| REVIEW SHEET | BYZANTINE EMPIRE |
| pp. 266-275 |
| 1. | Focus Question: What factors led to the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire? | |
| What three "elements" mixed to form Western European culture? Where did the following peoples settle: Franks, Burgundians, Visigoths, Vandals, and the Angles and Saxons? Which tribes had "sacked" Rome before 476? Which German tribes refused to profess titular obedience to the emperor in Constantinople? What was the general attitude of the Germans toward Roman culture? Which German peoples were Christian before entering the empire? What type of Christianity did they profess? Which German tribe was converted to "orthodox" Catholic Christianity around 500 CE? In the mixture between Roman and Germanic culture, which proved to be the strongest? Which "Roman" elements were to triumphant during the Middle Ages? | ||
| 2. | Focus Question: What role did Justinian play in establishing the Byzantine Empire? | |
| Who established and rebuilt Byzantium between 324 and 300 and named it Constantionople? What does the term Byzantine indicate? In terms of territory, political power, and culture, which period was the greatest for the Byzantine empire? What role did Theodora play in Justinian's rule? What was the imperial goal in the east? How did Justinian centralize his rule? As clerical ranks grew, what role did the Church play for the state? During Justinian's reign approximately how many cities were in the empire? What were the decurion councils and why did Justinian replace them? With whom did he replace them? What was Justinian's policy? Why was Justinian's attempt to regain control of the western Roman Empire only partial and temporary? Which groups invade Byzantine territory after Justinian? | ||
| 3. | Focus Question: What impact did Byzantium's confrontation with the Persians and Muslims have on upon Byzantine and Western history? | |
| When did Contantinople take a decidedly eastern orientation? Who was the empire's most important enemy in the East? What was the fate of the Persian empire? How did the Byzantines manage to "hold off" the Arab expansion? Which emperor finally blocked further Arab expansion? How was the empire reorganized as a result of the Arab-Byzantine struggle? Which battle with a Turkish group marked the decisive decline of the Byzantine empire in 1071? | ||
| 4. | Focus Question: Why did the Eastern and Western Churches develop differently, and why did they split in 1054? | |
| How did religion encourage the unity of the Byzantine Empire and how did it contribute to undermining it? What attitude the Byzantine emperors assume toward the Jews? How did the West view the theological debates that raged in the East? Why did Emperor Leo III forbid images and icons? What was the result of this struggle over "images"? What popular beliefs in the Western church did the Eastern church reject? When did the mutual excommunications between Eastern and Western churches cease? | ||
| 5. | Focus Question: What Impact did Islam have on East and West? | |
| When and where was Arab expansion blocked during the 8th century? Why were the Arabs a greater danger to western Roman culture than the Germans? Why were Christians of the Middle East often unfriendly toward the Byzantines? What factors led to the isolation of Western Europe and allowed it to develop independently of Byzantium? What were the chief contributions of Arab civilization to the Christian west? | ||
| 6. | Focus Question: How did the Roman Church in the west become an institution of great influence and how did it exercise that influence? | |
| On what model did the Church build its administration? Why did the bishops and Church in general become increasingly important in the early Middle Ages? Approximately what percentage of the empire's population was Christian in 313? What "culture" proved to be the peculiar strength of the Church during the Middle Ages? Who was the great organizer of western monasticism? How did Constantine and his successors generally view the church? What was the justification for the doctrine of "Papal Primacy" according to Pope Damasus I? Why did the Church begin to divide into independent eastern and western churches during the early Middle Ages? What practices separated east and western Churches? What were the three major factors/issues in the religious break between east and west? In what year did that break officially occur? How did the popes counter Byzantine and Lombard attacks? |
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foederati
Monophysitism = belief that Christ had only one nature, a composite of divine and human elements; instead of two complete natures in one person as held by the orthodox Greek and Roman Christians Nestorian Christians -- followers of Nestorius, patriarch of Constantinople, whose teaching about the nature of Jesus may have been misinterpreted, was believed by western churchmen to hold that Christ had two separate natures and personalities and that Mary was the mother of the human but not of the divine nature. Influential for their missionary work in the east, even as far as India and China. Arian Christians -- followers of Arius of Alexander, who taught that
Christ was not the equal of the Father nor was he true God. Influential
for their missionary work among the Germans.
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