330 C.E..

1. Chronology of the Byzantine Empire Please draw the following timeline in your notebook. 622C.E. 1081C.E. 867C.E. 529 C.E. 620C.E. 527 C.E. 532 C.E. 541 C.E. 476 C.E. 395 C.E. 989C.E. 1025C.E. 1054C.E. 1071C.E. 1095C.E. 1204C.E. 330 C.E.. 550 C.E. 565C.E. 537 C.E. 976C.E. 1453C.E. 518 C.E.

2. 330 C.E. After six years of construction, the Ancient city of Byzantium becomes the new capital of the Roman Empire. The city is renamed Constantinople. 330 C.E..

3. 395 C.E. Emperor Theodosius permanently divides the Roman Empire into eastern and western halves. 395 C.E.

4. 476 C.E. The Western Roman Empire is officially ended when Emperor Romulus is deposed. The territory of the Western Empire will be carved up and claimed by various Germanic tribes. The Eastern Roman Empire remains intact for another 1000 years. To distinguish this period of time, historians refer to the Eastern Roman Empire as the Byzantine Empire. 476 C.E.

5. 518 C.E. A soldier named Justin becomes the Byzantine Emperor. He was 65 years old at the time, and was not born into a noble family. Although he was illiterate, he became the commander of the palace guard in Constantinople and was elected emperor when the former emperor died. When he became emperor he adopted his peasant nephew, Flavius Petrus Sabbatius, and brought his to the capital as an advisor. 518 C.E.

6. 527 C.E. Emperor Justinian comes to the throne. He is considered to be the last “Roman” Emperor because he spoke Latin, was clean shaven, and considered himself to be Roman. Considered to be Christ’s co-ruler on earth, he would reconquer much of the Western Roman Empire. 527 C.E.

7. 529 C.E. Justinian’s law code begins to be published. Known as the Corpus Juris Civilisor “Body of Civil Law”, it was a collection of all the laws issued throughout the centuries of the Roman Empire. Many law codes in Europe today can trace their roots back to Justinian’s Law Code. 529 C.E.

8. 532 C.E. The Nika Riots. During a chariot race the supporters of the two most popular teams began to chant “Nika” in unison. This meant “conquer”, and was directed towards Emperor Justinian. After being convinced by his wife Theodora to stay in the capital, Justinian slaughtered 30,000 rioters and solidified his status as emperor. 532 C.E.

9. 537 C.E. Construction of the Hagia Sophia is completed. The church that had originally been on this site was destroyed during the Nika Riots. This church would later be converted into a mosque under the Ottomans. 537 C.E.

10. 541 C.E. The Plague of Justinian. This bubonic plague killed thousands of people throughout the empire severely damaging the economy and Justinian’s tax base which he relied on to wage his wars. Necrosis was a common characteristic of the plague. Necrosis is when the tissue cells begin to die prematurely and parts of the body begin to disintegrate. Amputation of the affected limb is the most reliable cure. 541 C.E.

11. 550 C.E. By this time, Justinian had reconquered much of the former Western Roman Empire. 550 C.E.

12. 565 C.E. Emperor Justinian dies. At the time of his death, the empire had expanded to its greatest size. It would steadily decrease in size for the next 888 years. 565C.E.

13. 620 C.E. The official language of the Empire is changed from Latin to Greekunder the rule of Emperor Heraclius. 620C.E.

14. 622 C.E. The Hijra. Muhammad and his followers leave Mecca for Medina and officially begin the expansion of Islam. Over The next 100 years, the Byzantines would lose much of their territory to the Muslims. 622C.E.

15. 867 C.E. By this time, the Lombards had taken most of Italy and the Arabs had conquered all of North Africa. 867C.E.

16. 976 C.E. Basil II becomes the Byzantine Emperor. Nicknamed the Bulgar-Slayer, he was responsible for conquering the area of modern day Bulgaria and re-establishing the Danube River as the northern border of the empire. 976C.E.

17. 989 C.E. Basil II allows for his sister Anna to be married to Vladimir the Great, Ruler of the Kieven Rus. This marriage would have far reaching effects for both Empires and for Christianity as well. 989C.E.

18. 1025 C.E. Basil II dies. The Byzantine Empire begins a period of long decline. The map to the right shows the empire at the time of Basil’s death. 1025C.E.

19. 1054 C.E. The East-West Schism in which Catholic (western) and Orthodox (eastern) Christianity split. The Pope and the Patriarch simultaneously excommunicated each other. 1054C.E.

20. 1071 C.E. The Battle of Manzikert. This decisive victory by the Seljuk Turks in which Emperor Romanos was captured led to the Turkish takeover of Asia Minor. 1071C.E.

21. 1081 C.E. Anatolia is almost completely lost to the Seljuk Turks. These new rulers imposed harsh restrictions for Christian pilgrimages which had not been the case under previous Muslim empires. 1081C.E.

22. 1095 C.E. The first crusade begins when Pope Urban II calls on Western Christians to take up arms and help re-conquer Anatolia and the Holy Land from the Seljuk Turks. This came as a response to the request by Byzantine Emperor AlexiosI Komnenos. Hey Urban! Help a brother out! Alright Alexios, I’ll see what I can do. 1095C.E.

23. 1204 C.E. The crusaders of the fourth crusade who had set out to capture Jerusalem instead sacked the city of Constantinople. 1204C.E.

24. After the fourth crusade, the remaining Byzantine Empire was divided into four different parts. It would never truly recover from the damage done in 1204.

25. This was the Byzantine Empire in the year 1400 C.E., 53 years before it’s final demise. Most of its territory had been lost, however Constantinople remained an extremely lucrative and strategically important city.

26. 1453 C.E. The Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks. The Ottomans would rename the city Istanbul and it would remain their capital until 1923. 1453C.E.