THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE During the ten and a half centuries that the Byzantine Empire lasted its boundaries continually changed Barbarian Western and Arabic conquerors captured territories that were sometimes retaken by the Byzantines before being lost again At its largest the Byzantine Empire included Greece Italy Egypt Syria North Africa and southern Spain At its weak est it consisted of just a few scattered outposts far from Constantinople Comprising numerous ethnic groups Byzantium was also a melting pot and the empire was characterized during its earlier centuries by a degree of social mobility that goes against the oft applied ste reotype of a rigid caste based society FRANCE Venice Genoa Ravenna Black Sea SPAIN Danube LGARIA Corsica ALY Rome Trebizond Sardinia SERBIA GARI Constantinople BU MACEDONIA Byzantium THESSALONICA Nicea ASIA GREECE MINOR Naples Athens NORTH AFRICA Sicily Syracuse SYRIA Cyprus Crete Mediterranean Sea BYZANTINE EMPIRE Extent of the empire under Justinian I 527 565 PALESTINE Jerusalem The empire in about 1020 EGYPT The empire in about 1360 0 0 100 200 300 mi 200400 km Encyclopædia Britannica Inc The boundaries of the Byzantine Empire were constantly in flux This map shows the extent of the empire's territory at three distinct points in its history
Early Byzantine court dress is pictured in a mosaic that was probably completed during the sixth century Byzantine garments were traditionally ornamented with gems and precious metals and were frequently woven with silk and gold threads For centuries Byzantines enjoyed their status as the most powerful and influential people in Europe and the Middle East Scholars preserved the literature of Rome and Greece through the darkest centuries of the Middle Ages Statesmen developed pioneering legal codes which were used as a basis for imperial monarchies for more than one thousand years Artists 7 INTRODUCTION
THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE created a distinctive style of mosaic work painting and domed architecture which influenced the cultures of Greece Italy Spain and Russia The Byzantine state religion Eastern Orthodox Christianity became dominant in the Balkan and Russian kingdoms as well as in Greece By the virtue of philanthropy which the Byzantines prized and commended in their rulers their contributions to the world were many 8
THE EARLY PERIOD RISE OF THE BYZANTINES The first era of the Byzantine civilization lasted from about 324 to 640 CE During this time the empire established its separate identity from the West The Byzantine Empire formally split from Rome in 395 following the death of Emperor Theodosius I His seventeen-year-old son Arcadius ruled the Eastern Eastern Empire from Constantinople while his ten-year-old ten-year-old son Honorius was given the Western Empire to rule from Milan This division considered temporary at the time actually remained permanent BARBARIC INVADERS AND RELIGIOUS DISPUTES Conflict both at home and abroad plagued the first years of the Byzantine Empire Hordes of barbarian people eager for land and power pushed at its boundaries boundaries during the fifth century The Vandals invaded 9 Chapter 1
