EASTERN ORTHODOX WORLD TIMELINE

JUSTINIAN TAKES THE THRONE 527

• Justinian was a high-ranking Byzantine nobleman.
• Procopius describes him as "decietful, false, hyprocitical, two-faced, cruel."
• Justinian ruled almost all the territory that Rome had ever ruled.

JUSTINIAN'S CODE 528-533

• Justinian Code contained nearly 5,000 Roman laws.
• Justinian Code served the Byzantine Empire for 900 years.
• Justinian Code decided legal questions that regulated all areas of Byzantine life.

HAGIA SOPIA 532

• The Hagia Sophia was the crowning glory of Justinian's reign.
• Hagia Sophia means "Holy Wisdom" in Greek.
• A church that had the same name was destroyed.

NIKA REBELLION 532

• It was called the Nika Rebellion because the mob cried "Nika!" or "Victory!"
• They felt the mayor had been to harsh stopping a riot of Hippodrome fans.
• Justinian's wife convinced him not to flee during the Nika Rebellion.

KIEV CONVERTS TO BYZANTINE CHRISTIANITY 989

• Byzantine Princess Olga converted to Christiany, but her son resisted it.
• Olga's grandson Vladimir thought about converting to Christianity.
• Vladmir sent teams to see major religions, and Byzantine Christianity was the best.

YAROSLAV THE WISE 1019

• Yaroslav the Wise was Vladmir's son and led Kiev gave even more glory.
• Yaroslav married his daughters and sisters to the kings and princes of Western Europe.
• Yaroslav created a legal code that dealt with crimes against property.
• Yaroslav built the first library in Kiev.

DEATH OF YAROSLAV 1054

• Kievan state began to decline after the Death of Yaroslav.
• Yaroslav made a terrible mistake of dividing his realm between his sons.
• Yaroslavs sons ripped the state apart while they fought for territories.

MONGOLS ATTACK KIEV 1240

• Mongols rode under the leadership of Batu Khan.
• A Roman catholic Bishop later reported seeing countless skeletons in the field.
• The Mongol Empire held power in Russia for over 200 years.

CONSTANTINOPLE FALLS 1453

• Constantinople fell to the Turkish Empire.
• Constantinople fell during the 43-year reign of Ivan III when he was 13.
• Constantinople fell because of the capture of the capital of the East Roman Byzantine Empire.

FINAL BREAK WITH THE MONGOLS 1480

• Ivan III made the final break with the Mongols by refusing to pay their tribute.
• Neither the Russian or Mongol armies wanted to fight, so both went home.
• The bloodless standoff marked Russia's liberation from Mongol rule.