The Byzantine Empire

Chapter 8 took us all over the mid-east, talking about the different cultures and people, but by far the best off and most impressive group were the Byzantines. While the west half of the old Roman empire was getting pummeled by invading barbarians, the east half was prospering. Not only were the barbarians leaving them alone for the most part, but they also had an excellent leader. His name was Justinian, and he ruled from A.D. 527-565. He is most noted for his organizing of the laws, which he did in 528. He put them in to four parts; The Code, The Digest, The Institutes, and The Novels. The Code consisted mostly of laws dealing with religion. The Digest contained summaries done by great Roman legal experts. The Institute section had the basic principals of Roman law in it. And The Novels consisted of new laws, from 534-565. He also ordered the construction of a very famous church in 532, the Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom). He did a great job, but had help from two very important people. First, his wife Theodora. She married him in 525 and pressured him greatly to change the rights of women, which he did. He passed new laws that gave women rights that were unheard of during those times.

The second important person was his commander in chief, Belisarius. He was an excellent, smart commander and no doubt kept the Byzantines safe through their times of trouble, although there weren't many of them up until the mid 700's. In 565, Justinian died.

During the 600's, the Byzantine Empire faced the Muslim Empire. By 650, the eastern empire consisted of a little more than Asia Minor, but they remained strong. They definitely didn't just survive off of luck, they had a very strong political, military, and economic system. Their political strengths contributed to their endurance because they had a great centralized government and democracy. They also had good bureaucrats and they kept them happy by paying them well which kept most of them loyal. Also, they arranged marriages between royals from their empire with royals in foreign countries, which kept them safe from that country. They also were known to provoke neighboring countries to attack other neighboring countries, which kept the countries busy and a way from their empire.

The empire's military remained strong because they paid their soldiers well and also offered them land grants. This kept the soldiers loyal and also got more to enlist. They also improved their weapons and built a strong navy. They came up with "Greek Fire", which was a chemical mixture that was sprayed or flung at enemy ships. It then burst in to flames. This gave them the upper hand in most naval battles. They also were smart enough to use natural boundaries to their advantage.

The empire's economy was prosperous because they had a city that was in a perfect spot, which made it the center of trade. This city was Constantinople, and it regulated and promoted business. They also had prosperous agriculture and manufacturing since they were at the center of everything.

Religion also played a big role in the Byzantine Empire. The Patriarch of Constantinople held the most church power, which was different from the west because the Pope had the most power there. This led to a few arguments, and eventually both the Pope and Patriarch were excommunicated, or barred from taking part in any church ceremonies. The Pope had excommunicated the Patriarch and around the same time the Patriarch excommunicated the Pope. In 1054, the Catholic church split apart. In the west, it became known as the Roman Catholic Church and in the east, the Eastern Orthodox Church. The two remain separate today.

While all of the commotion in the church was going on, there was a quieter side to the Byzantine Empire. Two missionary