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The Byzantine Empire: Rise, Fall, and Legacy

Explore the rise and fall of the Byzantine Empire, its elegant buildings, Christian influence, and the powerful reign of Emperor Justinian. Learn about the Justinian Code, Empress Theodora's push for women's rights, and the political and cultural life in Constantinople. Discover the challenges faced by the empire, including the Plague and outside attacks, leading to its eventual fall in 1453 to the Ottoman Turks.

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The Byzantine Empire: Rise, Fall, and Legacy

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  1. The Byzantine Empire

  2. Oh No!! Rome Has Fallen! • Eastern and Western halves were officially split into two distinct empires in 395 CE • 476 CE: Fall of Western Rome • Eastern Empire dates from 395 – 1453 CE • Capital is Constantinople (modern name: Istanbul) • Called the Byzantine Empire

  3. Characteristics of Byzantine Empire • Elegant buildings • Christian (Roman Catholic, then Eastern Orthodox) • Language: Greek • Strong Commercial Focus • Armies based on barbarian recruits • Emperor separate from society

  4. Emperor Justinian(r. 527- 565 CE) • Successes: • Law Code • Rebuilt Constantinople • Reclaims some Roman provinces: • North Africa, city of Rome (temporarily), parts of Spain • Failures: • Unable to retake Italy for good • Weakened empire through expansion

  5. Justinian Code • Created between 528-533 CE • Preserved and reformed/updated Roman law • Ultimate Goal: Create a single, uniform law code • Forms the basis of modern legal systems. • Covered all aspects of life: marriage, slavery, property, inheritance, women’s rights and crimes • Code is used for over 900 years

  6. Empress Theodora • Justinian’s wife • Very powerful in her own right: • Met with foreign leaders, passed laws, built churches • Theodora pushes for women’s rights: • Man couldn’t beat wife • Women could sue for divorce. • Women could own property

  7. Emperor head of church and state Make religious and secular laws Not uncommon for women to hold throne temporarily Troops given land for service Government keeps food prices low Bureaucracy Trained in Greek classics From all classes Spies Emperor appointed local leaders to be sent throughout the empire Politics in the Byzantine Empire

  8. Constantinople (Istanbul) • Founded by Constantine and established as the capital of the Byzantine Empire in 330 CE

  9. Constantinople • Naturally protected by waterways on either side • Controlled the water between the Aegean and Black Sea. • Only land border is protected by a moat and three other walls • Constantinople is in middle of trade routes. • City became rich from taxes on trade.

  10. Revenue from trade funds government-supported building projects: • Hagia Sophia • (“Holy Wisdom”) • Palaces • Aqueducts • Schools • Hospitals

  11. Life in Constantinople • Great trade, shopping and cultural attractions in the city • Entertainment: • Hippodrome: chariot races; circus; held 60,000 people • Intellectual Life: • education highly prized, influenced by ancient Greek literature and historical writings • passed on Greco-Roman mathematics and geometry to the Arabs who adopted and improved it

  12. Problems in the Byzantine Empire • The Plague • Originated in rats on an Indian trading ship • 542: 10,000 die per day • Occurred every 8-10 years • Smaller population caused empire to be an easy target for outside groups • Outside Attacks: • Several groups attempted to attack the empire: Slavs, Persians, Arab armies, Russians, Turks, knights from Western Europe • The Crusaders (sacked Constantinople in 1204 CE) • Battle of Manzikert (1071 CE) – army defeated and destroyed by Muslim Turkish invaders • Finally falls in 1453 to the Ottoman Turks

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