Reached during the reign of the emperor Justinian I(527-565). At this time, Byzantium not only repelled the onslaught of neighboring Persia, the Turkic, Germanic and Slavic tribes, but also almost doubled its territory, conquering the state of the Vandals in North Africa, the Ostrogothic kingdom in Italy and the southeastern part Visigothic kingdom in Spain.

Achievements of the Empire of Justinian I

Code of civil law

Under Justinian, the most famous monument of Byzantine legal thought was created - Code of civil law(Summary). It was a single legislative code, which was based on the legislative provisions of Roman law. However, there are also completely new ideas here. So, it was in the Code that the theory of natural human rights was first legally fixed, according to which all people are free from nature. Many provisions of the Code facilitated the release of slaves into the wild, protected the principle of private property. As the legislative code of the Christian state, the Code also defended the rights of the church.

The symbol of the greatness of the Christian Byzantine Empire was the Hagia Sophia built under Justinian in Constantinople. material from the site

This monumental building, richly decorated with frescoes and mosaics, staggered the imagination of contemporaries. Due to the fact that the grandiose dome with a diameter of 31.5 meters rested on a multitude of thin columns, it seemed from a distance that it literally hovered over the cathedral. Therefore, a legend has spread among travelers that the dome of Hagia Sophia is suspended from the sky as a sign of the special favor of the Lord God to Emperor Justinian.

Leading an active foreign policy, the Byzantine Empire under Justinian I achieved great success in the field of diplomacy. Byzantine diplomats, trained in the languages ​​of almost all the peoples of the world, developed the procedure for receiving and sending embassies, created formulas for international agreements that became the standard for many peoples.

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Justinian's reign
The most significant era in the early history of Byzantium, when all the noted features of its development were already fully reflected, was the reign of Emperor Justinian (527-565). The reign of Justinian and earlier of his uncle Justin was preceded by an extraordinary strengthening of the senatorial landowning aristocracy, whose representative Anastasius was placed on the imperial throne at the end of the 5th century. Under Anastasius, a contradiction between the interests of large secular and church-monastic landownership was revealed with great force. The secular aristocracy, which had vast latifundia in the eastern lands of Byzantium - in Egypt, Syria and Asia Minor, supported the separatist tendencies of these provinces, hiding behind the heresy of the Monophysites, adherents of the doctrine according to which Christ is not a God-man, but a god, i.e., has only one nature - divine, Anastasius, like most of the senatorial nobility, was inclined to support the Monophysites in order to strengthen their positions in the East. But he had to face the embittered resistance of the Orthodox clergy, who had behind him the masses of the capital's population, the devastated Thracian columns, and even part of the army. Although the uprising of discontented elements, led by Vitalian, was suppressed (515), but after the death of Anastasius there was such disarray in the ranks of the ruling class that the new emperor was nominated not by the senate, but by the army. It was Justin, an illiterate Illyrian peasant who had risen to prominence in military service. His nephew Justinian, who received an excellent education, actually ruled under Justin, and in 527 he himself became emperor; Justinian's wife Theodora was a circus actress before her marriage.
The emperors of the new dynasty abruptly changed the course of church policy, focusing on the influential Orthodox clergy, who knew how to have a particularly strong position in the European provinces of the empire. Justinian began his reign by decreeing the extermination of all heretics, including the Monophysites; heretics were given a three-month period to convert to Orthodoxy, after which they were subject to restriction in all civil rights and severe persecution.
In addition to the Orthodox Church, the new emperor hoped to find support in the bureaucracy, whose cadres were greatly expanded, as well as in the army, on which huge funds were spent and whose commanders, thanks to Justinian's aggressive foreign policy, gained great influence in public life.
The maintenance of the army and numerous officials, the wars and the extensive construction activities of Justinian - all this quickly exhausted the savings of the emperor Anastasius and required a significant increase in the tax burden that fell on the peasants and the city.
craft population. Violence, extortion and predation by the bureaucracy further exacerbated
difficult situation.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire and the fall of Rome, Byzantium was able to resist the onslaught of the barbarians and continued to exist as an independent state. She reached the peak of her power under the emperor Justinian.

Byzantine Empire under Justinian

The Byzantine emperor ascended the throne on August 1, 527. The territory of the empire at that time included the Balkans, Egypt, the coast of Tripoli, the peninsula of Asia Minor, the Middle East and all the islands of the eastern Mediterranean.

