The Byzantine Empire Trivia

When Rome's western half collapsed, its eastern counterpart kept going for another thousand years, ruled from a magnificent capital on the Bosphorus. This quiz covers the emperors, churches, and battles that defined the Byzantine world.

An Empire That Called Itself Roman

The Byzantine Empire was, in its own eyes, simply the continuation of the Roman Empire, governed from Constantinople rather than Rome. Over time its administration and culture became increasingly Greek in language, even as its emperors continued to claim the old Roman title.

• Emperor Justinian I sponsored a sweeping codification of Roman law and rebuilt the Hagia Sophia as a domed masterpiece.
• His wife, Empress Theodora, wielded significant political influence and helped shape imperial policy.
• Byzantine engineers developed Greek fire, a fearsome incendiary weapon used in naval battles.

Faith, Walls, and a Final Siege

Constantinople's massive Theodosian Walls kept invaders out for centuries, while the city's churches and icons made it a center of Orthodox Christian art and worship. The gradual split between the Latin-speaking western church and the Greek-speaking eastern church deepened over the centuries. Byzantium finally fell in 1453, when Ottoman forces breached the walls and ended more than a thousand years of continuous Roman rule.