| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
| Contents | ||
| Timeline | |
|---|---|
| Byzantine Empire | |
| Date | Event |
| 330 | Constantine I makes Constantinople his capital |
| 527 | Justinian I becomes emperor |
| 532- 537 | Justinian builds the church of Hagia Sophia (Αγία Σοφία/Holy Wisdom) |
| 730- 787; 813- 843 | Iconoclasm controversies |
| 1054 | The Church in Rome breaks with the Church in Constantinople |
| 1204 | Constantinople is occupied by crusaders |
| 1261 | Constantinople is liberated by the Byzantine emperor Michael Palaeologus. |
| 1453 | Ottoman Turks take Constantinople. End of Byzantine Empire |
The Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire was the eastern section of the Roman Empire, with its capital at Constantinople (modern Istanbul), which remained in existence after the fall of RomeRome ( Italian and Latin Roma is the capital city of Italy, and of its Lazio region. It is located on the lower Tiber river, near the Mediterranean Sea, at 41°50'N, 12°15'E. The Vatican City State, a sovereign enclave within Rome, is the seat of the Roman in the 5th century4th century 5th century 6th century other centuries) Events Rome sacked by Visigoths in 410. Attila the Hun conquers large parts of Europe, threatens to attack Rome in 452 Vandals conquer Carthage in 439, sack Rome in 455 At some point after 440, the Angl. The Byzantine period is usually considered to extend from 395Events After the death of emperor Theodosius I, the Roman Empire is divided in an eastern and a western half. The eastern half is centered in Byzantium under Arcadius, son of Theodosius I, and the western half in Rome under Flavius Augustus Honorius his b to 1453.
The state now commonly referred to as the Byzantine Empire was never known by that name in its own time. It was called the Roman Empire or, in later centuries, Romania. Its people, who were mostly Greek-speaking, called themselves Romans (in GreekThe Greek language ( /Elini'k{/) is an Indo-European language which has existed from around the 14th century BC in the Cretan inscriptions called Linear B. Mycenaean Greek of this period is distinguished from later Classical or Ancient Greek of the 8th ce, Romaíoi). The term Byzantine Empire was invented and popularised by the 18th century17th century 18th century 19th century more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701- 1800; however, historians will sometimes specifically refer to the 18th Century as 1715- 89, FrenchThe French Republic or France ( French: Republique francaise or France is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in western Europe, and which is further made up of a collection of overseas islands and territories located in other continents. historian MontesquieuCharles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu ( January 18, 1689 February 10, 1755) was a French political thinker who lived during the Enlightenment and who is famous for his articulation of the theory of separation of powers, taken for granted in many moder. Like many classicists of his time, Montesquieu regarded the Empire after the 5th century4th century 5th century 6th century other centuries) Events Rome sacked by Visigoths in 410. Attila the Hun conquers large parts of Europe, threatens to attack Rome in 452 Vandals conquer Carthage in 439, sack Rome in 455 At some point after 440, the Angl as corrupt and decadent, and not worthy of the name Roman. So he coined a new name, taken from Byzantium, the Latinized form of the original Greek name (Byzántion) of the capital, Constantinople.
Even before Constantinople became the imperial capital, the connection between the Roman Empire and the city of Rome had been greatly reduced. In 212, the Emperor Caracalla declared all free persons in the Empire to be Roman citizens, entitled to call themselves Romans. The Empire began to be referred to as Romania ("Roman country"), rather than as Imperium Romanorum ( Latin, "Empire of the Romans"). In the Greek-speaking East, the Empire became known as either Romania or Basileía Romaíon (Greek, "Empire [lit., Kingdom] of the Romans"). This was the official name of the Empire until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453. Greeks commonly referred to themselves as Romaíoi until the 20th century and were called Rum (Romans) by the Turks.