Course Schedule (NB: Changes may occur)
Text 1 = Clifford Backman The Worlds of Medieval Europe
Text 2 = Timothy Gregory, A History of Byzantium
Text 3 = Judith Herrin, Byzantium.
Week 1
M Introduction
W “Introduction” in Text 1 and 2.
Week 2
M “The City of Constantine”, “The East Roman Empire”, “Greek Orthodoxy”, “Roman Law”, “The Byzantine Economy” (Text 3)
W Cont.
Week 3
M Technological Changes in XI c. W. Europe (Text 1, ch. 8)
A New Europe Emerges: North and South (Text 1, ch. 9)
W Cont.
Week 4
M The Beginnings of the Macedonian Dynasty in Byzantium
(Text 2, ch. 10) and
W “Mount Athos” (Text 3).
The Apogee of Byzantine Power (Text 2, ch. 11)
“Venice and the Fork” and “Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer) (Text 3).
Week 5
M The Dynasty of Komnenoi in Byzantium (Text 2, ch. 12)
W The Reform of the Latin Church (Text 1, ch. 10)
The Renaissance of the 12th Century (Text 1, ch. 11)
Week 6
M Cont. and “A Cosmopolitan Society” (Text 3)
W The Papal Monarchy (Text 1, ch. 12)
First Take-Home Exam is Due
Week 7
M Review for the Mid-Term Exam
27 W Mid-Term Exam
Week 8
M Politics in the 13th century in W. Europe (Text 1, ch. 13)
W Art and Intellect in the 13th Century Europe (Text 1, ch. 14)
Week 9
M The Aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in Byzantium (Text 2, ch. 13) and “The Fulcrum of the Crusades” (Text 3)
W Byzantium in the 14th century: The Beginning of Decline (Text 2, ch. 14).
Second Take-Home Exam is Due
Week 10
M Daily Life at the Medieval Zenith (Text 1, ch. 15)
W Changes in Religious Life in Europe (Text 1, ch. 16)
Spring Break
Week 11
M “The Towers of Trebizond, Arta, Nicaea and Thessalonike” and “Rebels and Patrons” (Text 3)
3 W The Crises of the 14th Century (Text 1, ch. 17)
Week 12
M Signs of a New Ear (Text 1, ch. 18)
W The End of the Byzantine Empire (Text 2, ch. 15)
“Better the Turkish Turban than the Papal Tiara” and “The Siege of 1453 (Text 3)
RESEARCH PAPERS DUE
Week 13
M 'Byzantium after Byzantium' (Text 2, ch. 16)
“Conclusions: The Greatness and Legacy of Byzantium” (Text 3)
W Readings from Primary Sources
Week 14
M Conclusions on the End of the Middle Ages in Europe (Text 1, ch. 19 and ch. 20)
W Review Session for the Final Exam
Final Exam