Brain Capacity = Full

World Civ Exam II

Augustus Caesar – Transforms roman system into pax romana in 27bc, sets up the senate who serves as a front for his power, Equites: citizens given special permission to ride horses into town
Retires, makes himself a god to be worshiped
Encourages loyalty and expansion by imposing taxes and rewardeding with citizenship
Concept that one is guilty until proven innocent

Alexander the Great –
Son of Philip II
Home schooled by Aristotle
Patterns his conquests by detouring to deal with the gods. (Gordian knot)
Undefeated
35 new cities
Dies of malaria


Muhammad
Born 570 – orphaned
Banu-Hashim Clan
Raised by uncle
Merchant
Khadija – Favorite wife/much older
610 – first revelation by Gabriel in a cave who told him what to write in the Koran
“Islam” means submission
Flys to mountain top on horse named Barrack to meet moses elijia and jesus, then flys to heaven and sees the full Koran
Dies in 632

Five Pillars – Confession of faith
Daily Prayer
Ramadan Fast
Alms – tithe except 2.5 percent
Haij to Mecca
Ibn Sina – Master of Sciences
Al Khorezmi – Algebra
Al Ghazzali – philosophic views
Ibn Rushd – Ties together monotheism and philosophy (argues ghazzali)
Solon – ancient Greek: Σόλων, c. 638 BC – 558 BC) was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker, and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in archaic Athens. His reforms failed in the short term yet he is often credited with having laid the foundations for Athenian democracy
Socrates - was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary Aristophanes
Delian Leauge - The Delian League, founded in 477 BC,[1] was an association of Greek city-states, members numbering between 150[2] to 173,[3] under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Plataea at the end of the Greco–Persian Wars.
Antigonids - The Antigonid dynasty (Greek: Δυναστεία των Αντιγονιδών) was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus ("the One-eyed").
Polis – City
Mycenaeans – settlers of small agricultural communities in the greek peninsula of Peloponnesus
Alexander the Great - Alexander III of Macedon (20/21 July 356 – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great (Greek: Μέγας Ἀλέξανδρος, Mégas Aléxandros), was a king of Macedon or Macedonia (Greek: Βασιλεύς Μακεδόνων), a state in the north eastern region of Greece, and by the age of thirty was the creator of one of the largest empires in ancient history, stretching from the Ionian sea to the Himalaya. He was undefeated in battle and is considered one of the most successful commanders of all time,[1] Born in Pella in 356 BC
Pisastratus - was a tyrant of Athens from 546 to 527/8 BC. His legacy lies primarily in his institution of the Panathenaic Festival and the consequent first attempt at producing a definitive version for Homeric epics
Sparta - or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese.[1] It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c. 650 BC it rose to become the dominant military land-power in ancient Greece.
Plato - was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world.
Macedon - was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, The rise of Macedon, from a small kingdom at the periphery of Classical Greek affairs, to one which came to dominate the entire Hellenic world, occurred under the reign of Philip II. For a brief period, after the conquests of Alexander the Great, it became the most powerful state in the world, controlling a territory that included the former Persian empire, stretching as far as the Indus River; at that time it inaugurated the Hellenistic period of Ancient Greek civilization.
Ptolemies - Ptolemy, one of the seven somatophylakes (bodyguards) who served as Alexander the Great's generals and deputies, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexander's death in 323 BC. In 305 BC, he declared himself King Ptolemy I, later known as "Soter" (saviour). The Egyptians soon accepted the Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. Ptolemy's family ruled Egypt until the Roman conquest of 30 BC
Athens – Capital of Greece
Oligarchy - is a form of power structure in which power effectively rests with a small number of people. These people could be distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, corporate, or military control.
Septuagint – Greek version of the Hebrew bible
Clisthenes - was a noble Athenian of the Alcmaeonid family. He is credited with reforming the constitution of ancient Athens and setting it on a democratic footing in 508/7 BC
Aristotle – was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.
Phalanx - greek for finger
Maccabees - were a Jewish rebel army who took control of Judea, which had been a client state of the Seleucid Empire
Tyranny – is one who illegally seizes and controls a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.
Minoans - civilization that arose on the island of Crete and flourished from approximately the 27th century BC to the 15th century BC
Pericles - was a prominent and influential statesman, orator, and general of Athens during the city's Golden Age—specifically, the time between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. He was descended, through his mother, from the powerful and historically influential Alcmaeonid family.
Philip II - king (basileus) of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip III.
Peloponnesian War - The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta.
Alexandria – Ptolemaic Capital founded by Alexander
Dorians - were one of the four major tribes into which the Ancient Greeks of the Classical period divided themselves.[1] Founded Crete.
Democracy is a form of government in which all citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal (and more or less direct) participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law
Homer - In the Western classical tradition Homer (English pronunciation: /ˈhoʊmər/; Ancient Greek: Ὅμηρος, Hómēros), is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet.
Etruscan civilization is the modern English name given to a civilization of ancient Italy in the area corresponding roughly to Tuscany

