Byzantium, Islam, and the Latin West: The Foundations of Medieval Europe, The West CHAPTER 7

Byzantium: The Survival of the Roman Empire After the death of Justinian, the Byzantine empire began to shrink Byzantium lost territory in the Balkans, Italy and North Africa Defeat of Persian king Chosroes II, in 628, left both Byzantium and the Persians too exhausted to resist the rise of Islamic armies 740: Battle of Akroinon slowed the Islamic advance, but the Byzantines could not regain their lost possessions

Imperial Administration and Military System Emperor stood at center of Byzantine society and at the head of a hierarchical bureaucracy Color of clothing indicated status in bureaucracy Economy shriveled as empire shrank Four themes (military districts), each with a separate army and administration By 750, themes possessed considerable independence

The Church and Religious Life Unity of religious identity as Orthodox Christians Church hierarchy headed by the Patriarch of Constantinople Classical learning abandoned in favor of Christian education Iconoclasm Controversy (ca ) - fueled divisions between Latin and Orthodox Christianity

Arabs Before Islam Tribal people with a shared language, but diverse forms of community No formal government Code of honor led to cyclical feuding Military strength due to use of camels Wealth from trade in luxury items: incense, silk, gold and ivory

The Recitation of Muhammad The Qu’ran (“recitation”) records Muhammad’s revelations Hijra (622): migration from Mecca to Medina, starting date of Muslim calendar By 632, most of Arabia was unified under Islam: a single community and identity Islam (“submission”) rested on five basic principles: the Pillars of Islam

The Islamic Community After Muhammad Evolution of the caliphate: an Islamic form of government Formation of Shi’ite sect, from conflict over succession Wars of Apostasy reunited Arabia under control of the caliphate By 651, Islamic armies had seized Egypt and Syria from Byzantium and conquered the Persian Empire

The Umayyad Caliphate Divided the world into the “House of Islam” and the “House of War” Expanded west, across North Africa into Spain, and east, to India and Central Asia Umayyad caliphs established a hereditary monarchy and a centralized administration Arabic provided a common, unifying language for the Umayyad empire

Society and Culture in the Umayyad Caliphate Cities remained important centers, but were transformed physically and culturally Mosques formed the chief public space and the spiritual and political heart of the city Only Muslims could be full participants in community Other monotheistic religions were tolerated, but had lower status Arab trading routes extended into Africa and as far east as Indonesia and the Philippines

Germanic Kingdoms on Roman Foundations Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in England: Mercia, Wessex and Northumbria Frankish Kingdom: modern France and Germany Visigothic Kingdom: Spain Kingdom of the Lombards: Italy The pope (Bishop of Rome) established political independence

Administration and Law in Germanic Kingdoms Roman infrastructure and administrative systems survived in western Europe, except in England Germanic kings became source of all law and head of administration Adoption of Germanic law unified ruling minority and Roman majority, as one people under one law Women’s property rights, from Roman Law, were maintained in the new systems

Society and Community in the Germanic Kingdoms Hierarchical society based on networks of loyalty and kinship Evolution of clan leaders into a landed aristocracy Social status defined by wergild Evolution of ethnic identities, based on a shared history, culture, kinship and monarchy

The Spread of Catholic Christianity Acceptance of Catholic Christianity by Germanic monarchs led to religious unity in western Europe Missionaries from Ireland and Rome worked to convert nonbelievers and polytheists Pope Gregory the Great (r ) hoped to forge a Christian society, following the collapse of Roman government

Monastic Intellectual Life Monasteries replaced cities as the centers of intellectual life The work of monks preserved classical learning and knowledge of Latin Missionaries transported this literary heritage across Latin Christendom Monastic schools taught reading and writing to boys (and some girls)

Jews in a Christian World European monarchs generally protected Jewish populations Legal discrimination and violent persecution of Jews did occur The papacy sought the peaceful conversion of all Jews

Three Cultural Realms Division of the old Roman Empire into three distinct cultural and linguistic realms: –Byzantium: Orthodox Christianity and Greek language –Umayyad Caliphate: Islam and Arabic language –Latin Christendom: Catholic Christianity and Latin language