Mayer - World History - Byzantine Empire

1. The Byzantine Empire 476 AD – 1453 AD

2. What? • The Byzantine Empire are the successors of the Roman Empire. They create a huge trading empire and maintain a strong presence in Europe and the Middle East for a thousand years. • When? • 476 A.D. – 1453 A.D. • Where? • The Byzantine Empire stretched from Greece in southern Europe to the Middle East and into Northern Africa. • Who? • We will focus on the creators and destroyers of the Byzantine Empire; paying special attention to its greatest emperor, Justinian.

3. WORD WALL mercenary bankrupt

4. Topic 1: Fall of the Roman Empire

5. Learning Goal • Students will be able to identify the major problems within the Roman Empire and explain how those problems led to the division and fall of the Roman Empire.

6. Roman Problems • Rome was the largest of the ancient civilizations; but its size led to serious problems that decayed the empire. • Size – Roman Empire was over 2.5 million square miles at its peak. Romans were unable to recruit a large enough army to defend it. Began paying foreign mercenaries to defend their borders. Mercenaries were unreliable and sometimes turned against Rome. Would also blackmail empire for land and money. • Poor leadership – After 117 AD, Rome had a long line of very bad emperors. Emperors like Nero and Caligula ignore the security of the empire in favor of their lavish lifestyle in Rome. Spend billions on games, monuments, and parties.

7. Roman Problems • Bankruptcy – Cost of the Roman Army ate up 80% of annual budget. Poor emperors blew through the remaining money on unbelievable lifestyles. Basic public works like aqueducts, sewers, roads, schools were ignored. • Civil War – Roman generals far away from Rome were basically independent. Armies often fought each other instead of Rome’s enemies. Powerful generals would march into Rome and take over as emperor. Also, as Christianity spread Christians and followers of the old Roman gods would clash and riot against each other. • By the late 200’s AD there was in constant chaos.

8. Fall of Rome • 284 AD – Emperor Diocletian divides the Roman Empire in two to make it more manageable. • Western Roman Empire = Spain, Italy, France, England and North Africa; ruled from Rome. • Eastern Roman Empire = Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, and Egypt; ruled from Byzantium. • Only makes the two halves more vulnerable. Western and Eastern Emperor begin dangerous rivalry, refuse to assist one another against enemies. Sometimes even war with each other.

10. Fall of Rome • 337 AD – Western Roman Emperor Constantine tries to reunite the empire. Moves the capital from Rome to Byzantium in the eastern empire and renames it Constantinople. Increases the power of the East and reduces the power of the West. • 378 AD – Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius attempts to put an end to religious wars in the empire by making Christianity the official religion. Makes Constantinople a very important Christian city and reduces the power of the West even further. • 410-476 AD – Germanic barbarians invade the Western Roman Empire repeatedly and capture and loot Rome. In 476, the Goths officially end the Western Roman Empire by murdering the emperor and taking control of Italy.

11. Summary – Essential Question • What were the major problems within the Roman Empire? • The major problems within the Roman Empire were _____________________________.

12. Summary – Essential Question • How did those problems lead to the division and fall of the Roman Empire? • Those problems led to the division and fall of the Roman Empire by _____________________________. • Elaboration • Evidence • 1. • 2. • 3.

13. Learning Scale 4 – I can tell you the major problems faced by the Western Roman Empire and explain how certain events caused a decline in their power and led to their destruction. 3 – I can tell you the major problems faced by the Western Roman Empire and explain how they caused a decline in Roman power. 2 – I can recall the major problems and events in the Western Roman Empire, but I can’t explain how they caused its downfall. 1 – I can’t remember any of the major problems faced by the Western Roman Empire.

14. Topic 2: The Rise of the Byzantine Empire

15. Learning Goal • Students will be able to explain the creation of the Byzantine Empire and identify the main reason for its success and importance.

16. Creation of the Byzantine Empire • After the fall of Rome the Eastern Roman Empire thrives. No longer have a sister empire to compete with. • Eastern Empire considers themselves Roman, but with Rome no longer the center of power they begin to distance themselves. • Create a new culture based on Greek, Middle Eastern, and North African influences. • Greek becomes official language • Make changes to Christianity, break off from Roman Catholic Church. Form the Eastern Orthodox Church. • Grow their power and wealth based on trade and taxation instead of conquest and looting as Rome did. • Empire is centered around the capital Constantinople. Its location makes it incredibly important and powerful.

17. Creation of the Byzantine Empire • Location, Location, Location: • Being divided by the Bosporus Strait makes the city almost impossible to conquer. City is easy to defend and enemies must capture two separate cities. • By controlling both sides of the Bosporus, Constantinople controls the gateway between Europe and Asia as well as the entrance to the Black Sea. They rake in millions in taxes a year. • Constantinople becomes a world-wide center of trade. Goods come from everywhere to be traded or transported and Constantinople quickly becomes the richest city on Earth.

21. Justinian • The Byzantine Empire reaches its most powerful under Emperor Justinian(527-565 AD). • Justinian is a ruthless dictator who is obsessed with rebuilding the old Roman Empire and creating a legacy for himself.

22. Justinian • “Reconqusita” – Justinian launches several wars to retake the Western Empire. He is able to recapture Italy and makes it as far as Spain. • Building: • Justinian is obsessed with making Constantinople the greatest city in the world. He builds the largest Christian church at that time, the Hagia Sophia. • He expands the Hippodrome, the horse racing arena, to seat 100,000; making it the largest arena in the world. To celebrate he has 4 life-size chariot horses made of bronze created and places them at the entrance of the Hippodrome. • Law making – Justinian creates the most comprehensive code of laws in existence at that time. It goes on to influence modern law in Europe and the United States.

