Broad questions Flashcards
change across period- governance plan
- broad
-late roman and byzantine continuities - collapse and reinvention in the west
- Islamic caliphate
-japan
broad change over tiem - 370
roman rule much of Europem roman imperial model- centrlaised b taxation urban admin law and military coercion
broad change over time 900 governance
Europe fractured into smaller empires particularly in west- franks, lombards, vandals, charlemagen monumental rule
Middle east opposite- unification under one religion, caliphate, goriwng arab identity
Governance based on mix of charisma religion conquest custom and admin revival
late roman and byzantine continuities governance
o Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) maintained administrative, legal, and ideological continuity.
o Centralised bureaucracy: ministries, fiscal system, provincial governance.
o Law: Codification under Justinian (Corpus Iuris Civilis, 529–534). Emperors as lawgivers.
o Religion: Orthodoxy + monarchy. The emperor defended true doctrine (e.g., suppression of heresies, iconoclasm debate).
o Rituals of power: Imperial processions, coronation rites, court ceremonial (Book of Ceremonies).
changes late roman and byzantine gov
: By 900, the Byzantine state was more militarised and decentralised due to Arab pressure:
o Rise of themes (military districts).
o Greater role for generals and provincial elites.
o Administrative simplicity replacing late Roman complexity.
collapse and reinvention west gov
post 476
carolingians
by 900
post 476 gov west
: No unified Western Roman state. Germanic kingdoms (Franks, Visigoths, Lombards) took power.
Roman law often retained for Roman subjects (e.g., Lex Romana Visigothorum, 506).
Kings ruled through personal charisma, control of land, and martial legitimacy.
Royal courts mobile, reliant on gift-giving, warbands, and Christian identity.
carolingian change gov
750–888): Rebuilt imperial structures around Christian kingship:
Fusion of Roman, Christian, and Germanic traditions (e.g., Charlemagne = New Constantine + new David).
Administrative revival: missi dominici, capitularies, Carolingian Renaissance.
Ideological innovation: coronation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III (800) = divine sanction.
by 900 gov reinvention
, the Carolingian empire was fragmenting. Governance became localized:
Counts, bishops, abbots wielded regional power.
Feudal bonds of loyalty rising, though not fully formed yet.
islamic caliphate gov change
early caliphate
umayyad
abbasid
by 900
early caliphate- change gov
Governance based on tribal leadership, Qur’anic law, and prophetic authority.
o Caliph = successor of Muhammad (khalīfa), combining religious and political leadership.
o Rashidun (632–661): modest bureaucracy, taxation on non-Muslims (jizya), diwan registers.
ummayad- gov change
661–750):
o Built on Byzantine and Persian models: taxation, coinage, Arabic as official language (reform under Abd al-Malik, 690s).
o Caliph as monarch, often hereditary, court-centered in Damascus.
abbasid gov change
(750–c. 900): Greater administrative sophistication:
o Caliph as shadow of God on earth—court ceremonial, Persian influence.
o Bureaucratic expansion: viziers, tax officials, chancelleries.
o Shift of power to Baghdad: cosmopolitan imperial governance, integration of Greek and Persian knowledge.
by 900 gov change islamic
Abbasid political power in decline; local rulers (emirs, governors) gained autonomy.
o Rise of semi-independent dynasties (e.g., Tulunids in Egypt, Samanids in Persia).
japan gov change
pre 6thc
Asuka and nara
heian period
by 900
japan gov pre 6thc
: Local clan-based governance (uji system).
asuka and nara japan gov
- Adoption of Chinese-style bureaucracy in the Asuka and Nara periods (c. 538–794).
o Prince Shōtoku’s Constitution (604): Buddhist-Confucian ideals of rule.
o Taihō Code (701): Centralised administration, census, land tax.
heian japan gov chnage
(from 794): Rule became increasingly ceremonial.
o Real power shifted to aristocratic families (Fujiwara).
o Court culture became aestheticised; bureaucracy still modelled on Tang China but more symbolic.
by 900 japan gov chnage
Japanese governance no longer expansionist or bureaucratically efficient—more about courtly prestigeand ritual.
does it make sense to speak of a med world after 600 plan
broad change
arab conquest
cont med connectibity- trade and econ exchange, cultural and intellectual exchange, religious overlap
competing civilisation visions of the med
regionalisation
hist
post 600 med world hist
pirenne
wickham and brown
horden and purcell
pirenne med world
: Arab conquests ended the Mediterranean world; birth of Europe in isolation.
