Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

• The Roman Emperor Constantine started the Byzantine Empire when he moved the capital of Rome to Byzantium (Today the city is called Istanbul in Turkey)

• Christian Empire and religion was very important• Name changed to Constantinople to honor

Constantine and by 500 AD, 500,000 people lived there

• Huge city with markets, baths, paved roads, and a circus (just like Rome)

Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire• Trade center: Crossroads for trade from Europe to Asia, Europe to Africa,

and Asia to Africa

• It was the largest, greatest empire of the middle ages

Byzantine Empire• Justinian was one of Byzantine’s greatest rulers• Became emperor in 527 AD• Wrote a code of law for all Byzantine people to

understand• The Justinian Code was not only the law of the

empire, it was a blueprint for most modern law systems in Europe today

• Justinian law preserved Greek, Roman, and Christian culture and traditions

• People living in the Byzantine Empire called themselves Romans

Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire• Byzantine Empire was constantly at war with Germanic

tribes (Vandals, Goths), Persians, Arabs, and finally the Turks

• The Empire gained and lost and regained territory for 1000 years

• Byzantine emperors were the leaders of the government and the church

• In 1054, the church split into the Roman Catholic Church in the west and the Greek Orthodox Church in the east

• This split weakened the Empire• In 1453, the Turks captured Constantinople, and the

Byzantine Empire ended.