Now that you have read about both the Western Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire, you should have plenty of information to share about them. Based on your text and the videos we have watched in class, write a compare/contrast essay to describe the similarities and differences between the two empires. You should be sure to cite page numbers from your text. You may cite additional sources if necessary. Don't forget to offer helpful feedback to your peers.
The Western Roman Empire wasn't a empire all the time. The roman empire was at first a kingdom ruled by a king.The king was chosen by heritage and was the won how decides all the problems and chooses what "best" for the kingdom.A kingdom is quite small compared to a republic or an empire.The "Medieval and Early Modern times" (history text book) says on page 11 says in about 509 B.C. ,the romans decided to overthrow the king and made a republic.Now that they do not have an empire ,they can have the right to vote. This way they can chose fairly on witch is right for the kingdom. On page 12 in the text book , western ancient roman was looking for a strong leader to run the republic. They chose a popular military hero named Julius Caesar. He concord Gaul , Asia Minor, Mesopotamia,Greece, and all around the the whole Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. Caesar increase of power made the Romans feel jealous.So, for this reason, they assassinated Julius Caesar.This threw rome into a civil war.In 31 B.C. Octavian (Augustus).Augustus ruled wisely and the republic grew and grew.Then it grew so much that became an empire.then he made Pax Romana,peace in Rome.Then,after the "good emperors" came and past. Rome started to have a lot of civil wars because the empire was starting to get to big.then it splited.
ReplyDeleteVery good response. Please use parenthesis for page number references.
Deleteknow I will tell you about the eastern part of the roman empire.
ReplyDeleteAfter the roman empire shifted to the east, they had a new leader named Constantine. He began life as a Pangan,a belief of more than one godThen he converted Christianity and made that the religion of Constantinople, The city he concord and named after himself.Speeking of the new capitol, the new capitol was a very well organized and protective capitol.It had Bosporus so it made it easier to trade with egypt and aseptically china for there silk.The capitol was also built on a peninsula so most of the city was surrounded with water so it can easily attack anyone how dares to intrude.It wa also surrounded with thick walls and moats. so incase the peninsula doesn't work, they will have a hard time to make it into the capitol. Constantine also made Hagia Sofia,a BEAUTIFUL and huge church so people can worship there god.now I hope I explained it well enough for you to understand.
The eastern empire of Rome (the Byzantium Empire) lasted for a thousand years before it collapsed. However, the Western Roman Empire barely lasted for close to a century after Diocletian’s death. Here’s why:
ReplyDelete1. Constantine was the first ruler of the eastern empire. He was a Christian and got his power by winning a great battle in 324. He made Christianity the official religion of Rome. The Western Roman Empire was a ruled by kings and then elected officials and they believed in multiple gods.
2. His capitol was a perfect area because it had good harbors, it was a trading port, and since it was surrounded by sea, it was much harder for enemies to attack. The western empire’s capitol was Rome and it wasn’t that well-guarded and it was hard to rule the empire from the area because of all the vast land conquered by them.
3. The church played a big role in the two empires. Known as The Great Schism, the two empires had a split in church because of different opinions. The eastern empire was ruled by the emperor, the western empire was ruled by a pope. The eastern empire said priests could marry, and the opposing side said they can’t, and etc.
a. The Byzantium empire lasted for the next 1000 years, while the western empire fell in 476.
Very organized response.
DeleteThere were many differences between the Western Empire and the Eastern Empire.
ReplyDeleteWhen the empire got divided into two instead of becoming stronger it just grew weaker. This happened to the Western empire. The first major problem was the economic problem. This happened when the empire continued to expand. Because of this the gap between the rich and poor became even greater. When this happened corruption of the people added because of the action of increasing the taxes on pg. 17. Another thing that happened was the cause of social unrest which made the wealthy scared of the safety they had. This made the wealthy leave their estates or hire guards. Because of the situation the poor didn’t haze choice, but to join the army or become outlaws. The last major problem was the military. Since most of the army were foreign soldiers they were not sincere and didn’t follow orders. This made it much easier for the outside forces to invade which eventually caused the Western Roman Empire to collapse.
Even though the Western part of the empire collapsed, it was much better for the Eastern Roman Empire. In the beginning a Roman leader named Constantine became a sole leader of the empire as it says on page 35. Constatine was smart and chose a great place for the capital because it was a crossroad for trading. The city was called Byzantine and was later known as the Byzantium Empire. The first great emperor was Justinan. He ruled for 40 years. The reason he was a good emperor was because he won back most of the empire that was lost. He also created a law code and built many buildings that were destroyed in war like the Hagia Sophia. Overall the Eastern Empire was more successful than the Western Empire.
