B Y Z A N T I N E , R U S S I A N , M O N G O L , I S L A M I C , W E S T A F R I C A N , A N D S U D A N I C E M P I R E S

UNIT 3: GREAT EMPIRES OF THE WORLD AFTER THE FALL OF ROME

U N I T I I I

THE BYZANTINE, RUSSIAN, AND MONGOL EMPIRES

THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE, OR EAST ROMAN EMPIRE… OR WHATEVER YOU

WANT TO CALL IT!

THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE TRACED ITS ROOTS TO THE ROMAN EMPIRE

THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE CAPTURES THE FORMER WEST

• Justinian I (482-565) is credited for the Byzantine Empire’s recapturing of the west as a result of his status.

• Belisarius (500-565) was a General who was instrumental in the Byzantine Empire’s recapturing of the former western half of the empire.

WHO WAS JUSTINIAN?

• Known as the “Last

Roman”

• Unpopular ruler

• Financial problems from

conquest and local

projects

• Heavily influenced

(possibly controlled) by

his wife, the Empress

Theodora

THE BYZANTINE OR ROMAN EMPIRE?

• The Byzantine empire

used the structures left in

place by the Romans

• Most notably the law

code, sometimes

referred to as

Justinian's Code

• Amazing feats in

architecture were made

(using Greek & Roman

influence)

• The Empire hit its peak

under Justinian

THE GREAT SCHISM

• The Bishop in

Constantinople split from

the Catholic Church.

• Disputes over communion,

priest marriage, and excommunication

• First major fractioning of

Christianity • The split would shape

Europe for centuries

• Rome no longer had any authority over the Byzantine

Empire

I Know The

Pieces Fit!

AREAS THAT BECAME ORTHODOX

FALL OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

• Constantinople became the center for law, art, and religion

• The city was the heart of Byzantine culture

• The Empire fell in 1453 after a steady decline

• The Empire fell when Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks

• The Ottomans

would change

Constantinople's name to Istanbul.

• Istanbul became an

important Islamic

city.

• The center of the

Orthodox world moved to Moscow.

THE ORIGINS OF MOTHER RUSSIA

KIEVAN RUS

• Kiev was a center for

trade, but susceptible to

attack.

• The Rus converted to

Byzantine Christianity.

• Kiev can be considered

the predecessor state

for modern Russia.

• Kiev was eventually

defeated by the

Mongols in 1240.

THE MONGOLS FEAST IN MOSCOW AFTER A DECISIVE VICTORY

MUSCOVY RUS

• Known as Appendage Russia (under the Mongols)

• Khanate of the Golden Horde

• Moscow becomes the most important economicand political Russian city under the Mongols

• Muscovite Princes become “tax collectors” • Muscovite Princes had to

be appointed my the Mongols

• Population shift to the northwest begins

MUSCOVY RUS

IVAN III (IVAN THE GREAT)

• Asserted Russian independence from the Mongols

• Modeled his empire after the Byzantine Empire

• Conquered and declared himself ruler of all Russian people

• Took title “Tsar” meaning Caesar

• Established the first united Russian State

THE MONGOL EMPIRE

THE MONGOL EMPIRE

• Established by ChinggisKhan• Declared ruler of all

Mongols in 1206

• Largest land Empire of all time by 1279

• Influenced Russia, China, and Persia• More indirectly they

affected Western Europe

• But not India…

• Like Alexander, little administration

• Ruthless but tolerant?• Religious tolerance

THE MONGOLS IN PERSIANOTE THE WRITTEN LANGUAGE USED

THE EMPIRE SPLIT INTO FOUR

• After the Great Khan’s death, wars over succession

were fought by descendants

• Kublai Khan established Chinese portion of the Empire

• This land was protected by water to the east

• Big advantage over the other successor states

MARCO POLO VISITS CHINA

• Marco Polo - an Italian

explorer visited the

court of Kublai Khan

• He traveled by sea,

avoiding the Himalayas

• First European to

document his visit to

China

• Encouraged European

trade to East Asia

• Inspired the European

age of exploration

U N I T I I I

THE RISE OF ISLAM

MUHAMMAD THE PROPHET

• From Mecca in modern day Saudi Arabia

• Muhammad was a middle aged merchant who claimed the Angel Gabriel asked him to recite the word of God

• As a Merchant Muhammad had exposure to the ideas of Judaism and Christianity• Maybe even Persians

MUHAMMAD TAKES POLITICAL POWER

• Mecca was already a

popular pilgrimage site

• Muhammad was kicked

out because Islam

threatened the pilgrimage

• Muhammad and his

followers went to Medina

• Prayer switches from

Jerusalem to Mecca

• Muhammad became a

political and military

leader

• 630 CE Muhammad takes

back Mecca

THE SPREAD OF ISLAM

• Abu Bakr, Muhammad's

successor began

attacking the Byzantine

Empire and recording

the Qur'an

• A vast empire grew out

of the principles of Islam

in just 200 years

• Muhammad's

successors relentlessly

spread the religion

through military

conquest

THE RAPID SPREAD OF ISLAM

BASIC BELIEFS

• Conquered people do not have to convert, only pay a larger tax.• Followers of Judaism and Christianity are specifically

mentioned in the Qur’an as “people of the book”

Five Pillars of Islam

1. Shahadah- declaring there is no god except God (Allah), and Muhammad is God’s messenger

2. Salat- Prayer five times a day

3. Zekat- Giving 2.5% of one’s savings to the poor

4. Sawm- Fasting during the holy month of Ramadan

5. Hajj- Pilgrimage to Mecca

THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM

BASIC BELIEFS

Guiding text:

