The Byzantine Empire
Professor Sarolta A. Takács
History 510:205 ONLINE
Fall 2015
Office: Van Dyck Hall 219
E-Mail: [email protected]
SKYPE: thinkromeru
Office Hours: TBA
Phone: 848-932-8534
Twitter: @drtakacsbyz
Online Portal (Learning Management System) Sakai: https://sakai.rutgers.edu/portal
Course Description
This course surveys the genesis, growth, decline and fall of Byzantium — the medieval “Empire of the Romans,”
centered for over a millennium at Constantinople — as the dominant political, economic, and cultural force in
southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. We begin with a concise survey of its fundamental institutional foundations in
Late Antiquity (3rd-6th centuries); examine thereafter the evolution of a predominantly Greek-speaking “Byzantine”
state and culture in the 7th and 8th centuries, in protracted periods of crisis; explore next the remarkable flowering of
Byzantium as a genuine “imperial power” in the 9 th-early 11th centuries; assess the causes and character of its
astonishing metamorphosis into a declining power throughout the 11 th and 12th centuries; and plot its rapid
contraction and eventual extinction through dynamics of internal disintegration, and external assault (European,
Turkish), down to the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman sultan, Mehmmed the Conqueror, in 1453.
We will pay special attention to primary sources – historiography, numismatics, art, and architecture – and how they
influence our understanding of the Byzantine empire.
Please note that this is a fully online course. You are expected to work through the assigned reading etc., in each
weekly lesson, on a regular and disciplined basis. You should recognize that successfully navigating an online course is
academically challenging, since they will accomplish virtually all of their work on an independent basis. Thus,
successfully completing the course will require a significant time commitment, involving digesting of assigned
materials, becoming familiar with Sakai protocols and tools, engaging in online assessments.
Course Learning Objectives
After the successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- Restate a broad knowledge of significant historical events related to the Byzantine empire;
- Illustrate aspects of Byzantine politics, society, and culture;
- Explain broadly how the Byzantine empire's socio-political and cultural transformations impacted the
development of societies in the Eastern Mediterranean.
These objectives will align with the conceptual and practical learning goals set out by the History Department.
Conceptual Learning Goals. In this course, you will develop an understanding of the following concepts:
How individuals are shaped by their own past and by the past of their society and institutions;
The role of human agency in bringing about change in society and institutions;
The operation of large-scale forces responsible for causing change over time, such as politics, economics, and
religion;
The role of diversity and difference in shaping human experience;
The nature of cause-and-effect relationships in human affairs as they have played out over time and as they
continue to operate in the present.
Practical Learning Goals. In this course, you will develop an understanding of the following practical skills:
The ability to read and understand a variety of primary sources, as outlined above, as well as secondary
sources written in academic prose;
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The ability to analyze information effectively and to construct cause-and-effect relationships from disparate
data sources;
The ability to write persuasively and communicate effectively;
The ability to work independently and to conduct independent research.
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Required Books
Gregory, Timothy. A History of Byzantium, 2nd ed. (Chichester, 2010), ISBN: 978-1-4051-8471-7.
Recommended Books
Harry Turtledove, The Tale of Krispos (Del Rey Books), ISBN 978-0-3454-6720-1
The components of the Course Grade are as follows:
15% = Examination #1
25% = Examination #2
10% = Weekly Quizzes
50% = 5 Graded Online Exercises #1-5 (calculated on 10 points each)
Your grade will be calculated along the following scale:
100%-90% = A
74% - 70% = C
89% - 85% = B+
69% - 65% = D
84% - 80% = B
64% and below = F
79% - 75% = C+
I DON’T NEGOTIATE GRADES!
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Academic Honesty
Cheating on tests or plagiarizing in assigned work deprives you of the educational benefits of preparing these materials
appropriately. It is also personally dishonest and unfair because it gives you an undeserved advantage over your
fellow students who are graded on the basis of their own work.
Following the Rutgers History Department policy on these matters, cheating and plagiarism will be treated as the
serious offenses they are and such submissions will receive an “F”. Suspected cases will be referred to the Office of
Judicial Affairs and will be punished with penalties that are appropriate to the gravity of the infraction. For
comprehending this policy, please visit the website of the Rutgers Office of Student Conduct, in particular the pages
under "Academic Integrity": http://studentconduct.rutgers.edu .For more information:
http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/resources-for-students.
Netiquette
Please think before you send an email to me. As with any correspondence, emails should be composed carefully to
convey the intended message. Remember that a reader of your message does not have access to the normal visual or
auditory cues of a conversation. A tongue-in-cheek message or a joke may be easily misinterpreted in an electronic
format.
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ALL CAPS are the electronic equivalent of SHOUTING.