A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a legislature or parliament.

The plebs (plebians) were the general body of free landowning Roman citizens (as distinguished from slaves) in Ancient Rome. They were distinct from the higher order of the patricians

Tribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it.

The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 to 146 BC.[1] At the time, they were probably the largest wars that had ever taken place.

Carthage (Latin: Carthago or Karthago, Ancient Greek: Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Arabic: قرطاج Qarṭāj‎, Berber: ⴽⴰⵔⵜⴰⵊⴻⵏ Kartajen, Etruscan: *Carθaza, Modern Hebrew: קרתגו‎ Qartágo, from the Phoenician Qart-ḥadašt[1] meaning New City(Hebrew: Qert Ḥdaša), implying it was a 'new Tyre'[2]) is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC which has given place to the current suburb outside Tunis, Tunisia, with a population (2004 Census) of 20,715.

The Battle of Zama, fought around October 19, 202 BC, marked the final and decisive end of the Second Punic War. A Roman army led by Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, allied with Berber Numidian forces, defeated a Carthaginianforce led by the legendary commander Hannibal. Soon after this defeat on their home ground, the Carthaginian senate sued for peace, which was given to them by the Roman Republic on rather humiliating terms, ending the 17-year war.

Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca[n 1] (247–183 or 182 BC)[n 2] was a Carthaginian military commander and tactician who is popularly credited as one of the most talented commanders in history. His father, Hamilcar Barca, was the leading Carthaginian commander during the First Punic War, his younger brothers were Mago and Hasdrubal, and he was brother-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair.

Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus (Latin: TI•SEMPRONIVS•TI•F•P•N•GRACCVS) (b.168-163 BC d.133 BC) was a Roman politician of the 2nd century BC and brother of Gaius Gracchus. As a plebeian tribune, his reforms of agrarian legislation caused political turmoil in the Republic. These reforms threatened the holdings of rich landowners in Italy. He was murdered, along with many of his supporters, by members of the Roman Senate and supporters of the conservative Optimate faction.

Gaius Sempronius Gracchus (154 BC – 121 BC) was a Roman politician in the 2nd century BC and brother of the ill-fated reformer Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus. His election to the office of tribune in the years 123 and 122 BC and reformative policies whilst in office prompted a constitutional crisis and his death at the hands of the Roman Senate in 121.

Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix[1] (c. 138 BC – 78 BC), known commonly as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He had the rare distinction of holding the office of consul twice, as well as that of dictator

Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey (/ˈpɒmpiː/) or Pompey the Great[1] (Classical Latin abbreviation: CN•POMPEIVS•CN•F•SEX•N•MAGNVS[2]) (September 29, 106 BC – September 29, 48 BC), was a military and political leader of the lateRoman Republic. He came from a wealthy Italian provincial background, and established himself in the ranks of Roman nobility by successful leadership in several campaigns. Sulla addressed him by the cognomen Magnus (the Great) and he was awarded three triumphs.

Gaius Julius Caesar[2] (13 July 100 BC[3] – 15 March 44 BC)[4] was a Roman general and statesman. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire.

octavius/augustus -
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in AD 14.[note 1] Born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, he was adoptedposthumously by his great-uncle Gaius Julius Caesar in 44 BC via his last will and testament, and between then and 27 BC was officially named Gaius Julius Caesar. In 27 BC the Senate awarded him the honorific Augustus ("the revered one"), and thus consequently he was Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus.[note 2] Because of the various names he bore, it is common to call him Octavius when referring to events between 63 and 44 BC, Octavian (or Octavianus) when referring to events between 44 and 27 BC, and Augustus when referring to events after 27 BC. In Greek sources, Augustus is known as Ὀκτάβιος (Octavius), Καῖσαρ (Caesar), Αὔγουστος (Augustus), or Σεβαστός (Sebastos), depending on context.


