Kat Cendana – Page 27 – Amazing Bible Timeline with World History

Posted on November 21, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Justinian

Justinian was known for his campaigns to reclaim the former Roman territories in Italy and North Africa, but perhaps Justinian was made more famous with his “scandalous” marriage to Theodora and the Nika revolt. Whether he was a great leader or a complete failure according to Byzantine historian Procopius, it remains undeniable that he was one of the most remarkable persons to have lived during that time. He is recorded on the Bible Timeline Chart with World History between 527-565 AD.

Justinian was born in the Illyrian city of Tauresium in 482/3 AD, and he ruled the Byzantine Empire between 527 to 565 AD. His uncles were farmers in Illyria, but they made their way to Constantinople and rose to become soldiers of the empire. One uncle, Justin I, rose to become the emperor of the Byzantine empire in 518 AD and started the Justinian Dynasty that ruled from Constantinople for a total of eighty-two years. Justin adopted his nephew during Justinian’s childhood and brought him to Constantinople to be educated. The young man eventually became a soldier of the empire. He rose through the ranks quickly and by the time he was 30 years old, Justinian was an accomplished military leader. By 521 AD, Justinian received the position of the Consul of the Roman Empire but in the same year, another event would shape his destiny and the way he ruled the Byzantine Empire: he met the future Empress Theodora and fell in love with her immediately.

Theodora

A discussion of Justinian would be incomplete without a mention of Theodora, the woman he fell in love with, married, and crowned as empress. She was as vital to his rule as Emperor as to his personal life, and she rose to such greatness along with her husband during his reign. Theodora’s background was much humbler than Justinian’s; her father was the bear-keeper of the Greens (a faction in the Hippodrome), but he died early during her childhood which left her family destitute. His death left her mother to take care of three young daughters, so she quickly remarried and begged the Greens to give her new husband some job to help support them. The Greens refused, but the Blues saw this opportunity to add another member to their faction and gave Theodora’s stepfather a job. Theodora grew up as an actress, but it meant she also needed to double as a prostitute—an occupation which damaged her reputation and hounded her for life.

Theodora met a Byzantine official during her teens and went with him to North African Pentapolis (in present-day Libya) where he was appointed as governor. She left him when the relationship fell apart. She supported herself through prostitution once again and eventually made her way to Alexandria where she converted to Christianity. The Christianity that she learned in Egypt was Monophysitism (the Greek word monos means ‘one’ while physis means ‘nature’) which asserted that Christ only has one nature and that his divinity had dissolved his human nature/substance. It was considered a heresy by the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches. It was also a direct opposition to another popular Christological belief called Nestorianism wherein Christ has a dual nature (both human and divine). However, her new religion steered her away from prostitution. She later moved to Antioch in Asia Minor to stay with her friend and fellow former actress, Macedonia.

Macedonia also left prostitution to work as a spy for Antioch’s state-sanctioned imperial police and she personally wrote letters to Justinian as an informer. Sometime around 521 AD, Justinian visited Macedonia who then introduced the consul to her young friend. The two fell in love, and Theodora accompanied Justinian to Constantinople in 522 AD. It was clear that she did not practice prostitution anymore. The consul promised to marry Theodora, but Emperor Justin I and his wife Euphemia (Justinian’s uncle and aunt) stood in their way because of Theodora’s former profession and monophysitism. The main reason for his aunt and uncle’s opposition to their marriage was Emperor Constantine‘s decree two hundred before that forbade government officials from marrying actresses. This was revoked by Emperor Justin I in 524 AD when his wife Euphemia died. The couple married immediately and by 527 AD, Justinian replaced his uncle as emperor of Byzantium. Theodora was crowned empress in the same year—a far cry from the days when she was destitute and needed to sell her body to survive.