Salutations. Your email is a method of communication so use the traditional salutations, such as Dear
Professor, Dear Dr., Dear Ms., Dear Mr. unless you are emailing your friends or close family. Be courteous.
Grammar. Rules of spelling, grammar, and syntax still prevail. So, check your usage.
The Subject box (getting your message read). Most people get many emails a day and many tend to skim
their inboxes quickly. If you want your email to be read, highlight its importance with a subject line that
conveys the content of your message.
The message (short but sweet). Two or three short paragraphs is usually the maximum most people can (or
want to) read. Use the tried-but-true Who What Where When and Why, which makes a message easier to
read and more informative.
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Attachments (less is more). Not everyone has a super fast connection, so if you send a huge attachment it
could take time to download. Unless it is vital to your message, avoid attachments.
Final tip. Break up your email into smaller paragraphs and use asterisks for bolding (not every email program
accepts traditional bolding, so to be *sure*, you can use asterisks).
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How to prepare for class in general?
Always read the assignments. Try to explore beyond the assigned. Analyze and reflect.
How to prepare and read material for class, ask the following basic questions:
Who, when, what, how, and why? Then, what is the thesis, or what are the main points of this reading?
If it is a secondary source, what types of evidence does its author use to support the argument or points he/she is
making? If it is a primary source, when was it written, and why? How does this reading illuminate the class topic for
the week?
Studying History: http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/sbook1a.asp
Maps: http://awmc.unc.edu/wordpress/free-maps/ and http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/sbookmap.asp
This syllabus may be subject to change.
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Part 1: The Late Antique Foundations of Byzantium (late 3rd-late 6th centuries)
Gregory, History, pp. 1-128 (do not be overwhelmed – read as more detailed overview)
Week 1
Course Introduction
From Rome to Byzantium
Week 2
Constantine I and Rome’s New Religion
The Imperial Ideal, a Closer Look at the Virtues of an Emperor
Week 3
Readings: Gregory, History 129-159
Justinian I
Theodora
Part 2: Grim Survival & Rebuilding: 7th – early 8th Centuries
Week 4
Readings: Gregory, History, pp. 191-196; Laiou-Morrison, Byzantine Economy, pp. 23-42 (Sakai)
Rebuilding the Army and Reorganizing Defense
Heraclius: The First Byzantine Emperor
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Week 5
Byzantium’s Life & Death Struggle with the Arabs
Readings: Gregory, History, 160-197
The Early Byzantine View of Islam (Additional Readings: Meyendorff at http://www.jstor.org/stable/1291209)
The Arab Struggle to Conquer Constantinople
Week 6
Looking West: Merovingians and Carolingians
Readings: Einhard and Meyendorff Byzantine Theologies (Sakai)
Christian Theologies
Charlemagne
Week 7
An Empire under Duress: Icons in Trouble (Iconoclasm)
Readings: Gregory, History, pp. 198-235
Iconoclasm (Additional Readings: Documents of Iconoclasm)
The “Emperor” Irene
Part 3: Revival & Expansion, early 8th – mid 11th Centuries
Week 8
Urban Revival and Socioeconomic Expansion
Readings: Gregory, History, 235-264 and Laiou-Morrison, Byzantine Empire, 90-165 (Sakai)
The Macedonian Renaissance
Texture of Byzantine Urban Life and Economy in an “Age of Expansion”
Week 9
Revived Imperialism: Byzantium and the Southern Slavs
Readings: Selections from Michael Psellos
Christianized Bulgaria and Its Political Significance
Basil II Bulgaroktonos
Week 10
Revived Imperialism: Byzantium and the Eastern Arabs
Readings: Gregory, History, 242-264
The Age of the Warrior Emperor
“Byzantine Crusading”
Week 11
Constantinople at the Height of Its Medieval Glory
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The Imperial Court
The Liturgies of Ceremony and the Arts of Diplomacy (Readings: Luitprand of Cremona and Constantine VII)
Part 4: From the “Golden Age” to Catastrophe (1025-1204)
Week 12
Dimensions of Weakening and Destabilization
Readings: Gregory, History, 265-299
Factionalization of Leadership and Its Consequences
Turks and Crusaders
Week 13
Recovery Attempts
Readings: Gregory, History, 290-329
The Komneni
The 1st Crusade
Part 5: Final Act (1204-1453)
Week 14
Readings: Gregory, History, 330-420, Laiou-Morrison, Byzantine Economy, 166-230 (Sakai)
The 4th Crusade and the Fate of Byzantium
The Palaiologan Recovery Plan
Week 15
Irreversible Decline and Ottoman Conquest
The Ottomans
Ottoman Expansion and Absorption of Byzantium
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