wickham and brown med world
Stress continuities in economy and elite culture; post-Roman not post-Mediterranean.
horden and purcell hist med world
The Corrupting Sea): Mediterranean defined not by unity but by connectivity, ecological micro-regions, and networks.
broad med world- pre 600
The Mediterranean = a unified space under Roman control (“Mare Nostrum”).
o Shared political institutions, Roman law, Latin and Greek literacy, coinage, trade networks, and Christianity
by 600 med world
o West fragmented into post-Roman kingdoms.
o Eastern Roman Empire = Byzantine state; still Mediterranean-facing (e.g. Egypt, Syria, North Africa).
o Internal religious tensions (Monophysitism, Nestorianism).
*
trad view med world
Traditional view: Arab conquests (from 630s) shatter unity, mark end of Mediterranean as a coherent world.
impact arab conquests on med world
- Rapid conquests: Syria (637), Egypt (642), North Africa (c. 670–710), Iberia (711–720).
- Severed key Byzantine provinces and Roman trading centres from imperial control.
- Arab naval power emerged (e.g. Battle of the Masts, 655).
- Military and political fragmentation across Mediterranean basin:
o
military and politcial fragmentation across med basin
Byzantines = Eastern Mediterranean
o Latin West = Frankish, Visigothic, Lombard kingdoms
o Umayyads = Southern coast, from Syria to Iberia
continuity med- trade and eocn exchange
- Archaeological evidence of ceramic and amphora circulation (e.g. Late Roman C ware, North African Red Slip).
- Egyptian papyri and Geniza documents show continuity of inter-Mediterranean commerce well into the Abbasid period.
- Muslim-Byzantine-Carolingian trade (e.g. emporia in Italy; Venice emerges).
- North African grain, oil, and slaves still moved across the sea.
continutity cultural and intellectual exchnage med
- Translation movement in Abbasid Baghdad (750–900): Greek texts via Syriac.
- Contact between Muslim and Christian scholars in Spain and Sicily.
- Intellectual inheritance of the classical world mediated by Arab scholars (e.g. Galen, Aristotle).
religoius overlap continuity med
- Christian populations remained significant under Muslim rule (dhimmi status).
- Pilgrimage routes to Jerusalem and monastic networks (e.g. Sinai, Mount Athos).
- Missionary activity: e.g. Pope Gregory the Great sending Augustine to Britain (597) still Mediterranean-facing in intent.
competing civilisational visions of emd
byzantine
islamic
latin christian
Mediterranean became a contested space of multiple imperialisms, rather than a single Roman lake.
byzantine med
: Orthodox Christianity, imperial court, Greek literacy, retraction to Aegean and Anatolian focus post-7th c.
islamic med
o Umayyads then Abbasids project Islamic universalism—Arabic administration, sharīʿa, mosque-building.
o Naval power (e.g. Arab fleets in Sicily, Corsica, Crete).
latin christian med
o Carolingians saw themselves as inheritors of Rome (Charlemagne crowned in 800).
o Renewed interest in Italy and the papacy (Donation of Constantine, Holy Roman Empire).
regioanlisation of med
- Fragmentation gave rise to regional systems:
o Sicily: Greek, Arab, and Latin influences—microcosm of Mediterranean hybridity.
o Iberia: al-Andalus = major Islamic polity; frontier with Christian kingdoms.
o Southern Italy: Byzantines, Lombards, and Muslims vied for control. - Mediterranean world after 600 better seen as a multipolar zone rather than a singular unity.
conc med 600
It does make sense to speak of the Mediterranean world after 600, but only if we reject older ideas of it as a unitary Roman-Christian domain. The post-600 Mediterranean was a contested, pluralistic space of enduring economic, cultural, and religious interaction—not unified, but deeply interconnected.
origins of 370-900 periodisation
- Begins with Gothic crossing of the Danube (376) and ends with Carolingian fragmentation and consolidation of Islamic and Byzantine frontiers (c. 900).
- Traditional for Western historians due to:
o Collapse of Western Roman Empire (476)
o Rise of Germanic kingdoms
o Fusion of Roman, Christian, and ‘barbarian’ elements - Wickham and others: emphasise post-imperial transition.
- BUT: this frame is built around Western developments
should we have 370-900 periodisation
byzantine
islamic world
east asia
central asia
global perspectives- hist
conc- 370-900 periodisation
- The 370–900 periodisation does not universally apply, especially where imperial rupture does not occur (e.g. Tang China).
