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10 Fascinating Facts about the Byzantine Empire

Originating in 330 A.D., the Byzantine Empire was a huge and strong civilization. The empire was established 1000 years ago on the Eastern side of the Great Roman Empire and thrived to become the most dominant and prosperous until Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II conquered it in 1453 A.D.

The Byzantine Empire was a center of education and was renowned for its writing, folk art, and architecture. With all the significance of the Byzantine empire, there are a lot of topics one can talk about.

Byzantine art, an introduction – Smarthistory
Image from Smart History

In this blog post, we will discuss some fascinating facts about the Byzantine Empire.

1. Byzantine Empire was not always called Byzantine

Byzantines referred to themselves as “Romans.” It took a long time after the fall of the Empire for the phrase “Byzantine Empire” to be coined. 

Byzantine Empire is the name used by contemporary historians to separate the state from the western region of the Roman Empire. The name is a reference to Constantinople, the capital city of the Byzantine Empire, which was established in Byzantium.

2. The Byzantines had a bizarre way of fighting political battles

Instead of holding elections, presidential candidates went to great lengths to see who could physically inflict the greatest pain on their opponents to prevent them from coming their way.

They would settle political rivalries by blinding, amputating, or any other form of mutilation that would render the person futile for leadership. Some even opted for castration as it was believed to be the greatest punishment and would deprive the person of a potential heir.

Political mutilation in Byzantine culture - Wikipedia
Image from Wikipedia

3. Chariot Racing was huge back in the day

The popularity of chariot racing is among the many interesting facts about Byzantine Empire. The risk of fatality was quite great as the chariot Racers ran the risk of being pulled behind their horses and killed.

How much of a popular force was chariot racing in the Byzantine Empire? -  Quora
Image from Quora

The thrills, carnage, and potential gambling winnings appear to draw people to racing. Most of these charioteers were slaves, but winning a race might win them as much as 15 bags of gold.

4. Adulterers and those with the knowledge of adultery were punished

Emperor Leo III implemented rules governing close relationships as part of the legal system changes he oversaw. During Leo’s rule, a married man who engaged in adultery received 12 lashes as punishment in addition to a fine. An unmarried man found fornicating would get six lashes.

According to some sources, those involved in adultery would have their noses cut off, while those who knew the sin would be flogged.

Pin by مسافر مسافر on painting | Byzantine empire, Eastern roman, Medieval  world
Image from Pinterest

5. The Byzantines were the first to use the Greek Fire

The origin of Greek fire in 672 AD is one of the most fascinating facts about the Byzantine Empire. Large siphons set on the prows of the Byzantine ships were used to pump the substance onto opposing ships and men. It would ignite once it came in contact with seawater, and extinguishing it required tremendous effort. 

Throughout the seventh, eighth, and tenth centuries, Byzantium was repeatedly protected by this substance against Arab and Russian invasions.

Greek fire - Wikipedia
Image from Wikipedia

6. Constantinople’s fall due to cannons

One piece of military hardware, known as the cannon, bears a significant portion of the blame for how Constantinople itself fell after a 53-day siege in 1453 AD. 

The gun launched cannonballs that weighed around half a ton. It destroyed defenses that had been in place for thousands of years. A single weapon has destroyed the formidable fortifications of the formerly impregnable city.

Image from Pinterest

7. The rise of the Orthodox Church

The Greek-speaking church in Byzantium acquired significant liturgical variations from the Catholic, Latin-speaking church in the West throughout the ages, even though it was virtually always a Christian nation. The Eastern Orthodox Church in the Byzantine East and the Roman Catholic Church in the West are two distinct streams of Christianity that resulted from this “Great Schism.”

8. The Byzantines were the first to try rosemary

The Byzantines were the first people to cook using saffron and rosemary to flavor roasted lamb. These aromatics, which were well-known in antiquity, had not previously been considered to be culinary components.

The Byzantines were also the first to enjoy eggplant, lemons, and oranges, which were mainly unfamiliar to ancient Europeans.

rosemary | Description, Plant, Spice, Uses, History, & Facts | Britannica
Image from Britannica

9. Most of the ancient literature was saved by the Byzantine Empire 

Byzantine intellectuals who upheld the old traditions of literature and learning rescued the majority of the philosophical writings of thinkers like Aristotle and Plato and the historical manuscripts of Greece and Rome. The Byzantines brought back works lost in the West for many years.