By: Raahim Azeem
Very detailed response with references.
DeleteIn the decline of Rome western part became the Byzantium Empire and the easter part was the Roman Empire. The empires and different religions, location and culture. The romans followed a god called Jupiter and the Byzantiums followed Christianity. Both of the empires had a government.The romans used military for mostly offense. However the byzantiums used their military for mostly defense. Rome at first was a republic but then it became a empire. The byzantium empire was a empire from the start.Both empires had different arts and architectures. These are some of the similarities and difference of the roman empire.
ReplyDelete-DANIA HANIF
Very good information. Please add details that thoroughly summarize the section, and add page references.
DeleteThe various cultures and languages in the Ancient Roman Empire led to several disputes amongst its people. Therefore, Emperor Diocletian decided to divide the domain that he thought was too vast for one individual to rule efficiently as the Prentice Hall Medieval and Early Modern Times text book states (p. 15). Soon enough, Western and Eastern Rome were born and many differences and similarities arose between them.
ReplyDeleteThe eastern part of Rome, known as the Byzantine Empire, applied Christian traditions that did not follow what Western Rome did. Instead, they followed an Orthodox Church (orthodox means following traditional or established beliefs) (p.42). The Byzantine Emperor was the leader of the church, however, the highest church official, the patriarch, took care of the daily matters. Although given great power, a disfavored patriarch could be easily removed by the emperor. On the other hand, Western Rome followed the Roman Catholic Church (universal or concerned with all people) that dominated their culture. As the spiritual leader of the Western Church, the pope had the most power and did not acknowledge any emperor or ruler higher than him. Also, the language used in the Roman Catholic Church was Latin whereas the Eastern Orthodox Church used Greek. Orthodox priests were allowed to marry while Catholic priests were not. These differences led to two distinct Christian traditions in the Ancient Roman Empire.
Moreover, the Byzantine Empire differed from Western Rome in terms of culture. The Byzantine Empire created many formal, flat, and religious architectural works such as icons and mosaics. Byzantine artists created intriguing new forms of art by putting sheets of gold on the back of mosaics which made them glow (p.45). The Western Roman Empire built numerous kinds of architectural public works such as public baths, temples, and marketplaces. The Byzantine Empire spread their culture in two ways. All noticed the brilliance of Byzantine; artists came to work, scholars came to study, and merchants came to trade. The Byzantine Empire left the visitors amazed by hosting extravagant ceremonies that showed off their lovely jewels and clothing. Many visitors started to take ideas from the Byzantine culture home and implement them. In addition, the Byzantine Empire sent missionaries (someone sent to another country by a church, to spread its faith) (p.47). These Eastern Orthodox missionaries were sent across Eastern Europe to places such as Russia and Bulgaria. The Western Roman Empire spread their culture by simply starting colonies where mostly former soldiers lived.
Both empires fell because of invasions from neighboring empires and tribes. However, several other factors led to the fall of the Western Roman Empire due to the lack of loyalty and faithfulness from the Roman citizens. Some historians believe that slavery contributed to the fall of the Western Empire. Dependent on slave labor, the Romans may not have been prepared or able to defend their empire.
Excellent, detailed response with references.
DeleteThere were a lot of differences and similarities between the Western Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire. When Diocletian became the Roman emperor in 284, he divided the empire in two. It helped for some time, but after a while, it made the western empire weaker. While it became weaker, a new empire to the east was arising. It was called the Byzantine empire. Soon, the western Roman empire collapsed in 476. Before it collapsed, many wealthy people left for their country estates, fearing for their safety. They also hired guards to protect themselves from attack. Poor people had to choose from becoming tenant farmers, outlaws, or even joining the army. The first emperor of the Byzantine empire after the fall of the western empire was named Justinian. At the time of his reign, the empire grew at its largest. He and his wife Theodora were very talented, intelligent, and self-confident. In the social studies textbook, it says that Justinian launched a grand rebuilding program because of the revolt from his people that destroyed many buildings. One of the buildings was a church called Hagia Sophia.
ReplyDeleteVery good response with examples. Please add page references.
DeleteSimilarities:
ReplyDeleteThe Western Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire were both similar because byzantine carried on many ways of living from the Roman Empire. For an example, even though Justinian organized the system, the Byzantines preserved the Roman law system (pg. 44). Also both empress were very skilled in architecture and built beautiful buildings from which a few stand today.