The Roman equestrian order (Latin: ordo equester) constituted the lower of the two aristocratic classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the patricians (patricii), a hereditary caste that monopolised political power during the regal era (to 501 BC) and during the early Republic (to 338 BC). A member of the equestrian order was known as an eques (plural: equites). Equites in Latin has the general meaning of "horsemen" or "cavalry" (from equus = "horse"), but in this context carries the specific meaning of "knights" in the sense of members of an aristocratic group. To avoid confusion, this article refers to the latter as "knights" or "equestrians".

Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (November 16, 42 BC – March 16, AD 37), born Tiberius Claudius Nero, was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced his father and was remarried to Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian. Tiberius would later marry Augustus' daughter Julia the Elder (from his marriage to Scribonia) and even later be adopted by Augustus, by which act he officially became a Julian, bearing the name Tiberius Julius Caesar. The subsequent emperors after Tiberius would continue this blended dynasty of both families for the next forty years; historians have named it the Julio-Claudian dynasty. In relations to the other emperors of this dynasty, Tiberius was the stepson of Augustus, great-uncle of Caligula, paternal uncle of Claudius, and great-great uncle of Nero.

Latifundia are pieces of property covering very large land areas. The latifundia (Latin: lātus, "spacious" + fundus, "farm, estate")[1] of Roman history were great landed estates, specializing in agriculture destined for export: grain, olive oil, or wine. They were characteristic of Magna Graecia andSicily, of Egypt and the North African Maghreb and of Hispania Baetica in southern Spain. The latifundia were the closest approximation to industrialized agriculture in Antiquity, and their economics depended upon slave labour.
Pax Romana (Latin for "Roman peace") was the long period of relative peace and minimal expansion by military force experienced by the Roman Empire in the 1st and 2nd centuries CE. Since it was established by Caesar Augustus it is sometimes called Pax Augusta. Its span was about 207 years (27 BCE to 180 CE).[1]

Marcus Tullius Cicero ( /ˈsɪsɪroʊ/; Classical Latin: [ˈkikeroː]; January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC; sometimes anglicized as "Tully"), was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.[1][2]

he Essenes (in Modern but not in Ancient Hebrew: אִסִּיִים, Isiyim; Greek: Εσσηνοι, Εσσαίοι, or Οσσαιοι; Essēnoi, Essaioi, Ossaioi) were a Jewish religious group that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE that some scholars claim seceded from the Zadokite priests.[1] Being much fewer in number than the Pharisees and the Sadducees (the other two major sects at the time) the Essenes lived in various cities but congregated in communal life dedicated to asceticism, voluntary poverty, daily immersion, and abstinence from worldly pleasures, including marriage.

Paul the Apostle, also called the Apostle Paul, Paul of Tarsus, and Saint Paul (c. 5 - c. 67 ),[2] was one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with his writings forming a considerable portion of the New Testament.

The Jewish War (Greek: Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πόλεμος, Ioudaikou polemos), in full Flavius Josephus's Books of the History of the Jewish War against the Romans (Greek: Φλαβίου Ἰωσήπου ἱστορία Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πολέμου πρὸς Ῥωμαίους βιβλία, Phlabiou Iōsēpou historia Ioudaikou polemou pros Rōmaious biblia), also referred to in English as The Wars of the Jews and The History of the Destruction of Jerusalem, is a book written by the 1st century Jewish historian Josephus.

The Silk Road (or network of trade routes across the Asian continent connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean world, as well as North and Northeast Africa and Europe.
In recent years, both the maritime and overland Silk Routes are again being used, often closely following the ancient routes.

The Church of the East (Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ ʿĒtā d'Maḏənḥā), also known as the Nestorian Church,[note 1] is a Christian church, part of the Syriac tradition of Eastern Christianity. Originally the church of the Persian Sassanid Empire, it quickly spread widely through Asia. Between the 9th and 14th centuries it was the world's largest Christian church in terms of geographical extent, with dioceses stretching from the Mediterranean to China and India. Following a schism in 1552 the Church of the East has been split into two principal communities: the independent Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic church in communion with the Holy See.

