WAP Byzantine Empire (1200–1450)Overview

AP World History Study Guide: Byzantine Empire (1200–1450)

Overview

• Context: The Byzantine Empire is considered a re-established empire by the College Board, continuing from the Eastern Roman Empire after the Western Roman Empire’s fall in 476 CE.

• Identity: Residents viewed themselves as Roman, with Constantinople (formerly Byzantium) as the capital, maintaining Roman traditions but adapting to post-classical needs.

• Key Theme: Focus on continuities with classical Rome and changes to modernize the empire, balancing centralized power, Christianity, and cultural diffusion.

Continuities with Classical Rome

• Centralized Political Power:

  • Emperor held near-absolute authority, supported by a bureaucracy with limited power (e.g., Senate proposed laws, but the emperor finalized them).

  • Maintained a court system for legal stability and justice.

• Infrastructure and Military:

  • Continued Roman road systems for connectivity and trade.

  • Maintained an expansionist military, though limited by the Islamic Caliphate, leading to a shrinking empire centered around Constantinople (modern Greece and parts of Turkey).

• Christianity:

  • Became the official religion with the Edict of Thessalonica (380 CE), a continuity from late Roman Empire practices, despite earlier polytheistic traditions and Christian persecution.

Changes to Modernize the Empire

• Justinian’s Code (6th Century):

  • Purpose: Updated Roman laws by removing duplicates, outdated laws, and adding new ones, particularly ecclesiastical (church-related) laws to reflect Christianity’s role.

  • Caesaropapism: Emperor as both political and religious leader (akin to “king and pope”), reinforcing divine right to rule and integrating religion as a government department.

  • Heresy Laws: Defined Byzantine Christianity as the “correct” form, restricting non-Byzantine Christians (e.g., Western European or Indian Christians) from worship or government roles.

  • Non-Christians: Jews and later Muslims could practice their faiths but were barred from building synagogues/mosques or holding high office, though they faced fewer restrictions than non-Byzantine Christians.

  • Legacy: Served as a legal precedent for Western Europe post-1000 CE and later New World legal systems (basis for the term “justice system”).

• Theme System:

  • Structure: Soldiers received land for military service but lacked authority over it, unlike feudalism where lords controlled land legally and politically.

  • Purpose: Maintained empire size without a large standing army, with central authority retained in Constantinople.

• Religious Divergence:

  • Byzantine Christianity (Eastern Orthodox) diverged from Western European Christianity (Roman Catholicism) due to differing power structures:

    • Byzantine: Emperor held supreme authority over the church, maintaining political continuity.

    • Western Europe: After Rome’s fall, the Pope gained significant political and religious power due to the absence of a strong central ruler.

  • Iconoclast Controversy (700s):

    • Byzantines supported iconoclasm (removing religious icons to avoid idol worship), while Western Europeans favored icons, causing tension.

  • Charlemagne’s Coronation (800 CE):

    • Pope crowned Frankish king Charlemagne as “Holy Roman Emperor,” challenging the Byzantine emperor’s legitimacy, especially under Empress Irene, a female ruler who faced legitimacy issues after violently securing power (e.g., blinding her son).

  • Great Schism (1054 CE):

    • Cause: Disputes over authority, language (Latin vs. Greek), and practices led to mutual excommunications between the Pope and Byzantine Patriarch.

    • Outcome: Split Christianity into Roman Catholicism (Western Europe, Latin mass, celibate priests) and Eastern Orthodox (Byzantine, local language mass, married priests).

    • Significance: Fundamental split over authority, with lasting differences in language and priestly roles impacting later Christian developments (e.g., Protestant Reformation in 1517).

Monumental Architecture

• Hippodrome:

  • Center for chariot racing (replacing Roman gladiatorial bloodsports), with teams like the Greens and Blues.

  • Nika Riots (532 CE): Greens and Blues rioted against corruption and taxes, burning much of Constantinople. Empress Theodora insisted on suppression, leading to 30,000 deaths by the military under Justinian.

  • Significance: Highlighted public entertainment’s role in unity and the empire’s ability to enforce order.

• Hagia Sophia:

  • Built by Justinian post-Nika Riots as a grand church (“Holy Wisdom”), symbolizing divine favor (depicted in Justinian’s haloed mosaics).

  • Features a massive freestanding dome with intricate designs and innovative window placements, creating a “heaven on earth” effect.

  • Influenced Kievan Rus to adopt Eastern Orthodox Christianity after ambassadors were awed by its beauty, reinforcing Byzantine religious and cultural influence.

Cultural Diffusion and Education

• Preservation of Greco-Roman Knowledge:

  • Byzantines preserved Greek philosophy (Plato, Aristotle), astronomy, and mathematics (e.g., Pythagorean theorem).

  • Transmitted these to the Abbasid Caliphate via trade, where they evolved (e.g., Pythagorean theorem into trigonometry).

• Constantinople as a Trade Hub:

  • Cosmopolitan city with diasporic merchants (Jews, Muslims), fostering cultural exchange despite religious restrictions.

  • Facilitated transmission of Greco-Roman ideas to Islamic and later Western European societies.

Key Takeaways for AP Exam

• Re-established Empire: Byzantine Empire continued Roman traditions (centralized power, roads, Christianity) but adapted to post-classical needs via Justinian’s Code and the theme system.

• Justinian’s Code: Modernized Roman law, integrated Christianity (caesaropapism, heresy laws), and influenced Western European and New World legal systems.

• Religious Split: Great Schism (1054) divided Christianity into Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox over authority, language, and practices, with lasting impacts.

• Monumental Architecture: Hippodrome (chariot racing, Nika Riots) and Hagia Sophia (religious grandeur) reflected Byzantine priorities of public unity and divine authority.

• Cultural Diffusion: Preserved and transmitted Greco-Roman knowledge to Islamic and Western European societies, enhancing global intellectual developments.

• Challenges: Limited expansion due to Islamic Caliphate, internal riots (Nika), and religious tensions with Western Europe.

Study Tips

• Memorize key terms: Byzantine Empire, Justinian’s Code, caesaropapism, heresy laws, theme system, Great Schism, iconoclast controversy, Hagia Sophia, Hippodrome, Nika Riots, Empress Theodora, Charlemagne’s coronation.

• Understand continuities (centralized power, Christianity) and changes (Justinian’s Code, theme system, religious split) to differentiate Byzantine from classical Rome.

• Connect the Great Schism to authority disputes and its long-term impact on Christianity.

• Link monumental architecture (Hippodrome, Hagia Sophia) to Byzantine values (entertainment, religion) and cultural influence (Kievan Rus conversion).

• Trace cultural diffusion of Greco-Roman knowledge through Byzantine trade with the Islamic world.