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Notes 9­4 “The Byzantine Empire and the Crusades”
AD 395, the Roman Empire split; eastern half b/c the Byzantine Empire
Land area: Balkans, Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt (at its height in AD 500’s)
Ethnic groups: Greeks (mostly), Egyptians, Syrians, Arabs, Armenians, Jews, Persians, Slavs, and Turks
Constantinople (AD 330) ­ capital built by Emperor Constantine on major trade routes (Bosporus Strait) b/t the Black and Mediterranean Seas
­ protected by water on three sides, triple wall on the fourth side
­ wealthy from trade, and a center of early Christianity (Orthodoxy)
­ called the “New Rome” b/c ruling class was Roman & spoke Latin
Justinian ­ b/c emperor in AD 527, ruled Byzantine Empire at its height
­ called the “Emperor Who Never Sleeps” b/c of hard work
­ improve infrastructure, church: Hagia Sophia or “Holy Wisdom”
­ shared power with his wife, an actress turned empress:
Theodora ­ beautiful, intelligent, & ambitious; actively participated in gov’t
­ improved women’s rights ­ to own land, given some independence
­ AD 532, saved Justinian from losing power when taxpayers rebelled (he was going to flee when she convinced him to hold his own) ­ the revolt was put down & Justinian remained as emperor
Military Conflict ­ w/ the Sassanian Empire of Persia ­ Justinian pushed back Persians and Byzantines agreed to pay tributes to keep the peace
­ under a general, Belisarius, they reconquered land lost to Germanic tribes (Justinian wanted to rebuild the Roman Empire), but drained resources, and the gains were lost soon after Justinian’s death
Justinian’s Code (“Corpus of Civil Law”) ­ ten scholars collected & organized thousands of Roman laws over a six year period ­ preserve Roman law, b/c the basis for most European legal systems
Greek or Eastern Orthodox ­ close ties b/t church and state, emperors persecuted Jews & non­Greek Christians to raise unity among followers
­ religious issues part of daily discussion, politics, etc.
­ clergy ­ church officials (priests, bishops); laity ­ church members
­ AD 700’s, issue of icons, or religious images, b/c political issue ­ icons either seen as false idols or as symbols of Christian faith
­ Emperor Leo III banned all icons (followers called iconoclasts or “image breakers”) ­ strained relations with Western churches and in AD 787 at the Council of Nicaea, feelings changed & the use of icons was approved
Further Religious Conflict ­ b/t Pope, Rome & Patriarch, Constantinople
­ AD 1054: differences led to official schism (separation) of the Church into the Roman Catholic Church & the Greek Orthodox Church
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9­4.notebook
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Byzantine Civilization ­ preserved Greek philosophy & literature, Roman political and legal ideas, and Christian theology, or religious teachings
Economy ­ farming, herding, laborers: paid taxes; heavy trade in cities like Constantinople: along the Dnieper River to the north or this route: Black Sea, Bosporus Strait, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles, Mediterranean Sea
­ trade w/ Rome, China, Sri Lanka (India), etc., producing especially silk from silkworms which the Byzantines had stolen from China
Spread of Christianity ­ religious communities of monks in monasteries, or of nuns in convents ­ lead devout life, but offer good deeds to society
­ provided education and hospitals for the needy, spread arts/learning
­ sent out missionaries to convert others to Christianity, most famous were Cyril & Methodius ­ developed Cyrillic alphabet to convert Slavs
Decline & Fall ­ constant attacks by Germanic tribes, Slavs, Avars, Bulgars, Persians, & later (AD 600’s & after) the Arabs ­ lost much land ­ by AD 700, only the Greek areas of the Empire remained
­ fought w/ Arabs and Seljuk Turks who were spreading Islam, given help by the Pope who began the Crusades (holy war) in the AD 1200’s
­ Ottoman Turks took Asia Minor, not much left by AD 1300’s
­ Constantinople fell to the Turks in AD 1453 after a six week siege, ending the Byzantine Empire which had preserved Western heritage for 1000 years following the collapse of Rome
Crusades ­ Byzantine request help from west. Goal: protect Empire from Seljuk Turks (Muslims) and retake Jerusalem (Holy city for Jews, Christians, Muslims)
1st Crusade
­Called by Pope Urban II ­ successful conquest/capture of Jerusalem
2nd Crusade
­quarrels among Christian leadership allowed Muslim victory
3rd Crusade ­“Crusade of Kings” ­ Could not defeat Muslim Saladin (forced to sign truce)
Other crusades (end of): Muslims eventually took back all lands of Palestine
Results:
­ Breakdown of feudalism, increase in royal power, increased contact with advanced Byzantine and Muslim cultural centers (increased trade, tech, arts & literature)
Focus question: Why have the Crusades been referred to as “history’s most successful failure”?
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