The Origins of the Byzantine Empire

· The Emperor _________________________ divided the Roman Empire into eastern and western sections in 285.

· The Emperor Constantine made ________________________ the capital of the eastern half of the empire in 330.

· A permanent division of the empire occurred in 395

· In 476 CE, the Western half fell to a Germanic invasion

· The Emperor _________________ saved the Eastern Empire.

· He persuaded invading German tribes to move west against Italy.

· The empire in the east became known as the _________________ Empire. Its name comes from Byzantium, the site of Constantinople.

A) The Emperor Justinian

· During the reign of the Emperor Justinian I (527-565), the Byzantine Empire reached its height.

· The Byzantines conquered Italy, North Africa, and southern Spain.

· Scholars created the _____________ code of laws. Architects and artists constructed the beautiful Church of ________________________.

B) Muslim Attacks on the Byzantine Empire

· In 632, Muslim Arabs burst out of ______________________.

· They conquered the Persian Empire and attacked the Byzantine Empire.

· By 700 the Arabs conquered Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and North Africa.

· The Arab siege of ________________________ was not successful, however, and was abandoned in 718. The Byzantine Empire remained strong and prosperous for several more centuries.

C) Religious Controversy

· Religion played an important role in the Byzantine Empire.

· During the 8th and 9th centuries conflicts over the use of sacred images (called icons) and the power of the pope occurred.

· These conflicts helped cause a split between the Eastern ______________ Church and the Roman _______________________ Church.

· A final split between the two churches occurred in 1054.

· Byzantine missionaries converted __________________ rulers to Byzantine Christianity.

D) The Fall of the Byzantine Empire

· During the 11th century the Muslim Seljuk Turks attacked the Byzantine Empire.

· They conquered Arab and Byzantine lands in the Middle East, including ________________________.

· For two centuries Christian Crusaders from Europe tried to regain Palestine from the Muslims.

· During the Fourth Crusade the Europeans captured ____________________. They set up a Latin Empire which lasted for about 60 years.

· It was the ________________ Turks who finally destroyed the Byzantine Empire.

· The Ottomans conquered most of Asia Minor and the Balkans.

· In 1453, the Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople, thus bringing the Byzantine Empire to an end.

· The new ruler, Muhammad II, renamed the city ___________________.

· The ancient capital of the Byzantine Empire now became the capital of the ________________________ Empire.

· The Hagia Sophia Church, built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, became an ___________________ house of worship.

· Istanbul would become a great center of _____________________ culture as the Ottomans adapted features of Byzantine government, social life, and architecture.