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the byzantine empire essay introduction
Chapter 10: The Byzantine Empire and Russia I. The Byzantine Empire
the byzantine empire essay introduction
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The Byzantine Empire between the 11th and 12th century was a country that was diverse religiously, socially, and culturally. What we now call Byzantium was just an extension of the ancient Roman Empire. The Byzantines or Eastern half was since the time of Augustus the more prosperous and culturally rich part of the empire. The Roman Emperor Constantine had in 330 A.D founded and named after himself a new capital called Constantinople, for the next 1000 years Constantinople would become the center piece of a Greek Empire that would rival the Romans in wealth and power. While the empire had its share of ups and downs historians agree that the empire was a social and military powerhouse and contributed many things to modern society. Although the empire had once covered vast areas from the Crimea Peninsula on the Black Sea to Spain, during the 11th century the empire was on a slow decline, the disastrous Battle of Manzikert at the hands of the Seljuk Sultanate had occurred in 1071 and had left the empire in a dangerous position and suddenly that slow decay that had been taking place for centuries took a turn for the worse and almost brought ruin to the ancient empire. The Byzantines fortunes however changed when a young General by the name of Alexios Komnenos came to power in 1081. Emperor Alexios helped to revive the stagnant empire and brought not only glory for its armies but also fueled a national renaissance that would eventually lead to the European renaissance centuries later.
The 11th and 12th centuries in the Greco-Roman world were in my opinion the most fascinating in the medieval time period. The Byzantines were already by this time very well-known throughout the western world for their rich history and extremely divers...
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...world would never have experienced the explosion of artistic thought that came with the renaissance. It is of my opinion that the world’s greatest kingdom is not the vastly more popular Roman Empire but the Byzantine. They were a beacon of light and helped Europe bridge the hole left behind from the collapse of the Romans and even during the depravity and violence that the middle-ages are known for we can look at the Byzantines and through all their great works of art and magnificent architecture see that mankind can be capable of greatness.
Works Cited
http://www.ancient.eu.com/Byzantine_Empire/ http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/87186/Byzantine-Empire/9244/From-867-to-the-Ottoman-conquest http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/byza/hd_byza.htm http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03096a.htm http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/notes/byzantinechron.html
Did Justinian impact life as we know it because he is such a great ruler, or is he just a follower who keeps trying to hold on to the loose threads of a fallen empire? Some might say that without Justinian, humanity is a step further back. Others may argue evermore that Justinian is a two-faced liar who you cannot trust (Doc. 2). Contrary to many beliefs, Justinian creates a new Byzantine Empire after the fall of Rome that is influential to many different cultures, more advanced and educated than Rome, and more economically thriving than the Roman Empire.
"Between 1453 and 1526 Muslims founded three major states in the Mediterranean, Iran, and South Asia: respectively the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal empire" (Dale 1). Everyone knows the Mediterranean, Iran, and South Asia because of modernization and technology. These regions are seen in newspapers and television for their current status, but not a lot of people have ever considered how they were back in the 15th century. The majority of our generation knows Istanbul, but what about Constantinople? The 15th century was the Gunpowder Empires era in which three major empires ruled the Mediterranean, Iran, and South Asia: Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal. Even though the Mughals were not as successful as the Ottomans, they both share similarities in
Roman Emperor Constantine I founded the Byzantine Empire in 330 CE as a continuation of the Roman Empire in the east. The characteristics of the empire led to the modern definition of “Byzantine,” which means “strangely complicated.” This was true, as in the Byzantine Empire was very chaotic, complex, and strange at times, but it was very massive and influential worldwide. The empire heavily influenced modern religion, laws, and engineering making it worthwhile learning about the empire.
A rise of Seljuk Turks who were a Muslim nomadic warrior group and asserted their political control. Seljuk Turks not only expanded their political control they also took half the Byzantine Empire with them. Byzantine Emperor named Alexius Comnena asked Pope Urban II for assistance to regain former territory the Byzantines had lost. During this time period Emperor Alexius had his daughter Anna
In 476 AD the Eastern Roman Empire also known as the Byzantium Empire was reinventing themselves from the old dynasty, forming a new nation more analogous to a “Middle Eastern State” (Rosenwein 54). This era in history would experience many events that would shape its society. One important event in Europe’s history was the Treaty of Verdun, which in 843 ended the three year Carolingian Civil War. According to Rosenwein “after Louis death a peace was hammered out in the Treaty of Verdun (843). The empire was later divided into three parts, an arrangement that would roughly define the future political contours of Western Europe” (Rosenwein 123). Charles the Bald, Louis the Pious son, would inherit what is now France, while Louis the German would be bequeathed Germany, and the “Middle Kingdom” would become Lothar’s half what is now Italy. The agreement would end the struggle for power within Charlemagne grandsons and a violent war (Rosenwein 123).
