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Culture · Geography · Health · History · Mathematics · Natural sciences · Philosophy · Religion · Society · Technology Portals → History → Byzantine Empire  The Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire is the historiographical term used since the 19th century to describe the Roman Empire of the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople. Whilst it was known as the "Empire of the Greeks" to many of its Western contemporaries (due to the dominance of Medieval Greek language, culture and population), it was referred to by its inhabitants simply as the Roman Empire (Βασιλεία Ῥωμαίων) or Romania (Ῥωμανία) and its emperors continued the unbroken succession of Roman emperors; to the Islamic world it was known primarily as روم (Rûm, land of the "Romans").
There is no consensus on exactly when the Byzantine period of Roman history began. Many consider Emperor Constantine I (reigned AD 306–337) to be the first "Byzantine Emperor". It was he who moved the imperial capital in 324 AD from Nicomedia to Byzantium, refounded as Constantinople, or Nova Roma ("New Rome"). The city of Rome itself had not served as the capital since the reign of Diocletian (284-305). Some date the beginnings of the Empire to the reign of Theodosius I (379–395) and Christianity's official supplanting of the pagan Roman religion, or following his death in 395, when the political division between East and West became permanent. Others place it even later in 476, when Romulus Augustulus, traditionally considered the last western Emperor, was deposed, thus leaving sole imperial authority with the emperor in the Greek East. Others point to the reorganization of the empire in the time of Heraclius (ca. 620), when Latin titles and usages were officially replaced with Greek versions. In any case, the changeover was gradual and by 330, when Constantine inaugurated his new capital, the process of hellenization and increasing Christianization was already under way. The Empire is considered to have ended after the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, although Greek monarchies continued to rule over parts of the fallen Empire's territories for several more years, until the fall of Mystras in 1460, Trebizond in 1461, and Monemvasia in 1471. In Christianity, iconoclasm has generally been motivated by a literal interpretation of the Ten Commandments, which forbid the making and worshipping of "graven images". The two Byzantine outbreaks of iconoclasm during the 8th and 9th centuries were unusual in that the use of images was the main issue in the dispute, rather than a by-product of wider concerns. As with other doctrinal issues in the Byzantine period, the controversy was by no means restricted to the clergy, or to arguments from theology. The continuing cultural confrontation with, and military threat from, Islam probably had a bearing on the attitudes of both sides. Iconoclasm seems to have been supported by many from the East of the Empire, and refugees from the provinces taken over by the Muslims. It has been suggested that their strength in the army at the start of the period, and the growing influence of Balkan forces in the army (generally considered to lack strong iconoclast feelings) over the period may have been important factors in both beginning and ending imperial support for iconoclasm.  Flavius Belisarius (Greek: Βελισάριος) (505(?) – 565) was one of the greatest generals of the Byzantine Empire and one of the most acclaimed generals in history. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian I's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Western Roman Empire, which had been lost just under a century previously. Although comparatively less well-known than other famed military leaders such as Hannibal, Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great or Napoleon Bonaparte, his skills and accomplishments were matched by very few other military commanders in history. One of the defining features of Belisarius' career was his operating under conditions of little or no support from his emperor Justinian and Byzantium, and nonetheless succeeding through military genius. He is among a select group of men considered to be the "Last of the Romans".  Photo credit:Neuceu
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