Early Medieval Europe (ca )

Early Medieval Europe How was Europe different now from the classical past? How was Europe different now from the classical past? Politically? Politically? Religiously? Religiously? Culturally? Culturally?

Western Europe Barbarians! –What do you think of? –Do certain images come to mind?

Western Europe

The Germanic Kingdoms –Farmers –Complicated relations with Rome The Good –Served in Roman military –Imitated Roman customs –Settled in Roman territory The Bad –Military conflicts –Sack of Rome (410)

Western Europe Sack of Rome (410)

Western Europe The Huns –Nomadic fighters –Under rule of ATTILA THE HUN (r ) –Goal: western empire in Gaul and Italy (451-52) –Hunnic Empire disintegrated 454 Leo the Great and Attila

Western Europe

Romulus Augustulus “Fall of Rome” –Last western emperors ( ) –Ruled fragments of western Europe –Romulus Augustulus (r ) deposed

Western Europe The Germanic Kingdoms (ca. 530) The Germanic Kingdoms –The Visigoths –The Ostrogoths –THE FRANKS –THE ANGLES AND SAXONS –The Vandals

Western Europe Questions?

Western Europe The Papacy –Office of bishop of Rome –One of five “patriarchal” bishops –“First among equals,” according to Greek bishops –Filled “power vacuum” in west

Western Europe Pope Gregory the Great (r ) –“Servant of the servants of God” –Supreme spiritual leader in West –Concerned about affairs in east –Temporal authority

Western Europe Monasticism –Solitary asceticism away from “the world” –Began in Egypt –Reaction to worldliness of imperial church –Kinds of monks: hermits, communal monks A stylite

Western Europe Benedictine Monasticism –Benedict of Nursia (ca ) Began as hermit Became reluctant abbot Established monasteries –Detailed, successful Rule –For women too

Western Europe Abbey of Monte Cassino, Italy

Western Europe Spread of Christianity –St. Patrick converted the Celts –King Clovis I baptized  Franks converted –Angles converted by Augustine of Canterbury Baptism of Clovis

Western Europe Kingdom of the Franks –Dominant in western Europe –Unified by 700 –Merovingians deposed by Carolingians

Western Europe Charlemagne (r ) –Devoutly Christian –Promoted education –His government Ruled “by God’s will” Local rule: counts Missi dominici

Western Europe Emperor Charlemagne –Pope in trouble, fled to Charlemagne –Pope returned to Rome with Frankish escort –Charlemagne followed, crowned “augustus” (800) –Emperor Charlemagne and “new” Roman Empire?

Western Europe Questions?

The Byzantine Empire Byzantine Empire? –Eastern Roman Empire lived on –Capital: CONSTANTINOPLE –Greek in culture, maintained Roman traditions Constantine and Constantinople

The Byzantine Empire Emperor Justinian (r ) –Theodora: his “partner in counsel” –Accomplishments Code of Justinian –Collection of all imperial edicts –Updated, simplified, codified Partial reconquest of western Europe

The Byzantine Empire

Justinian and Religion –Emperor was directly involved in religion –Sought unified “orthodox” Christianity  divine favor! –Persecuted heretics, pagans –Ordered construction of HAGIA SOPHIA (537)

The Byzantine Empire Hagia Sophia

The Byzantine Empire Mosaics –Common in antiquity –Bits of stone, glass  unified image

The Byzantine Empire

The Iconoclastic Controversy –Emperor ordered destruction of icons (726) –Controversy: iconoclasts vs. iconodules –Iconoclasm condemned at Nicaea II (787) –Iconoclasm resurged, condemned for good 843 Virgin and Child between Sts. Theodore and George, 6 th or early 7 th cent.

Early Medieval Europe How was Europe different now from the classical past? How was Europe different now from the classical past? Politically? Politically? Religiously? Religiously? Culturally? Culturally?