- However, it can still serve as a comparative window to explore how different regions responded to crisis, reform, and transformation.
- In regions like Byzantium and the Islamic world, a shifted periodisation (600–900) makes more sense.
global perspectives- 370-900 periodisation
Cook, Wickham, Conrad propose a more global approach:
o Focus on religious universalism (Islam, Buddhism, Christianity)
o New polities emerging from imperial breakdown
o Agricultural intensification, ruralisation, social stratification
byzantine - 370 works
- 370s–610s: long phase of continuity — state, law, urban life remain
recognisably “late Roman” - Major rupture c. 610–750:
- 8th–9th c.: Iconoclasm (726–843) and cultural transformation
900- byzantium smaller, more greek moe chirstian
so shifted later start 600
.
byzantine major rupture
610–750:
o Reign of Heraclius (610–641) → wars with Persia, then Arab conquests.
o Loss of Levant, Egypt, North Africa by 700.
o Collapse of urban and monetised economy, shift to themata system.
islamic world 370-900 work?
not a useful fit:
* Before 622: no Islamic polity exists.
* 622–750: massive rupture and expansion after Muhammad’s Hijra.
o Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) builds new imperial order.
* Abbasid Caliphate (750–900): shift to Persianised administration, Baghdad as centre.
better post 620s
east Asia - periodisation
china- 589-907
apan - 600-800
china- peirodsation
- 370–589: China is fragmented (Six Dynasties period).
- 589: Sui reunification, then Tang rule from 618–907 → golden age.
- Tang expansion into Central Asia, new bureaucracy, Confucian revival.
Japan periodisation
- 370–600s: Yamato court consolidates power.
- Taika Reforms (645) and Ritsuryō state → adoption of Chinese bureaucratic models.
- Nara (710–794) and Heian (794–1185) periods: flowering of court culture.
Central Asia - periodisation
Persia
central asia
Persia periodiaton
- 370–651: Sasanian Empire → reaches peak under Khosrow I and II.
- 602–628: Devastating war with Byzantium.
- 651: Arab conquest of Persia → collapse of Sasanian dynasty.
🡒 For Iran, best period is c. 500–800: end of Zoroastrian imperial state → integration into Islamic world.
central asisa periodisation
- Shifting steppe empires (Hephthalites, Turks, Tibetans).
- Contact with China, Byzantium, and Caliphate.
- 370–900 frame less helpful, though 700–900 sees Turkic-Islamic interface intensify.
religion - change over peiord plan
christianity/religion
lang a
art
education
education change over time start 370
Paideia and rhetorical education tied to urban elites.
Roman aristocracy patrons of literature and libraries (e.g., Symmachus).
Education tied to empire-building and civic identity.
education change by 900
New patrons: monks, caliphs, bishops, emirs.
* ʿAbbāsid patronage of philosophy and science: al-Khwārizmī, al-Kindī.
*
Christian monasteries as cultural centres (e.g., Fulda, Monte Cassino).
Islamic madrasas and libraries (e.g., Bayt al-Ḥikma in Baghdad).
Cultural memory shaped by religious frameworks—Bible, Qur’an, Lives of the Saints, Hadith.
example of patron
monks, caliphs, bishops, emirs.
* ʿAbbāsid patronage of philosophy and science: al-Khwārizmī, al-Kindī.
art and symbolism- 370
- Roman visual language: realistic sculpture, classical motifs, imperial iconography.
- Christian art still drawing on pagan iconography (e.g., Christ as Sol Invictus).
- Urban monumentalism: forums, baths, triumphal arches.
900- change art
- Christian and Islamic art more symbolic, stylised, and abstract.
- Use of religious texts in visual culture (e.g., Qur’anic calligraphy, Gospel illumination).
- Byzantine iconography developed (e.g., Christ Pantocrator).
- Early Romanesque styles in Western Europe.
- Loss of monumental urban sculpture in many parts of the Latin West.
o Domeo fthe rock 691 as a new islamic sacred visual idiom
- Loss of monumental urban sculpture in many parts of the Latin West.
