Byzantine Iconoclasm

From 1095 to the end of the Middle Ages, the call to the Holy Land echoed across Europe as enthusiastic preachers lectured crowds upon wooden platforms, exercising all the tricks of the orator’s trade by coaxing, threatening, and promising in order to rouse up revenge upon there enemy. Preaching was the most effective way to reach the illiterate masses. Although the clergy and nobles of Europe were used to receiving letters begging aid for the Holy Land, for the most part the emotions and hopes…

to embark on such a journey. In 1095, the Byzantine Empire was in trouble. An invasion of Turks had seized control of the Byzantine land in Asia Minor and was starting to threaten the city of Constantinople. The Byzantine emperor, Alexius Comnenus, wanted to reconquer this lost territory, so he wrote a letter to the pope asking for help. When the Byzantine Empire appealed to Western Christendom for help, the Pope may have recognized that if the Byzantine Empire fell, the rest of Europe could be…

The crusades were military campaigns first inaugurated and sanctioned by Pope Urban 2 at Clermont-Ferrand in November 1095 to wrestle the Holy Land from Muslim control. The desire for access to shrines associated with life and ministry of Jesus was a driving force for crusaders. In addition, the promise to gain to gain land and wealth in the East acted as motivation to the crusaders who also had absolution from sin and eternal glory promised to them. The church was more centralized and stronger…

Many opinions are being said, about if we should study Byzantium time period, or not. The Byzantine Empire is a very overlooked period in our world history. They influenced many things in our lives today. Byzantium was at the center of the known world and lasted for about one thousand years. It was great location for trade and had lots of protection surrounding the peninsula in which the people lived. Many things happened and started during this time period, like, Justinian’s Code, amazing…

Justinian and Theodora, whom the majority of The Secret History’s plot revolves around, are wicked to say the least. Throughout the book, they have a massive number of murders committed for their own personal gain. Justinian, who is observed as taking a devilish form, amasses a huge fortune; but still desires more (Procopius 65). There is no question that their simple being on earth is revolting. However, Procopius particularly finds the dishonesty and cruelty aspects of their lives sickening.…

The crusades where wars between the Christians from Western Europe and Muslim forces. The main reason was to capture the holy land that the Byzantine church believed was there’s. The main objective was to capture back the holy land. The holy land is the place where the bible took place so mainly Jerusalem. The war started in 1095. After 4 years of fighting the European captured Jerusalem and that was the start of the crusades. Crusade I: The first crusade had 5 armies as they were able to…

unknown because for the most part most of the art created during this time were unsigned. This piece is a colorful and very detailed Mosaic which highlights the Byzantine style. The Emperor Justinian and His Attendants can be found in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna. This Mosaic is the most famous figure authority during the Byzantine empire. This image “depicts a centered emperor in front of many military personal and clergyman” (everything2). This work of art is a piece that symbolizes a…

Narrator 2: Justinian heads over to the Hagia Sophia to check on the progress the builders have made. *Justinian walks up to the Patriarch and nun* Justinian: How is the construction coming along? Patriarch: It is coming along well. We are progressing and trying to finish as soon as possible. Nun: It seems to have recovered well from the inferno. Narrator 2: The original church was damaged in 404 A.D. by a fire that erupted…

The Siege of Constantinople in 1453 represented the fall of a great empire and the expansion of a new one. This month long battle pitted the invading Ottoman Empire against the long standing Byzantium Empire that had held the city since its construction in the 4th century. This battle had enormous repercussions throughout the historical world and marked the beginning of the Ottoman Empire and the spread of the Islamic religion into Europe. Constantinople represented the capital of the…

Isiah Rodriguez Mr. Maniates History 101 30 March 2016 Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, sometimes referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire in the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinople. It survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. It was one of the strongest empire to exist and even though some citizens…