Transcript Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire
World History
Byzantium/Constantinople/Istanbul today
Byzantine Empire
• Culture
– Roman government
• Legal system
• Bureaucracy
• Heavy taxing
– Christian religion
– Greco-Oriental culture
• Greek and Middle Eastern
Byzantine Empire
• Government ideals
– Defense
– Self-preservation
• Political embodiment of Christianity
• Hated change, seldom took risks
Byzantine Empire
• Devotion to religion a source of weakness
– Religious controversy=government concern
– Heresy=threat to state
Byzantine Empire
• Spoke Greek
• Studied Greek, Latin,
and Roman literature
and history
Byzantine Empire
• Justinian (r. 527 - 565)
– Last of Roman emperors
• Still spoke Latin
• Wanted to revive old Roman Empire
– Co-ruled with Empress Theodora
– Nika Riots
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People rioted
Burned city
City rebuilt,
Hagia Sophia created
Hagia Sophia, built in 360
“Holy Wisdom”
Byzantine Empire
• Justinian
– Corpus Juris Civilis
• “body of civil law”
• Uniform code of law based on Roman laws
– Wanted to reconquer the West
• Especially Rome
– Territory
• Mediterranean coastline
• Bankrupt
Byzantine Empire
• Orthodox Christianity
– Ruler was decisive voice:
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Christian governance
Practice
Doctrine
Protector of Holy Church
– Armies fought for empire and God
– Soldiers were crusaders
– Strong support of emperors
Byzantine Empire
• The Great Schism (1054)
– Divided Christianity
• Eastern (Greek)
– Easter Orthodox Church
• Western (Latin)
– Roman Catholic Church
– Split along doctrinal, theological, linguistic,
political, geographic lines
Byzantine Empire
• Invasions
– Slavs and Bulgars from the East
– Germanic tribes retook Italy
– Muslim tribes took Africa
Byzantine Empire
• Seljuk Turks invade
• Battle of Manzikert in 1071 (Armenia)
– Hurt empire’s hold on Asia Minor
• People’s Crusade (1096)
– Emperor Alexios asked Pope Urban II for help
– Wanted to “free” eastern Christians
– Goal: capture Jerusalem from Muslims
– Byzantine recovers west coastlands of Asia Minor
Byzantine Empire
• Fourth Crusade
– Originally to conquer Muslims in Jerusalem
– In 1204, Crusaders invaded Constantinople
– Conquered city
• Byzantine Empire retook Constantinople in
1261
– Never returned to former glory
Byzantine Empire
• Black Death in 1347
– One of the deadliest pandemics in world history
– Killed between 30% to 60% of population
• Ottoman Turks
– Attack empire in 1300’s
– Captured Constantinople in 1453