Differences:
Both empires lived in similar ways but at the same time they were different in many ways. One difference is that they both had different forms of beliefs. They both believed in Christianity but had different beliefs in it like if the priest could marry or not and who was considered the highest church official. Since there was such difference, during the Great Schism the traditions split into The Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church (42-43). The Byzantine Empire also lasted longer because it was stronger and was better organized and was also easier to defend and protect (35).
- Hajera 7A
The similarities are that they are both empires for one thing and they both came from the same empire but it split, and they both had at least one good emperor.
ReplyDeleteThe differences are that while the eastern empire fell the western or byzantine empire rose.
Please add examples and references to support your main idea.
DeleteRome. That name is one of great significance in history. It had much advancement and was ahead of its time. But when Rome was prospering, was it united as one? Rome was split into Eastern and Western Rome, ruled by different rulers, had different religion differing factors. Among these notable differences, there were still a collective number of ideas and rules that were the same.
ReplyDeleteEastern and Western Rome were very distinct. For instance, the Western part of the Empire, also known as the Roman Empire, arose as a kingdom, that was governed by bias, cruel and unfair king, who was later overthrown and became a republic, then an empire (pg. 11). On the contrary, the Eastern Empire (Byzantine Empire) commenced as a small empire, but by annexing foreign lands, expanded into a relatively large empire ruled by Constantinople. The Western Empire didn’t enforce religion, nor did it have an established religion for all to follow, for it was a land with people of many creed and cultures. However, religion was what made the people of the East thrive, as Constantine himself was a supporter of the growth of the church (pg.35). Though the same religion, they the empires had unique ways of practicing Christianity as well. The East tradition came to be known as the East Orthodox Church, and the West called the Roman Catholic Church. The orthodox was more traditional while the catholic dominated the culture of Western Europe. Having these dissimilarities was what created two unique, unrepeatable empires.
While keeping the contradictions between the two realms of Rome in hand, there were a variety of traits the two brother Empires shared. Standing during the same era of time, the Roman and Byzantine Empire had a passion for art, architecture, and law. They both built astonishing baths, roads, bridges and arches; though Byzantine art tended to be flat, formal and had a tint of religion (pg. 21 and 45). Additionally, they both built breath taking fountains and productive canals and irrigation systems, which of some we still use today. Law and orderly practices were vital to these people. Justinian, a man who admired order and discipline, had many lawyers to combine the legal legacy inherited from Rome into a set of laws called Justinian’s Code (page 44). Even the Western Empires belief of the rule of law and equal justice to all were a major influence of todays world (pgs. 22 and 24). These almost identical factors are what lead Rome to leave its mark in history, and earn the respect and recognition of the people as it has today.
there is typo in the 1st paragraph:
DeleteRome was split into Eastern and Western Rome, ruled by different rulers, had different religion differing factors.
^
and many other
my source were :
Delete--http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/byzantine
--empirehttp://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/plaintexthistories.asp?historyid=ac59
--http://www.roman-empire.net/decline/decl-index.html
Excellent, detailed response with multiple sources.
DeleteThere are many differences between the two empires. The first is that Rome wasn't always an empire. It was a kingdom, a republic then finally a empire.(11/12) Byzantine was always an empire. The empires also followed different religions. Romans worshiped many gods and the people of Byzantine followed Christianity.(34) Byzantine lasted longer than Western Rome.(49)
ReplyDeleteDespite their differences, they do have similarities. They both built beautiful temples and building. Education, literature, and art where very important aspects in both empires.(21/23) Byzantine is a part of Rome.(34)
Very good information with page numbers.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe roman empire was split into two so it could be managed easier ,but later turned out to be a bad mistake and cost them.it was split into the eastern and the western empire . The eastern was named the Byzantium Empire while the western remained with the same name, the Roman Empire.
ReplyDeleteSome similarities between the two are that they both had the same roots, roman roots and they both feel strongly about education and love architecture and the arts (page 45).They were both ruled by emperors and they were both one of the biggest of not the biggest empires of the time.
Some differences between the two are that the eastern or Byzantium empire was richer and had better resources so they can take care of trade and the army protection which made them rich and made them stronger , thus lasting longer and it had less barbaric attacks due to the moats and the strong army . Another major difference is that the Roman Empire worshiped many gods .For example like Zeus (Jupiter) Poseidon (Neptune) and so on, while the Byzantine Empire followed the beliefs of Jesus and the main religion was Christianity (Page 42-43). Another difference is that the western or byzantine empire lasted almost a thousand years while the eastern lasted barely a century after Diocletian’s death.