Justinian as Emperor (527-565 AD) and the Nika Revolt

One of Justinian’s first act as an emperor was to put together the confusing mass of laws issued by past emperors and put them together into a single yet understandable code. He assembled a committee, had them rewrite the contradictory laws laid out centuries ago. The result was the Justinian Code that he issued in 529 AD. He also signed a peace treaty with the Persian emperor which was called Eternal Peace. This peace would not last as war flared up between the two empires again eight years later. In addition, Justinian was a man of great ambition and for much of his reign, he waged wars in Italy, Spain, and North Africa to conquer what were once parts of the greater Roman Empire. He needed money to fund for these conquests, so he raised taxes imposed upon the people which earned their anger over the years.

One event, however, marked his early reign, and this was the Nika revolt. Two factions—the Blues and the Greens—competed in the dominance of the entertainment in the Hippodrome. The citizens of Constantinople were divided in their support for these factions (Justinian himself supported the Blues, as was Empress Theodora who, in her childhood, resented the treatment her family received from the Greens after her father’s death). The rivalry went beyond the Hippodrome as it was rumored that the wealthier people supported the blues while, the less affluent supported the Greens. Their rivalry over the years turned bitter and many times so bloody that by 532 AD, the city was ripe for a violent revolt.

Two men—one from the Blues and the other from the Greens—were supposed to be hanged after a relatively minor riot in Constantinople but the torture of the men and a couple of botched executions had angered the crowd. The crowd rioted and set fire to many buildings in Constantinople, including the Church of the Holy Wisdom, government buildings, palaces, and marketplace. They also killed many people on the streets while shouting, “Nika!” and forced Justinian, Theodora, as well as their courtiers to hide in the palace in hopes that the riot would just fade away. It did not burn itself out, so Justinian decided to flee into a nearby city if not for his wife, Theodora, who convinced him to stay and face the people. For Theodora, it was better to die as an empress than go back to her former life.

Justinian realized his wife was right and immediately ordered the general Belisarius and his Illyrian troops to contain the rioters in the Hippodrome. They devised a plan to kill all the rioters inside the Hippodrome and succeeded in slaughtering 30,000 people in one night. The bloody end of the Nika revolt would sear the psyche of the people of Constantinople for many years, and no one challenged Justinian for the remainder of his reign.

The Aftermath: Reconquest of Italy, Gaul, North Africa, and Hispania

Justinian implemented a large-scale recovery program for Constantinople which included the reconstruction of new churches and government buildings. He also embarked on a campaign to reclaim the territories now occupied by the Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, and Franks. He sent his trusted general Belisarius to North Africa to counter the Vandals who had occupied Carthage years before. After the death of the great Vandal leader Geiseric, the tribe had fallen to disunity and had neglected the defense of Carthage. Belisarius took Carthage easily when the new Vandal leader fled from the city and the inhabitants themselves opened the city gates to the Byzantine forces in 533 AD.

In 535 AD, Justinian sent Belisarius to wrest Italy from the Ostrogothic monarchy whose rule was in itself on the verge of collapse. He reclaimed Sicily easily in the same year, but it would take another four years for the Byzantines to get rid of the Ostrogoth King Witigis and capture the Italian capital Ravenna. With Belisarius’ victory, Justinian was worried that his general would usurp the throne of Italy, so he recalled the brilliant man from the peninsula and back into Constantinople. Belisarius complied and went back to Constantinople with the captive Ostrogoth king while many of his men remained in Italy to guard the northern border from invading tribes.

The Justinian Plague

Meanwhile, the Eternal Peace Justinian and the Persian king Khosrau negotiation fell apart in 541 after the Byzantine king failed to pay the annual tribute he promised eight years ago. Justinian sent Belisarius once again to the Near East to counter Khosrau, but something more malevolent arrived on the shores of the city that would wipe out a great portion of its population. A mysterious sickness arrived via a ship from Egypt that carried Constantinople’s grain. Many people fell sick days after the ship docked. It was the start of the bubonic plague that raged in the city for three months and killed as much as much as ten thousand a day, according to Procopius of Caesarea.

