CONSTANTINOPLE AND THE EASTERN EMPIREAphrodisias and Alexandria), and, like partisans of all periods, they dressed in
a special way:
the part of their tunic which came to their hands was gathered in very
closely round the wrist, while the rest of the sleeve, as far as the shoulder,
billowed out in great width. When they waved their hands about while
they applauded at the theatre and at the Hippodrome, or while they urged
on their favourites in the usual way, this part actually ballooned out, so
that unsophisticated people thought that their physique was so fi ne and
strong that they needed garments like these to cover them. ... Their
cloaks and trousers and most of all their shoes were classed as ‘Hunnic’,
both in name and style.^41
(Procopius, Secret History 7)East and westImportant changes were taking place in the east during this period. They
included a burgeoning of urban life, in strong contrast to the west (Chapter
7), the impact of local cultures, especially in Syria and Mesopotamia, where
the border area with Persia acted as a two-way channel for transmission of
language, ideas and material culture, and the emergence of new identities. A
real shift of emphasis took place within the empire towards the very provinces
where the opposition to Chalcedon was strongest (though not universal), and
where Islam was to make its fi rst impact outside Arabia. But even as the west-
ern empire began to fragment, the east still attempted to maintain its relations
with the west. We have seen that the developing papacy had to be taken into
account in religious affairs, and the idea of an empire of both east and west
was not lost. The conquest of North Africa by the Vandals, who had overrun
it and ruled the former Roman province since 430, was a very serious blow
to the empire. The eastern emperor Theodosius II also intervened to con-
front them, but the Roman army under Boniface and Aspar was defeated in
432 and retreated to Carthage; soon after, Valentinian III recognized Vandal
possessions in Numidia. In 441 an expedition sent from Constantinople was
recalled under pressure of a serious attack by the Huns;^42 peace was made
and by 442 Geiseric had gained the important city of Carthage, as well as the
rich provinces of Proconsularis and Byzacena in modern Tunisia.^43 In 468
the Emperor Leo launched a massive expedition to free North Africa from
the Vandals. But despite its size (over 1,000 ships) and the fact that it rep-
resented a joint effort with the western government, the expedition proved
an ignominious and catastrophic failure through incompetence and disunity
among the command. The possibility of success slipped away, and the general
in charge (the same Basiliscus who later staged a coup against Zeno) barely
escaped the anger of the populace at Constantinople, while the fi nancial con-
sequences were disastrous. The expedition had allegedly cost 130,000 lb of
gold (Procopius, Wars III.6), and it is a measure of the underlying prosperity