Much of past civilizations have endured many failures and triumphs throughout their existence. In the third century, there were many civilizations that started to flourish. One of these civilizations that started to expand was the Byzantine civilization. The Byzantine civilization, also regarded as Byzantium, was part of the Roman Empire which was divided in 395 AD. Byzantium had shared the same attitude, as the Roman Empire, toward exercising its authority over its citizens and throughout its empire. The Islamic civilization had started thrive in the fifth century. The Islamic civilization was unified together as unison by Islam and it has expanded its civilization throughout parts of Europe through jihad. Because of their expansions throughout parts of Europe, they shared various similarities which include their political system, social structure, and economy.
The Byzantine Empire, the eastern half of the Roman Empire, flourished as an impressive medieval civilization. This empire was rich with geography, culture, and trade connections due to its location in Constantinople, the isthmus between Asia and Europe. It also lasted for over a thousand years and reached its height and glory during the sixth century, under the reign of Justinian I (Justinian the Great) and his empress, Theodora. They both came from the lower class and gained status to work their way to being rulers of the empire. Justinian and Theodora are important figures in history because they ruled the Byzantine Empire at its height and made many reforms during that time which many still exist today.
Though one should consider the argument by some historians that the Byzantine Empire was really a continuation of the Roman empire and not in fact a new entity. The Byzantine Empire had been formed in Late Antiquity by the splitting of the Roman empire between the two heirs of Theodosius I. While the two halves retained some ties for all intents and purposes the two were independent entities after 395 CE. While the Western Empire continued to decline, the Byzantines actually flourished and by the 4th century included the Balkans, Greece, Anatolia (Asia Minor), the Levant, and parts of North Africa including Egypt. While Byzantium’s power fluctuated, especially during conflicts with the Islamic civilization and during internal wars, for the majority of its history the Byzantine Empire was a strong political, cultural and economic power in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Significant conflicts in the 11th century caused the Byzantine Empire to decline and this decline was made worse by the Sack of Constantinople in 1204 by the Venetian Crusaders. After this defeat, Byzantium was split into two portions and remained so until 1261 when it was reunified. However, the damage was done and internal conflict and civil war continued to plague the Empire until it ultimately was destroyed by the Ottoman Turks in
...ed in times of good fortunes, and expansion. While during times of instability the artistic ingenuity would stagnate. Finally at the end of the empire, the art quality would decrease as the empire was deteriorating. This deterioration in art quality would continue for decades until the Renaissance would bring back an art quality on the level of that of ancient Rome under the Antonines. The type of art being created could be used as a very good indicator of what the political scene in Rome looked like at the time.
Byzantine culture begins with the establishment of the city Constantinople by Emperor Constantine in 330 AD. This is considered by some historians to be the beginning of Byzantium, the term for the Eastern Roman Empire. Other historians argue that Byzantium was only established after the fall of the empire in the West in 476 (Loverance 6). The Byzantines continued many Roman traditions, but as time went on, Byzantine culture became more and more distant from that of the Romans.
“The greatest in living, lies not in ever failing, but rising every time we fall. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela” The Byzantine and Islamic Empires were both strong and secure empires with many strengths and flaws, but when they came together, they formed an empire that could never be broken. The empires shaped and grew strong because of religion and their economy.
Yes the Byzantine Empire restored the former glory of the Roman Empire. The Byzantine Empire restored the former glory, of the Roman Empire because they conquered parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. While the Byzantine Empire was smaller than the Roman Empire both created influential art. Both of the Empires fell because of conquest. The Roman Empire had revolutionary ideas and advances; aqueducts, concrete, arches, etc. The Byzantine Empire also advances; counterweight trebuchet. The Byzantine Empire was a revolutionary empire because it stretched from ancient times up until modern ones. This is important because they had aspects that the Roman Empire did not have. The Roman Empire was always changing is makes it very similar to Byzantine Empire.
The Renaissance, also known as the Middle Ages, is very historic because of the wealth and power that it held. Through economic and political aspects, it flourished into the ripe environment that it is known of today. Although the culture
The Renaissance was a time when people began to think and see things differently. It was a time for new innovations. People wanted to study the past and learn more about culture. People began to see important in human emotion, and they began to see that there was much more rather than just religion. Europe was facing many problems like the Black Death. But the problems caused a shift in the world view of people in 14th century Italy. During the early 1400’s, Europe witnessed a major rebirth of fine art painting, sculpture, drawing and architecture. Early Renaissance art had its birth of creativity and development in Florence, Italy, which eventually spread to Western Europe. Italy contained the status of being the richest trading nation with both Europe and the Orient, Italy was fortunate to be left with a huge repository of classical ruins and artifacts. In almost every town and city, examples of Roman architecture and sculpture, including copies of sculptures from Ancient Greece, had been familiar for centuries. The decline of Constantinople and the capital of the Byzantine Empire caused many Greek scholars to go to Italy, bringing knowl...
In conclusion, we see that Justinian had many great achievements like his conquering of many countries and his code of laws. His laws were foundations for other countries laws and he made a huge impact on the Byzantine Empire and the countries surrounding it. The byzantine empire was able to last for so long was because of its geography of the empire and because the byzantine empire controlled most of the medditerean sea. The Byzantines also influenced later civilizations through architect and