Even Justinian himself was not spared from the plague, and buboes grew from his body when he fell sick. He recovered later, but as much as 200,000 people in Constantinople alone ended up dead by the time the plague had burned itself out in 543 AD. It also reached the Persian capital of Ctesiphon in Mesopotamia and spread toward the Frankish territory where it also ran its course on the people who lived there. The plague temporarily sidelined Khosrau to Ctesiphon. Persia then came back to Asia Minor and besieged the city of Edessa. The citizens of Edessa effectively defended the city when they worked together and poured oil onto the invading Persian army that dared scale the city walls. The Persians retreated after a negotiation and Justinian after his health returned, was free to recover the Western Roman territories.

Return to the Western Campaigns and Death

Justinian sent more troops to Italy to reinforce the ones left behind by general Belisarius. But this time, they were led by a eunuch-general named Narses. Italy fell to the hands of the Ostrogoths once again. Justinian did not have enough men to counter the threat, so he hired Lombard and Gepid warriors to help general Narses. The barbarian mercenaries were promised land in Pannonia to settle in in exchange for their skills as warriors and with this reward in mind, they successfully drove out the Ostrogoths from Italy. After the battle for domination in the peninsula, Justinian established a governor in Ravenna to rule on his behalf and then wrested Hispania from the Visigoths in 552 AD.

Belisarius and Justinian died in 565 AD after their brief spat because of the emperor’s insecurity. Justinian had his friend imprisoned for some time because he thought the retired general wanted to usurp his throne, but “pardoned” Belisarius before their death. Theodora had died earlier in 548 AD. The couple had no children so his nephew Justin replaced Justinian as emperor.

References:
Picture By Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant – Art Renewal Center Museum, image 7554., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1848404
Evans, J. A. S. The Emperor Justinian and the Byzantine Empire. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2005.
“Monophysitism.” Theopedia. Accessed August 4, 2016. http://www.theopedia.com/monophysitism.
North, Joshua. “The Death Toll of Justinian’s Plague and Its Effects on the Byzantine Empire.” The Death Toll of Justinian’s Plague and Its Effects on the Byzantine Empire. Accessed August 02, 2016. http://archive.armstrong.edu/Initiatives/history_journal/history_journal_the_death_toll_of_justinians_plague_and_its_effects_on.
Procopius, and Richard Atwater. Secret History. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1961.
“The Nika Riot.” The Nika Riot. Accessed August 02, 2016. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/circusmaximus/nika.html.http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/circusmaximus/nika.html.
“Vol. IIp16 Chapter XV.” J. B. Bury: History of the Later Roman Empire • Vol. II Chap. XV (Part 1). Accessed August 02, 2016. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/BURLAT/15A*.html#2.

Posted on November 18, 2016October 17, 2022 by Kat Cendana — 16 Comments

Paul, The Letters of

As the author of 13 epistles, the apostle Paul was the most prolific writer in the Bible. He wrote these letters within an eighteen-year period while he was on his missionary journeys. The first nine epistles were addressed to various churches in Greece and in Asia Minor. The last three were pastoral in nature and were addressed to church leaders Titus and Timothy. Paul’s personal letter to a Christian convert named Philemon contained the apostle’s request for his escaped servant to be reinstated in his master’s household.

The following epistles are listed in the order by which the letters were written (dates are only approximate):

paul_letters_of
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Galatians

Written around AD 49 or in AD 55, this was possibly one of the earliest letters of Paul to have survived into the 21st century. Paul started off with a short greeting to the churches of Galatia and wasted no time in addressing the issue of legalism. Certain teachings reached the people of Galatia. These teachings required them to follow Jewish customs even though Paul had previously taught that they had been redeemed through faith in Jesus Christ and not by following the law. Paul countered these teachings with an assertion that Christ had set them free from the yoke of the Jewish law and they need not take up the burden of following Jewish customs to be redeemed. He also encouraged them to be cautious against false teachers and to let the Holy Spirit guide their lives.