• The Qur'an

• Absolute Monotheism

• Taking care of those less

fortunate than you

• Hadiths; a collection of

sayings and stories about the

prophet Muhammad

A believer in Islam is part of the

Uma or community of believers

Islam becomes a restoration religion

• Muslims believe the Monotheisms before Muhammad had

strayed from purity

• Muslims believe Muhammad is the last prophet sent by God

SHIA- SUNNI SPLIT

• Root of split goes back

to Muhammad's first

successor

• Abu Bakr, Muhammad's father in law became the

first Caliph

• Many wanted his son in

law, Ali to take over

• Shia Muslims believe the

Caliph should be a

descendent of

Muhammad

• Caliph means

“successor”

• Meaning Abu Bakr was

a “successor” to the

prophet

MODERN SHIA- SUNNI DIVIDE

Today Shia Muslims make up 16% of the Islamic population

THE ISLAMIC SPLIT HAS SERIOUS RAMIFICATIONS TODAY

BAGHDAD: THE CENTER OF LEARNING

• The Abbasid Caliphate (750- 1258 CE) became the center for learning

• The Persian ruling class moved the capital to Baghdad• Baghdad becomes the center of learning

• Large library held the work of Greek philosophers, Greek scientist, and Buddhist and Hindu text

• Openness to foreigners and their ideas • Possibly largest blending of cultures since Hellenistic times • Brought to an end by the Mongols

IBN SINA (980- 1037 CE)

• Often known by Latin

name Avicenna

• Gained great advances

in the field of medicine

• Created the Canon of

Medicine

• Became the standard

medical text book for

centuries

HOW’S THIS FOR A VACATION?

IBN BATTUTA (1304-1368 CE)

• Moroccan explorer

• Traveled the known

Muslim world

• Recorded his travels

in the Rihla

(translated to

“Journey”)

• Helped link Africa to

the Islamic World

• The most well

traveled man to date

THE ABRAHAMIC TRADITIONS

Judaism est. around

1000 BCE Christianity est. around

40 CE

Islam est. around

600 CE

WHAT DO THE ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS ALL HAVE IN COMMON?

• All three use a religious text that provide guidelines

ethical and moral behaviors as well as how to

govern believers

• Judaism- Torah

• Christians- The Bible

• Islam- The Qur'an

• All three recognize Abraham, Moses and other

figures from the old testament as important religious

figures

• All three believe in fundamental monotheism

• All three originated in the same region, and claim

several of the same cities as religious holy sites

JERUSALEM

FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES IN THE ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS

Judaism

• Judaism does not actively seek converts and the

religion is associated with a group of people

Christianity

• Christians believe Jesus was the son of God (or

Messiah)

• Catholic leaders must remain unmarried

Islam

• Islam is the newest and only Abrahamic tradition to

reference the other two in the holy text

MODERN DISTRIBUTION

OVER HALF THE WORLD PRACTICES AN ABRAHAMIC RELIGION

U N I T I I I

ANCIENT AFRICA

AFRICAN RELIGION

• Traditionally African religion was Syncretic• Syncretic can be described as the blending of various ideas

• When Christianity and later Islam arrived, religions were often blended with traditional beliefs

• Can this be a conflict with a Monotheistic religion?

SUDANIC EMPIRES

GHANA, MALI, SONGHAI

• All three started in the Sahel

region around the

headwaters of the Niger

River

• These Empires acquired

wealth in gold accumulated

in Trans-Saharan Trade

• Old world importance of

land trade

• Era of pre-European maritime

importance

WHAT’S SO GOOD ABOUT BEING A

“MIDDLE MAN?”

• Conversion to Islam was important for trade relationships

• Arab and Berber traders had salt to the north

• Many groups to the southextracted Gold and produced Ivory

• All the trade empires successfully taxed all goods coming through the Empire.

• They were successful in receiving tribute

GHANA EMPIRE (830-1235 CE)

MALI EMPIRE (1230- 1600 CE)

SONGHAI EMPIRE (1430- 1591 CE)

TRADE NETWORKS

Salt to the north

Gold to the south

MANSA KANKAN MUSA I (MANSA MUSA)

• Very effective ruler, divided the Empire into different provinces

• Mali became an important cultural and intellectual center under Mansa Musa

• Important City of Timbuktu

• Pilgrimage to Mecca 1324.

• Brought thousands of solders and hundreds of camels

• Flooded the Egyption gold market with tribute

• Decrease in value from 10 to 25%

• Inflation

BANTU MIGRATIONS

BANTU MIGRATIONS

• Long complex process

where two groups of

Bantu speakers

eventually linked up

• Bantu based languages

began to dominate the

continent

• This can still be seen today

• The Bantu people

brought new

agricultural practices to

mostly nomadic

peoples

MODERN LANGUAGE FAMILY MAP OF AFRICA

• What language

family has the

most land?

• What is

important about

the Niger River?

SWAHILI CITY-STATES

• A large scale ocean

trading network

developed on the

Indian Ocean

• Chinese, Indian and Arab

merchants all began

trading on the East African

coast

SWAHILI CITY-STATES

• Swahili Culture was

born

• A blend of native Bantu

based languages and

Arabic

• Islam became the religion

of the area

• City-states such as

Zanzibar, Mombasa,

and Mogadishu

became wealthy

through trade

COMPARED TO EUROPE

• What happens when there is plenty of land and plentiful trade?

• Europe had more blood shed and all conflict was over land

• Europe’s only source of wealth was land

• European monarchs would envy Ghana, Mali’s and Zanzibar’s resources and wealth

• Mali was an intellectual hub while Europe crawled out of the Dark Ages