Medieval Greek East

Following the death of Diocletian The Roman Empire was divided into two, --the Greek East and the Latin West. The first ruler of the Greek East was Constantine I (306-337), Diocletian's son. One of Constantine's major early accomplishments was to create a new capital for his empire, moving it from Rome to the East. In 330 AD, Constantine turned Byzantium into the new capital of the Roman Empire, located on the Black Sea, between Europe and Asia.

Constantine called the capital New Rome. (It was to be renamed Constantinople later, after its founder.) The city became the centre of the Byzantine Empire, until the Greek East was overtaken by the Ottoman Turks in 1453. The people of the Greek East Empire thought of themselves as Romans, and saw their culture as stemming, uninterrupted from their Greek and Roman roots.

Besides relocating the capital of the Roman Empire, Constantine, declared Christianity to be the official religion of the Eastern Roman Empire. In the Latin West, the pope served as primary ruler, whereas the Greek East was ruled by the emperors, among the best known being Constantine I (reign, 306-337 AD) and Justinian (reign, 527-565 AD. These two rulers, along with others, sought to form a foundation for the Empire by securing its borders, restoring former Roman territories, and establishing the art and traditions of Greek Orthodox Christianity.

The areas that they secured were what today would be Greece, Turkey (Anatolia), Russia, Syria, and Egypt, the Balkan countries and a large part of Italy. The borders changed over the years as they competed with other empires such as the Persian empire and even the Latin East for power and land (see the maps for changes in the borders over the years from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire).

The eastern Church and the papal church of the west became enemies over the years. One issue of contention involved iconoclasm. The Iconoclastic theologians of Byzantium believed that the worship of images, or icons, was a fundamentally pagan belief. Products of human hands should not be worshipped, they argued, but only Christ and God should be the proper objects of veneration. The movement was inaugurated by Leo, a Byzantine ruler, and strengthened by his son Constantine V (reign 740-755). It was strongly opposed by the papacy. Iconoclasm was abandoned in the ninth century, but its influence was felt in the continued traditional stance of the Byzantine church and the separation and competition between the eastern and western branches of the Roman empire. .

Writings about Byzantium

Wikipedia, Byzantium. Retrieved on February 19, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire

Brownworth, Lars (2010). Twelve Byzantine rulers (Audio recording http://www.12byzantinerulers.com/ Retrieved February 19, 2010)

One issue of contention among theologians in Italy and Constantinople at this time was that involving iconoclasm. The Iconoclastic theologians believed that the worship of images, or icons, was a fundamentally pagan belief. Products of human hands should not be worshipped, they argued, but only Christ and God should be the proper objects of veneration. The movement was inaugurated by Leo the Isaurian, a Byzantine ruler and carried out by is son Constantine V (reign 740-755). It was strongly opposed by the papacy.

Iconoclasm was abandoned in the ninth century, but its influence was felt in the continued traditional stance of the Byzantine church.