A simple procedure for the synthesis of pyrido [2, 1-c][1, 4] benzodiazepine-6, 12-dione (1) and 1, 4-benzodiazepine-2, 5-diones (2a–2d), using microwave irradiation and/or conventional heating is reported. The configuration of 1 was determined by single-crystal X- ray diffraction. A detailed ab initio B3LYP/6-31G* calculation of structural parameters and substituent effects on ring inversion barriers (ΔG#) and also free energy differences (ΔG0) ...