo the Deacon, The History of Leo the Deacon, Translated by Denis F. Sullivan, and Alice-Mary Talbot, (2007).
Manuel Philes, Poems, edited by F. S. Lehrs, and F. Duebner, (1862).
Paulus of Aegina, Epitome of Medical Science, translated by F. Adams (1834).
Procopius of Caesarea, History of the Wars, Revised edition by A. Kaldellis, (2014).
Scholarship
Gaul, N. 'Eunuchs in the Late Byzantine Empire c.1250-1400' in Eunuchs in Antiquity and Beyond, edited by S. Tougher, (2002).
James, L. 'Men, Women, Eunuchs: Gender, Sex and Power' in A Social History of Byzantium, edited by J. Haldon, (2009).
Nye, T. E. 'Angels, Snakes, and Everything in Between: The Fall of the Byzantine Eunuch' in Young Historians Conference 3 (2022).
Tougher, S. 'Cherchez L'Homme! Byzantine Men: A Eunuch Perspective' in
The Byzantine World, edited by P. Stephenson, (2010).
Email
easternromanhistory@gmail.com
Discord
discord.gg/wxVmswV
If you would like to support Eastern Roman History, I have a Patreon:
patreon.com/EasternRomanHistory
All images used are for educational purposes, if I have used a piece of art and you would like me to credit you, please contact me and I shall do so.
An introduction to the subject of Byzantine eunuchs. It details how they were made, the offices they held, social and legal status and their decline.
Basil Lekapenos
youtube.com/watch?v=6MsnSDPQtco&list=PLnPSYMHRkzkpJowhd1heAfrr7AGMtAwe3&index=2
John the Orphanotrophos:
youtube.com/watch?v=rE3-HjRhUm4
The Last Eunuchs:
youtu.be/E6E6-UzaCis
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
03:04 How Was a Eunuch Made?
05:30 Recruiting Eunuchs and Legal Status
09:37 Eunuchs in Society
13:52 Power and Responsibilities
16:43 Offices and Careers
18:39 The Decline of Eunuchs
Romaboo Ramblings:
youtube.com/@RomabooRamblings
Serapeum Historia:
youtube.com/@UCOlwrkJ15w8G-U_tXW49slQ
Bibliography:
Primary Sources
Agathias, Agathias: The Histories, Translated by J. D. Frendo (1975).
Basil of Caesarea, Letters, translated by B. Jackson in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. VIII, 1895).
Leo the Deacon, The History of Leo the Deacon, Translated by Denis F. Sullivan, and Alice-Mary Talbot, (2007).
Manuel Philes, Poems, edited by F. S. Lehrs, and F. Duebner, (1862).
Paulus of Aegina, Epitome of Medical Science, translated by F. Adams (1834).
Procopius of Caesarea, History of the Wars, Revised edition by A. Kaldellis, (2014).
Scholarship
Gaul, N. 'Eunuchs in the Late Byzantine Empire c.1250-1400' in Eunuchs in Antiquity and Beyond, edited by S. Tougher, (2002).
James, L. 'Men, Women, Eunuchs: Gender, Sex and Power' in A Social History of Byzantium, edited by J. Haldon, (2009).
Nye, T. E. 'Angels, Snakes, and Everything in Between: The Fall of the Byzantine Eunuch' in Young Historians Conference 3 (2022).
Tougher, S. 'Cherchez L'Homme! Byzantine Men: A Eunuch Perspective' in
The Byzantine World, edited by P. Stephenson, (2010).
easternromanhistory@gmail.com
Discord
discord.gg/wxVmswV
If you would like to support Eastern Roman History, I have a Patreon:
patreon.com/EasternRomanHistory
All images used are for educational purposes, if I have used a piece of art and you would like me to credit you, please contact me and I shall do so.
