History of the Byzantine

History of the Byzantines

Period: 300 to Feb 8, 1500

Emperor Constantine I Founded the Byzantine Capital

330

After German invaders attacked the Roman empire in the west, Constantine and his successors moved their base to the eastern Mediterranean. Constantine rebuilt the Greek city of Byzantine and named it after himself, Constantinople. In 330, he made it the new capital of the empire. From there roads connected out to the Balkans, to the MIddle East, and to North Africa, and it became a vital trading city.

Nika revolt and riots

532

Emperor Justinian's reforms made him unpopular with many people, and as a result there were violent riots. There were 5 days of riots, resulting in destroyed buildings and many people's deaths. Afterwards, Theodora convinced them not to kill Justinian and he came up with a plan to make Constantinople grander than ever, rebuilding the church of Hagia Sophia.

General Belisarius Military Campaigns

533

Belisarius was rewarded by Justinian and was given troops to mount an expedition against the Vandal kingdom. The Romans had many reasons for this expedition including religious and political reasons. Christians were being persecuted in the Vandal kingdom, and the new king didn't like the Romans. Belisarius won the battle against the Vandal forces, and eventually Roman provinces were restored in North Africa.

Hagia Sophia Completed

537

The rebuilding of the Hagia Sophia church was Emperor Justinian's idea after the Nika riots. They built the new church on top of the ashes of the previous one, that was torched in the riots. The dome of the cathedral was an important improvement on the previous Roman architecture, and the construction was completed in about 6 years. Later, when the Ottomans conquered Constantinople the Hagia Sophia was turned into a mosque.

Early Islamic military campaigns into Byzantine territory

Feb 8, 634

Islam was a religion that began in Arabia in 622. For 200 years they built up their power and began expanding. The Arab invasions into the Byzantine East were tentative at first. Within 2 years however, they had managed to score two major victories over the Byzantines, one at Ajnaydan in 634, and another at Pella in 635. Eventually, at the battle of the Tours the Christian soldiers won and the Muslims advanced no farther

Emperor Basil II military conquests of Bulgaria

Feb 8, 986

Bulgars had been raiding Byzantine territory for many years. After securing his position in the Byzantine Empire, Emperor Basil II led an army of 30,000 men into Bulgaria to lay siege to their towns. He took heavy losses, so he stopped his siege and headed home but fell into an ambush and lost the Battle of the Gates of Trajan.

Great Schism

Feb 8, 1054

In general, Christians throughout the region shared a common theology but over time the practices of the Christians in the east and west grew apart. One of the biggest disputes was over the icons and holy images of the church. Controversies became conflicts, which led to the Great Schism, or divide, of the Christian world. The Byzantine Christian Church became known as the Eastern Orthodox church and in the West the church became known as the Roman Catholic Church.

Emperor Alexios I contacts Pope Urban II for military help in Middle East

Feb 8, 1095

The Turks and Byzantines had been in conflict for a while, which was disrupting travel to the Holy Land and threatening the existence of the Byzantine Empire. So in 1095, Emperor Alexios I asked Pope Urban II to send Christian knights to help fight the Muslim Turks. Pope Urban and Emperor Alexios had been rivals for a long time, but Pope Urban still agreed to help and called for a crusade to free the Holy Land.

Fourth Crusade (Attack on Constantinople)

Feb 8, 1204

Europeans also mounted crusades against other Muslim lands, but they usually ended in defeat. However, during the Fourth Crusade, crusaders were distracted from fighting the Muslims and they started to turn on other Christians. Crusaders helped merchants from Venice to defeat their Byzantine trade rivals, and afterwards captured and looted the Byzantine capital of Constantinople.

Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks (official end to Byzantines)

Feb 8, 1453

After the Fourth Crusade, Constantinople was left very weakened and they had already lost most of their lands. The empire continued to decline, and was being attacked by many other forces. Eventually the Ottoman Turks became a threat. In 1453, Constantinople finally fell to Ottoman Turk invaders led by Mehmet II.