[machinekob]

If someone is interested in Byzantium fall and why this war was so bad for both empires, read some more about Justinian's Plague which killed ~35-50% of population and also halved economical output. It took about 200 years to get to the same place population wise for most of the empire.

Weirdly it didn't hit Persia as much outside of Mesopotamia, most historians estimate "only" ~20-30% of population died and shifted balance of power to Persian side, from almost renewed Roman Empire at 540 which most likely was getting back to ruling mediterranean world once again.

[bwanab]

It should be noted, though, that by the time of Basil II in the 900s, the Eastern Roman Empire (aka Byzantium - a name neither they nor anyone else uses until the 19th century) had again become the most powerful military actor in the western world.

[fakedang]

And then they got rekt in Manzikert, 1071 AD. 46 years after Basil II's death.

Let's not kid ourselves, the Byzantines had far more underlying problems throughout its history and only mostly survived by a.) the walls of Theodosius, and b.) bribing away potential invaders and getting others to fight their wars.

[falaki]

Late Mary Boyce attributes lower outbreaks of pandemics among Zoroastrian communities to the strict purity laws and practices. For example, it was unacceptable to pollute water, considered one of the sacred creations of Ahuramazda. To avoid polluting water, Zoroastrians would not wash their hands directly in rivers or bodies of water. There are hundreds of examples of these strict purity laws. [1]

[1] A History of Zoroastrianism, The Early Period by Mary Boyce <https://archive.org/details/AHistoryOfZoroastrianismVolI>

[segasaturn]

The Plague of Justinian was also the first recorded major outbreak of bubonic plague. Black death seems to be the pivot-point at a lot of important moments in history.

[murphyslawnbs]

Correct, it was brought in by the troops of Genghis Khan and their marmots which were full of fleas.

[hnu0847]

Are there any specific sources you would recommend?