Fall of Rome & Rise of the Byzantine Empire. Constantinople Modern day Istanbul Located on the Bosporus Straits Built by Constantine the Great in the.

Fall of RomeFall of Rome&&

Rise of the Byzantine Rise of the Byzantine EmpireEmpire

ConstantinopleConstantinople

• Modern day Istanbul

• Located on the Bosporus Straits

• Built by Constantine the Great in the 4th Century

• First Christian city

ConstantinopleConstantinople

• Chain extended the Golden Horn to protect against invaders

• Center of trade for centuries

Walls and MilitaryWalls and Military

• divided land into Themes or regions to recruit troops

- largely ineffective and created powerful governors

- invention of “Greek Fire”

- petroleum based product stuck to surface and could not be put out

• Frequently paid invaders for peace

- military was generally weak- usually filled with

mercenaries

IconsIcons• frequent problems between

differing factions in ChristianityIconoclasts vs. IconodulesNature of Christ

- Divine or manInfluence spread to Russia

through Orthodox

Justinian’s CodeJustinian’s Code

• Emperor Justinian's desire that existing Roman law be collected into a simple and clear system of laws, or "code”

• Saved Roman Law for today

Fall of Western RomeFall of Western Rome

• Chaos in Europe

• Constant warfare

• Beginning of the Middle Ages:

476-1350

Middle AgesMiddle Ages

VocabularyVocabulary

Serf/serfdom-Rural-Feudalism- Urban-Centralized-Decentralized-Bartering-Fief-Vassal-Chivalry-Investiture-

CharlemagneCharlemagne

• Stopped Muslim advance into Europe- United much of Western Europe under his kingdom- Defeated German tribes

- converted Germanic tribes to Christianity - Pope Leo proclaimed him Holy Roman Emperor

- - basically in charge of the Catholic Church

VikingsVikings

• Terrified Europe with their raidsExplored wide areas of the Atlantic-even America!Viking ships needed very little water to float, so to get

into rivers and attack deep into heart of EuropeGiven Normandy in France as protection from further

raids

Prince JohnPrince John

• brother of Richard the “Lion hearted”- threw people off of their land - raised taxes- abused power of king

1215-Magna Carta- nobles united against John and attempted to

limit the power of the monarchy- held democratic principles

KnightsKnights

• Aristocrats– Primogeniture- first born son inherits everythingLarge population of knights with no land or future/ caused lots ofproblems

MonarchyMonarchy

• Generally very weak– Held limited authority over their kingdom– Nobles were frequently more powerful than

the king– King controlled through

ability to give out honors

such as: land and titles as

well as through the nobilities

okay.

Serfs and ManorsSerfs and Manors

• Serfs were the lowest class– Tied to land, much like slaves – Extremely poor– No chance to improve

• Manors– Medieval town– Born and died here!– Self sufficient economy

• Barter system

FeudalismFeudalism

CastlesCastles

• Cities became fortified since the king had limited control from raiders like the Vikings.

• Nobles built them for protection and to rival the kings authority.

The Norman InvasionThe Norman Invasion

• English kings began to marry into French nobility from Normandy (old Viking region)

• Edward the Confessor was King of England from 1042-1066 and left no heir to his throne.

• Harold Godwinson, was the most powerful noble in England and easily claimed the throne.

The Norman InvasionThe Norman Invasion

• Upon taking the throne Harold had to fight two contenders for the throne:

• Harold’s exiled brother Tostig invaded England from the north.

• The Battle of Stamford Bridge– Harold defeated and killed Tostig- Victory cost Harold several thousand troops

The Norman InvasionThe Norman Invasion• Harold then moved south to fight William the

Conqueror, Duke of Normandy• The Battle of Hastings

– Infantry vs. Cavalry– William could not break Harold’s infantry formations

and was losing.– William faked retreating to lure Harold’s army to chase them.– William turned and destroyed Harold’s army and became the undisputed king of

England.

The Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church

• Only organized bureaucracy in Europe– Nations had no economy after

Rome fell and little political control

• Educated– Clergy could read

• Europe had about 90% illiteracy rate

• Collected taxes and controlled vast amounts of land

Avignon PapacyAvignon Papacy

• France was becoming a powerful nation and wanted a French pope.

• Forced election and moved Papacy to Avignon, France for 100 years– Destroyed credibility of Church

• Italy eventually elected an Italian Pope while the French elected their own.– Attempted to move back to Rome, but mobs

almost killed the Pope• To fix the problem a third Pope called the

“Anti-Pope” was elected to arbitrate– In the end all three resigned and a new Pope

was elected in Rome.