-
330
Constantinople becomes capital of eastern Roman Empire
Constantinople was one of the most important cities in Europe, and from it arose one of the two most leading branches of Christianity-the Orthodox Christian churches. -
Period: 527 to 565
Reign of Justinian
Justinian was a dictatorial emperor with lots of large ideas, but he contributed many positive things to the Byzantine Empire (the rebuilding of Constantinople, organizing the Roman legal code, and progressing Roman architecture ex: Hagia Sophia. -
650
Slavic Migrations into Eastern Europe
The slaves moved to Russia and Eastern Europe from their Asian homeland during the period of the Roman Empire. They mixed with the Bulgarians who embraced their languages and customs. Slaves maintained an animist religion. -
718
Arab attack on Constantinople defeated
Despite the Byzantine Empire (specifically Constantinople) being able to hold out against Arab threats, after the the many attacks and losses, the Byzantine Empire was cut to half the size of the early eastern Roman Empire. -
855
Rurik king of Kievan Russia (according to legend)
A monarchy emerged from the city of Kiev and supposedly, a man named Rurik, a native of Denmark, became the first prince of Kievan Rus’ (KEE-eh-vehn Roos) -
864
Beginning of Christian missionary work of Cyril and Methodius in Slavic Lands
Cyril and Methodists were sent over by the Byzantine government to spread their version of Christianity to what is now Czech and Slavic Republics. Here they failed, but continued their missions in the Balkans and in southern Russia where their ability to speak the Slavic language greatly helped them. -
870
First Kingdom in what is now Czech and Slovak republics
The Byzantine government sent Orthodox missionaries (located in Constantinople) to spread Christianity over to the territory that is now Czech and Slovak republics. -
896
Magyars settle in Hungary
The Magyars were a Turkic people that took over most of Hungary in the 9th century. This is where Roman Catholicism and the Latin alphabet dominated. -
960
Emergence of Polish State
Not only did Roman Catholicism prevail in Hungary, but also in Poland (these regions would be a large area of competition between the eastern and western political models. In the end the kingdom of Poland exceeded most westerns kingdoms in territory. -
Period: 980 to 1015
Conversion of Russia to Christianity
Vladimir turned Russia from a pagan country to a Christian one, after he experienced a miracle from God-he was blind, and he regained eyesight as a Byzantine bishop laid his hands On him, -
1018
Byzantine defeat of Bulgarian Kingdom
Bulgaria would try to take Byzantine territory in the balkans, but it only left them under the control of the the Byzantines. The Byzantine emperor, Bulgaroktonos defeated the Bulgarian in 1014, blinding up to 15,000 soldiers. -
Period: 1019 to 1054
Reign of Yaroslav, king of Rus’
Yaroslav was the last of the great Kievan princes. He instituted the legal codification, while also building many churches. He additionally formed the translation of religious literature from the Greek language to the Slavic language. -
1054
Schism between Eastern and Western Christianity
Schism was just another word for split. The Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholic Church had split, causing a slow decline of the Empire. -
Period: 1100 to 1453
Byzantine Decline; under growing attack by Ottomans
This was significant because the Turks were ultimately the ones that caused the Byzantine Empire’s demise. In the late 11th century, the Turks took almost all of the Asiatic provinces of the empire, and cut off the tax revenue-territories that took away most of their food. From their, it was a continuous downhill. -
Period: 1203 to 1204
Fourth Crusade, Westerners sack Constantinople
This crusade was was supposed to be for conquering the Holy land from the Muslims, but instead, it turned against the byzantines, and conquered Constantinople. However, a small Byzantine empire was restored. -
Period: 1237 to 1241
Mongols (Tatars) capture Russia
The quick decline of the Byzantine Empire, caused the Russian trade and wealthy to be significantly reduced. Thus making the Russians an easier target by the Mongols. There were two invasions by the Mongols from Central Asia. They went through Russia and other areas of Eastern Europe. -
1453
Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople; end of Byzantine Empire
After the Eastern and Western churches split, the Byzantine empire just continued to decline. The Empire lost the battle of Manzikert in 1071 and never recovered. They lasted another 4 centuries, but finally, in 1453, the Turkish empire defeated the great eastern empire. -
1480
Expulsion of Tartars from Russia
The tartar control was finally forced out during the second half of the 15th century. Once they left political and cultural tradition could renter the Russian society.
