Byzantine timeline

Timespan

Period: 300 to 1500

Emperor Constantine I Founded the Byzantine Capital.

330

Emperor Constantine I found the capital city of Byzantine, Constantinople in 330, which will transform into a rich and powerful civilization later on.

General Belisarius Military Campaigns

527

Belisarius led his first military campaign in 527 to fight the Sassanians, in east Rome. In 530 he beat the Sassanian army at the battle of Dara. Belisarius was summoned again in 532 when the Nika revolt broke out and in 533 AD, he was sent to reclaim African provinces from the Vandal Kingdom. Belisarius's last successful military campaign was when he waged war on the Ostrogothic Kingdom in 533.

Nika revolt

532

Chariot races were very important in the Roman culture. It was a tradition for emperors to choose which charioteer to support, the blues or the greens. when emperor Justinian refused to pick either, riots to overthrow him broke out and when the ring leaders of these riots were arrested and set to be executed, even worse riots broke out. The emperor sent general Belisarius to stop the riots, which turned out to be a bad idea since he murdered 30,000 people.

Hagia Sophia Completed

537

Hagia Sophia was originally a Christian basilica. It was rebuilt three times and it still stands as a mosque today. The first two times it was destroyed because of fire during riots.

Early Islamic military campaigns into Byzantine territory

644

The prophet Muhammad sent letters to the emperors of Persia, Yemen, Byzantine, and Ethiopia in 629, urging them to accepts Islam. Byzantine was later on attacked by armies from Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia, the true cross and Jerusalem were in the hands of Muslims.

Emperor Basil II military conquests of Bulgaria

1018

In 986 emperor Basil II led his to invade Bulgaria but was halted because he was betrayed by his noble officials and faced Islamic threat from the east. He went back to invade Bulgaria and eventually caught 15000 prisoners. 99 out of each 100 of the 15000 prisoners were blinded and one was left to lead them back.

Great Schism

1054

Christianity was split into two branches, Orthodox and Catholic in 1054.

Emperor Alexios I contacts Pope Urban II

1095

In 1095 emperor Alexios was under pressure from the Turks, who have threatened to take over Constantinople several times. He sought help from Pope Urban II, who took this opportunity to exaggerate how antichrist Muslims are and encouraged his soldiers to take back the holy land.

Fourth Crusade

1204

In 1198 the fourth was started by Pope Innocent III. The purpose of this was to take back Jerusalem from Muslim conquerors, but the pope wanted the crusaders to put a new king on Byzantine throne so he could take control of the eastern churches. War broke out and in the end, Byzantine was divided between Venice and Spain.

Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks

1453

The economy of Byzantine fell in 1261 and never recovered from the impact. This led the emperor John V to seek help from the Turks and eventually he became a vassal to the Turkish Sultan. In 1421, Murad II waged war on Byzantine and his successor Mehmed II launched the last attack on Byzantine on May 29, 1453.