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330
Emperor Constantine I
Emperor Constantine I founded the new capital of Constantinople, named after himself. The place chosen for the capital, where it had been once "Old Byzantium", had great advantages. Considering that it was surrounded all entirely by water, it could have been easily defended. This location also provided an excellent harbor. Also they had easy accesss to the Danube River Region and the Euphrates frontier. -
527
Justinian, Emperor of the Byzantines
Early in his reign, Justinian hired a legal expert to gather set of laws of the Roman legal system and put them in a single text, the Codex Justinianus. Justinian started an enormous military operation with the aim of taking over Italy, Sicily, and Africa. In 534 CE, Emperor Justinian conquered the Vandal Kingdom in Africa. This rapid conquest of Africa encouraged the emperor to send a small attack force to his new target, Sicily, which fell quickly to the hands of the Romans. -
533
General Belisarius Military Campaigns
Belisarius puts down the Nika Uprising, killing between 20,000-30000 people. He also defeated the Persians and the Vandals of Africa. Justinian send Belisarius to conquer the the Ostrogoths in Italy. He was victorious against them. He took over Sicily first, then Naples, and after that, Rome fell to Belisarius. Emperor Justinian Became suspicious of Belisarius since he was becoming very popular among his men and those that he had conquered. -
537
Hagia Sophia Completed
The Hagia Sophia was first built by Constantine II in 360 AD. Two fires destroyed this church and was later rebuilt dedicated by Theodosius II. In the Nika Riot of 532, the church was burnt down again. Emperor Justinian, during his reign, rebuilt the church. Justinian wanted to celebrate his victories by building the Hagia Sophia bigger and that it would surpass the buildings of Ancient Rome. In 537, the dome was completed, but couple of years later, it collapsed because of an earthquake. -
Feb 23, 650
Islamic Conquest Parts of the Byzantine Territory
Muhammad organized the common wealth of Islam in and around Mecca. A series of battles were fought between Mecca and Medina. Under the treaty of Hudaybiya, Muhammad's followers were finally given the privilege to undertake pilgrimages to Mecca. But when this right was denied from them, they took the city. -
Apr 26, 1025
Emperor Basil II military conquest up to the year 1015
Basil was an emperor who wanted to reclaim lost territory for the Byzantine Empire. He faught with his army mostly against Bulgaria for years until the allies of Bulgaria switched sides and helped the Byzantines win. By aggression and by diplomacy he secured land from Georgia and from Armenia, with the promise of more to come on the death of the Armenian ruler. -
Nov 29, 1054
Great Schism
Schism refer to the separation between the Eastern Christian churches and the Western Churches. Political jealousies and interests intensified the disputes; and at last, after many premonitory symptoms, the final break came in 1054, when Pope Leo IX struck at Michael Cerularius and his followers with an excommunication and when the Patriarch retaliated with a similar excommunication. -
May 23, 1095
Emperor Alexios I and Pope Urban II
When the Byzantine Empire was under attack Emperor Alexios I asked Pope Urban II for help. Instead of sending a few men the pope sent an army to help the emipre.The emperor had those of the People’s Crusade shipped across the straits into the Holy Land as quickly as possible to prevent them from establishing a permanent camp and from looting and attacking the locals. Scholars and historians agree that if Alexius I had not asked for Pope Urban II’s help, the Crusades may not have taken place. -
Jul 3, 1204
Fourth Crusade (attack on Constantinople)
The crusaders of Western Europe finally broke through to Constantinople in 1204. Although they gave oaths against it, they destroyed many important buildings, stole, and defaced things around the city. After that the Byzantine Empire was split into different successor states. -
Dec 29, 1453
End of the Byzantines
After being weakened for hundreds of years by the Latin crusades, successor states, and the Serbian Empire, Constantinople fell. Ottoman forces pushed through and brought down the Byzantine Empire in about 2 months.
