Download Byzantine Empire and Church Schism

Unit 4A Medieval Europe 500 – 1450
Medieval ( Medieval means Middle Ages c. 600 – 1450). It begins in the 5th century following the fall of the Western
Roman Empire and ends in the 15th century with the onset of the Renassiance era.
Byzantine Empire (340 -1453)
Division of the Roman Empire into east and west proved to be a very important event in world history. A good realtor will
tell you that almost everything about a house can be changed except its location. The Roman Emperor Constantine
(ruled 313–337) had the city of Constantinople built on the Bosporus Strait where east meets west and trade is prolific
(abundant, multiplied, also alludes to production or reproduction). The Bosporous Strait is a (relatively narrow body of
oceanic water separating Aisa from continental Europe at the western edge of present day Turkey). The strait leads into
the Black Sea providing a warm water inlet/outlet to Russia and the surrounding area. The strait is approximately; 20
miles long, 2 miles wide at its widest point, and varies in depth from 100 – 395 feet. The site was the former Greek colony
of Byzantium and present day Istambul, Turkey. Constantine chose the better part of the empire as by year 324
Constantinople boasted a population of more than 500,000 while Rome had declined to around 80,000. Some of the
benefits associated with choosing this location included; 1) statigic military positioning, 2) access to trade, and 3) control
of trade.
Successor (next in line, one that comes next) Byzantine emperor Justinian took the reins in 518 with the idea of
resurrecting the Roman Empire to its former expanse and glory. He was successful in reclaiming parts of North Africa
and all of Italy, but those gains were lost soon after his death in 565. Justinian is probably best known for codifying the
various Roman laws which had been promulgated over several centuries. He consolidated the laws into a Digest totaling
approximately 800,000 words. The legacy (lasting effect, what lives on) of Justinian’s codification and preservation of
Roman laws can be found in legal systems of present day Western Europe and the United States.
Justinian declared Greek the official language in 553 which gave his empire an edge on the west related to the cultural
and scientific information contained in Greek literature. Preservation of the ancient Greek texts also played a prominent
role in the Renaissance era which we will study in a later unit.
Like most (basically unchecked) leaders, Justinian sought to demonstrate his power and the empire’s wealth through
building projects. He also used these building projects to demonstrate the artistic and technological capabilities. During
his reign, Roman architectural innovation was used and improved on to construct the mammoth Hagia Sophia Church and
the Coliseum like Hippodrome.
The empire continued to shrink over its lifetime which made it more defensible and likely accounts for its longevity (long
lasting, long lived). Constantinople finally fell to the Muslim Turks in 1145.
Church Schism (division, split)
Constantine is credited with being the first Christian Roman emperor. He issued the Edict of Milan in 313 proclaiming
official tolerance of Christianity. Notwithstanding (in spite of), the Byzantine Empire, founded by Constantine, eventually
disassociated itself with the Western Roman Church.
Reasons for this split are rooted in the Byzantine’s refusal to acknowledge the Roman pope’s (head bishop located in
Rome) authority over the Eastern Church. Beginning with Constantine, Byzantine emperors claimed to be divinely
appointed. They usurped the pope’s authority by taking control of church leadership appointments such as that of bishops
(regional church leadership position). They also appointed a Patriarch which was their own version of the pope. The
practice of church leadership being appointed by royalty came to be known as investiture. In the Byzantine Empire, the
bishop appointment process eventually involved payment to the individual or group granting the appointment. The
aforementioned is a form of the practice known as simony. Although investiture was the root disagreement between the
Western and Eastern churches, there were other disagreements. There were chronic disputes over various church
traditions and ordinances such as icons, communion, and celibacy of priests. These disputes culminated with the Schism
of 1054 when Pope Leo IX and Patriarch Michael Cerularius excommunicated (kick out of the church) one another and
their respective followers. For an individual, the act of excommunication meant being shunned by the church and all of its
active members. This may have included close family members. It also meant being cut off from all church privileges
such as financial or physical support. It also was meant to essentially damn the excommunicated person to Hell.
Authority over the church and its leadership is often used by political leaders to promote their agendas and perpetuate
their power.
The Eastern Orthodox Christian church and its missionaries (someone who attempts to spread their faith -usually in a
foreign country) are in a great part responsible for the spread of civilization and Christianity to Eastern Europe including
the Balkans and western Russia. They converted a large area of the world from polytheistic to a monotheistic
(Christianity). The missionaries’ spread of civilization was simply a side effect of attempts to promote their faith which
resulted in unavoidable cultural diffusion. An example is the architecture in present day Russia.