1 Thessalonians

This letter was written by Paul to the church in the Greek city of Thessalonica shortly after its foundation. He opened it with a short greeting to the members of the church and some words of appreciation for their unwavering faith and their good example. He encouraged them to continue living a life that pleased God, continue to love each other, live a quiet life, work hard, and encourage each other. The last few verses of 1 Thessalonians contained Paul’s practical encouragement to the members of the church in Thessalonica.

paul_letters — “Paul the Apostle, by Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn c. 1657”

2 Thessalonians

Paul’s second letter showed the depth of his admiration for the faith of the members of the church in Thessalonica and their love for each other. He was aware of the hardships they suffered and in the letter, he encouraged them to trust in God to deliver them from persecution. He also admonished them to test those who claimed that they knew the exact moment of the Lord’s second coming. Paul assured them that Christ would return, but no one really knew when and where it would be. He ended the letter with a request for prayers, an exhortation for them to work hard, and not to waste their time with idleness.

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians was one of Paul’s longest letters, and he used it to address a variety of subjects, which ranged from church matters to personal issues.

The personal issues included:
* Instructions to refrain from lawsuits against Christians and to reconcile disputes within the church
* Instructions to refrain from sexual sins
* Marriage matters
* Spiritual gifts
* Love as the greatest

Church matters that included:
* The conflicts between members
* Spiritual pride
* The consumption of food previously sacrificed to idols
* Instructions on orderly public worship and how to conduct the Lord’s supper
* Tongues and prophecies
* The resurrection of Christ, those who died, and the body

2 Corinthians

Just like Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, the second letter is also remarkable because of its length. In the first few chapters of this letter, Paul reminded the Corinthians that God is the source of all comfort and encouraged them to rely on Him during moments of weakness and conflicts. Two chapters (8 and 9) were dedicated to the Macedonian churches’ generosity to the Christians in Jerusalem and a personal call for the Corinthians to match their generosity. Paul wrote the last chapters to defend his authority as an apostle of Christ, cautioned the Corinthians against false prophets, and reminded them of his many trials while he served as an apostle. He later added to these with exhortations on how to live harmoniously and to “greet each other with Christian love.”

Romans

Paul’s epistle to the Romans is considered to be his longest and most organized among the letters he wrote to various churches. He was in Corinth when he wrote the letter and was making plans to sail to Rome and see the new converts in the city. In this epistle, Paul poured the full force of his intellect and his rabbinical education in his explanation of God’s relationship to man. The letter to the Romans was a back to basics kind of epistle wherein Paul explained that all have sinned and everyone deserved to be punished for violating God’s laws.

God, however, provided a way for a man to be redeemed from the yoke of the law and the punishment for the sins committed through the death of Jesus Christ. According to Paul, sin’s power was broken when Christ was crucified, and man was no longer bound with the law after his sacrifice. He also assured them that God’s salvation and mercy were available to anyone, whether the person was an Israelite or a Gentile. The last few chapters were peppered with exhortations on how to live properly, as well as a promise to visit them very soon.

Ephesians

The letter to the church in Ephesus was written during one of the lowest points in Paul’s life as it was penned during his imprisonment in Rome. However, it was unique as its intended audience was not only the members of the church in Ephesus but also to churches in other areas in Asia Minor. It was dispatched to Ephesus through his co-worker Tychicus, along with the letters to the Colossians and to Philemon.

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was divided into two parts: the first three chapters addressed doctrinal issues while the rest dealt with the practical matters. He opened the epistle with God’s plan to redeem his creation through Jesus Christ and that those who believed in Jesus were made alive in him. From the fourth chapter onward, Paul taught the believers how to live as ‘children of light’ which were practical recommendations on how people should behave toward their spouses, children, employers, and fellow Christians.

Philippians

The short epistle to the church in the Greek city of Philippi was written during Paul’s imprisonment in Rome. Despite his circumstances, the letter brimmed with joy, contentment, and encouragement. It began with Paul’s thanksgiving and prayer, and the next few verses glowed with his confidence in Christ in spite of the uncertainty of his situation and his future. The second chapter contained a commendation of Timothy and Epaphroditus. While the third chapter echoed his earlier teachings against legalism. He ended his letter to the church in Philippi with words of encouragement and an appreciation of the Philippians’ financial gifts to him when he was in need.

