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AP World History: The Byzantine Empire Period Three NY State Standards 2, 3 Common Core RS 6, 9, WS 1.

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Presentation on theme: "AP World History: The Byzantine Empire Period Three NY State Standards 2, 3 Common Core RS 6, 9, WS 1."— Presentation transcript:


2 I Rome Wasn’t Dead Yet! A)Recall that Diocletian divided the Roman Empire in half. Under Constantine, Constantinople became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. When the Roman Empire fell in the West in 476 CE, the Empire continued in the East for almost 1000 more years! Historians remember it as the Byzantine Empire. Constantinople’s former name was Byzantium. Today, it is the city of Istanbul in modern day Turkey.


4 Reconstruction of the Forum of Constantine, Constantinople

5 Rome Wasn’t Dead Yet! Continued… B) Constantinople was located on the Bosphorus, a strait that links the Black and Mediterranean Seas. *It also links Europe and Asia!

6 Walls of Theodosius

7 E) Hippodrome A sports arena for chariot racing.

8 II Age of Justinian (Ruled 527 – 565 CE) A) His goal was to revive the glory of Rome.


10 Age of Justinian Continued… B) He built the Hagia Sophia Church“Holy Wisdom” in 537 CE. The interior dome is covered in gold. “O Solomon I have surpassed you!” When Constantinople was captured by the Ottoman Turks, the Hagia Sophia was converted to a mosque. Today it is a museum.


12 Age of Justinian Continued… C) Justinian organized Roman laws into the “Body of Civil Law”. Today it is known as the Justinian Code. It protected Roman laws from disappearing.

13 Justinian Code Excerpts Book One, Of Persons 3. The maxims of laws are these: to live honestly, to hurt no one, to give everyone his due. Book Two, Of Things 5. The public use of the seashore is part of the law of nations, as is that of the sea itself; and, therefore, any person is at liberty to place on it a cottage, to which he may retreat, or to dry his nets there, and haul them from the sea; for the shores may be said to be the property of no man. Book XVII Buying & Selling 1. It is necessary that a price should be agreed upon, for there can be no sale without a price… a sale is not considered to be completed unless an instrument of sale has been drawn up…

14 III Theodora (500 – 548 CE) A)Born into the lowest class of Byzantine society, but married Justinian 523 CE (before he became Emperor) B) She acted as a joint ruler with her husband Theodora's father was the bear keeper at the Hippodrome. Theodora began her career first as an actress, which was considered to be a disgraceful profession.

15 Theodora Continued… C) In 532 CE, a rebellion broke out at the Hippodrome (the Nika Revolt). The protesters set many buildings on fire, and declared a new emperor. Justinian wanted to flee the city, but Theodora convinced him to take strong action. Justinian sent in his army, causing the death of 30,000 protesters.

16 Theodora Continued… D) She helped create reforms to help women. - Banned killing of unwanted babies -Gave women property rights in divorce -Banned the murder of a wife who committed adultery - Closed brothels

17 The Byzantines vs. the Muslim Arabs A) In 674 a Muslim fleet entered the Bosphorus to attack Constantinople. It was greeted, and greatly deterred, by a new weapon which can be seen as the precursor of the modern flamethrower. It has never been discovered precisely how the Byzantine chemists achieve the jet of flame for their 'Greek fire. B) Contemporary accounts imply that the inflammable substance is petroleum-based, floats on water, and is almost impossible to extinguish. It can be lobbed in a canister. But in its most devastating form it is projected, as a stream of liquid fire, from a tube mounted in the prow of a ship. Sprayed among a wooden fleet, its destructive potential is obvious.

18 “Greek Fire”

19 IV The East – West Schism A) The Great Schism is the split between the Eastern (Byzantine) church and the Western (Orthodox) church. The bad relations between the two sides were mainly caused by political and theological disputes. B) One of the big issues was whether or not the church should use unleavened or leavened bread for the Eucharist. This leads to Constantinople ordering the closing of all the Latin churches in the city the stomping of all unleavened bread. The church would split on pother issues to: political, geographical, theological, and doctrinal. Each side would accuse the other to heresy, in each of their respective divisions. C) Another factor leading to the east-west split is language and culture. During the time of the split the dominant language in the west was Latin and the dominant language in the east was Greek. After the Western Empire began to fall there began be less and less of those who spoke both. With the unity of language gone, cultural unity began to disappear as well.

