527 - 565 AD
The Byzantine Empire reached its greatest size under
Emperor Justinian I. Justinian was determined to bring
back the grandeur of the Roman Empire by regaining
territory in the west. Under his leadership, Italy, the
southeastern coast of Spain, and much of northern Africa
were reconquered. The empire had already included Asia
Minor, the Balkan Peninsula, Egypt, Palestine, and Syria.
Important changes took place in the reign of the emperor
Justinian that effected a thorough-going reorganization
of many of the principal features of the government in
Egypt. At first sight Justinian's terms of reference look
like the traditional ones and an overriding concern is
still the collection of taxes. Justinian's policy was
certainly the need to emphasize the role of Egypt as part
of the fabric of the eastern empire, an empire whose
integrity was more and more threatened by external as
well as internal forces. Justinian combined the civil and
military power in the hands of the Duke, with a civil
deputy, as a counterweight to the power of the church
authorities. Justinian had a board of legal experts
prepare a great code in three parts, the Corpus iuris
civilis. The Code proper summarized imperial edits; the
Institutes was a textbook; and the Digest summarized the
legal commentaries. Since this Code had been drawn up
after centuries of legal activity in the Empire, it
emphasized theory and state control. Justinian built
Hagia Sophia, the empire's largest and most splendid
Christian church. Also during his reign, he closed all
the remaining temples and pagan schools. Trade thrived
during Justinian's reign, and Byzantine art and
architecture flourished. But the empire's funds were used
up by the high cost of the wars and improvements that
took place under Justinian. As a result, the empire was
bankrupt when he died in 565 AD. The beacon of
intellectual light that had shone from Alexandria to the
rest of the ancient world flickered out.
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Design, Layout and Graphic Art by Jimmy
Dunn, an InterCity
Oz, Inc. Employee
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Code Copyright 1996 by InterCity Oz, Inc.