The Byzantine Empire

Setting the stage: Roman Empire in Decline Economy declines Military Upheaval Germanic Invasions Diocletian's reforms

Diocletian Reforms Restored order in the empire and increased strength Doubled the size of the army Attempted to control inflation by setting fixed prices Limited personal freedom Persecuted Christians Divided Empire: -Greek-speaking East -Latin-speaking West Takes eastern half for himself and appoints a co-ruler for the west Orderly succession fails resulting in civil war Diocletian secured Rome’s boundaries, stabilized economy, however to do this, he governed as an absolute ruler and limited personal freedom, Farmers were ordered to stay on their land and other workers were forced to stay in their jobs for life persecuted Christians- Diocletian claimed descent from Roman Gods and viewed Christians as a threat his plans for orderly succession failed resulting in civil war

Constantine gains control of Western Empire , and later seized control of the East

Byzantium becomes the “New Rome” In 330, Constantine moved the capital from Rome to the Greek city, Byzantium Renames city Constantinople Constantine rises up as leader during the civil war, saw golden cross claims divine help to win power Why does he move the capital to Byzantium? The eastern half of the Roman empire becomes the Byzantine Empire is now under one ruler As the cities of the western Roman empire crumbled, Constantinople prospered

Constantinople With its high walls and golden domes, it stood as the proud capital of the Byzantine Empire By creating a smaller area that was easier to defend, Constantine was able to preserve the empire Constantinople flourished for over 1000 years

Strategically located on the Bosporus Strait Trade in Constantinople was prosperous because it was located on the crossroads between Europe and Asia Bosporus Strait- good for trade and defense Located far away from invading Germanic Tribes Peninsula- natural protection, linked Mediterranean and Black seas Constantinople trade was prosperous because it was located on the crossroads between Europe and Asia The eastern provinces began to develop independently of the declining West- The eastern Byzantine empire gradually comes into being Strategically located on the Bosporus Strait Trade in Constantinople was prosperous because it was located on the crossroads between Europe and Aisa

Justinian Builds a New Rome Succeeds the throne from his uncle in 527 as Emperor of the Eastern Empire until 565. Justinian sent his best general, Belisarius, to expand his new empire In the next 16 years Justinian would rule almost all the territory the Roman empire had ever ruled. Aspired to be emperor of all Roman Emp. Ruled with absolute power

Justinian’s Codes It was created by 10 legal experts Reviewed and compiled 400 years of Roman Law Established one uniform rule of law for the Byzantine Empire, or “New Rome” Served the empire for 900 years Ethnically the empire was extremely diverse, Justinian need a set of codes to help Regulate a complex society

Justinian’s Codes The code consisted of 4 works The Code- contained 5,000 Roman laws The Digest- opinions of Rome’s greatest legal thinkers about the laws The Institutes- a textbook explaining how to use the law The Novellae- “New Law” presented legislation after 534 How did the Byzantine Empire Preserve Roman Culture: These codes preserved Roman Culture.

Creating an Imperial Capital Rebuilt stone “sea wall”- 14 miles long, 25 ft. wide, 70 feet tall. Church building was he greatest passion. Hagia Sophia- “Holy Wisdom” in Greek. Justinian’s code unite the empire, Next Justinian launched ambitious public building plans to rebuild Constantinople Elaborate church building shows the connection between church and state He was deemed as Christ’s co-ruler on Earth and had power over the Church Justinian had power over church and combined spiritual authority with political power Hagia Sophia (Holy Sophia) - The Church of Divine Wisdom, Constantinople, 6th c., as it appeared before it was turned into a mosque in1453. Hagia Sophia remained a symbol of once flourishing Roman Christian Empire and the Orthodox Church worldwide. The glorious Cathedral was a scene of most brilliant Christian services and imperial coronations the world has ever seen. The church is now a museum and still treasures traces of the most beautiful Byzantine mosaics and architecture.

This city was unmatched by any other of it’s time Justinian divided the groups working on the construction of Hagia Sophia into two separate crews who competed to finish first Completed in 6 yrs Still survives today

Empress Theodora The most powerful woman in Byzantine history. Major political influence- She met with foreign leaders, passed laws and built churches Recognized the rights of women by establishing laws to protect women and gave then greater benefits in divorces. She came from poverty. Her father was a bar-keeper and she was an actress How do you think the marriage of Emperor Justinian to the common Theodora was accepted in society? She was her husbands adviser and had immense political power After her death in 548, Justinian was so depressed that he passed no major laws for the rest of his reign- a major sign of her political influence.