Colossians

The letters to the Colossians and to the Ephesians were divided into their doctrinal parts and their practical parts. Just like in the letter to the Ephesians, he opened the letter to the Colossians with thanksgiving and prayer. He then cut immediately to the heart of the matter and addressed the gradual mix of pagan teachings and philosophies with Christian beliefs. Just like in other epistles, he had to address the issue of legalism and reiterated that Christ had died to set them free. He ended the epistle with reminders on how to live properly and how to deal with other people.

Philemon

Written and dispatched at the same time as the epistles of Colossians and Ephesians, Philemon was one of Paul’s personal letters which included those he sent to Titus and Timothy. Paul met and converted a servant named Onesimus to Christianity after he escaped from his master Philemon who was a member of the church in Colosse. Paul sent Onesimus back to his master with a letter asking him to forgive his servant, take him back, and consider him as a brother in Christ.

Titus

Paul’s last letters were mostly personal but no less brilliant than their predecessors. Titus, the recipient of this letter, was one of Paul’s assistants whom he trusted to lead a church in the island of Crete. The letter contained his instructions to Titus on how to properly lead a church and reminded him to promote the right teachings. He encouraged Titus to remind the members of the church to submit to the authorities and to refrain from quarrelling with or slandering each other.

1 Timothy

Timothy was a leader in the church in Ephesus, and Paul’s letter to his young protégé was written before the apostle’s final imprisonment in Rome. Paul knew the pressures the young church leader went through, so the letter was full of instructions on church matters, such as Timothy’s responsibilities to the converts, church leaders, and worship. Paul also repeatedly cautioned Timothy against false teachers in his first letter.

2 Timothy

Paul’s second letter to Timothy contained a sense of urgency. It was obvious from the start that the apostle was suffering in prison. It was penned before his execution in Rome around 66 or 67 AD, which made this letter more poignant. He knew that his end was near, and the letter contained additional teachings to the man he treated as his own son and an urgent request for Timothy to come as quickly as he could. Although Luke was with him, it was at this time in his life that Paul felt the acute sense of being alone. However, he assured the recipient that he did not feel any grudge against his friends who had abandoned him.

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Reference:
Picture By Rembrandt – National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., Public Domain, Link
* Keathley, J. Hampton, III. “4. The Pauline Epistles.” Bible.org. Accessed November 2, 2016. https://bible.org/seriespage/4-pauline-epistles.
** Stamps, Donald C., and J. Wesley. Adams, eds. The Full Life Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Pub. House, 1992.
*** Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1996.

Posted on November 17, 2016August 22, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Patrimonium Petri

Patrimonium Petri (also known as Patrimonium Sancti Petri or Patrimony of Saint Peter) refers to the land holdings of the Holy Sea in the Italian Peninsula, the surrounding islands, and some portions of North Africa. According to the Bible Timeline Chart with World History, this was begun around 600 AD. Its legal basis was Constantine’s edict issued back in 321 AD wherein he allowed Christians to own and transfer properties—a right denied to them by previous Roman emperors during the early years of Christianity. Constantine himself gave large portions of his estate to the church which was soon followed by donations from Rome’s wealthy families. What remained of the persecutions were abolished when Christianity became Rome’s state religion in 380 AD under Emperor Theodosius I, but most of these donations stopped by 600 AD.

Most of these land holdings were located within the vicinity of Rome. They gradually spread throughout Italy into the Tuscan Region, Ancona, Osimo, Gaeta, and the areas near Ravenna. The pope also had power over the islands of Sardinia, Corsica, and Sicily which were included in the Patrimonium Petri. The pope had temporal powers over these regions and as Rome’s ruler during the sixth century, the pope was in charge of the distribution of the revenues which were usually used to fund for church repairs, improvement of church decorations, as well as for disaster relief programs. The hard task of keeping the city’s less fortunate citizens and the incoming refugees fed fell on the shoulders of the pope, and the funds used to buy food came from the Patrimonium Petri estates. The highest revenues came from the island of Sicily, but this was later confiscated by Emperor Leo III in favor of the Byzantine Empire.

