Beginning in 395 with the division of the Roman empire into two parts, east and west, Cameron offers an overview of the Roman and Byzantine empires in the fifth, sixth and seventh centuries. She challenges the traditional view of the 'decline and fall' of the Roman empire, and shows how the migration and settling of Germanic tribes in the west effected a slow but steady transformation of Roman political rule and culture; while in the Byzantine empire, which included Syria, Palestine and Egypt ruled by Constantinople, imperial institutional and administrative structures and urban culture continue until the Islamic conquests. She discusses the Roman army, the growing role and power of the church, the Roman economy, urban change, and culture and mentality. Of particular interest is the general increase in religious sensibility; the conflicts between the official Chalcedonian Christian doctrine, and Monophysite and Nestorian doctrines which were prevalent in the Syria, Palestine and Egypt; Christian relations with Jews and pagans; and the rise of asceticism and monasticism. Chapter 8, "The eastern Mediterranean - settlement and change," discusses the increased population, flourishing agriculture, urban culture and general prosperity of the east, the interplay of Greek and Semitic languages and cultures, as well as the growing dependence on Arab client kings for defense, and the Sassanian and Islamic conquests and reasons for their success.

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