The Hippodrome The Hippodrome was the entertainment, social and sports center of Byzantine life The word hippodrome came from the greek word meaning “horse” “racecourse”

Could hold up to 60,000 spectators Captivating chariot races prompted people to place large bets

Nika Riots Fans of the different chariot-racing teams formed rowdy gangs named for the colors (blue/green) worn by their heroes Rivalry between teams was often accompanied by political differences and resulted in city-wide violence In 532 the largest of these riots occurred, essentially producing a civil war Nika- “Victory” Differenced between “blue” and “green” sparked a city wide riot Mobs cried “Nika” or victory

Theodora saves the day “My opinion is that now is a poor time for flight, even though it bring safety. For any man who has seen the light of day will also die, but one who has been an emperor cannot endure to be a fugitive. If now you wish to go, Emperor, nothing prevents you. There is the sea, there are the steps to the boats. But take care that after you are safe, you do not find that you would gladly exchange that safety for death.” -Empress Theodora (500-548)

CONSTANTINOPLE’S STRONG MILITARY DEFENSE & TECHNOLOGY After Justinian’s death the empire suffered many setbacks Plague Enemy from west, north, and east side However, attacks on Constantinople by Persians, Slavs, Vikings, Arabs and other groups were largely unsuccessful … CONSTANTINOPLE’S STRONG MILITARY DEFENSE & TECHNOLOGY SAVE THE DAY On two occasions, from 674 to 677, and again in 717-18, Arab armies besieged Constantinople by land and sea. Superior military organization, the city’s high walls and its strategic location, and the timely invention of one of history's most decisive weapons, a medieval form of napalm dubbed "Greek fire“ used by the Byzantine naval fleet enabled the Byzantines to weather the storm. The cost to both sides was high. By 800 A.D., Byzantium had lost most of her territory south of the Taurus Mountains and much of the remainder of the empire lay devastated. The Arabs lost untold thousands of men through futile attacks against Constantinople's defenses. In centuries after Justinian, the empire rose and fell Plague hits the empire, killing thousands and leaving the empire venerable to enemies Justinian dies of plague, If emperor dies of plague, what does that tell you about the rest of society? Different groups of enemies attack the Byzantine empire from all sides

Back in the West The western half of the Byzantine empire finds itself less prepared to defend against attacks Pope asks Charlemagne, king of the Frankish (France) empire, for help In return for Charlemagne's protection the Pope names him Holy Roman Emperor in the West While the eastern half succeeded in pushing back enemy attacks, the western half of the byzantine empire succumbed to attacks and began to fall apart. Far away from the help of Constantinople the Pope in Rome petitions support from Charlem. For support and in return he makes Char. Holy Roman Emperor of the West What problem does this create? --division of east and west

Differences Emerge Constantinople (East) Rome (West) Authority: Different cultural practices and limited contact between east and west resulted in the development of different religious practices. Constantinople (East) Rome (West) Authority emperor claims authority over the patriarch and all other bishops Language Greek Church policies Priests can marry Divorce allowed under certain conditions Authority: pope claims authority over all kings and emperors Language Latin Church policies Priests could not marry Divorce was never allowed Didn’t happen all of a sudden Distant geographically and socially Speak different language Different major holy days Over time their differences are exacerbated and culminate in the Great Schism Pope crowns emperor Byzantine emperor controlled Church affairs He appoints a patriarch (bishop)-the highest Church official but remains obedient to emperor *Byzantine Christians reject the popes claim to authority of all Christians

An important difference In 730, Emperor Leo III banned the use of icons, or religious images. Supporters of Leo III, called iconoclasts, broke into churches to destroy images. Others revolted and the clergy rebelled In the west, the pope supports the use of icons He thought the use of icons amounted to idol worship This ban set off violent battles within the empire Do you think icons serve as useful aids for religious devotion or are they a form of idol worship?

The Great Schism The permanent split between the Byzantine Easter Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church In 1054 the Roman Catholic Pope and the East Orthodox Patriarch excommunicated each other in a dispute over religious doctrine Excommunicate- “kick out” to declare someone is an outcast from the church. This means you can’t receive sacraments which means you can’t earn salvation Religion is what they have to look forward to The religious doctrine in dispute concerned the power of the pope The schism didn’t happen overnight. Rather, it is the result of a gradual process caused by lack of communication, long-festering anger and bad feelings. Not necessarily by a rival in theology. Do you think differences between Eastern and Western churches could have been reconciled before the final split? This is the time when the Christian church separates. Up until now, it was just christian. Now there are two distinct sects

Crisis and Collapse At the time of the Schism the Byzantine empire was declining Struggles over succession and constant invasions from the north undermined the empire’s strength Emperor Heraclius reorganized empire into themes, or military districts. Each district fell into the hands of individual generals . As the empire faltered, its enemies advanced

The Crusades The Turks take over the Muslim world and advance across Asia Minor making their way towards Anatolia. Crusading Christians from western Europe pillage Constantinople For a 200 year period, Western European Christians fought in 9 Crusades total as they attempted to retake the “Holy Land” (Jerusalem) from the Muslim Empire. In the 11th century the coming in from east Turks took over the Muslim world and fought their way slowly toward the Byzantine Emp. They adopt islam

The weakened Constantinople could not defend itself from the rising new power in the region-the Ottoman Turks- who, by the 1300s-had completely encircled the old eastern capital.