The pope’s land holdings increased over the years when Italy’s noble families died out or had fled to take refuge in the Byzantine territories during the invasion of the Lombards. These estates grew until the middle of the eighth century and were sometimes sandwiched between Byzantine territories and Lombard duchies. When Italy completely disintegrated in the late eighth century, the Patrimonium Petri consisted only of the Papal States which became the future popes’ own little kingdom.

References:
Picture By Jacques-Louis David – Web Gallery of Art, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1421343
Bunson, Matthew, Margaret Bunson, and Matthew Bunson. OSV’s Encyclopedia of Catholic History. Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Pub. Division, 2004.
“States of the Church – Catholic Encyclopedia – Catholic Online.” Catholic Online. Accessed August 02, 2016. http://www.catholic.org/encyclopedia/view.php?id=11048.

Posted on November 16, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — 3 Comments

Moors (Islamic Africans) Conquer Spain

More than a hundred years after Mohammed’s death in 632 AD, Islam experienced rapid growth after the Arab conquest of the former Roman and Byzantine provinces of North Africa and Mesopotamia, as well as the crumbled Persian empire. They tried to push through the Byzantine territories in Eastern Europe, but they failed during the double invasion of Constantinople in 674 and 717 AD. Constantinople was safe (temporarily, at least) but the Arab, and Berber armies made a massive headway in the Iberian peninsula especially after the defeat of the Visigoth king Ruderic in the Battle of Guadalete in 711 AD. Almost all of the nobility who could claim the Visigothic kingship were wiped out in battle. The Muslims ruled Spain after the near-total defeat of the Visigoths. Hispania officially became the Muslim province of Al-Andalus. According to the Biblical Timeline with World History, the Moors (Islamic Africans) conquered Spain during 740 AD.

The Moors

When the Arab conquest of North Africa was completed in 702 AD, many of the Berbers (the Greek term for native North Africans) including the Mauri people also converted en masse after they saw their leaders adopt Islam as their religion. The term Moors initially referred to the Mauri people of Mauretania (in present-day northern Morocco), but the word gradually evolved in Europe to cover all Muslims of African-descent who invaded Spain in the eighth century. They were a part of Spain’s rich history and perhaps Islam’s domination of Spain would not have been possible if not for the presence of the Moors.

The Moors constituted the bulk of the Muslim army (along with the Arabs) that crossed the southern tip of Spain eight years later and helped defeat the weakened Visigoths in Iberia. The combined Berber and Arab army were led by a prominent Berber general named Tariq ibn-Ziyad who led them to victory in the Battle of Guadalete. Tariq ibn Ziyad continued to lead the Muslim army into victory in the cities of Toledo and Cordoba until he was recalled by the Caliph in Damascus in 714.

The Moors (which became a catch-all term for all Muslims in Spain by then) led by Abd ar Rahman Al-Ghafiqi would have succeeded in their push into Western Europe if Charles Martel and Odo of Aquitaine had not blocked their path in the Battle of Tours-Poitiers in 732 AD. Al-Ghafiqi died in battle, and the rest of the Muslim army limped back into Al-Andalus. By 740, the Moors had dominated much of Spain except for the northern Kingdom of Asturias which became a tiny remnant of the Visigothic rule after they were defeated by the Arab and Berber armies. The Moors’ domination of Spain was briefly punctuated by the Berber revolt that lasted between 739 to 743 AD.

References:
Picture By Salvador Martínez Cubells – [www.artflakes.com], Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18373367
Bauer, S. Wise. The History of the Medieval World: From the Conversion of Constantine to the First Crusade. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010.
Lane-Poole, Stanley, and Arthur Gilman. The Story of the Moors in Spain. Baltimore, MD: Black Classic Press, 1990.