Mani (in Middle Persian and Syriac Mānī, Greek Μάνης, Latin Manes; also Μανιχαίος, Latin Manichaeus, from Syriac ܡܐܢܝ ܚܝܐ Mānī ḥayyā "Living Mani", c. AD 216–276), of Iranian origin[1] was the prophet and the founder of Manichaeism, a gnosticreligion of Late Antiquity which was once widespread but is now extinct

Manichaeism ( /ˈmænɪkiː.ɪzəm/;[1] in Modern Persian آیین مانی Āyin e Māni; Chinese: 摩尼教; pinyin: Móní Jiào) was one of the major Iranian Gnostic religions, originating in Sassanid Persia. Although most of the original writings of the founding prophet Mani(in Persian: مانی, Syriac: ܡܐܢܝ, Latin: Manichaeus or Manes) (c. 216–276 AD) have been lost, numerous translations and fragmentary texts have survived. Manichaeism taught an elaborate cosmology describing the struggle between a good, spiritual world of light, and an evil, material world of darkness. Through an ongoing process which takes place in human history, light is gradually removed from the world of matter and returned to the world of light from which it came. Its beliefs can be seen as a synthesis ofChristianity, Zoroastrianism and Buddhism.

A Barracks emperor was a Roman Emperor who seized power by virtue of his command of the army. Barracks emperors were especially common in the period from 235 through 284, during the Crisis of the Third Century. There were approximately fourteen barracks emperors in 33 years, producing an average reign of a little over two years apiece. The resulting instability in the imperial office and the near constant state of civil war and insurrection threatened to destroy the Roman Empire from within and left it vulnerable to attack from without.

The term Tetrarchy (Greek: "leadership of four [people]") describes any system of government where power is divided among four individuals, but usually refers to the tetrarchy instituted by Roman Emperor Diocletian in 293, marking the end of theCrisis of the Third Century and the recovery of the Roman Empire. This Tetrarchy lasted until c.313, when internecine conflict eliminated most of the claimants to power, leaving Constantine in the West and Licinius in the East.

Flavius Odoacer (433[1]–493), also known as Flavius Odovacer, was the 5th-century King of Italy, whose reign is commonly seen as marking the end of the classical Roman Empire in Western Europe and the beginning of the Middle Ages. He is considered the first non-Roman to ever have ruled all of Italy.

The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and built up an enormous empire in Europe. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,[1] considerable scholarly effort has been devoted to investigating such a connection. However, there is no evidence for a direct connection between the dominant element of the Xiongnu and that of the Huns.[2] A contemporary mentions that the Huns had a language of their own; very little of it has survived and its relationships have been the subject of debate for centuries. According to predominant theories, their language was a Turkic language, but the theory cannot be confirmed and other theories suggest that the language could be Indo-European or Uralic.[3][4]:744 Numerous other languages were spoken within the Hun paxincluding East Germanic.[5]:202 Their main military technique was mounted archery.

Attila ( /ˈætɪlə/ or /əˈtɪlə/; ?–453), also known as Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in 453. He was leader of the Hunnic Empire, which stretched from Germany to the Ural River and from the Danube River to the Baltic Sea. During his rule, he was one of the most fearsome enemies of the Western and Eastern Roman Empire. He invaded the Balkans twice and marched through Gaul (modern France) as far as Orléans before being defeated at the Battle of Châlons. He refrained from attacking either Constantinople or Rome.

Alaric I (Alareiks in the original Gothic) was likely born about 370 on an island named Peuce (the Fir) at the mouth of the Danube in present day Romania. King of the Visigoths from 395–410, Alaric was the first Germanic leader to take the city ofRome. Having originally desired to settle his people in the Roman Empire, he finally sacked the city, marking the decline of imperial power in the west.

The Visigoths (Latin: Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, or Wisi) were one of two main branches of the Goths, the Ostrogoths being the other. Together these tribes were among the Germanic peoples who spread through the late Roman Empire during the Migration Period. The Romanized Visigoths first emerged as a distinct people during the 4th century, initially in the Balkans, where they participated in several wars with Rome. A Visigothic army under Alaric I eventually moved into Italy and famously sacked Rome in 410.

