He pulled the Byzantine Empire back from total annihilation, personally recovered Christianity's holiest relic, and was hailed as a legendary hero. Then he watched every monumental victory evaporate, while citizens whispered he was cursed for his scandalous personal life. A dizzying fall from glory to disgrace.

This deep dive pieces together the epic biography of Emperor Heraclius, who fought the last great war of antiquity and bridged the ancient and medieval worlds. His reign is the hinge on which the history of the Middle East and Europe turns, ending a 400-year superpower rivalry just as a new world order emerged from the desert.

• His bloody revolt from North Africa that toppled the tyrant Phocas in 610
• The desperate plan to abandon Constantinople before the Church melted down its treasures to fund a new army
• H ...