After Pax Romana, Roman Empire declined and got invaded.

They eventually split into East and West.

West Rome falls and goes into Dark Ages.
East Rome prospers and becomes Byzantine Empire.

The capital of the Byzantine Empire was Constantinople.

● Constantinople's location was strategically placed because of its accessibility to
trade.

The citizens of the Byzantine Empire thought themselves as Romans and they shared
similarities to the Roman Empire.
● They kept alive Greco Roman culture
● Constantinople was a center for learning and education. Schools taught philosophy,
medicine, grammar, and geology.
● They used Roman Style architecture such as arches and domes.
● They also had forums for entertainment and trade.

One of the major buildings of the Byzantine Empire was the Hagia Sophia. It was a
massive Christian Cathedral.

● The citizens in the Empire officially spoke Latin, but most spoke Greek.
● They were both Christian and this was shown with uses of Christian symbols, such
as the cross.
● Both Empires were ruled by a monarchs, and both had absolute power

The Byzantine Emperor Justinian started taking over Roman territories about 50 years after
the decline started.
Justinian ordered legal experts to consolidate old Roman laws into a single law code:
● It served as the legal basis for criminal justice, marriage, slavery, property, etc.,
● It became very important, and served as the basis of laws for the next 900 years.

Justinian also began large building project in addition to expanding his empire and
creating laws.
● He ordered the construction of the Hagia Sophia to show the importance of the
empire

Justinian’s wife Theodora had a lot of power and influence in the Byzantine Empire:
● She met with and wrote to foreign leaders
● She advised Justinian and helped him create laws
● She encouraged the building of Christian Cathedrals

Because of the distance and lack of contact between Byzantine empire and Western
Europe, Christianity developed differently:
● All Christians based their faith on Jesus and The Bible
● However, they had different practices to show their faith

Christians were organized the same way:

● Archbishops and bishops oversaw religions where Christianity was practiced
● Priests led individual churches

One of the biggest controversies among Christians was the use of icons:
● Icons were religious images to help Christians in their prayers and worship
● Some Christians thought it was “idol worship”
● In 730, the Byzantine Emperor banned icons in churches

Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox have many differences and similarities.

Differences:
● RC: Services conducted in Latin
● EO: Services conducted in Greek and local languages
● RC: Pope has authority over all bishops
● EO: Patriarch and other bishops head the church
● RC: Pope claims authority over all emperors
● EO: Emperor claims authority over all bishops and the patriarchs
● RC: Priests cannot marry and people cannot divorce
● EO: Priests can marry and people can divorce

Similarities:
● Faith is based in Bible and Jesus
● Sacraments such as baptisms are common
● Priests and Bishops are religious leaders
● They convert people