AP World History POD #9 – Medieval Europe

1. AP World HistoryPOD #9 – Medieval Europe Byzantine Empire & Kievan Principality

2. Class Discussion Notes Bulliet – “The Byzantine Empire, 600-1200”, pp. 256-259 McKay- “The Byzantine East”, pp. 215-221 Bulliet – “Kievan Russia, 900-1200”, pp. 270-274

3. Big History of the Byzantine Empire • “The Byzantine emperors established Christianity as their official religion. They also represented a continuation of Roman imperial rule and tradition that was largely absent in the kingdoms that succeeded Rome in the west. Byzantium inherited imperial law intact; only provincial forms of Roman law survived in the west. Combining the imperial role with political oversight over the Christian church, the emperors made a comfortable transition into the role of all-powerful Christian monarchs. The Byzantine drama, however, played on a steadily shrinking stage. Territorial loses and almost constant military pressure form north and south deprived the empire of long periods of peace.” (Bulliet, p. 256)

4. What impact did the Byzantine Empire have on the development of Western Europe? • The most important role of the Byzantine Empire was as a preserver of Greco-Roman thoughts and ideas • It protected and later returned this heritage to Western Europe • Roman Empire (476 AD) / Byzantine Empire (1453 AD) / Ottoman Empire (1918 AD)

5. Byzantine Empire … the good • EMPEROR - one single ruler endowed with supreme legal and religious authority prevented the breakup of the Eastern Empire into petty principalities • ECONOMIC PROSPERITY – imperial authority and urban prosperity sheltered Byzantium from many of the economic reverses and population losses experienced by western Europe

6. What is Caesaropapism? • The eastern church became subservient to the Byzantine Empire • Patriarch of Constantinople answered to the emperor • The eastern emperors worked for unanimity of church and state • The Bishop of Rome (Pope) had to repeatedly ask Constantinople for military defense – this help was denied and deepened the split between east and west

7. Byzantine Empire … the bad • TERRITORIAL LOSES weakened the empire as Arab armies destroy the Sasanid Empire and captured Byzantine Egypt, Syria and Tunisia • RELIGIOUS CONVERSION – Islam was both as religious, as well as political challenge – by the end of the 12th century nearly 2/3 of the Christians in former Byzantine lands had concerted to Islam • TECHNOLOGY – technological innovation was slow to develop in large part due to the over involvement of the government in the economy – also because the historic eastern Roman empire was generally wealthier they were slow to recognize the slow deterioration of the empire

8. What caused a religious split between eastern and western Europe? • Disagreement over the Petrine Doctrine – lack of military support for the west from Constantinople • Separation between east and west led to isolation and it is this isolation that bred contempt • Bishop of Rome and Patriarch of Constantinople each excommunicate the other (1054 AD) • West- Roman Catholic Church • East- Orthodox Church

9. Byzantine Empire … the ugly • CRUSADES – western European Crusaders established (although short-lived) Christian principalities as the eastern end of the Mediterranean – these were nearly as hostile to the Byzantines as were the Muslims • SCHISM – in the mid-ninth century the patriarchs of Constantinople challenged the territorial jurisdiction of the popes of Rome as well as some of the practices of the Latin church – by 1054 this disagreement had reached crisis level with the Pope and Patriarch excommunicating each other

10. Constantinople • Merchants from all corners of the known world traveled to this strategically positioned city to buy and sell rare and costly goods • Merchants from all corners of the known world also took note of the crime, corruption of the city, as well as its economic and moral decline

11. Cultural Achievements • Hagia Sophia (“Sacred Wisdom”) Cathedral • Religious Art & Musical Chanting • Cyrillic Alphabet

12. What was Justinian’s Code? • Reserved Roman Law in Byzantine Empire • Reviewed and compiled Roman Law into one code • The Code – compilation of Roman Laws • The Digest – codified Roman legal thought and opinions • The Institutes – handbook of civil law • Justinian Code became the foundation upon which nearly every modern European nation is built

13. Big History … Kievan Principality “Though Latin and Orthodox Christendom followed different paths in later centuries, which had a more promising future was not apparent in 900. The Poles and other Slavic peoples living in the north eventually accepted the Christianity of Rome as taught by German priests and missionaries. The Serbs and other southern Slavs took their faith from Constantinople. The conversion of Keivan Russia, farther to the east, shows how economics, politics, and religious life were closely intertwined. The choice of orthodoxy over Catholicism had important consequences for later European history.” (Bulliet, pp. 270-271)

14. Steppe Economics • Nomads traded animals with farmers for grain • Honey, wax and furs became important items of exchange • East/west trade took place along the steppe caravan while north/south trade used boats on the area rivers • Varangian Traders (Swedish Vikings) entered the steppe to trade as did the Khazar Turks

15. Rus • Refers to the Slavic-speaking peoples ruled by Varangians • Varangian princes and their druzhina (military retainers) lived in cities and were occupied with trade and fending off enemies • Slavs continued to farm

16. Vladimir I • A disgraced ruler from Novgorod returned from exile to Kiev with a band of Varangians and made himself the grand prince of Kievan Russia • Rejected the Islam because of the religion’s ban on alcohol, rejected Judaism the chosen religion of the Khazars and turned down the German (Latin) Christian missionaries • Married a reluctant bride from the Byzantine imperial family and converted to Orthodox Christianity

17. Byzantine Influence on Kiev • Orthodox Christianity • Cyrillic Alphabet • This extension of Orthodox Christianity northward provided a barrier against the eastward expansion of Latin Christianity • Kievan trade became oriented towards Byzantium, ignoring the Muslim world

18. Governing the Kievan Principality • “Christianity eventually triumphed, and its success led to increasing church engagement in political and economic affairs. In the twelfth century, Christian clergy became involved in government administration, some of them collecting fees and taxes related to trade. Direct and indirect revenue from trade provided the rulers with the money they needed to pay their soldiers. The rule of law also spread as Kievan Russia experienced its peak of culture and prosperity in the century before the Mongol invasion of 1237.” (Bulliet, p. 274)