Year 476 (CDLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Basiliscus and Armatus (or, less frequently, year 1229 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 476 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

The Battle of Adrianople (August 9, 378), sometimes known as the Battle of Hadrianopolis, was fought between a Roman army led by the Roman Emperor Valens and Gothic rebels (largely Thervings as well as Greutungs, non-GothicAlans, and various local rebels) led by Fritigern. The battle took place about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) north of Adrianople (modern Edirne in European Turkey, near the border with Greece and Bulgaria) in the Roman province of Thracia and ended with an overwhelming victory for the Goths.[1][2]


An icon (from Greek εἰκών eikōn "image") is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Catholicism. More broadly the term is used in a wide number of contexts for an image, picture, or representation; it is a sign or likeness that stands for an object by signifying or representing it either concretely or by analogy, as in semiotics; by extension, icon is also used, particularly in modern culture, in the general sense of symbol — i.e. a name, face, picture, edifice or even a person readily recognized as having some well-known significance or embodying certain qualities: one thing, an image or depiction, that represents something else of greater significance through literal or figurative meaning, usually associated with religious, cultural, political, or economic standing.


Iconoclasm[1] is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually for religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes. The term encompasses the more specific destruction of images of a ruler after his death or overthrow (damnatio memoriae), for example, following Akhenaten's death in Ancient Egypt.

Justinian I (Latin: Flavius Petrus Sabbatius Iustinianus; Greek: Φλάβιος Πέτρος Σαββάτιος Ἰουστινιανός) (483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was East Roman (Byzantine) Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.

Caesaropapism is the idea of combining the power of secular government with, or making it superior to, the spiritual authority of the Church; especially concerning the connection of the Church with government. The term caesaropapism (Cäseropapismus) was coined by Max Weber, who defined it as follows: “a secular, caesaropapist ruler... exercises supreme authority in ecclesiastic matters by virtue of his autonomous legitimacy”. According to Weber's political sociology, caesaropapism entails “the complete subordination of priests to secular power.”.[1]
In its extreme form, caesaropapism is a political theory in which the head of state, notably the Emperor ('Caesar', by extension an 'equal' King), is also the supreme head of the church ('papa', pope or analogous religious leader). In this form, it inverts theocracy (or hierocracy in Weber) in which institutions of the Church control the state.

The Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox patriarchates split from one another in the East-West Schism of 1054 AD, and Protestantism came into existence during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, splitting from the Roman Catholic Church.[5]

The Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church [note 1] and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church,[4] considers itself to be the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostlesalmost 2,000 years ago. Orthodoxy is the second largest Christian communion in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents.

Byzantium (Greek: Βυζάντιον, Byzántion; Latin: BYZANTIVM) was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas (Greek: Βύζας, Býzas, genitive Βύζαντος, Býzantos). The name Byzantium is aLatinization of the original name Byzantion. The city was later renamed Constantinople and briefly became the imperial residence of the classical Roman Empire, and then subsequently was, for more than a thousand years, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, the Greek-speaking Roman Empire of late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Constantinople was captured by the Ottoman Turks, becoming the capital of their empire, in 1453. The name of the city was changed to Istanbul in 1930 following the establishment of modern Turkey.

Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus[3] (c. 27 February 272[2] – 22 May 337), commonly known as Constantine I, Constantine the Great, or Saint Constantine ( /ˈkɒnstəntaɪn/ or /ˈkɒnstəntiːn/),[4] was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity,[notes 4] Constantine reversed the persecutions of his predecessor, Diocletian, and issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of Christians throughout the empire.

Constantinople (Greek: Κωνσταντινούπολις, Latin: Constantinopolis, Ottoman Turkish: قسطنطینیه, Turkish: Kostantiniyye or İstanbul) was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire, the Latin Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest[1] and wealthiest city.
The Turks have called the city Istanbul since they conquered it in 1453. However, many Westerners continued to call it Constantinople. Not until the 20th century did the Turks formally object, and ask that others use the same name they did.[2][3][4] This took place through the Turkish Postal Service Law, as part of Atatürk's national reforms.[5][6] This name in turn derives from the Greek and Slavic colloquial name Stambol; see Names of Istanbul for fuller discussion.

Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus[notes 1] (c. 22 December 244[3] – 3 December 311[4]), commonly known as Diocletian, was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305.