- Japan
Japan change art over time
Heian period 794-12thc saw rise of unique japanese cultural forms
o Decline of Chinese influence of 9thc after tang contacts weakned
o Fujiwara regents cultivated elegant court life poetry seasonal rituals clothing arch
overall change religion and culture 370
still roman med world, largely christianising remnants clasicla pagan trad
overall change by 900 culture
fragmented latin west, strong islamic civilisation, resilient byzantine world, flourisng Chinese tang culture
Cultural foundatons from antiquity remained dramatically transformed by new religious mobements, political realignemest and shifts in cultural patronage
christianity change over time
o Chritsinaity predominated in much of Europe- expanded over the course of time
Missionary/saints and relics developed, pilgrimage culktrue embedded w sites in Jerusalem Egypt Santiago site, saints recognised towards end of period
St martin relics
Conversions clovis franks, vlad of kiev Balkans, anglo saxon kingdoms Augustine cantegbury 597
Monasteries cultural centeres by 900
religion/culture 3700
- paganism persisted in some areas, emperors still pontifex maximus
- Education and cultural values grounded in classical trad0 cicero virgil and plato
- Japan spiritual/pagan- ancestor worship and of nature
religion by 900
- Chirtsianity dominant in Europe and Byzantium
- Cultural life is sacralised religioun deeply inbedded in identity art education and law
- Jusaism Christianity islam now scriptural civilsiations with shared Abrahamic heritage but diverging cultural forms
- Japan
Japan - change religino
6-8thc buddhism imported korea and china
o Prince Shotoku promoted buddhism as ideological tool for central authority
o Buddhist temples built across Japan eg horyi-ji 607
language 370
- Latin and Greek dominant in roman elite education
- Literacy largely elite, texts mainly classical
- Bilingual imperial elites- Jerome, Ammianus Marcellinus trained in rhetoric and grammar
- Japan- oral and ritualistic, clan authority and kami worshpil
ang 900
- Rise of vernacular cultrues- old English, old high german, arabic, Armenian goergian Syriac
o Beowolf manuscript 900 v seutonius or taxitus in roman west - Arabic becomes major literary lang- court poetry to theology
o Arabic translation movement under abbasids eg hunayn ibn Ishaq, galen - Emergence of latin christina textual culture in monasteries – carolingina miniscule, scriptoria
o Latin education at charlemagen court Alcuin of York - Byzantine education cont Greek classical trad, often christiaised psellos
- Japan0
Japan lang
arrival of writing used Chinese characters kanji
o Literacy linekd to budhist monks and court officials
o Developmemt of kana syllabaries- eg kojiki 712, nhon shoki 720
rise vernacular 900
old English, old high german, arabic, Armenian goergian Syriac
o Beowolf manuscript 900 v seutonius or taxitus in roman west
was this an age of migrations
yes
barbarians
Middle East/Arab
vikings
barbarins- migration age
o 378- battle of adrionople as peoples goths, fled from huns, 382 allowe dto settle in Scythia Moesia and possibly Macedonia
o again in 405-8, 406 saw x ,
vandalas aalns and Suebi corssed rhine into gaul, likely pushed by huns 406
alaric and visgths invaded Italy in 408
o Vandals to carthage- govern
o Visigoothic kingdom in gauk and spain 418 onwards
o Burgundians eastern gaukl, franks under clovis late 5thc
Middle East migration age
o Mecca to medinah with Muhammed following islamic trad
o Spreading further with islamic conquests seen in Syria Palestine armedina north Africa, Persia (led to downfall of sasanin empire key battles like battle of nahavand in 642 ad, Armenia 639, parts of goergia, 711 iberian peninsula
o Arabic lang and monotyeism
where Arab spread to
in Syria Palestine armedina north Africa, Persia (led to downfall of sasanin empire key battles like battle of nahavand in 642 ad, Armenia 639, parts of goergia, 711 iberian peninsula
405-10 locations barbarinas
vandalas aalns and Suebi corssed rhine into gaul, likely pushed by huns 406
alaric and visgths invaded Italy in 408
where vikings settled
- Danelaw vikkings settled- ne eng, after king Alfred of Wessex made a peace agreement with them in the 9th century
- Scotland vikings also settled in the Orkney and shetladn islands , Ireland inc Dublin
- Iceland colonies between 879-920- base
- Vikings exploring along olga rivers
- Whilst newfoundland later 1000- canda -first European settlement in north America
vikings migration age
o Birtain, Ireland, Canada Iceland- against Saxons and tribes
Wanted wealth and glory, help win over wives in male dominated world
Plundering and tribute taking drove this
yet did settle tyoo
in what senses can we speak of a global Middle Ages
religion
emprie
trade/pillaging
religion- global Middle Ages
Christianity and islam , budhism
empire expand further - global Middle Ages
vikings to Canada Iceland Britain Ireland, arab esp Carolingian
trade/pillaging- global Middle Ages
silk road, indicated artifacts, somem specialisation with eastern Europe furs, trumpington cross 7thc one of earliest chritsian burials in briytain, which had golf and inlaid garnets thought from asi or india, translations of relics
role of aristocracy and peasantry - conc
- Aristocrats were critical to imperial function—but when empowered too far, they destabilised regimes.
