2.2.1

Constantinople & the World in 1000

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Constantinople and the World in 1000

Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine Empire. It was seen as the centre of European Christianity at the time.

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Background

  • The city was known as Byzantium until 330 when Emperor Constantine moved the empire's capital to the newly-named Constantinople.
  • The city was ruled by Empress Zoe until around 1000. The city was incredibly wealthy and helped connect the Muslim world, the Byzantine Empire, and Western Christendom.
  • Constantinople sat at the heart of the movement of goods, people, and ideas.
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Christianity in the Byzantine Empire

  • Christianity became the empire's official religion in 380.
    • Christianity had spread throughout Western Europe following the fall of the Roman Empire.
    • The Church developed a physical presence and a more organised structure.
    • Rome was the centre of Western European Christianity. Many churches and monasteries were established in Rome.
    • But, the Eastern Orthodox Church was led from Constantinople.
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Religious centre

  • Though disputed, Constantinople was seen as the main centre of European Christendom.
  • The Hagia Sofia was a large church in Constantinople built in 537.
    • It had the biggest dome in the world and contained religious treasures such as the golden mosaics of Christ and wood from Noah's ark.
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Geographical neighbours

  • The Byzantine Empire faced threats from the North, West, and East.
    • Tribesman raided Byzantine lands in the North, divisions were building with the Roman Catholic Church within the West and the mighty Islamic Empire stood in the East.
  • Some rulers of the Islamic Empire and Byzantine Empire had seized power by force.
    • This often meant that one empire would conquer towns and cities of the other, creating tension and anger.
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The final Byzantine-Russian war

  • An example of the threat faced by Constantinople was the attack of Russian ships on Constantinople in 1043.
  • This was part of the final Byzantine-Russian War. Conflict had been brewing between the two for the previous 200 years.
  • These are all precursors of events to come in the medieval period.

Jump to other topics

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.4King John

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.6The Black Death

2Worldviews

3The Empire of Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

6The Peasants' Revolt

7Religion in the Middle Ages

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

11US Independence, 1775-1783

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

14Suffrage

15World War 1, 1914-1918

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

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