You have very good information with references. Be sure to check for capitalization, etc.
DeleteThe Western Roman and Byzantium Empire, may have been from one empire but they share not only similarities but also differences.
ReplyDeleteThe Western Roman Empire was founded by Julius Ceaser until he got assassinated. his adopted son Octavia/Augustus took over. This is when the Western Roman Empire took off. Augustus began the period of peace and prosperity which was called Pax Romana (pg.11 and pg.12). In this empire devotion to the emperor was key for a good living, meaning religion was not allowed at all.
This contrasts to The Eastern Roman Empire because Christianity was the key for them. Their first emperor Constantine enforced Christianity after being enlightened by the religion. Constantine's basis for the way of life was based on this religion. He set up churches and urged his people to "pray" in these holy buildings/landmarks (pg.34 and pg.35)
Though there differences in the way they ran their empires, their impact in the world we live in was the same. Rome was a place of learning,art, and architecture. they both drew beautiful mosaics and constructed amazing architectural pieces. They both respected education and worked on ways to improve, creating laws that gave citizens equal rights (or the Justinian Code). their form of government may not be exactly the same but there foundation on which they stand were similar (pg.21-24 and pg.34-35)
Although the Byzantium Empire lasted longer than its "brother", they both earned its fame and glory among us. and they most definitely left a mark for all of humanity to see.
Very good information with page references.
DeleteRome was not first an empire. It passed many stages to become and empire. First, it was kingdom, and then a republic, then it finally became an empire. (Page 11-12) Later on, Rome was split into two parts by a leader named Diocletian when he saw that the empire had been too large for one person to rule. (Page15) The eastern part of Rome was Byzantine Empire, and the western part was the Roman Empire. Just because they were once part of the same empire, they still had many differences and similarities.
ReplyDeleteLet’s first talk about their differences. Like I said before, Rome took a while until it became an empire. That was not
the same for the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire was always an empire. Since the Byzantine Empire had a stronger army, they had less barbaric attacks. They also believed and followed in different religions. The Romans believed in more than one god, but the Byzantines followed the Christianity. So they only believed in one god, which is Jesus. They even had different churches. The person who led each church was different. The Orthodox Church was for the eastern part of Rome, and their emperor led the church. The Roman Catholic Church was for the western part of Rome, and their pope led their church. (Page 42-43)
Now for their similarities. One obvious similarity was that they were both one of the biggest empires. They were also both very good in art, architecture, and making beautiful buildings.
Those were most of the main similarities and differences of Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire.
Najm Masri 7-A
Very detailed answer with page references.
DeleteSimilarities:
ReplyDelete1. They came from the same empire known as Rome.
2. They both were empires.
3. They both were good in art.
Differences:
1. Byzantine was on the east side of old Rome.
2. West Rome was on the west side of old Rome.
3. West Rome followed the Roman Catholic Church.
4. Byzantine followed the Orthodox Church.
(textbook)
You need to write complete sentences/paragraphs with page references.
DeleteThey say that Rome wasn’t built in a day; well that’s awfully true for Rome and the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire had many things in common but none the less no two empires can be exactly alike.
ReplyDeleteThe Byzantine Empire was ruled by a fair king, Constantine. He was a pagan, which means he believed in multiple gods. He later converted to Christianity and made Constantinople a Christian city, though he was open for people to practice their own religion. He also named the capitol Constantinople, after himself which is now present day Istanbul, Turkey. Most Historians believe that without the Byzantine Empire the area would have probably been overcome by the Islamic invaders at the time.
Constantinople was at the center of trade and commerce. They were a peninsula which meant they were surrounded by water on three sides. They also built a wall and a moat around the capitol to protect it from foreign invaders, the barbarians and Arabs. Constantinople did fall eventually to the Turks. One other great emperor was Justinian. He was a great emperor who built the basis of the Justinian law code. He also ordered for the Hagia Sophia to be built. The residents of Byzantium had beautiful artwork and they were famous for their mosaics. They decorated the Hagia Sophie with beautiful mosaics that painted the walls with beautiful Pictures of the stories from the Christian bible.