Posted on November 15, 2016August 22, 2016 by Kat Cendana — 1 Comment

North Africa Converts to Islam and Arab slave trade begins in 700 AD

Islam’s history in Africa started long before the Arab military conquest of the continent seven years after the death of Muhammad in 632 AD. During the years of persecution, the new Muslims fled across the Red Sea to make the very first migration (hijra) to Axum (in modern Ethiopia), and they sought refuge in the court of the Christian Axumite king Ashama ibn-Abjar. In December of 639 AD, Amr ibn Al-Asi led the very first military conquest of Africa from their base in Palestine. The Arab Muslim troops started the invasion in the Nile Delta, and Islam quickly spread throughout Egypt and most of North Africa during the next 50 years. By 700 AD, Byzantine Africa (Carthage), Maghrib, and Mauretania fell to the Muslims, and most of the North Africans (except for the Egyptian Copts) had converted to Islam which is where it is recorded in the Biblical Timeline Chart with World History.

Arab Slave Trade

The Arabs had been involved in slave trade even before the rise of Islam in the peninsula and they continued this practice even after the death of Muhammad. For the eighth century Arabs, slavery was neither good nor bad—it was simply a natural part of the culture they grew up in, and various cities in the peninsula itself were station points for the slave trade. Muhammad did not abolish slavery in his lifetime, and Muslims consider servitude in a positive light when it is associated with God (servant of Allah). There was no explicit endorsement for the practice of slavery in the Quran, but neither was it forbidden in the Islamic world; passages in the Quran only laid down rules on how Muslims should treat their slaves, as well as when and how they should be freed.

Slaves were a part of life during much of Africa’s history and cities in Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Somalia were centers for slave trade as early as the reign of Thutmose III. The Arab slave trade was one of the oldest in history, and it preceded the Atlantic slave trade by at least eight hundred years. It rose to greater heights during the Muslim domination of North Africa around 700 AD. As the Arabs expanded their territories in North Africa, they acquired more captive slaves by military conquest and used the concept of jihad as justification.

Some of the captives were sold to buyers who used them as domestic servants while others were sent to work in the fields or herd their masters’ cattle. Some became soldiers, and many were prized either for their skills in wielding a weapon (bow and arrow, swords, etc.) or simply for their loyalty and obedience. Muslims were forbidden to enslave fellow Muslims, and they were only allowed to enslave non-believers and pagans. Non-Muslim slaves were allowed to convert to Islam, but they cannot return to freedom even after the conversion. The conversion of slaves to Islam was discouraged by Muslim authorities after some time as it narrowed down the pool of people that could be enslaved and it also reduced the taxes imposed to and paid by non-Muslims.

Muslims were also expressly forbidden to enslave Arabs, and the slave trade was especially prejudiced toward the black Africans (although Turks and Europeans were also captured and sold). They worked in places such as Ethiopia, Somalia, Mozambique, Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as distant Mesopotamia and Zanzibar. The large-scale slave trade in Africa flourished until its abolition in the 19th century, but small-time slave traders operated in some parts of Africa until the early years of the 20th century.

References:
Picture By Georges Révoil – http://expositions.bnf.fr/socgeo/grand/244.htm, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7632972
“Al-Qur’an Al-Kareem – القرآن الكريم.” Accessed July 27, 2016.http://quran.com/.
Gordon, Murray. Slavery in the Arab World. New York: New Amsterdam, 1989.
“History-Of-Islam-Volume-1to6.” History-Of-Islam-Volume-1to6. Accessed July 27, 2016. https://archive.org/stream/TheNewCambridgeHistoryOfIslamVolume1/The_New_Cambridge_History_of_Islam_Volume_1#page/n580/mode/1up.
Newby, Gordon Darnell. A Concise Encyclopedia of Islam. Oxford: Oneworld, 2002.

