BYZANTINES ARE HERE THE RISE OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

The Byzantine Empire While the western part of the Roman empire fell in A.D. 476, the eastern part flourished. The Eastern part became known as the Byzantine Empire. Constantinople became one of the great cities of the world, mainly because of its location.

Greek Influence In many ways Byzantine was much more Greek than it was Roman, even though it was called “New Rome”. They eventually even began to speak Greek and have many of the Greek customs. This was another way the “Roman” way of life was fading.

Justinian Justinian became emperor of the Byzantine Empire in 527 A.D. He was a strong emperor. He controlled the military, made laws, and was his supreme judge. His wife’s name was Theodora, and she had a lot of influence with the government and her husband.

Justinian Justinian wanted to bring back the glory of the empire. He reconquered much of the territory that had once been in the Roman Empire. However, he conquered too much too quickly, and when he died much of it was lost again. He also redid the laws into a newer simplified version. This became known as Justinians Code.