AP World

Who was Constantine? Who did he replace and what land? What was he known for?

Constantine was the ruler of the Western Roman Empire. However, he defeated his brother-in-law, Lucinius, and ruled all of Rome. He was known for spreading Christianity in Rome.

What new capital city did Constantine build? Why?

• After Constantine defeated Lucinius (his brother in law) in 324 CE, he began to build a new capital city on the site of a town named “Byzantium.”  Constantine believed that proximity to the wealth of the east was highly important. 

Who was Theodosius? Why was he important?

Theodosius was chosen to be a Roman general after emperor Valens lost much of the Roman army. He was the first emperor to be baptized and he enforced Christianity, causing Paganism to decline.

Why did the Roman Empire decline?

Part of Western Rome’s downfall was because of the constant invasions from the Germanic people. Germanic leaders such as Clovis filled the power vacuum left behind by the Roman empire.

Who was en emperor for all of Rome? Who was only an emperor for the Byzantine empire?

Constantine, Licinius = all of Rome. Theodosius and Justinian = Byzantine empire.

Who is Justinian? Why is he important?

Justinian was the last Byzantine emperor to have a Latin speaking court. After him, fGreek prevailed. He was able to regain most of the land that the germanic tribes took. He built the Hagia Sophia, a church with innovative construction. He is also known for the code of Justinian, which is a code of laws that he reformed.

What was the geography of Constantinople?

• The city itself was located in a position that made it almost impossible to assail with traditional means.  Located on the European side of the Bosporus with an excellent harbor, its peninsular geography gave it a defensive advantage.

What group inherited the Western Roman Empire?

Germanic tribes took over western Rome. Specific groups were the Franks and the Goths. The Carolinians are a powerful family within the Frank tribe. Western Germanic rulers such as Clovis and others filled the power vacuum left behind by the Roman Empires

Who was Pepin? Why was he important?

Pepin the short was the son of Charles Martel. Pepin gave rise to the Carolingian dynasty after defeating the Lombards and receiving the blessing of the Pope.

Who was Charlemagne? Why was he important? Why was he problematic?

Charlemagne was a Carolinian, son of Pepin. Pope Leo crowned Charlemagne the Holy Roman emperor. Charlemagne was an excellent military leader and conquered several surrounding Germanic people in Eastern Germany. He was at war with them for 32 years and they eventually adopted Christianity. However, Charlemagne had a dispute with Pope Leo, causing him to be disliked.

What were the problems with Carolinians/Germanic tribes?

The empire always had serious problems due to it being under-governed.  Regional leaders were directly loyal to Charlemagne but not to a greater concept.  Therefore the fortune of the empire was directly tied to the fortune of the king 

A Feudalistic system arose during the time of Charlemagne- this system linked a King to lesser lords or vassals who in turn had their own vassals.  Lords gave land to vassals in return for allegiance and military service 

Manoralism-Developed during the 700s and expanded afterwards, this linked landed nobility to peasants who were often tied to the land.  A manor became a self-sustaining entity where serfs farmed the land for lords who offered them protection

What caused the collapse of the Carolingian dynasty?

When Charlemagne died he left his son Louie the Pious in place. Louie the Pious (814-840) attempted to maintain the empire but faced enormous difficulties.  Charlemagne had held the empire together by conquering and then rewarding those that helped him with land.  Louie the Pious had to fight wars of defense not conquest. Louie also had 3 sons which was problematic due to the Frankish custom of dividing up property equally.  His sons, Lothar, Charles the Bald and Louie the German openly rebelled against him and others. Charlemagne’s kingdom was eventually divided up but did not last long.  Invasions from Vikings, Magyars and Muslims quickly transformed the empire into smaller regionally ruled localities instead of a centrally controlled state.  

Who’s Otto the Great? What did he do?

Otto the Great, 936-973, first German military leader to try and recreate a “Roman Empire” like the Franks had.  Otto defeated the Magyars in 955 at the battle of Lechfeld and he defeated the Lombards in 962. Otto’s real legacy was that he started the practice of picking his own bishops, this was a privilege that later rulers were keen to hold on to.

What happened during the reforming of the church?