- Empires enriched aristocrats through conquest, patronage, and offices.
- Peasants, in contrast, generally saw increased extraction, dependence, or servitude—despite occasional protections in law or ideology.
- Long-term success depended on managing elite ambition and avoiding overburdening the rural base.
aristocrats and autocratic regimes-:
: All regimes between 370–900 needed local elites to exercise rule across broad territories.
1. Carolingian Empire (8th–9th c.)
destablisitaion
byzantine empire
abbasid caliphate
carolingians- aristocrats needed autocracies
- Counts appointed to govern counties, collect taxes, raise armies, and enforce royal justice.
- Missi dominici (royal envoys) tried to keep them in check, but only partially successful.
- Capitularies (e.g. Capitulare de Villis, c. 800): regulate aristocratic estate management, show awareness of abuses.
- Charlemagne gave beneficia (land grants) to loyal nobles → rise of comital dynasties.
Carolingian destbalistion
: After 814, Carolingian succession disputes were amplified by aristocratic partisanship.
* E.g. the rebellion of Lothar (Louis the Pious’s eldest son) against brothers (830s).
* Aristocrats backed different heirs to preserve regional influence.
byzantine emprie- aristocrats needed autocracy
- Large aristocratic estates emerged, especially in Asia Minor.
- Themes (military-administrative districts): soldiers granted land → emergence of military landholding class.
- By 8th c., dynatoi (powerful) began amassing lands, threatening imperial control.
destabilising power of aristocracy byzantines
- Revolt of Bardanes Tourkos (803), a theme commander with elite support, challenged Nikephoros I.
- The Iconoclast controversy (726–843) saw aristocrats split between iconophile and iconoclast camps—undermining unity.
abbasid caliphate aristocracy needed
- Initially centralised, but increasingly dependent on provincial governors, military commanders, and client elites.
- Tahirid dynasty in Khurasan: technically governors, but de facto autonomous from 821.
- Rise of Turkic slave-soldier aristocracy (e.g. al-Mu’tasim’s reign, 833–842) → caliphs alienated traditional elites.
destabilisation abbasid
- The Fourth Fitna (809–813): war between al-Amin and al-Ma’mun, with competing elite factions.
- Anarchy at Samarra (861–870s): Turkish military aristocrats assassinated caliphs, turning Baghdad into a puppet court.
powerful empires good for aristocrats?
yes
Carolingian
Byzantine
abbasid
powerful empires Carolingian aristocrats
- Received lands (beneficia) in newly conquered areas (e.g. Saxony).
- Used royal favour to build regional dynasties.
- Held important ecclesiastical offices: bishops and abbots often from aristocracy.
- Charlemagne’s court at Aachen a hub of aristocratic culture and advancement.
byzantine aristocrats benefit from empire
- Accumulated estates during 7th–9th c. as state control weakened in provinces.
- Marriage alliances (e.g. Basil I marrying into aristocracy) fused imperial and elite power.
- Aristocrats often rewarded with titles like strategos (theme commander), patrikios, or kouropalates.
abbasid aristocrat benefit from empire
- Quraysh tribal aristocracy dominant under early caliphs.
- Provincial governors (e.g. Tahirids, Samanids) became hereditary dynasts.
- Military aristocracy (e.g. Turks, Daylamites) gained control over army and policy
were empires bad for peasants
often yes
Carolingian byzantine abbasid
carolingian peasants
- Peasants often lost independent status due to commendation (placing themselves under protection of lords).
- Development of manorialism → corvée labour, fees, and judicial subordination.
- Capitulary of Herstal (779): attempts to regulate peasant obligations—but underlined dependence.
- Slavery and semi-free labour persisted, particularly on royal and monastic estates.
byzantine empire peasant
- Stratiotika ktemata (soldier lands) initially protected peasants.
- By 9th century: dynatoi seized peasant land, especially in Asia Minor.
