Western Civilization

LIFE IN CONSTANTINOPLE: TRADE AND THE EMPEROR’S

BUILDING PROGRAM After riots destroyed much of Con-

stantinople in 532, Emperor Justinian rebuilt the city

and gave it the appearance it would keep for almost a

thousand years. With a population estimated in the

hundreds of thousands, Constantinople was the largest

city in Europe during the Middle Ages. It viewed itself

as the center of an empire and a special Christian city.

The Byzantines believed that the city was under the

protection of God and the Virgin Mary.

Until the twelfth century, Constantinople was also

Europe’s greatest commercial center, the chief market-

place where Western and Eastern products were

exchanged. Highly desired in Europe were the products

of the East: silk from China, spices from Southeast Asia

and India, jewelry and ivory from India (the latter used

by artisans for church items), wheat and furs from

southern Russia, and flax and honey from the Balkans.

Many of these Eastern goods were then shipped to the

Mediterranean area and northern Europe. Moreover,

imported raw materials were used in Constantinople

for local industries. During Justinian’s reign, two

Christian monks smuggled silkworms from China to

begin a Byzantine silk industry. The state controlled

the production of silk cloth, and the workshops them-

selves were housed in Constantinople’s royal palace

complex. European demand for silk cloth made it the

city’s most lucrative product.

Much of Constantinople’s appearance in the Mid-

dle Ages was due to Justinian’s rebuilding program in

the sixth century. The city was dominated by an

immense palace complex, hundreds of churches, and a

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Empire before Justinian
Territory gained by Justinian
FRANKS Groups of people
MAP 7.4The Eastern Roman Empire in the Time of Justinian.The Eastern Roman emperor
Justinian briefly restored much of the Mediterranean portion of the old Roman Empire. His general
Belisarius quickly conquered the Vandals in North Africa but wrested Italy from the Ostrogoths
only after a long and devastating struggle.
Q Look back at Map 6.1. What former Roman territories remained outside Justinian’s
control?
The Byzantine Empire 163
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