Lucrative nature of being a Bishop led to corruption (Simony-Act of selling offices of the Church) 

By the mid 11th century, 3 rivals were fighting to be Pope.  The crisis was embarrassing and weakened the church’s prestige.  Henry III (1016-1056), (Salian dynasty), intervened and picked Pope Clement II.  Clement died shortly after and chaos ensued again.  Eventually, Bruno of Toul was picked, the  choice was controversial, but Henry III was strong enough, and Bruno wise enough, to make Roman citizens agree.  Bruno became Leo IX upon becoming Pope. 

Leo IX was serious about church reform, he went after Bishops and Priests that he believed were corrupt 

Leo IX also wanted to establish the Papacy as the chief authority over Christianity, this led to the “Great Schism “of 1054, where the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Pope of Rome both “excommunicated” each other.  The two churches would never rejoin again.

What happened after the death of Charlemagne?

His power went to his son, Louis the Pious, but he was a bad ruler. Louis the Pious then had 3 sons, and he had to split the power as they rebelled against him. The kingdom eventually divided, but they were weak and it collapsed due to invasions from the Vikings, Magyars and Muslims. This transformed the empire into locally ruled regions instead of a centrally ruled state.

What did Otto do?

Otto tried to recreate the Roman Empire and he defeated the Magyars and the Lombards. He then started the practice of choosing his own bishops, which other emperors liked.

What was the reforming of the church?

Lucrative nature of being a Bishop led to corruption (Simony-Act of selling offices of the Church) 

By the mid 11th century, 3 rivals were fighting to be Pope.  The crisis was embarrassing and weakened the church’s prestige.  Henry III (1016-1056), (Salian dynasty), intervened and picked Pope Clement II.  Clement died shortly after and chaos ensued again.  Eventually, Bruno of Toul was picked, the  choice was controversial, but Henry III was strong enough, and Bruno wise enough, to make Roman citizens agree.  Bruno became Leo IX upon becoming Pope. 

Leo IX was serious about church reform, he went after Bishops and Priests that he believed were corrupt 

Leo IX also wanted to establish the Papacy as the chief authority over Christianity, this led to the “Great Schism “of 1054, where the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Pope of Rome both “excommunicated” each other.  The two churches would never rejoin again.

What was the Great Schism of 1054?

• The Great Schism of 1054 was a divide between the Roman catholic church in the west and the eastern orthodox church. Their differences were mainly political and ideological and they had an impact on Roman history for centuries.

What was the lay investiture crisis? (1056, post western Rome)

When Henry III died at age 39 in 1056, his son, Henry IV, was very young.  While Henry was growing up, the Church became stronger and regained much prestige

When Henry IV appointed Bishops, the Church, led by Pope Gregory VII, ordered him to stop.  Gregory claimed that only the church had the right to do this, not any “layman” 

Henry IV was furious at this, and wrote harshly to Gregory VII.  Gregory responded by excommunicating him.  Henry IV was initially not bothered but later, when a disaster occured at Utrecht on Easter Sunday, he recanted and begged forgiveness at Canonsa, Italy. 

The dispute still continued, but by the time of Henry V, an agreement was made between the Church and Emperor in agreement known as the Concord of Worms, signed in 1122. 

Where was Islam founded? What was significant about Arabia?

Islam was founded in Mecca. Muslims must pray three times a day while facing Mecca. Arabia was mostly uninhabitable because of deserts, and “Paradise” is seen to be the opposite of the Arabian geography.

What is important in the Islam religion? What one must do to become a Muslim?

Belief in God and Mohammed as his prophet is important in Islam. Furthermore, one must follow the five pillars of Islam. The five pillars are: Zakat-charity, Hajj-Journey to Mecca, Sawm-Fasting during Ramadan, Adan/Salah-Praying five times a day, Shahada-Declaration of faith. Those who follow God prosper, those who don’t suffer.

Why didn’t Islams originally want more converts?

Arabs saw Islam as their faith->were not eager to gain converts. The more converts, the more the profits of war had to be spread. Conversion occurred after a large and solidified Islamic empire had been created. Individuals saw opportunities that came with voluntary conversion. 

What was the Ka’ba? What was its significance?

The Ka’ba is a stone cube. In times of turmoil, the Ka’ba promised peace and also served as a trading center.