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330
Emperor Constantine I founded the Byzantine capital
Emperor Constantine I, or Constantine the Great, founded the capital of the Byzantine Empire, and named it after himself—Constantinople. Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city, and was instrumental in the advance of Christianity. -
532
Nika Revolt
The Nika riots took place over the course of a week in Constantinople, and they were the most violent riots in history. Half the city got burned or destroyed, and tens of thousands of people died. -
533
General Belisarius's Military Campaigns
General Belisarius was a Byzantine general, who conquered the last of the Western Roman Empire, earning him the title "the last roman". He started the military campaigns in the year 533, and they continued for many years after, his last military endeavor being in 559. -
537
Hagia Sophia Completed
The Hagia Sophia was built as a large cathedral in Contantinople. Constantiople is now Istanbul, Turkey, where the church still stands, now as a museum. The Hagia Sophia was built three different times. First, in 360, but was destroyed in revolts in 404. The church was built again in 415, but was burned down during the Nika revolt of 532. The church was built for a final time in 537, and still stands today. -
Sep 1, 1054
Great Schism
This was the spliting of Christianity into the Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox religions. The Pope thought he had power over the 4 eastern patriarchs, but they thought his title was only honorary and that they should be in control, thus the splitting of religions. -
Sep 1, 1095
Emperor Alexios I contacts Pope Urban II for military help in the Middle East
Emperor Alexios I wanted western help from Pope Urban II to help repel the invading Seliuq Turks from Anatolia. This then became the first crusade, the first attempt to capture Jerusalem and free the Christians from Muslim rule. -
Sep 1, 1204
Fourth Crusade (attack on Constantinople)
A Western European army was originally intending to conquer the Muslim controlled Jerusealum with an attack through Egypt, but they ended up helping prince Alexios become emperor of the Byzantine empire, in return being helped financially on their journey. Alexios was taken out of power in an uprising, and therefore couldn't supply the western army anymore. They decided to attack Constantinople, the heart of the Byzantine empire, which ended up being a big factor in the empire's decline. -
Sep 1, 1453
Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks
The Ottoman Empire's army invaded Constantinople, bringing the city down. This marked the end of the Byzantium Empire, and of the entire Roman Empire. The Ottoman Turks made Constantiople their new capital. -
Early Islamic military campaigns into Byzantine territory
The Arab–Byzantine wars began in 629. The Arab peninsula (Saudi Arabia) had rapily expanded, causing the Byzantine Empire to lose a lot of territory. Over the course of time, the Byzantine Empire would lose a lot of territory to the Arabs, eventually being a cause of the Empire's downfall. -
Emperor Basil II military conquests of Bulgaria
Basil II was a Byzantine Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty. He wanted to gain back some land that had once been part of the empire, but know was being governed by the Bulgars. He took an army of 30,000 men into Bulgaria's capital, but he lost the battle, losing the land back to the Bulgars.
