Chapter 1: Prelude: the Roman Empire Transformed (c. 300-c.
600)
Highlights
The reign of Emperor Constantine (306-337), during which he
promoted the Christian God and sponsored Christian churches. He
also issued, together with co-emperor Licinius, the Edict of Milan
(313) and presided over the Council of Nicaea (325).
The Edict of Milan (313) declared religious tolerance for all religions
in the Roman Empire and restored property taken during
ecclesiastical persecutions.
The Council of Nicaea (325) declared the laws and doctrines of the
Christian Church and condemned the Arian view of the nature of
Christ.
The death of Augustine of Hippo (430), the most important church
father in the West. City of God defines the relationship between this
world and the next and being Confessions remain a model of self-
examination.
The reign of Emperor Justinian (527-565) who introduced important
legal initiatives, including the Codex Justinianus and the Digest,
which would be consulted and built upon for centuries. He also
(temporarily) reconquered North Africa and Italy and built the Hagia
Sophia in Constantinople. Most recently he supported the
construction of San Vitale in Ravenna.
The Benedictine Rule (530-560), written mainly for the monks of
Monte Cassino, became the most important monastic rule in the
West during the ninth century.
Pope Gregory the Great (590-604) who established the power and
importance of the papacy in Italy and elsewhere. He sent
missionaries to England to convert the kings and people to the
Roman Catholic form of Christianity.
The Roman Empire was not a uniform whole, but a collection of diverse
regions and communities. During the transition period, political, military,
religious, economic and cultural power shifted from traditional urban elites
to provincial populations outside Italy. Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305)
recognized the importance of the provinces by dividing the empire into
four parts, each governed by a different leader. This decentralization
emphasized the role of the provinces, but lost significance when the
barbarian raids occurred around 400-500. This process ultimately
contributed to the political fall of the western part of the Roman Empire.
PROVINCIALIZATION OF THE EMPIRE (C. 250-C.350)
In the third century, the Roman Empire faced a deep crisis, marked by
multiple challenges. On the eastern border the Persians exerted pressure,
while in the north various barbarian groups, who were not Roman citizens
and did not speak Latin or Greek, threatened the borders. This unrest
made it clear that it was impossible to govern such a vast empire under
one ruler, especially in times of crisis.
, The Roman response consisted of major reforms: the provinces
gained more influence, the army was expanded (with a growing share of
barbarian soldiers), and new defenses were built. At the same time, a
pandemic, a long-term succession crisis and economic problems plagued
the empire. Between 235 and 284, twenty different emperors ruled and
several breakaway empires emerged. To finance the military, the currency
was devalued (less silver in the coins) and taxes were increased, targeting
both land and people.
In 284, Emperor Diocletian introduced the Tetrarchy, dividing the
empire into four parts to improve governance. Later this was reduced to
two parts, which laid the foundation for the division into the Eastern and
Western Roman Empires. Diocletian managed to stabilize the crisis, and
his successor Constantine finally brought it to an end. This period marked
a shift towards decentralization and the gradual transformation of the
Roman Empire.
A New Religion
Christianity became attractive because it offered hope and equality to
people who had never truly felt Roman. Those who believed were now
welcomed as equals and given access to heaven. The religion created a
sense of community: instead of local gods, believers everywhere
worshiped the same God. Furthermore, Christians claimed that their God
was for everyone, not just themselves.
Christianity developed a strong organization. The church consisted
of the ordinary faithful (laity) and the clergy, led by bishops, who were
assisted by presbyters. Some bishops had more power, such as that of
Rome, who became known as the Pope.
In 313, the emperors Licinius and Constantine issued the Edict of
Milan, declaring tolerance for all religions in the empire. As a result,
Christians regained their possessions and were no longer persecuted.
Emperor Constantine played a crucial role in promoting Christianity. He
had churches built, granted privileges to priests and turned
Constantinople into a Christian city. The bishop of Constantinople was
given the title of patriarch (a kind of super-bishop).
Constantine also led the Council of Nicaea (325), the first universal
church council, where important matters of faith were discussed and
canonical laws were established. At the end of the fourth century,
Emperor Theodosius I declared Christianity the official religion of the
Roman Empire.
Yet there remained disagreements within Christianity, such as
conflicts with the Donatists in North Africa, who considered themselves
purer than others, and internal divisions over religious doctrine. Despite
these challenges, Christianity became the dominant religion in the empire.
DOCTRINE
Between 350 and 450, Christians engaged in heated debate about
correct doctrine. A major conflict revolved around Arianism, which
claimed that although the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit existed, only
the Father was fully divine and that the Son was created by Him.
This view was labeled as heresy by Athanasius (ca. 295-373), an
, influential father of Catholic orthodoxy. He defended that the Son
and the Father were of one and the same substance, because the
Son proceeds from the Father.
