Byzantine Empire #2

1. The Byzantine Empire
Successor to Rome
Hagia Sophia

3. Constantinople
The Emperor Constantine made Constantinople the
capital of the Roman Empire.
Its location was important because:
- It was further away from barbarian invasions
that plagued the west.
- It was a crossroads of trade.
- It was an easily fortified site on a peninsula.

5. Justinian
527-565
Led the Byzantine Empire to its height in
culture and in wealth.
Reconquest of former Roman territories that
had fallen into the hands of barbarians.
- A.D. 533, he sent General Belisarius to
recover North Africa from the Vandals.
-A.D. 535, Belisarius took Rome from the
Ostrogoths
-Eventually, Justinian’s armies had
conquered Italy and parts of Spain.

6. Justinian’s Code
The results of a panel of ten legal experts who
studied 400 years of Roman law.
The code was used for 900 years.
Consisted of 4 works:
 The Code – nearly 5,000 Roman Laws
 The Digest – summarized the opinions
of Rome’s greatest legal thinkers.
 The Institutes – a legal textbook
 The New Laws – new legislation passed
after A.D. 534.

7. Justinian’s Constantinople
Rebuilt a 14-mile sea wall that ringed the coast.
Repaired the 70 foot towers along the
innermost wall.
Built baths, aqueducts, schools and hospitals
The Hippodrome was the entertainment center
As the leader of the Eastern Church, he built
many churches.
- Hagia Sophia
-means “Holy Wisdom”
-a Byzantine domed church set on a
rectangular base.

10. Theodora
Justinian’s wife
Met with foreign envoys
Passed laws
Four major changes:
1. Men could not beat their wives.
2. Women could sue for divorce.
3. Women could own property up to the
value of their dowry – possessions given to
the bride by her father to help pay for her
keep.

11. Justinian at court with
Theodora. Justinian was
credited with bringing
about new “Justice”.

12. Political Achievements
• Centralized the government
• Bureaucracy was well paid
• Created an intelligence service
• Persons: Justinian & Theodora
• Importance:
Strong government with loyal officials.
Empire lasted until 1453

13. Military Strengths
• Well trained and well funded
• Instruction manuals
• New technologies
– Greek fire
– Lance
• People: General Belisarius, infantry, cavalry
and corps of engineers
• Importance: Skilled and loyal military
expanded the empire.

14. Economic Achievements
• International economy
• Crossroads of trade between Europe and
Asia
• Income taxes
• People: Merchant class; foreign traders
• Impact: financial stability; funded the
military and bureaucracy

15. Greco-Roman Knowledge is
preserved
Byzantine libraries stored literature and
scientific writings
Children went to public schools or had
private tutors and studied Greek and
Roman literature, math, science and history
and philosophy.
Children studied Greek as their primary
language.

16. Important Contributions of
the Byzantine Empire
Religion: Eastern Orthodox Church
Cyrillic Alphabet
Art: Icons: religious images such as portraits
and statues
Mosaics: pictures made from small
pieces of tile or glass.
Architecture: Hagia Sophia & Hippodrome
Law: Justinian’s Code = Roman laws, Greek laws,
legal textbook; Foundation for law in Western
Europe

17. Cyrillic
Alphabet
Developed by
the Byzantine
monk St. Cyril
and is based
on the Greek
alphabet

20. The Christian Church
The iconoclastic Controversy: A debate
began over the use of icons which are
pictures, images or other representations of
religious figures such as the Christ or the
saints. The Patriarchs and priests in the
Eastern empire used icons to teach the
Slavs who could not read. However, in
A.D. 730, the Byzantine Emperor Leo III
banned the use of icons claiming that it
was idol worship.

21. Beginnings of a Schism
The Western Pope supported the use of
icons and threatened to
excommunicate (kick out of the church)
the Byzantine Emperor. Two branches of
Christianity would emerge from this
iconoclastic controversy: the Roman
Catholic church in the West and the
Eastern Orthodox Church in the East.

