Eastern Roman Empire Compared to the West

Why the Byzantines Succeeded in Preserving the Culture of Rome

Apr 19, 2009

Centered around Constantinople, the Eastern Empire evolved into the Byzantine Empire, preserving Roman culture, law, and Christian institutions.

The construction of Constantinople by the Emperor Constantine the Great in the early 4th Century assured that the Roman Empire would endure, at least in the more populous East. This blood-line to Imperial Rome would last until the fall of Constantinople to Mehmet II in 1453. Despite attempts after Constantine to hold the original empire together, most notably under Justinian and his able general Belisarius, Constantine was the last emperor to rule over a unified Roman Empire. There were many factors that contributed to the endurance of the Eastern Empire.

Western and Eastern Provinces Compared

Provinces in the West such as Gaul and Britain, had been “Latinized” over the centuries, featuring urban centers that reproduced Rome. The Latinized West was bordered by the Rhine River over which a variety of barbarian tribes had entered Roman territory. Some of these were permitted to settle, even contributing large numbers of men to the imperial legions; others came to conquer, easily breaching fragile frontier garrison barriers.

While it is certainly true that the Eastern Empire was also beset with barbarian hordes streaming across the Danube River or confronting imperial frontier claims in Asia as the incessant conflicts with the Persians demonstrated, the East had other advantages. Intermittent strong leadership, large population centers, and substantial wealth enabled the East to more successfully confront such threats.

Additionally, some of the greatest commercial centers, like Antioch and numerous ancient port cities along the western coast of Asia Minor, contributed to on-going trade patterns that ensured prosperity. As the West was overrun by Vandals, Lombards, Huns, and other destructive groups, the East managed to remain intact, successfully deflecting its own adversaries.

Although the early 6th Century Byzantine Emperor Justinian the Great attempted to dislodge barbarian occupation of the West, his greatest achievement was the preservation of Roman law in the Corpus Juris Civilis. The Code of Justinian contained the laws of the Republic as well as Imperial edicts. In addition to a legal commentary, his direction produced law texts to train future lawyers.

But Justinian was a transitional figure. The last emperor to speak Latin, his background – similar to Diocletian’s of the late 3rd Century, was barbarian. Following his death, the cleavage between the East and the West would become complete, even in terms of Christian institutions. The patriarchs of Eastern Orthodoxy grew less reliant on the bishop of Rome, even as Italian popes looked toward newly Christianized barbarians like the Franks as allies and sponsors.

While the onset of feudalism brought together Roman culture, Christian institutions, and barbarian culture, ultimately fusing into the evolving Western tradition, the East forged its own path based on old Roman ideals, laws, and Christian institutions. By the 11th Century the Byzantines, under Emperor Michael VII, requested Western military assistance following the disastrous battle of Manzikert against the Seljuk Turks. Pope Urban II responded and the First Crusade was launched.

Endurance of Empire

As the inheritors of Imperial Rome, the Byzantines kept alive the ideals of the Romans. Even the great Muslim leader Harun al-Rashid referred to them as Romans, unlike Muslims who, during the period of the Crusades, called all Europeans “Franks.”

There were many factors that allowed the East to persevere while the West was forced to undergo tribulations that, ultimately, produced the Christian nation-states of pre-modern Europe. Ironically, it was the West that preserved Rome more so than the East as the rise of Islam turned the Orthodox Byzantines into Muslim communities.

Sources:

The copyright of the article Eastern Roman Empire Compared to the West in Roman History is owned by Michael Streich. Permission to republish Eastern Roman Empire Compared to the West in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.