Rice. 1. The territory of Byzantium at the beginning of the reign of Justinian

The role of the emperor in the state was unusually huge. He had absolute power, but it was based on the bureaucracy.

Basileus (as the Byzantine rulers were called) built the basis of his domestic policy on the foundation laid by Diocletian, who worked under Theodosius I. He formed a special document listing all the civil and military state ranks of Byzantium. So, the military sphere was divided immediately between the five largest military leaders, two of whom were at the court, and the rest in Thrace, in the east of the empire and in Illyria. Below in the military hierarchy were the duks, who controlled the military districts entrusted to them.

In domestic policy, the basileus relied on the ministers for his power. The most powerful was the minister who controlled the largest prefecture - the eastern one. He had the greatest influence on the writing of laws, public administration, the judiciary and the distribution of finances. Below him was the prefect of the city, who ruled the capital. The state also had heads of various services, treasurers, police chiefs and, finally, senators - members of the imperial council.

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An important date in the life of the empire is 529. It was then that Justinian created his famous code - a set of laws based on Roman law. It was the finest legal document of its time, incorporating the laws of the empire.

Rice. 2. Fresco depicting Justinian.

The most important state reforms carried out by Justinian:

• combination of civil and military positions;
• a ban on officials acquiring land in their places of service;
• the prohibition of paying for positions and increasing salaries for officials, which was carried out as part of the fight against corruption.

The highest merit of Justinian in the cultural sphere was the construction of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople - the greatest Christian church of its time.

In 532, the largest rebellion in its history occurs in Constantinople - the Nika uprising. More than 35 thousand people, dissatisfied with high taxes and church policy, took to the streets of the city. Only thanks to the loyalty of the personal guards of the emperor and his wife, Justinian did not flee the capital and personally suppressed the rebellion.

A prominent role in the life of the emperor was played by his wife, Theodora. She was not an aristocrat, earning before marriage in the theaters of Constantinople. However, she turned out to be a subtle politician who knows how to play on people's feelings and build complex intrigues.

Foreign policy under Justinian

There was no other period in the history of the young empire when it experienced such a flourishing. Considering the reign of Justinian in the Byzantine Empire, one cannot but mention the endless wars and conquests that he waged. Justinian was the only Byzantine emperor who dreamed of reviving the Roman Empire within its former borders.

Justinian's favorite commander was Belisarius. He took part in many wars both in the east with the Persians and in the west with the Vandals in North Africa, in Spain with the Visigoths and in Italy with the Ostrogoths. Even with smaller forces, he managed to achieve victories, and the capture of Rome is considered the highest success.

Considering this issue briefly, the following achievements of the Roman army should be noted:

• endless wars in the east with the Persians did not allow the latter to occupy the Middle East;
• conquered the kingdom of the Vandals in North Africa;
• southern Spain freed from the Visigoths for 20 years;
• Italy, along with Rome and Naples, was returned to the rule of the Romans.

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Task number 1. Find 6 errors in the text

Byzantium arose as an independent state in 295 as a result of the division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western. The inhabitants of Byzantium called their state the Greek Empire, and called themselves Greeks

The territory of the empire covered the countries of ancient agricultural culture, among them Egypt, Gaul, Syria, Palestine. Byzantium was famous for its numerous rich cities: Constantinople, Alexandria, Rome, Antioch, Jerusalem. The first place belonged to the capital of the empire, Rome

1. The division of the Roman Empire took place in 395

2. The empire was called "Roman" (in Greek "Romean")

3. They called themselves Romans (in Greek, "Romans")

4. Gaul was never part of Byzantium

5. Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem were lost in the 7th century, and Rome, taken under Justinian, was lost in the 8th century

6. The capital of the empire has always been Constantinople

Task number 2. One of Justinian's contemporaries, the famous Byzantine historian Procopius of Caesarea, created a controversial image of the emperor in his works: on the one hand, he showed him as a cruel tyrant, and on the other, as a wise politician and reformer. Consider what acts of Justinian allowed him to characterize the emperor in this way. What is your opinion of Justinian?

Initially a simple, kind and generous person, Justinian changed over time. He became suspicious, treacherous, deceitful (like a politician), vindictive, greedy, unscrupulous in ways of obtaining funds, cruel to his opponents and enemies, volitional decisions intervened in the lives of people close to him, did not stop before the execution of loved ones. With all these qualities, he possessed tireless perseverance and diligence. He reformed the administrative and tax system, legislation, developed foreign trade, considering it a source of wealth for the empire, annexed to the country many provinces lost by the Western Roman Empire, reformed the army, rebuilt Constantinople and created a masterpiece of architecture - the church of St. Sophia

My personal opinion is neutral. Firstly, all his merits became possible thanks to his environment, and a wise policy was largely determined by the influence of his wife. Secondly, after the reign of Justinian, the Byzantine economy was greatly weakened by numerous wars and exorbitant expenses.

