What was the Byzantine Empire
The name given to the continuation of the Roman Empire that persisted in the east for roughly another thousand years after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476. With Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) as its capital and Greek as its official language, its people called themselves "Romans" and considered themselves the legitimate continuation of the Roman Empire. The name "Byzantine Empire" was not used at the time β it is said to have been coined much later by Western European historians drawing on the city's old name, Byzantium.
Constantine the Great and the move to a new capital (330 CE)
Emperor Constantine the Great made the ancient Greek colonial city of Byzantium his new capital and renamed it Constantinople. Situated on the Bosphorus Strait, the city was a strategic hub on the trade routes linking Europe and Asia, and its position surrounded on three sides by water made it easy to defend. Thanks to these geographic advantages, Constantinople served as the empire's center for more than a thousand years afterward.
The golden age under Justinian the Great (6th century)
Justinian I sought to reclaim parts of the former Roman Empire's territory and is also well known for compiling Roman law into a unified code. He temporarily reconquered North Africa and part of Italy, and the legal code compiled under his order β commonly known as the Justinian Code β is credited with influencing the legal systems of many later European countries. It was also during this period that the Hagia Sophia cathedral was built.
The Hagia Sophia, a symbol of Byzantine architecture
A cathedral built during the reign of Justinian, distinguished by its massive dome and considered a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture. At the time of its completion, it was counted among the buildings with the largest dome roof in the world. After the Ottoman conquest in 1453, it was converted into a mosque, later became a museum, and has since changed use again β its function shifting several times across different eras.
The Greek Orthodox Church and the East-West Schism (1054)
The Byzantine Empire was the center of Greek Orthodox Christianity, which officially split from the Roman Catholic Church in 1054. The schism is understood to have resulted from long-accumulated tensions over issues like recognition of the Pope's authority and differences in liturgy and doctrine. This split divided Christianity broadly into Roman Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity, a division that continues to this day.
Preserving Greek and Roman culture
Even as Western Europe went through periods of turmoil, the Byzantine Empire preserved a substantial share of ancient Greek and Roman scholarship and texts. This preserved body of classical literature and learning is credited with later being passed along, both through exchange with the Islamic world and to Western European scholars from the 15th century onward, contributing to the revival of learning during the Renaissance.
The beginning of decline: the Crusades and internal conflict
In 1204, the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire β a fellow Christian state β dealing a severe blow to its power. Amid the territorial losses and internal succession disputes that followed, the rising Ottoman Empire expanded into Asia Minor and the Balkans, gradually shrinking Byzantine territory down to the area around Constantinople.
The Fall of Constantinople (1453)
Constantinople fell in 1453 under a massive assault led by Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, bringing the Byzantine Empire to an end. This event is often cited as one of the symbolic markers of the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the early modern era. After the conquest, Constantinople was renamed Istanbul and became the new capital of the Ottoman Empire.