- Peasant uprisings rare but visible resentment in hagiographies (e.g. Life of St. Basil the Younger).
abased peasants
- Heavy taxation under land-tax (kharaj) and poll tax (jizya) → burdened rural populations.
- Caliphs often farmed out tax collection to elites → abuses and over-extraction.
- Some protection under Islamic law (shari‘a), but enforcement inconsistent.
- 9th-century revolts (e.g. Zanj Rebellion, 869–883): mass uprising of enslaved agricultural workers in southern Iraq.
on what did successful rule depend
ideology- divine sanction
palaces and built power
ritual
law and moral authroity
military victory
successful rule- conc
not built on one pillar but on a synthesis of military power, sacred ideology, visible majesty, public ritual, and moral-law enforcement. The rulers who could command armies andsymbols—like Charlemagne, Harun al-Rashid, and Justinian—were those whose authority endured and shaped the post-Roman world.
ideology- successful rule
Christina kingship
justianin
islamic
Christian ideological rule
in the West (e.g. Clovis, Charlemagne) framed rulers as God’s anointed.
o Clovis (r. c. 481–511) used conversion and victory to gain legitimacy from Gallo-Roman clergy.
o Charlemagne (crowned 800) used imperial ideology, aligning himself with Constantine and the legacy of Rome.
justianin idealised rule
- byzantine- written of as pious and undertaibg a chirtsian mission
Purify chritsianyity- remove heretic hellenes and pagans, homosexuals
542 plague following – perhaps god divine punishment inpure regie - Justinian tasked John of Ephesus with converting pagans in Anatolia, whilst Pagan book burnings were also seen across the empire
Built and restored hagia Sophia 537 558
Viewed as the ‘greatest gift’ on makind, ‘heart which rejoiced in chirst’
Byzantine emperors: promoted image of emperor as God’s representative on Earth (Basileus kai Autokrator).
Islamic caliphate idealistic leadership
o Rashidun caliphs (632–661): rule justified through closeness to Muhammad and fidelity to Qur’an.
o Umayyads & Abbasids: claimed authority via bloodline, but also military conquest and defence of the ummah.
o Muhammed both a leader and a holy man- founder of medinah – try to embody this
o Islam relatively new so fighting against paganism and polytheism
palaces leadership
political statements—centres of patronage, ceremony, and memory.
o Aachen (Charlemagne)
abbasid
constantinole
nodes of power legit and court culture
Charlemagne built power
o Aachen (Charlemagne): imperial capital with basilica evoking Roman models and Christian glory.
abbasid built power
o Baghdad (Abbasids): planned “round city” symbolising cosmic and caliphal order (founded 762).
constanippel built power
Great Palace and Hagia Sophia central to imperial visibility and sacred kingship.
ritual leadership sucess
- Coronations, festivals, assemblies = rituals that displayed hierarchy and divine favour.
o Charlemagne’s
byzantine
isalimc Friday sermon
ritual created continuity and bound together diverse elites and subjects
Charlemagne ritual
o Charlemagne’s imperial coronation in 800 staged in St. Peter’s, with pope as spiritual legitimiser.
byzantine ritual
o Byzantine adventus rituals and court ceremonies reinforced emperor’s sacred status (e.g. Book of Ceremonies).
islamic Friday sermon ritual
) proclaimed the ruler’s name—absence indicated rebellion or loss of legitimacy.
law and moral authority successful leadershp
law demonstrated capacity to govern fairly and preserve order
often preserved old cisyome but also used by rulers to assert new norms and regulate social reltaions
byzantine - law
Corpus Juris Civilis (Justinian, 6th c.): Roman law codified as ideological and administrative tool.
islamic law
o Islamic shariʿa increasingly formalised in Abbasid period—judges (qadis) enforced public morality.
frankish law codes
e.g. Lex Salica, Lex Ribuaria): demonstrated authority, although unevenly enforced.
military victory successful leadership
- essential for establishing power and. redistributing land wealth
- But: military power had to be stabilised by ideology and ritual to prevent fracturing (e.g. post-Charlemagne fragmentation).
clovis
ummyayd
charlemagne
byzantine
clovis conquetss
(Alamanni, Visigoths) key to uniting Franks
ummayad victory
o Umayyads (661–750): vast conquests from Spain to Central Asia legitimised caliphal authority.
Charlemagne victory
Saxon Wars: military victory + forced conversions = ideological dominance.
byzantine victory
held territory through both defence (walls, diplomacy) and army (Themes system).