Task number 3. With what opponents did Byzantium have to fight in the 6th - 9th centuries? Fill in the table "Successes and failures of Byzantine foreign policy"

Byzantium reached its highest prosperity in the early period of its history under the emperor Justinians I (527-565), who was born in the family of a poor Macedonian peasant. In the life of Justinian, his maternal uncle Justin, an uneducated peasant who went from a simple soldier to an emperor, played an important role. Thanks to his uncle, Justinian ended up in Constantinople as a teenager, received a good education, and at the age of 45 became emperor.

Justinian was short, white-faced, of an attractive appearance. His character combined the most contradictory traits: directness and kindness bordered on deceit and deceit, generosity - with greed, determination - with fear. Justinian, for example, was indifferent to luxury, but spent considerable money on the rebuilding and decoration of Constantinople. The rich architecture of the capital and the splendor of imperial receptions amazed the barbarian rulers and ambassadors. But when in the middle of the VI century. there was an earthquake, Justinian abolished festive dinners at court, and gave the money saved to help the victims.

From the beginning of his reign, Justinian cherished the dream of reviving the Roman Empire. He devoted all his activity to this. For his amazing performance, Justinian was nicknamed "the emperor who never sleeps." His faithful assistant was his wife Theodora . She was born into a simple family and was a circus actress in her youth. The beauty of the girl struck Justinian, and he, in spite of many ill-wishers, married her. This woman of inflexible will actually became the co-ruler of her husband: she received foreign ambassadors, conducted diplomatic correspondence.

Justinian tried to increase the wealth of the country, and therefore actively promoted the development of handicrafts and trade. During the years of his reign, the Byzantines established their own production of silk, the sale of which brought considerable profits. The emperor also sought to strengthen the system of government. Any person, even of humble origin, but a true specialist, could receive a high public position.

In 528, Justinian formed a legal commission to process and streamline all Roman law. Lawyers systematized the laws of the Roman emperors II - early VI centuries. (from Hadrian to Justinian). This collection was called the Justinian Code. It became the basis of a multi-volume collection, which in the XII century. in Western Europe it was known as the Code of Civil Law.

6th century From the work of Procopius of Caesarea "War with the Persians"

Emperor Justinian and his entourage consulted on how best to proceed: to stay here, whether to flee on ships. Much has been said in the interests of both the first and the second ideas. And so Empress Theodora said: “Now, I think, is not the time to argue whether it is worthy for a woman to show stamina in front of men and speak to the confused with youthful enthusiasm. It seems to me that running away is an unworthy act. To the one who was born, it is impossible not to be moderate, ”however, it is shameful for someone who once ruled to be a fugitive. I do not want to lose this scarlet and live to see the day when the subjects do not call me their mistress! If you wish to flee, emperor, it is not difficult. We have a lot of money, and the sea is nearby, and there are ships. However, see that you, saved, do not later have to choose death over such salvation. I like the old saying that royalty is a beautiful shroud.” So said Empress Theodora. Her words inspired the audience and... they again began to talk about how they should defend themselves...material from the site

For the power of Justinian, the beginning of 532 was critical, when a major uprising "Nika!" broke out in Constantinople. (gr."Win!"). That was the call of the rebels. They burned the tax rolls, seized the prison and set the prisoners free. Justinian, in desperation, prepared to escape from the capital. Theodora was able to convince her husband to take the necessary measures, and the uprising was crushed.

Deprived of the formidable internal danger, Justinian set about realizing his cherished dream of restoring the empire in the West. He managed to win back the former Roman possessions from the Vandals, Ostrogoths, Visigoths, and the territory of Byzantium almost doubled.

Excessive taxes for warfare led the Byzantines to complete impoverishment, so after the death of Justinian, the people breathed a sigh of relief. The population also suffered from the terrible plague epidemic of 541 542, nicknamed by the people "Justinian". She claimed almost half of the population of Byzantium. The power of the state, achieved under Justinian, was fragile, and the restoration of the borders of the Roman Empire turned out to be artificial.

Bagryanitsa - long outerwear made of expensive crimson fabric worn by monarchs.

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