A Global Middle Ages through the Pages of Decorated Books (article) | Khan  Academy
Image from Khan Academy

10. The Byzantines expanded our range of jams

The Greeks and Romans have known jams since ancient times. Still, additional jellies based on pears, citrons, and lemons throughout the Byzantine Empire also appeared. The expanding sugar supply aided the confectioner’s innovation.

Conclusion

Byzantine Empire - Kids | Britannica Kids | Homework Help
Image from Britannica Kids

The Byzantine Empire produced a rich tradition of art and learning and acted as a military barrier between the states. We mentioned some of the fascinating facts about the Byzantine Empire that people might still not be aware of, although it lasted for more than a thousand years.

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Characters History Adventures News NU-Q Product Releases Spencer Striker PhD

Empires & Interconnections

All New Digital Book

Introducing Empires & Interconnections, the newest edition in the award-winning History Adventures digital book series, whose accolades include the 2019 Horizon Interactive Awards Gold Medal for Best Education App.

This fully interactive, animated digital learning product represents a fresh approach to history education, designed for today’s digital generation.

History Adventures: Empires & Interconnections (1450-1750) combines the latest in mobile entertainment with the power of narrative design—bringing the pages of history to life.

An Age of Exploration, Gunpowder, and International Trade

During this period of colossal change, from 1450-1750, the world got smaller. The age of exploration, gunpowder, and international trade took hold, like never before. Epic empires expanded, and followed trade routes–as European nations battled to control as much of the world’s wealth as possible. The dark side of this explosion of wealth and consolidated power and influence, meant enslavement and ruin for some, as Europeans unknowingly brought diseases that killed millions and meanwhile initiated the gruesome, inhumane Atlantic Slave Trade. Some nations remained autonomous and isolated, such as the Tokugawa of Japan–but this took huge effort to throw off this tide of increasing global interconnectedness.

Empires & Interconnections

For Empires & Interconnections, we have developed 6 new characters–each of whom confronts the core question: how to deal with this tidal sweep of rising empires, will they fold into this interconnectedness, or will they somehow resist?

A World of Characters

We begin our journey in 1453, as Ioannina, a woman of Byzantine and Turkish ancestry, experiences the Ottoman Siege of Constantinople, led by Sultan Mehmed II. The battle hangs by a thread, but ultimately the ancient capital falls, heralding the final death knell of the Roman Empire, and the rise of the Islamic empires of the Middle East, whose control of this critical crossroads will push the emerging mercantile empires of Western Europe to search for a Western route to Asia. Our next character, Luis Felipe Gutierrez, is a Spanish adventurer, who dreams of achieving wealth and glory in the New World–while spreading the word of God–as Columbus, Cortez, and Pizarro had done before him. In the disease-stricken, war-torn mountains and jungles of Peru, he finds instead madness, confusion, and death.

In Tokugawa Japan, a young woman, Ishi, is a key advisor to the powerful warlord, Tokugawa, who strives to achieve the first Shogunate. She will advise Tokugawa on how to deal with these strange, fanatical European missionaries: should she grant clemency, or should she deal with them harshly, and with violence, to stamp out their looming threat. In 1619, we introduce William, a man forcibly brought to the new settlement of Jamestown in Virginia, by Portuguese Slave traders. Captured by English pirates in the Caribbean, William was sold along with 16 other Africans to the struggling Jamestown colony–and there he would be the first to confront an international slave trade that would last for centuries, and grip the lives of millions.

A century later we find one man, Jonas, was still struggling to find his place in the Atlantic World. As trading companies and governments tightened their grip, a few men like Jonas rebelled and turned pirate. Based in the notorious pirate haven of Nassau, in the Caribbean, Jonas plundered merchant ships. The question was for how long he could escape the hangman’s noose? On the other side of the world, in the Indian subcontinent, a Bengali tax collector must decide whether to remain loyal to the Mughal Emperor or side with the rapidly expanding British East India Company. As the company seized control of Bengal on the battlefield, Arun had to decide where his loyalties lay?

What Would I Have Done?
The Best Question About the Past You Can Ever Ask..

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Optimized for cross-platform performance, running flawlessly on phones, tablets, and the web.

What the Press are Saying

“Screenwriters have been adapting historical stories for years, but Spencer Striker, PhD is using a new medium to bring history to life—a fully animated, interactive, narrative-driven digital book series.”

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History Adventures showcases a fresh approach to learning and literacy, designed for today’s digital generation: interactive, multimodal content that combines mobile entertainment with the power of story—bringing the pages of history to life!

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Links

http://www.historyadventures.co/
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Created by Spencer Striker, PhD
Digital Media Design Professor at Northwestern University in Qatar