BYZANTINE EMPIRE

“New Rome”

SUMMARYThe Roman Empire united the entire Mediterranean for

centuries. But it became too unwieldy to govern as a whole, so in 286 CE, the empire was split into an eastern half and a western half by Diocletian, in what were hoped to be more manageable administrative regions. Then, in 313, Christianity was accepted in the empire; and in 330, when Constantine converted to Christianity, he reunited the empire at Constantinople. It was still the Roman Empire, it just wasn’t centered in Rome. The empire split again in 395, at which time the eastern half became known as the Byzantine Empire. Almost 400 years later, in 800, yet another empire was established, the Holy Roman Empire centered in Rome. The Byzantines continued on as before in the east. So again there were two empires, but still one religion. That, however, was to change as well some 200 years later when, in 1054, Christianity began to be practiced as 2 entirely separate religions: Roman Catholicism and Christian Orthodoxy.

INTRO Diocletian

split Roman empire into East and WestUsed tetrarchs (officials) to rule districts

ConstantineBuilt ConstantinopleTried to reunite E & W (didn’t go so well…

Byzantium ppl probs… like Visigoth invaders and Huns)

Rome slowly collapses, well, Western RomeChristianity, law, and culture survive in

Eastern Rome, (Byzantine Empire.)

OLD ROME? NEW BYZANTINE?

EARLY BYZANTINE EMPIRE Early challenges:

Conflict with Sasanid dynasty (226-641 C.E.) in Persia

Invasions of Germanic groups from the north & east

The early Byzantine State Tightly centralized rule of emperor Caesaropapism:

Divine favor for his rule Secular ruler AND played important roles in

ecclesiastical affairs Emperors also stood above the law

JUSTINIAN AND THEODORA

JUSTINIAN & HIS LEGACY Justinian and Theodora

Both came from obscure origins Theodora was a wise advisor

Hagia SophiaDomed roof; heavy use of precious metals &

jewels Justinian Code

Issued the Corpus iuris civilis (The Body of the Civil Law) Definitive codification of Roman law

The code influenced civil law codes of western Europe

Belisarius and Byzantine conquests Belisarius reconquered most of the W. Roman

empire Threats from Sasanid and Slavic peoples$$$$ successors w/drew forces

BYZANTINE LIFE

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY The peasantry

The backbone of the Byzantine army and economy Worked as share-croppers or serfs Invasions of the 6th & 7th century led to the

theme system (explanation in a few slides) 11th century-free peasants declined

Consequences of the peasantry's decline Large landowners shifted tax burden to peasants Large landowners raised forces on their own

estates The pool of military recruits shrank

INDUSTRY & TRADE Manufacturing enterprises

Artisans & craftsmen: glassware, linen/woolen textiles, gems, jewelry, gold/silver work

High-quality silk principal supplier of silk in Med. Basin

Trade Constantinople, an important center for Eurasian

trade Bezant – Byzantine gold coin became the standard

currency of the Mediterranean basin Levying of custom duties on foreign goods “Upgrading” commodities before redistributing

them Trade Organization

Banks- gave business loans Merchant partnerships- pool resources; limit risk

URBAN LIFE Housing in Constantinople

Enormous palaces owned by aristocrats Less splendid dwellings owned by the less

privileged classes Attractions of Constantinople

A city of baths, taverns, restaurants, theaters, the Hippodrome

The most popular game - chariot races Greens vs. Blues

The two factions of fans for chariot races Frequent fights in the street between them In 532 G & B rioted over high taxes left

Constantinople in shambles

“GREEK FIRE”

ISLAMIC CONQUESTS & BYZANTINE REVIVAL

Islamic state Arab peoples conquered the Sasanid empire &

part of Byzantium Prolonged sieges of Constantinople Byzantine survived partly because of "Greek fire"

THEME SYSTEM

Put an imperial province (theme) was placed under the jurisdiction of a general Provide military defense & civil

administration Peasants recruited to army in exchange for

land Strengthened army and agricultural economy Allowed forced to mobilize quickly and resist

Islam Advanced Reconquered Syria from Arab Muslims, the

10th century "Basil the Bulgar Slayer," crushed the

Bulgars in the Balkans

BYZANTIUM & WESTERN EUROPE

BYZANTIUM & WESTERN EUROPE TENSIONS Ecclesiastical tensions

Constantinople: conducted affairs in Greek, caesaropapist emperors, patriarch, iconoclasms,

Rome: conducted affairs in Latin, religious autonomy from imperial authorities, pope, icons, (Churches in the east and west looked down upon each

other )

1054 – patriarch & pope MUTUALLY excommunicated each other SCHISM

BYZANTIUM & WESTERN EUROPE TENSIONS

Political grievances Germanic ppls, Visigoths, Vandals, Franks, set up

successor states (and Byz leaders couldn’t do anything about it) Charlemagne received imperial crown from the pope

in 800 Otto of Saxony claimed himself an emperor in 962 these directly challenged Byzantine claims to

imperial authority

BYZANTINE CHURCH Church and state

Caesaropapist emperors active in religious & theological matters

Constantine organized Council of Nicaea Debated Jesus' human vs. divine status divine won

Iconoclasm Instituted by Emperor Leo III in 726 C.E. “breaking of icons” – destroying religious images &

forbidding their use in churches protests and riots

Policy abandoned in 843 C.E. Greek Philosophy and Byzantine theology

Examining religious issues from a philosophical point of view

Trying to combine Christian revelation w/ Greek reason

MONASTICISM & POPULAR PIETY Asceticism

Extreme asceticism and self-denial by some Christians to demonstrate their holy lives

"Pillar saints"

Monasticism The earliest monasteries of dedicated hermits,

ascetics Reforms of monasteries by St. Basil, the 4th

century C.E. Monasteries

provided social services to local communities Not centers of learning as monasteries of Western Europe

DOMESTIC PROBLEMS & FOREIGN PRESSURES

Social problems Generals and local aristocrats – powerful elite class Few free peasants fewer military recruits and less tax

income

Challenges from the west Norman army took over southern Italy Crusades by Normans, etc, carved out pieces of Byz. The 4th crusade seized Constantinople in1204 (taken

back in 1261)

Challenges from the east The Muslim Saljuqs invaded Anatolia Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople in 1453, the end

of the empire

EARLY RELATIONS W/ SLAVIC PEOPLES Byzantium & Slavic regions

The peoples included Serbs, Croats, and Bulgars

Relationship through political diplomacy, commercial & cultural connection

Missions to the Slavs Saints Cyril and Methodius

Developed Cyrillic alphabet to best represent Slavic languages

Cyrillic writing stimulated conversion to Orthodox Christianity

ST. CYRIL AND METHODIUS & CYRILLIC WRITING

BYZANTIUM & RUSSIA Russians started to organize a large

state

The conversion of Prince Vladimir, 989 Invited merchants, teachers & engineers to

increase relationship Byzantine art and architecture dominated Kiev

The growth of Kiev a conduit for the spread of Byzantine culture and

religion The princes established caesaropapist control of

Russian Orthodox church Russians later claimed to inherit the imperial

mantle of Byzantium