Sunday Feature: Byzantium

To coincide with an exhibition at the Royal Academy, Prof Judith Herrin visits Istanbul to trace the history of the Roman city of Byzantium and examine the crucial role it played in the development of Europe. She explores how Byzantine civilisation made possible Europe's transition to modernity; the fact that it has no modern successor state; how it combined Christianity with ancient Greek learning and Roman imperial ideology; and its systems of government, laws, taxes, education and defence.