Byzantine Empire - The New Rome

Aim: Did the Roman Empire really end or was it reborn as something else?

Do Now: Define "Empire" in your notebooks

Item	Approx Time
Do Now	3-5 Min
Mini Lesson	10 Min
Activity	20 Min
Discussion	10 Min

Justinian & Theodora

Before becoming emperor, Justinian married Theodora, which upset a lot of people because she was an actress, and many people thought all actresses were bad women. But in fact she made a good empress, and Justinian seems to have loved her very much, even though they never were able to have any children.

Justinian made peace with King Khusrho of the Sassanids in 532 AD, which made it possible for him to send Roman troops to reconquer Africa from the Vandals, Italy from the Ostrogoths, and Spain from the Visigoths. This is called the Byzantine Reconquest. These troops mainly succeeded, though after his death the land was slowly lost again to new invaders.

In the reign of Justinian, the great church of Hagia Sophia was built in Constantinople.

On the other hand, there were many raids into the empire during his reign, especially in the Balkans. And, beginning in 542 AD, there was a terrible plague throughout the Empire, which may be the first appearance of the bubonic plague.

Justinian was dynamic and ambitious, and shared many policy-making decisions with his extraordinary wife, Theodora. Together they sought to reclaim much of the western empire, reform Roman law, and rebuild Constantinople. Most of the hard-won territorial conquests were lost soon after Justinian's death, but some of the architecture (particularly the Hagia Sophia) still stands, and Justinian's law codes would be extremely influential to the legal system of medieval Europe.

Classwork & Homework

Lesson PowerPoint: Byzantine Empire - Justinian to End of Empire

Lesson Video: Engineering an Empire - Byzantine Empire

Lesson Activity: Engineering an Empire - Byzantine Empire Worksheet

Homework: Assignments