Like I stated earlier Rome wasn’t built in a day, and this can be easily proven. Legend has it that Rome was founded by twins named Romulus and Remus. They were abandoned as babies and were raised by a she-wolf. When he grew older Romulus killed his brother and that’s how he became the ruler of Rome. He also named Rome after himself. Rome was stretched out across the Mediterranean Sea. They conquered land From Great Britain and Scotland all the way to Asia Minor and Constantinople. Romans believed in multiple gods and had beautiful artwork and architecture much like Byzantium did. They also loved performing. They did this with the Gladiators that used to fight each other to their deaths. Entertainment was a very important pastime because the Romans like the Byzantium’s lived very luxurious lives. Garrison Keillor once said” It was luxuries like air conditioning that brought down the Roman Empire. With air conditioning their windows were shut, they couldn’t hear the Barbarians coming”.
As you can see the Byzantium Empire and the Roman Empire aren’t all that different. Well yes, they were different empires with different laws and different people, but they all have something very important in common, the strength of their leaders. Some leaders were amazing like Augustus and Justinian because they all were persistent and fair, wise leaders.
http://www.ngkids.co.uk/did-you-know/10-facts-about-the-ancient-Romans
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/luxury.html
http://listverse.com/2013/04/20/10-interesting-facts-about-the-byzantine-empire/
some similarities is that they were both on the same land and they each Concorde land to their limits, they also had a ruler at some point and both had Christianity as a religion.
ReplyDeletesome differences both of them didn't have same rulers and Byzantine took over Rome.
this is emin
DeletePlease add specific details and examples to your response. Check capitalization, etc. Add page references.
DeleteGreat job so far, everyone. Please do double check your language mechanics and usage. Capitalization, punctuation, correct use of prepositions, etc. are still important, even for Social Studies! Also, be sure to include page numbers in parenthesis after each statement that you referenced from the text.
ReplyDeleteRome was not first an Empire. It became a Republic during Julius Caesar's rule. (11-12) When His adopted son Octavian (Augustus) became a ruler, thats when Rome became an Empire. Later on in A.D. 284 Diocletian became a leader and he split the Roman Empire in two: The Eastern Roman Empire and The Byzantine Empire.
ReplyDeleteThe Byzantine Empire had a strong united army unlike Rome. They also had different religions. Emperor Constantine was a Pagan( a person who in more that one god), But by 324 he abandoned his belief and became Christian. When he built his capital not only did he named it after himself Constantinople, but he also made it a Christian city (34-35). The Byzantine empire also had two different churches the Orthodox Church and the catholic Church. The reason The Great Schism happened was because of these two churches.(42-43)
The two Empires had similarities. They both loved luxury. They had gorgeous painting and sculptures. And their architecture was one of the best. Some of their architecture still exists today. Both the Byzantine Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire were some of the biggest empires ever.(45) Though they once were the same Empire they had differences and similarities.
WHAT!!!!!!!!! IT GLITCHED FOR ME TOO!!!!! I WAS THE FIRST TO UPLOAD!!!
ReplyDeleteRome was a great empire that had conquered many lands over time the great empire fell. Byzantine was also a great empire but it also came to an end. Otherwise they were very similar and different.
ReplyDeleteThe similarities are that byzantine and Rome were in the same land and byzantine was built up in Rome. They both had a love for Art, architecture, education etc. Both were very powerful empires. Both also had a huge source of water and traded.
Some differences were Byzantine had better resources. Another difference is that Rome worshiped lots of gods while the Byzantine believed in Christianity. Another difference is that Byzantine survived longer than Rome. Also Byzantine was surrounded by a moat and Rome wasn't.
The Roman Empire had a grew into a very successful empire, until it fell and lead to the rise of the Byzantine Empire. A few things that we read on the Roman Empire were on the architecture, the entertainment, the culture of the Romans, etc.... We also looked upon a very famous phrase which was: "In Rome, do as the Romans do". We looked upon this phrase several times to sink in this phrase in our brains and remember it. Rome had very good emperors, as well as the emperor that made the Roman Empire fall which was the Romans controlling Rome itself.This led Rome to fall.
ReplyDeleteAfter the fall of Rome, there once grew an empire named the Byzantine Empire. Byzantine then eventually fell by barbarian invasions, and the Turks had the final shot. They got them by using a secret weapon, even stronger than Greek fire which was gunpowder. The Turks invaded Byzantine & is now still standing today as Istanbul in Turkey. Another thing about Byzantine is that they followed the religion Christianity and Rome followed their own religion which was worshiping multiple gods, (Polytheism).