After the fall of the Western Roman Empire (pictured in orange on the map above), the Eastern Roman Empire, also called the Byzantine Empire, and sometimes called "The Other Roman Empire" (pictured in green above), was flourishing. After the fall, a new emperor came to power in the Eastern Roman Empire. His name was Justinian. 

Justinian lived in his palace in the capital city of Constantinople. As part of his job of emperor, Justinian ran the Catholic Church. He built a majestic cathedral, organized and strengthened the government, and established a law code that is still famous for its excellence today. 

Except for his continual worry about a takeover, Justinian did rule his empire wisely. But what he wanted more than anything was to restore the entire Roman Empire to its former glory, under his direction. To do this, he had to win back the lost provinces in the west. 

He started to wage war on the many barbarian tribes who had overrun the Western Roman Empire. 

His military forces did gain back a lot of land that was lost when Rome fell. Justinian's army took back southern Spain, all of Italy, and northern Africa, until only the Franks in the rest of Europe, and the Saxons in Britain, remained. 

But war was costly. The Eastern Empire was nearly broke. Justinian had to stop. He had to focus on his people at home. 

The big winner in all this was not the Eastern Roman Empire. It was the Franks. Justinian had asked the Franks for help in Europe to defeat other barbarian tribes. In the process, the Franks pushed their own borders all the way to the Alps, and nearly all the way to Britain. They pushed many of their rival barbarians tribes out of existence. 

By the time Justinian realized he had to focus his attention at home, the Eastern Empire had lost a great deal of its strength, while the Frankish Empire had gained great strength. It is possible that the Frankish king might have tried to conquer Constantinople. It was a piece of luck for the Eastern Empire that the Frankish king died. As was the custom of the Franks, his kingdom was divided into pieces - one piece for each son. His sons had no interest in working together to defeat the Eastern Empire. The Eastern Empire, in relief, turned its back on Europe. 

Life in Western Europe became dismal. There was no sanitation, no advances in medicine, and no towns. There was only war, constant perpetual war, as one kingdom fought another. In Western Europe, the dark ages had begun in earnest.

Explore

Justinian's Code

Free Presentations in PowerPoint format

Free Online Games for the Middle Ages

Free Middle Ages Clipart for Kids & Teachers

 Free Clip Art

Middle Ages for Teachers

Return to The Middle Ages for Kids

advertisement