1. EUROPE AFTER THE FALL OF
THE ROMAN EMPIRE
Unit 3. The Post-classical Era

2. GERMANIC TRIBES
Germanic peoples had begun to move into the lands of the
Roman Empire by the 3rd century C.E.
After years of decline, the Western Roman Empire fell,
replaced by a number of separate states ruled by German
kings.
By 500, Germanic peoples had settled throughout Europe:
Visigoths in Spain
Ostrogoths in Italy
Angles and Saxons in Britain
Franks in France and Western Germany

4. GERMANIC SOCIETIES
Merging of Roman and Germanic governments took different
forms:
Ostrogoths and Visigoths retained Roman structure of
government, but excluded Romans from power.
Angles and Saxons were little affected by Roman traditions.
Family was the crucial social bond (extended family):
Males were dominant
Family provided protection
A crime or injury was considered personal and could lead to
a blood feud.

5. GERMANIC LAW
Germanic Law Justinian Law
•Laws were the custom of a tribe and did not apply
to people outside the tribe.
•Law codes did not explain the laws that everyone
took for granted but instead focused on areas of
dispute.
•Laws were often declared by the king but had to
be approved by popular assemblies.
•The king was elected by the assembly. He could
declare war, outlaw freemen, and control the
membership of the tribe.
•People who committed crimes against the
community were put beyond the protection of the
law and could be killed by anyone in the tribe.
One means of determining guilt was the ordeal.
•Crimes against individuals became blood feuds.
Peace could be gained by monetary compensation
(wergild).

6. CHARLEMAGNE
Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, became King of the Franks
in 768 and ruled until 814.
Greatly expanded the Frankish kingdom, creating the
Carolingian Empire.
Counts acted as the king’s local representatives and
helped administer the empire.
Missi dominici ensured that the king’s orders were
followed.
Charlemagne was a fierce warrior, strong ruler and pious
Christian. He also worked to promote learning throughout his
kingdom - Carolingian Renaissance.

7. In 800, the Pope crowned Charlemagne Emperor of the Romans.
Strengthened the idea of an enduring Roman Empire.
Symbolized the joining of Germanic, Christian, and
Roman cultures.

9. At its height, Charlemagne’s empire covered much of Western
and Central Europe.

11. GERMANIC VS.
JUSTINIAN LAW
Germanic Law Justinian Law
• Laws were the custom of a tribe and did not • Laws applied to the entire Byzantine Empire.
apply to people outside the tribe. • The law code was very detailed and covered
• Law codes did not explain the laws that everyone many types of laws.
took for granted but instead focused on areas of • A 10-man commission under the direction of
dispute. Emperor Justinian formed the law code.
• Laws were often declared by the king but had to • The law code made a distinction between free
be approved by popular assemblies. people and slaves.
• The king was elected by the assembly. He could • The emperors inherited the throne.
declare war, outlaw freemen, and control the • Punishments for crimes varied greatly and
membership of the tribe. depended on the type of crime committed.
• People who committed crimes against the
community were put beyond the protection of
the law and could be killed by anyone in the
tribe. One means of determining guilt was the
ordeal.
• Crimes against individuals became blood feuds.
Peace could be gained by monetary
compensation (wergild), depending on the status
of the injured party.

12. THE EASTERN ROMAN
EMPIRE
Although the western part of the Roman Empire fell
to Germanic tribes, the eastern part continued on.
The Eastern Roman Empire faced many challenges:
Difficulties protecting its territory.
Empty treasury.
Decline in population after plague.
Renewed threats to frontiers.

13. The Emperor Justinian rebuilt Constantinople in the
mid-500s, and it became one of the world’s greatest cities.
Arab peoples captured much of the territory.
By the 8th century, a smaller Eastern Roman Empire had
become the Byzantine Empire.
Greek and Christian
Emperor in control of
both church and state

15. DECLINE OF THE
BYZANTINE EMPIRE
Successors of the Macedonian emperors were incompetent:
Struggle for power between military and aristocracy.
Political and social disorder.
Schism between Roman Catholic Church and Eastern
Orthodox Church unsettled the empire:
Disagreement over use of icons and pope’s authority.
Threats from abroad:
Advance of Seljuk Turks.
Involvement in the Crusades.

16. THE DIVIDE IN
CHRISTIANITY
West East
• Home of the Catholic Church. • Home of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
• Church headed by the pope. • Unwilling to accept the pope’s claim as
the sole head of the Church.
• Believed the pope was the sole [only]
head of the Church. • Church headed by a patriarch,
appointed by the emperor. Believed that
• Excommunicated Patriarch Michael God commanded the state to preserve
Cerularius.
the true Christian faith.
• Emperor Leo III outlawed the worship
of images, known as icons (iconoclast
controversy).
• Excommunicated Pope Leo IX.