The Byzantine Empire
and the Rise of Islam
What great empire centered in
Constantinople flourished for 1000 years?
Fall of Western Rome
• After the fall of Western Rome, 2 new
empires arose in the Eastern
Mediterranean Region
• Byzantine Empire, whose culture and
religion spread to Russia
• Islamic Empire, whose beliefs spread to
lands from Spain to India
East Prospers under Constantine
Constantinople Ruled an
Eastern Empire
• Constantine moved capital of Rome to
Constantinople, a strategically located
seaport
• Controlled shipping between Asia and
Mediterranean
• Kept Rome alive after the fall of the West
and became the Byzantine Empire
Justinian’s Changes
• Over 18 years, Justinian
tried to get Rome back
from Ostrogoths. The
fighting went back and
forth over Rome. Ruined
the city of Rome
• Meanwhile, Justinian made Constantinople
wealthy with markets, palaces, universities,
and churches.
Justinian Code
• Justinian’s legal reforms are his most
enduring legacy.
• Hired scholars to organize the thousands
of Roman laws into one code
• Basis of Byzantine law for next 900 years,
as well as future European law
Religious Disputes
• Byzantine Christians vs. Christians of
Western Europe
• Pope in Rome is head of Christian Church
in West, and of all Christians everywhere
• Patriarch, (head of Byzantine Church),
refused to accept his authority, he
recognized Byzantine emperor as leading
authority
Icons
• Icons – West says Ok, East says No Way.
• Iconoclasts – smashed icons, claimed they
were a part of idol worship
• Pope supports use of Icons
• Byzantine emperor and Roman Pope
excommunicate one another – Permanent
split between Churches
Two Churches
Western Branch becomes Roman Catholic
Church
Eastern Branch becomes Eastern Orthodox
Church
This is both a religious and political break
between the East and the West
A New Faith Spread from Arabia
• South of Constantinople, a new faith gave
rise to a new empire – Islam
• Muhammad had a vision hailing him as the
messenger of Allah, (God, same one Jews
and Christians worship).
• He believed he was the prophet of Allah,
and began to preach in Mecca
Islam – “Surrender to God”
• Muhammad won many militaristic followers in
Medina after being driven out of Mecca
• He returned to Mecca with his followers and
preached there until his death in 632
• Abu-Bakr, the new Muslim leader, had
Muhammad’s teachings recorded in Arabic in
the Koran, which is the holy book of Islam
• Arabic became the language of worship,
learning and literature in the region
5 Pillars
•
•
•
•
•
•
Faith in Allah as the only God
Muhammad is the prophet of God
Pray 5 times a day facing Mecca
Alms
Fasting
Pilgrimage to Mecca
• Followers were willing to die for their faith
– To spread their religion, they began an era of
conquest, spreading Islam across Egypt, North Africa,
Spain, Portugal, Persia, and India
Islamic Empire
• Caliphs, successors of Muhammad, were both
spiritual and political leaders
• Built a new capital city in Baghdad, which was a
center of trade, science, art, and education (for
Jews, Christians and Muslims)
– Invented Algebra
– found treatments for
disease etc.
Decline of Byzantine Empire
• Constantinople had fought off Muslim
invaders for 750 years, (well fortified), but
could not hold out against Muhammad II,
the Ottoman sultan.
• Read Turning Points in History on pages
196-197
One Empire Expands while another one
Contracts
Spread of Islam
Stopped in France
Islam had spread
throughout the
Mediterranean and
conquered most of Spain.
In the 8th Century Islam
moved northward into
France
- In the Battle of Tours
(Tours is a city in France)
in 732 AD, Charles Martel
of France defeated the
Islamic Warriors thereby
pushing Islam south of
France
The Golden Age
This was a Golden Age of learning where civilization,
religious and ethnic tolerance, interfaith harmony,
discovery and free debate were the norm.
Libraries, colleges, public baths were established and
literature, poetry and architecture flourished.
Cordoba
In the 10th century, Cordoba, the capital of Umayyad Spain, was unrivalled in both
East and the West for its wealth and civilization. One author wrote about Cordoba:
"there were half a million inhabitants, living in 113,000 houses. There were
700 mosques and 300 public baths spread throughout the city and its
twenty-one suburbs. The streets were paved and lit... There were bookshops
and more than seventy libraries."
Muslim scholars served as a major
link in bringing Greek philosophy, of
which the Muslims had previously
been the main custodians, to
Western Europe.
Cordoba, Mosque