The Byzantine Empire (450 CE) One God, One Empire, One Religion

Remember…

The Eastern Empire As Western Europe succumbed (gave in) to the Germanic invasions, imperial power shifted to the Byzantine Empire (the eastern part of the Roman Empire).

Constantinople Constantinople became the sole capitol of the empire and remained so until the successful revival of the western empire in the 8th century by Charlemagne. The city is named after the Emperor Constantine Constantine announced the end to all persecution of Christians

The Reign of Justinian The height of the first period of Byzantine history (324-632) was the reign of Emperor Justinian (r. 537-565) and his wife Empress Theodora (d. 548)

First things first… Justinian’s objectives as a ruler: Laws came first Justinian wanted to regain Rome’s fading glory by expanding it’s territories And he set out to take on the task of reforming the Roman Law Laws came first

One God One Empire One Religion How did he do it Justinian appointed a jurist friend to lead a committee to go through all the laws, put them in order, and get rid of those that were contradictory. One God One Empire One Religion

New Law The panel created a single uniform code known as Justinian Code. This became the official law of the empire. The code consisted of four works

Justinian’s Code The Code contained nearly 5,000 Roman laws that were still considered useful for the Byzantine Empire

Hagia Sophia The crowning glory of his reign “Holy Wisdom” in Greek It was one of the largest building in Europe for 6 Centuries

Efforts to preserve the West Families valued education- specifically classical learning Latin Philosophy Geometry (Euclid) History (Herodotus) Literature (Homer) They helped to preserve many of the great works of Greece and Rome

Empress Theodora The most powerful women in Byzantine history As empress she met with foreign envoys, wrote to foreign leaders, passed laws, and built churches. After she died, Justinian was so depressed that he passed no major laws for the rest of his reign.

The Empire at Its Height The empire was at its height In 565, during Justinian’s reign. It included most of the lands surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.

The Great Divide During the Byzantine Empire Christianity underwent a dramatic development It had begun to develop differently in the Eastern and Western halves of the Roman Empire. Due largely to the distance and lack of contact between the two regions.

East Side Eastern Christianity built its heritage on the works of early Church fathers. In 730, Emperor Leo III banned the use of icons, religious images used by Eastern Christians to aid their devotions. The emperor viewed the use of icons as idol worship

West Side In the west, the Pope became involved in the eastern dispute and supported the use of icons One Pope even ordered the excommunication of a Byzantine emperor (he declared the emperor to be an outcast from the Church)

The Great Schism The great split in Christianity. The western church became the Roman Catholic Church, and the eastern church became the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Recovery of Territory The Byzantines called upon the European states to push back the Muslim conquerors. The European states complied, successfully pushed back the Seljuks, returned territory to the Byzantines, and carved out kingdoms of their own in Syria and Palestine.

Conquered by the Ottoman Turks In 1453, Constantinople was finally and permanently conquered by the Ottoman Turks and renamed Istanbul. Byzantine culture, law, and administration came to its final end.

Contribution to Western Civilization Throughout the early Middle Ages, the Byzantine Empire remained a protective barrier between western Europe and hostile Persian, Arab, and Turkish armies. The Byzantines were also a major conduit of classical learning and science into the West down to the Renaissance. While western Europeans were fumbling to create a culture of their own, the cities of the Byzantine Empire provided them a model of a civilized society.