Choniates, Niketas

   One of the great historians of medieval Byzantium (q.v.), along with Psellos and Anna Komnene (qq.v.); he was the younger brother of Michael Choniates (q.v.). His History deals with the period from 1118-1206, when hostility between Byzantium and the West reached the breaking point. His work, which is particularly important for the reign of Manuel I Komnenos (q.v.) and his immediate successors, relies on eyewitnesses, including his own personal experience as a high official during the reign of Isaac II Angelos (q.v.). His treatment of the reign of John II (q.v.) may derive from the work of Kinnamos. He paints a tragic picture of the Crusader sack of Constantinople (q.v.) in 1204.