22. Schism of 1057
Eastern Orthodox Church:
Constantinople was the center
Patriarch was the leading bishop
Greek was used in the liturgy
Patriarch and other bishops formed the
church’s main hierarchy of leadership
Emperor was the head of the Church
Priests may marry
Divorce was allowed under certain
conditions

23. Icons
Icons are religious images used by Eastern
Christians to help them focus on God
Iconoclasts are people who believe that
icons are idols
Icons are an important part of the Eastern
religion despite the Byzantine Emperor’s
attempt to ban them in the 8th
century A.D.

24. Schism of 1054
Roman Catholic Church
Rome was the center for the RCC
Latin is used in the liturgy
The Pope was the head of the church
The Pope had authority over all kings and
emperors
Priests may NOT marry
Divorce was not permitted.

25. The Decline of the Byzantine
Empire
During the 1000s, the Seljuk Turks
captured most of Anatolia. Soon they
were ready to attack the Byzantine
capital called Constantinople. The
Byzantine Emperor asked the West to
help and with the approval of the Pope,
the First Crusade was launched to rid
the non-Christian invaders from
Constantinople.

26. Ottoman Turks take Constantinople
A.D. 1453
In the 1300s, a new group of Turks
would invade and capture
Constantinople. These were the
Ottoman Turks who by 1453 would
incorporate the Byzantine Empire into
the Ottoman Empire which would last
until the end of World War I.

27. Russia: The Slavs & Vikings
The Slavs were the inhabitants of Russia. By the
mid 800s, they were trading with Constantinople.
The Slavs began to accept Byzantine customs
and a culture mixed with Slavic and Greek
traditions was formed in Russia.
Meanwhile, in the 800s, the Vikings invaded Russia
from Scandinavia. The Vikings were called Rus
which is the root of the word Russia.

28. Vikings & Slav
In the late 800s, the Viking chief Rurik
became the king of the Vikings in Russia
and ruled over the Slavs whom they treated
as slaves. The word “slave” comes from
the poor Slavs. C’est dommage. King
Rurik also founded the city of Novgorad
which was Russia’s first major city.

29. Kiev
A better site for a key Russian city was Kiev
which was on the Dnieper river that fed
into the Black Sea. From here, the Vikings
could trade with Constantinople.

30. Government & Society in
Kievan Russia
Society was divided into two groups: peasants and
nobles. Nobles were called Boyars who were the
Vikings. The Boyars acted as a royal council to
the Kievan Prince. Thus power was concentrated
in the aristocratic Vikings. As time passed, the
noble Vikings married Slavs and the people of
Russia became a mix of Vikings and Slavs. As
these Russians continued to trade with the
Byzantine Empire, the Russian culture was
influenced by the Greek culture of the Byzantines.

31. Kiev

32. The Byzantine Christians sent missionaries to
the Russians and in 957, Princess Olga
became the first Kievan noble to become a
Christian. Olga’s grandson Vladimir I was
converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity
after hearing about the beauty and splendor of
Byzantine churches. He then required all of
the residents of Kiev to be baptized in the
Dnieper River. Vladimir also liked the
Eastern Orthodox idea that the king was the
head of the Church and superior to the
Patriarch.

33. Important Kievan Rulers
Vladimir I: made the Eastern Orthodox
religion the official Russian religion.
- expanded the Russian state into Poland
and towards the Black Sea.
Yaroslav the Wise created a code of law
called the Pravda Russkaia which was
Russia’s first written code of law.

34. Khanate of the Golden Horde
In 1240, the Mongols from northeastern Asia sacked
Kiev. The Mongols would rule Russia until 1480
when Ivan III successfully threw off Mongol rule.
The Mongols named their territory the Khanate
of the Golden Horde. The Mongols allowed the
Russians to follow their own culture including
their religious practices. The Eastern Orthodox
Church cooperated with the Mongols to keep
peace in the Khanate. As long as the Russians
paid tribute (bribe money) and obeyed the
Mongols, there would be peace.