This view was confirmed in the Nicene Creed, which declared
that Jesus has the same substance as God but became human flesh.
These theological debates not only determined the doctrine of faith,
but also strengthened the bond between believers and brought God
closer to earthly life.
Another influential thinker, Augustine of Hippo, developed the
doctrine of the two cities in his work The City of God. He described
the “City of Man” as temporary and impermanent, subject to fire,
war, famine and disease. It is the place where people are born,
learn, marry, grow older and die. In contrast, he contrasted the “City
of God,” a heavenly and eternal city, where true and lasting bliss
can be found. The institutions of the earthly city, such as the church,
help people reach the heavenly city.
The Mass (Eucharist) played a central role in connecting the
faithful with each other and with the souls of the deceased, who
were commemorated during the liturgy. This created a deep
spiritual community, rooted in both the earthly and the divine.
From Local Identities to Imperial Culture
Roman art was based on Hellenistic art left by Alexander the Great and his
successors.
THE BARBARIANS
The relationship between the Romans and the Germanic people, including
the Visigoths, was complex and changing. Initially they admired each
other, became mutually dependent and eventually fell prey to betrayal.
The Germanic people, speakers of Germanic languages, lived a settled
existence with agriculture, livestock breeding and craft specialization.
Their ethnic identity, based on language, clothing, food and other
customs, was dynamic, with tribes coming together and falling apart in a
process of ethnogenesis.
During the crisis of the third century, the Black Sea Goths took
advantage of the weakened Roman borders. After plundering in the
Balkans and Anatolia, the East Goths (Ostrogoths) and West Goths
(Visigoths) emerged. The Visigoths became allies of the empire and
served in the army, but their situation changed drastically when they
wanted to flee into the empire from the advancing Huns in the late fourth
century. The Romans treated them poorly, leading to the Battle of
Adrianople (378), where the Visigoths and their allies defeated Emperor
Valens (r. 364–378), weakening the Roman army.
In 410, Alaric led a Visigothic army that sacked Rome, an event that
inspired Augustine to write his “City of God.” The Visigoths left Rome and
settled in southern Gaul (418) and later in Spain (484).
The end of the Western Roman Empire came in 476, when the last
emperor, Romulus Augustulus, was deposed by the Germanic leader
Odoacer, who declared himself king of Italy. Emperor Zeno of the Eastern
, Roman Empire sent the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great to defeat
Odoacer, resulting in Ostrogothic rule over Italy (493-526).
Meanwhile, Clovis (r. 481/482-511), king of the Franks, conquered
Gaul around 500. The Roman Empire by then resembled a puzzle of
several kingdoms, but many people still saw themselves as Romans.
Barbarian kings also often viewed their rule as part of, rather than
against, the Roman Empire.
THE NEW ORDER
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, a new order emerged in
which the west and east developed differently.
In the west, cities declined while the countryside flourished. The
wealthy gained increasing influence, and Christianity was integrated into
daily life and governance, contributing to the stability of the region.
In the east, the Roman Empire continued to exist as the Byzantine
Empire. It strove for expansion and focused mainly on the east, where it
dealt with the powerful Persian Empire. These developments reflected a
shift from urban to rural vibrancy and an increasing influence of religion
and elites in governance.
The Ruralization of the West
In the wake of the Roman Empire, the focus in the west shifted from cities
to the countryside. Roman elites and barbarians began to form a
community of free landowners together, although religious differences,
such as the conflict between Arianism and Catholicism, persisted.
Barbarian kings adopted legal codes inspired by Roman precedents.
The urban middle class gradually disappeared. Taxes impoverished
the curiales (urban administrative families), while wealthy landowners
avoided taxes. Many curial families gave up their free status in exchange
for land and protection from the wealthy. By the seventh century,
barbarian kings even stopped collecting general taxes.
These developments led to a new form of localism: long-distance
trade slowed down, but did not come to a complete standstill. The
countryside became the economic and social center of the West.
The Western Church in the New Order
In the new order, the Western church played a central role in society.
Bishops were actively involved in material culture, while monasteries
became important landowners. Monks stood between the laity and the
clergy and lived according to strict rules.
Important monastic rules were written by figures such as Caesarius
of Arles, who established guidelines for his sister (the abbess) and his
nephew (the abbot). In Italy, Saint Benedict (d. c. 550/560) wrote the
Benedictine Rule between 530 and 560, which was adopted as the official
rule of the Carolingian Empire in the ninth century. This rule emphasized
obedience and humility and divided the day into fixed periods of prayer,
study and labor. The liturgy was central, with prayers and psalm singing
(the “Hours”) seven times a day and once at night. A total of 150 psalms
were sung.
