The Eastern Roman Empire

• Byzantine


  The Eastern Roman Empire
• The history of the Eastern Roman Empire began long before the 395 split between Theodosius' sons
• Constantine (r 306-337) founded a new capital city in the Eastern part of the Empire, a "new-Rome" (nea Roma)

  330
• Constantine's City

  The new capital city founded by Constantine in the Eastern part of the Empire
• The Eastern Roman Empire

  • Strategic location of its capital city, which made it impossible to conquer
  • Its economy was less afflicted by crisis due to climatical and geological reasons, crop yields remained important
  • The urban network was more developed
  • The pressure over the borders was less important than in the Western part, Barbarians could be suggested to go further to the West
  • Centuries war with the Sasanian empire
• Justinian's reign

  527-565
• Justinian's reign

  • Rewriting of the Roman Law-code under the name of "Justinian's code"
  • Rebuilding much of Constantinople, including the Church of Hagia Sofia
  • Reconquering some of the lost Western territories, including the Vandals Kingdom in North Africa and the Ostrogothic kingdom
  • Securing Betica (Andalusia) through diplomatic negotiations
• Justinian's program

  Brought several difficulties to the Empire: It was rather costly, gave birth to an Empire difficult to secure and drained all kind of the Empire's resources
• A plague began to spread from 536, brought by yersinia pestis, which deeply weakened the Mediterranean societies with a horrifying death toll
• Islam was created in the beginning of the 7th century

  Muslim armies took control of the Byzantine provinces of Syria (638) and Egypt (640)
• The Slavs, coming from Eastern Europe, entered the Empire

  The Empire lost a great part of its European provinces, being now restricted on Greece and Minor Asia
• Constantinople was besieged several times

  626 CE by the Persians/the Slavs, 674 CE by the Muslims, 717-718 CE by the Muslims
• Roman to Greek identity

  In 610, Emperor Heraclius was the first one to abandon the Latin title imperator for the Greek title basileus
• Byzantine identity

  Focused on a specific form of Christianity, the one we call Orthodoxy in Western Europe
• Ties between the patriarch of Constantinople and the Pope (= patriarch of Rome)

  Progressively faded
• Christianization of the Slavs

  1. Byzantine church did great efforts to bring Christianity to them, Rome did the Same

  2. The monarch of the South Slavs (Balkans) adopted Christianity in the 9th century

  3. The East Slavs (Bulgars and Rus') did so in the 10th century

  4. Saints Cyril and Methodius, who were both belonging the Byzantine Church and lived in the second half of the 9th century, were instrumental in that process (= Cyrillic alphabet)
• Accession of Basil I to the throne, beginning of the Macedonian dynasty which ruled for 150 years

  867
• Macedonian dynasty

  • Reconquered several territories, especially in the Balkans and in the Near East
  • Stimulated a cultural revival in spheres such as philosophy and the arts
• The coming of the Turks from Inner Asia

  Led to significant territorial losses during the 11th century
• Crusades (from 1095)

  Progressively weakened the Empire's influence
• Constantinople was sacked by the Crusaders

  1204
• From the beginning of the 14th century

  The Ottoman sultanate became a major threat
• Sultan Mehmet II conquered Constantinople

  May 29th, 1453