● Every time you read, you will be expected to
MARK YOUR TEXT!!
● Why? It helps you pay attention to and interpret
what you read!!
1. 1st time reading: (1) Number paragraphs
1. 2nd time reading: Circle key terms and essential
words
1. 3rd time reading: Underline/Highlight
author’s claims and information
relevant to reading
Reading: The Rise and Fall of the Byzantine Empire
1. After the Roman Empire split into two sections, the
Eastern Roman Empire was renamed the ______
2. This empire reached its largest size under _____
3. What is this emperor best known for?
4. What were the crusades?
5. What marked the end of the Byzantine Empire?
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Identify the major causes and effects of the
spread of Christianity and the decline of
Rome
Describe the development of Christianity as a
unifying social and political factor in medieval
Europe and the Byzantine Empire
Identify the characteristics of Roman
Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy in Post
Classical Europe?
Explain how religion influenced the formation
of Medieval Europe?
Unit 3 Learning Goal 1
Reading: The Church’s Power Grows
1. What are priests?
2. What are bishops?
3. Name the 5 cities of the most powerful men in the
Roman Catholic Church.
4. Who became pope and what does pope mean?
5. What happened during Gregory I papacy?
6. What did church leaders do when a non religious ruler
was in power?
Causes
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Pax Romana offered peaceful period for Christian
missionaries to travel throughout the Roman
Empire
Missionaries were able to speak to large crowds in
the urban areas of the Roman Empire where Greek
was commonly spoken
Christianity offered more personal relationship with
God than mythology, was attractive to all classes,
argued for equality of believers


Pagan traditions were incorporated
into Christian traditions aiding in
cultural unification of Europe
Germanic tribes converted to
Christianity and spread the religion in
areas of northern Europe when they
conquered
Effects
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Christianity served to cultural unify a politically and
linguistically decentralized Europe
Roman Catholic Church became a powerful political
force and amassed wealth in landholdings
Christian monks preserved classical and Biblical works
and were scribes of the period
Cathedrals were built throughout Europe and still
stand as testament to the power of the Roman Catholic
Church
Causes



Decline of Rome caused by political upheaval, civil
wars, plague, empire too large to manage, bloated
bureaucracy, inflation, failure to advance
technologically, barbarian (Germanic tribes) invasions
Franks emerged as the dominate Germanic tribe and
for a time worked to reconstitute the Roman Empire
under the rule of Charlemagne
Christianity was the only institution to survive the fall
of Rome and served to unite Germanic tribes after
Clovis’ conversion
Effects
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With no Roman army for protection system of
feudalism developed and trade was disrupted
Christianity culturally united Europe
Christian Church became a powerful social, political
and cultural force
Economically manorialism served to meet basic needs
of people, lack of trade was characteristic for a time

Conversion of Frankish
kingdoms to Christianity
(Clovis) led to a mass
conversion of the people
and support from the
Roman Catholic Church
Clovis was the first king of the
Franks to unite all the Frankish
tribes under one ruler. He was
also the first Catholic king to
rule over Gaul (France)

Crowning of Charlemagne Holy
Roman Emperor and
organization of Germanic
Christian parishes helped
priests to further strengthen the
Catholic Church’s political
power
Charlemagne (Charles the Great) united
the Franks and expanded the kingdom.
On Christmas Day in 800 was crowned
Holy Roman Emperor. His empire blended
Germanic, Christian and Roman elements.
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Expansion of monasteries and convents
provide educational communities
Strong belief in the sacraments made the
Church a focal point for social gatherings
Use of Latin in religious setting created some
linguistic unity

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Christianity was the lone institution to
survive the fall of the Roman Empire.
When Frankish kings converted to
Christianity and turned to the Pope as
their protector, Christianity unified
Medieval Europe culturally and the Pope
gained great political influence.
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The Church dominated everyone’s life in
Medieval Europe.
The Peasants fully believed in God, Heaven, and
Hell. They thought that the only way they
could get into heaven was if the Roman
Catholic Church let them.
Basically, the church had everyone wrapped
around their finger.
 The
Roman Empire fell and
became the east and west.
 The
east became the
Byzantine Empire.
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W = Water- the capital is
surrounded by water (good for
defense)
W = Walls-They built 13 miles of
walls around the city
S = Shipping- The Bosphorus
strait connects the Black Sea and
the Mediterranean Sea. –
Great for trading goods
between Europe and Asia
Justinian had three main goals in mind:
1. Restore the Roman Empire to its
previous height.
2. Establish building programs to
improve conquered cities.
3. Streamline government by creating a
codex of laws.- Justinian’s Code of
Laws
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Theodora-his wife
Considered his legal
equal “his back bone”
She encouraged
Justinian to stop rioting
enemies. The army
killed 30,000!

Byzantine emperors were head of the
church and the govt. (Not in Rome)

Created the Hagia Sophia Church
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Christianity spreads!!!
Justinian as emperor in eastern Rome tried to unify the
Roman Empire between 527 and 565 A.D. He composed the
most famous list of Roman laws.
His code reduced confusion over laws and provided
organization within the Empire.
Called the Body of Civil Laws, the code was the clearest and
most comprehensive which existed up to that time.
It spread Roman legal principles beyond the Empire.
1040-Christian Church
Splits because they interpret
and practice
Christianity differently
Christianity in West
•Services in Latin
Orthodox Christians in East
•Services in Greek
•let priests get married
• Roman Catholic Church’s hierarchy was based on Roman
Imperial structure with Pope
being the head of the Church.
• Popes roles included:
• appointing some bishops
• regulated doctrine
• sponsored missionary activity
• Monasteries had both spiritual functions and secular functions
(the state of being separate from religion).
• Monks served as examples of holy life, improved cultivation
techniques, stressed productive work, and preserved the
heritage of Greco-Roman culture
•
•
•
Rome was established as the capital of the
Roman Catholic Church
Latin was the language used in Catholic
mass
Priests could not marry and vowed life of
celibacy
• Eastern Orthodox Christian
Church was headed by the
Byzantine Patriarch, so religious
and political unity was structural( had
structure-Separate from each other.)
• Use of the Greek language
created linguistic unification
among its followers.
• Eastern Orthodox Church was led by the
Patriarch (archbishop of Constantinople)
• He was appointed by the Byzantine Emperor,
effectively making the Emperor both the head
of the state and the church. This resulted in
political centralization.
• Developed a monastic tradition with monks
and nuns forming religious communities
•
•
•
Constantinople became the capital of the
Byzantine Empire and the Eastern Orthodox
Church.
Priests could marry and were generally
unshaven.
Local languages could be used in church
services.
 Orthodox
 Catholic
Priests can marry
Priests can’t marry
Emperor ruled
Pope is in charge
Don’t follow the pope
Constantinople is the
most important city
Easter is the most
important holiday
Rome is the most
important city
Christmas is the
most important
holiday
Short Video on Byzantine Empire
http://google.discoveryeducation.com/playe
r/view/assetGuid/82EF78DE-CB32-451A93CA-957435E52253