The Battle of Manzikert, or Malazgirt, was fought between the Byzantine Empire and Seljuq forces led by Alp Arslan on August 26, 1071 near Manzikert (modern Malazgirt in Muş Province, Turkey). The decisive defeat of the Byzantine army and the capture of the Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes[5] played an important role in undermining Byzantine authority in Anatolia and Armenia.[6]
The brunt of the battle was borne by the professional soldiers from the eastern and western tagmata, as large numbers of the mercenaries and Anatolian levies fled early and survived the battle.[7] The fallout from Manzikert was nearly disastrous for the empire, with numerous subsequent civil conflicts and an economic crisis severely weakening the empire's ability to adequately defend its borders.[8] This led to the mass movement of Turks into central Anatolia and by 1080, an area of 30,000 square miles (78,000 km2) had been lost to the empire. It took a decade of internal strife before Alexios I Komnenos (1081 to 1118) brought stability back to the empire.

The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian(Eastern Orthodox) city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire). This is seen as one of the final acts in the Great Schism between the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church.
The crusaders established the Latin Empire (1204–1261) and other "Latin" states in the Byzantine lands they conquered.

Kievan Rus'[nb 1] (Old East Slavic Рѹ́сь [rusĭ], Greek: Ρωσία, Latin: Ruscia, Russia, later also Ruthenia,[1][2] Belarusian: Кіеўская Русь, Russian: Ки́евская Русь, romanised: Kievskaya Rus’, [rusʲ], Ukrainian: Ки́ївська Русь romanised:Kyivs'ka Rus’), is the name coined by Nikolai Karamzin for the Medieval state of Rus. The state existed from approximately 880 to sometime in the middle of the 13th century when it disintegrated. It is considered that the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240 greatly contributed to that effect.

Saints Cyril and Methodius (Greek: Κύριλλος καὶ Μεθόδιος, Old Church Slavonic: Кѷриллъ и Меѳодїи[more]) were two Byzantine Greek brothers born in Thessaloniki in the 9th century.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] They became missionaries of Christianity among the Slavic peoples of Bulgaria, Great Moravia and Pannonia. Through their work they influenced the cultural development of all Slavs, for which they received the title "Apostles to the Slavs". They are credited with devising the Glagolitic alphabet, the first alphabet used to transcribe Old Church Slavonic.[11] After their deaths, their pupils continued their missionary work among other Slavs. Both brothers are venerated in the Orthodox Church as saints with the title of "equal-to-apostles". In 1880,Pope Leo XIII introduced their feast into the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1980, Pope John Paul II declared them co-patron saints of Europe, together with Benedict of Nursia.[12]

Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great, also sometimes spelled Volodymer Old East Slavic: Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь (c. 958 near Pskov – 15 July 1015, Berestovo) was the grand prince of Kiev who converted to Christianity in 988,[1][2][3] and proceeded to baptise all of Kievan Rus'. His name is spelt variously: in modern Ukrainian, for example, as Volodymyr (Володимир); in Old Church Slavonic and modern Russian, as Vladimir (Владимир); in Old Norse as Valdamarr; and, in modernScandinavian languages, "Valdemar".

The Varangians or Varyags (Old Norse: Væringjar; Greek: Βάραγγοι, Βαριάγοι, Varangoi, Variagoi; Russian and Ukrainian: Варяги, Varyagi / Varyahy; Belarusian: Варагі, Varahi), sometimes referred to as Variagians, were traders, warriors and settlers from the Baltic region, who from the 9th to 11th centuries ventured eastwards and southwards along the rivers of Eastern Europe, through what is now Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Mainly these people were Vikings ofScandinavian origin,[1][2] embedded in Norse culture, as has been shown by archaeological evidence from their settlements in North Russia, such as Holmgard (Veliky Novgorod) or Aldeigja (Staraya Ladoga) on Volkhov River; Varangians also might have included other peoples from the Baltic shores.

Rurik, or Riurik (Russian: Рюрик; pronounced [ˈrʲʉrʲɪk]; Old East Norse: Rørik; c. 830 – c. 879), is a semi-legendary founder of the Rurik Dynasty which ruled Kievan Rus and later some of its successor states, most notably Russia, for many centuries. The origin of Rurik is uncertain, but according to Russian Primary Chronicles he was a Varangian chieftain who gained control of Ladoga in 862, and moved his capital to Novgorod in 864.