Download - Sweet Home Central School District

Mulivich-Global
Items to be familiar with:

The Byzantine Empire was established as a result of the fall of the Roman Empire
and the movement of the capital from Rome to Constantinople in the East. When
the capital moved, power shifted eastward. The eastern capital of Constantinople
was closer to Silk Road trade and was, therefore, extremely wealthy. It was a
crossroads between Europe and Asia. Emperor Constantine moved the capital
from Rome to Constantinople and named it after himself.

Rome fell as a result of many conflicts such as disloyalty, corruption, invaders
attacking from the north, and civil wars among many others.

The Eastern Byzantine Empire developed a great and different culture than what
existed in the Western Roman Empire. Religion, clothing, food, architecture, and
art all differed.

The artwork of the Byzantine Empire was very unique. Their paintings and
sculpture looked two-dimensional and flat. The faces portrayed in artwork were flat
and colorful with wide staring eyes. It differed greatly from the realistic, threedimensional art of the Roman Empire in the west.

The culture of the Byzantine Empire heavily influenced Russia. The Byzantine
Empire brought autocratic rule (through the establishment of the Czar), the Eastern
Orthodox religion, the dome (onion-shaped), and the Cyrillic alphabet to Russia.
Russia and Byzantium were connected through trade.

One of the most important contributions that the Byzantine Empire made to global
history was the preservation of Greek and Roman culture. The Byzantines
educated people and saved many ancient works of art and literature from these
ancient classical civilizations.

One major emperor of the Byzantine Empire was Justinian. Justinian is known for
beautifying the empire with construction projects, building the massive church called
the Hagia Sofia (Church of Holy Wisdom), marrying actress Theodora, and creating
the Justinian Code. The Justinian Code law system was known for establishing
and simplifying legal principles and lasting for over 900 years.

The Schism was an important event that occurred as a result of the differences
between the Roman and Byzantine Empires. Religious differences and leadership
issues led to a permanent split in the Christian Church. The church split into the
Roman Catholic Church in the west and the Eastern Orthodox Church in the east.
(See chart on back for specific differences).

The Byzantine Empire was eventually defeated and ended by the Ottoman Turks
(A Muslim civilization).
Key Vocabulary:
Icon: Religious symbol (painting/sculpture) that represents an important Christian figure
such as Mary, Jesus, or Saints.
Schism: A permanent split in the Christian Church, which resulted in the creation of the
Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Religion.
Czar: Autocratic ruler of Russia (Russian word for Caesar). Created as a result of
influences from the Byzantine Empire.
Mosaic: An art form used in Byzantium that took pieces of glass, marble, ceramic, or
other materials and pieced them together to form an image.
Western Empire
Eastern Empire
Empire
Roman Empire
Byzantine Empire
Language
Latin
Greek
Spoken
Religion
Roman Catholic
Eastern Orthodox
Leader of
The Pope
The Patriarch
Capital City
Rome
Constantinople
Divorce
Divorce NOT permitted
Divorce allowed under certain
Church
circumstances
Marriage of
Priests NOT allowed to marry
Priests allowed to marry
Believed Icons should be used
Used Icons in religious ceremony to
as artwork/decoration alone
stand as personification of individual it
Officials
Use of Icons
represented. Worshipped.