20 The East – West Schism Continued… D) In 726 the Byzantine emperor Leo III issued a dramatic order. Above the bronze gates leading into his imperial palace there has been, since the time of Justinian, a vast golden image of Jesus Christ. Leo sent a body of troops to destroy this great icon (image). Local outrage is so great that the crowd killed the officer in charge! The event began century+ of the so-called Iconoclastic Controversy, contributed considerably to the developing split between Rome and Constantinople. Icons were greatly venerated within the Byzantine and Catholic churches. However, Leo had been influenced by the neighboring Muslims, who saw religious icons as sinful. In 730 Leo declared the possession of icons to be illegal, and ordered their destruction. Pope Gregory III in Rome will have none of it, and Roman Catholics have always remained passionate about their icons. The controversy lasts until 843. In that year Theodora, the widow of the emperor Theophilus, lifted the ban, making it legal to venerate icons in the Orthodox Church once again. Ironically, as Orthodox Cristianity spread to Russia, Russian icons, still being painted today, preserve much of the ancient Byzantine style.


22 The East – West Schism Continued… Roman Catholicism (West) Greek Orthodox (East) Political & Religious Power Religion > StateCaesaropapism (State > Religion) Clerical Celibacy YesNo EucharistUnleavenedLeavened BibleLatin (inaccessible)Greek (accessible) InfluencesRoman lawGreek philosophy

23 Byzantine Icons

24 Reconciliation? On November 27, 2004, in an attempt to "promote Christian unity", Pope John Paul II returned the bones (relics) of Patriarchs John Chrysostom and Gregory Nazianzen to Istanbul. The former of the two relics was taken as war booty from Constantinople by Crusaders in 1204, and many believe the latter was taken then as well. However, the Vatican says the bones of the second saint were brought to Rome by Byzantine monks in the 8th Century. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I together with other heads of self-governed Eastern Churches were present at Pope John Paul II funeral on April 8, 2005. This is the first time for many centuries that an Orthodox Patriarch has attended the funeral of a Roman Pope. Perhaps this is the beginning of reconciliation?

25 Pope John Paul II and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, 2005, Istanbul.

26 V Collapse of the Byzantine Empire A) The Eastern Roman Empire had survived the 5th century with their superior economy, military, and bureaucracy. Their western brothers lacked these resources and quickly disintegrated. These advantages served Constantinople for the next few centuries. The Byzantine Empire seemed immortal and immune to the same issues that plagued Rome. B) However, the Ottoman Turks showed little respect for Roman tradition. In 1071, the Turks won a major victory over the Byzantines at Manzikert. The decisive battle did not destroy the empire. However, it proved a short term setback and long term disaster for Constantinople. C) In a strange twist, the Muslims enjoyed inadvertent Christian support in their conquest. In the early thirteenth century, Christendom declared a Fourth Crusade against Muslims in the Holy Land. In 1202, the army began their journey to the Middle East. Along the way, they diverted to Constantinople and sacked the city. The attack lasted three days and the westerners destroyed priceless art and the Library of Constantinople! Eventually, the Byzantines reestablished control over their territories. However, the attack severely weakened the empire politically and economically as the Crusaders depleted the imperial treasury.

27 Collapse of the Byzantine Empire Continued… D) The sack of Constantinople horrified Western European leaders who looked to Byzantium as a bulwark against Islamic invasion. Meanwhile, by the fifteenth century, the Turks had penetrated into Eastern Europe, whittling the Byzantine Empire down to the city itself. The massive city walls remained the only thing for the Ottoman Turks to conquer. E) The Ottomans began the final assault on April 6, 1453. The Emperor Constantine XI refused to surrender the city to the Muslims and felt secure behind the city walls. However, the Turks brought cannons and used them to slowly demolish Byzantine defenses. The new technology rendered medieval military defense obsolete. Constantinople’s walls fell and the Byzantine Empire, and Middle Ages, collapsed alongside the rubble. Constantinople’s demise shocked and horrified Europe. Monarchs began searching for new trade routes to India and China. Meanwhile, the Turks immediately made the city their capitol and renamed it Istanbul. The fall of Constantinople marked the end of the Roman Empire.

28 Classwork/HW Questions 1.Fill in your Period 3 Civilization chart for the Byzantine Empire. 2.Fill in your Period 3 Religion chart for Orthodox Christianity. The section may be missing in which case please create a new section for it. 3.How should Theodora be remembered? Explain your answer. 4.How much do you think the Muslim Arabs influenced the Byzantine Empire? Explain your answer. 5.Explain the East-West Schism in 1-2 paragraphs. Do you think it makes sense? Why or why not? Which side is more justified? Explain your answer.

29 Key Vocabulary 4th Crusade Battle at Manzikert Bosphorus Byzantine Empire Constantine Constantinople Diocletian Excommunicate Great Schism Hagia Sophia Hippodrome Iconoclastic Controversy Icons Istanbul Justinian Justinian’s Code Nika Revolt Ottoman Turks Patriarch Schism Theodora


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