27. Summary – Essential Question • How was the Byzantine Empire created? • The Byzantine Empire was created by _________________. • Elaboration • Evidence • 1. • 2. • 3.

28. Summary – Essential Question • What was the main reason for its success and importance? • The main reason for its success and importance was _____________________________.

29. Learning Scale 4 – I can tell you about how the Byzantine empire was created and how their location and leadership led to their success. 3 – I can tell you how the Byzantine Empire was created and the factors that led to their success. 2 – I can tell you what the made the Byzantine Empire successful. 1 – I can’t remember anything about how the Byzantine Empire was created, or why they were successful.

30. Topic 3: The Code of Justinian

31. Learning Goal • Students will be able to demonstrate the influence of Justinian’s Code in modern law-making and compare and contrast Justinian’s Code to later and earlier examples.

32. Justinian’s longest lasting achievement was not his wars or his buildings, but his laws. • As his empire grew, Justinian was bothered that not every part of his empire followed the same laws. In many places, the local laws were different or contradictory to the laws in Constantinople. • To unify and simplify the confusing laws around his empire, Justinian hires more than 10,000 lawyers and has them work for 14 months creating, getting rid of, and rewriting 600 years of Roman laws into one code. “Corpus Juris Civilis” (Body of Civil Law)

33. “Corpus Juris Civilis” (Body of Civil Law) • In 534, the Corpus Juris Civilisis released with nearly 4000 laws that cover everything from robbery and murder to adoption and the treatment of women. It is very modern compared to other law codes of the time. • Women are given nearly equal treatment as men, except when it comes to marriage and property. It forbids mistreatment of slaves. It also avoids the uses of corporal (physical) punishment for most crimes. • The Corpus Juris becomes the handbook for lawmaking in medieval times. Copies are sent to every corner of the Byzantine Empire and become the standard for writing laws. Most medieval European countries copy the Corpus Juris when creating their own laws; including France, Italy, Spain, and England. • From these countries, the Corpus Juris makes its way to the Americas, where it heavily influences laws in the United States.

34. Justinian’s Code Close Reading - Written Reflection (Answer in complete sentences & cite specific text to support) • Which code of law handled the situation correctly in your opinion, modern or Justinian? And why? • How was the modern law influenced, or even copied directly, from Justinian’s Code? • How has the modern law has been changed from Justinian’s Code? Do you agree with the change? Next Level Thinking (10% Extra Credit) • Research the famous ancient law code of Hammurabi(Babylonian). Find out how that law code would have dealt with your scenario as compared to the Corpus Juris. As civilization has progressed, what changes do you notice in the handling of legal matters? Which method of justice do you think is more fair? Which do you think is more effective?

35. Learning Scale 4 – I can show you examples of how modern law was influenced by Justinian’s Code and demonstrate the similarities and differences between the two. 3 – I can demonstrate the similarities and differences between the Justinian’s law code and modern law codes. 2 – I can show you examples of how modern law was influenced by Justinian’s Code. 1 – I don’t see any similarities or differences between Justinian’s code and modern law.

36. Topic 4: The Slow Death of the Byzantine Empire

37. Learning Goal • Students will be able to recall the reasons for the slow and steady decline of the Byzantine Empire.

38. The Slow Death of the Byzantine Empire • The end of the Byzantine Empire does not come all at once and has many causes. • Justinian’s wars, building, and obsession with greatness drain the Byzantine Empire and it’s treasury; bankrupting the empire. • Later emperors were not as strong or gifted as Justinian and unable to maintain his achievements. The Reconquista lands are lost. • Bankruptcy and civil wars would be a problem for the next several hundred years, but the Byzantine Empire’s biggest problem would be a clash of religions.

39. The Slow Death of the Byzantine Empire • In 622 AD Islam is founded in Arabia. It soon spreads throughout the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. All followers of Islam, called Muslims, swear allegiance to the leader of Islam which creates a huge religious and political empire. • This Islamic Empire spreads and overpowers the Middle East and the Byzantine Empire. • 1065 AD - Byzantine Empire asks for help from Christians in Europe to defeat the Muslim empire and recapture the Holy Land. Around 40,000 Christians from Europe form an army to recapture the Holy Land. This becomes known as the Crusades.

40. The Slow Death of the Byzantine Empire • For the next 200 years Christians from Europe come to fight in the Middle East. But they have no intention of returning the land the Byzantine Empire. They set up their own kingdoms and end up attacking and taking Byzantine land. • In 1260, Crusaders from Europe actually attack and sack Constantinople, leaving the Byzantines weak, poor, and almost defenseless. • The Crusaders eventually lose interest in the Holy Land and return to Europe, which leaves the weakened Byzantines to be conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

41. Summary – Essential Question • What were the reasons for the slow and steady decline of the Byzantine Empire? • The reasons for the slow and steady decline of the Byzantine Empire were _____________________________.

42. Learning Scale 4 – I can tell you the reasons why the Byzantine Empire fell and explain how it happened. 3 – I can tell you the reasons for the fall of the Byzantine Empire. 2 – I can tell you some reasons for the fall of the Byzantine Empire. 1 – I have no idea why the Byzantine Empire was destroyed.