How strong/weak would a purely European Byzantine Empire?

Well in the West (and the East up to a point) stopped placing the idea of government on a central city, instead focusing on the person of the Emperor. The capital was wherever the Emperor was and if the Emperor happened to be fighting wars throughout his reign on the frontier his abode had to be close, close means Trier, close means Milan, or Salona, or even Ravenna. The East, by the time they were pushed to Anatolia, was far more attached to Constantinople, simply by matter of precedent, altered attitudes, economic and necessities of prestige. Basically it'd look bad and no matter how far flung the empire goes the cultural and economic center of gravity for the state would remain at the Bosporus, for all the good or bad it does them. There's just no appealing alternative that doesn't result in a loss of face or the Greeks feeling ignored as a people by their Autocrat.
And how did that happen?What happened to Rome can happen to Constantinople,especially if the city does temporarily fall to the enemy in a Fourth Crusade style attack and gets completely devastated.
 
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I'd like to point out that for much of Constans II's (or was it Constantine IV?) reign in the 7th century, Syracuse served as the de facto capital of the Empire. Of course, said Emperor was assassinated for his trouble, but details, details.

That said, moving the capital is hard because it means moving the whole administrative bureaucracy, estates and the Patriarchate (leaving him at Constantinople isn't possible).
 
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