Posted on November 14, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Rome Conquers North Africa

The Republic

Rome’s shared history with North Africa goes back to the time of the Republic when it was involved in a series of wars with the city of Carthage. The Phoenician city lost out to Rome during the First Punic Wars (264-241 BC). But its dominance saw a brief resurgence in the Second Punic Wars which was led by one of the greatest military commander in history, Hannibal Barca. He led the Carthaginian army and their war elephants across the rugged terrain of the Italian Alps in 218 AD. The series of wars he started against Rome resulted only in a stalemate. More than 60 years later, the Third Punic War flared up between Rome and Carthage and resulted in the total destruction of Carthage in 149 AD. Many of the Carthaginians were sold into slavery, while a great portion of the population starved or fought to death during the siege. The Romans took over Carthage in the same year, and its merchants now had full access (as well as control) to the profitable Mediterranean trade routes. Moreover, the Roman politician and military leader Pompey added many portions of North Africa during his campaigns in the region in the time of the Republic. Rome conquered North Africa between the dates of 300 – 600 AD according to the Biblical Timeline with World History.

The Republic was on its way out during the political and military domination of Julius Caesar. His affair with the Egyptian princess Cleopatra further cemented Roman rule over Egypt and North Africa and declared himself dictator for life upon his return to Rome. Political strife hounded Julius Caesar in his homeland, and he died in 44 BC after he was assassinated in the Roman Senate.

Under the Roman Empire

By 30 BC, the Roman Empire had dominated most of North Africa, as well the major cities that dotted the Mediterranean coast. The province became Africa Proconsularis which was governed by a proconsul that represented the Roman government. Numidia became Rome’s client kingdom, while African cities such as Hadrumetum, Byzacena, Hippo Regius, and Utica become thoroughly Romanized. Mauretania was added in 41 AD and at its peak, Rome’s African territory spanned from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to Libya in the east (Egypt was a separate province).

Rome_conquers_North_Africa — “His affair with the Egyptian princess Cleopatra further cemented Roman rule over Egypt and North Africa”

The Roman era in North Africa was relatively peaceful and prosperous—a golden age which historians called Pax Romana. The Roman-style architecture and arts dotted the North African landscape while Jupiter, Saturn, Minerva, and a whole slew of Roman gods replaced the ancient Phoenician pantheon. The Romans also built magnificent temples all over the cities of the province while their lifelike sculptures of the gods were worshiped by the native peoples. Some of Rome’s greatest legacies in North Africa were the network of roads built throughout the province which allowed the troops to easily come in and out of a city, as well as enabled the merchants to transport their goods across the land. In addition, remains of Roman-style villas can still be seen in Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya—silent remnants of a long-gone golden age.

Rome also resettled many of its citizens (especially its veterans) in the fertile farmlands across the province. These resettled peoples became farmers who cultivated wheat and olive trees, as well as raised livestock. The province became Rome’s primary source of grain which made farmers and merchants very rich. Meanwhile, native North Africans also rose and became senators, military commanders, and eventually, emperors of Rome. A fine example of social mobility in Roman North Africa was Septimius Severus who was born in the city of Leptis Magna (modern Libya) and became the first Roman emperor of native North African descent. He was followed by his sons Caracalla and Geta, as well as other emperors who were born in North Africa.

Christianity spread from Palestine to Rome and finally to North Africa in the second century. Converts to the new religion were targeted for persecution, and many died in the magnificent El Djem amphitheater for not renouncing their faith. The repressions and the killings stopped when Emperor Constantine the Great adopted Christianity as his religion. Christianity later became a state religion in 380 AD under Emperor Theodosius I and the population of Christians in the province increased during the next 200 years. Saint Augustine, one of the faith’s leading theologians, was born in the African city of Thagaste and became bishop of the city of Hippo.

Decline of Roman Rule and Muslim Conquest of North Africa

During the last years of the empire, various barbarians sacked Rome and even spilled over to North Africa. Some of the most ferocious of these barbarians were the Vandals who managed to cross from Hispania to North Africa and besieged Carthage. They successfully captured the city, but the Byzantine general Belisarius took it back for Constantinople in 533 AD and henceforth was under the control of the Byzantine Empire. Its hold on North Africa would not last long as in 642 AD; Muslim Arabs captured the North African cities from the Byzantine Empire after their conquest of Egypt.

References:
Picture By Jean-Léon Gérôme – http://www.mezzo-mondo.com/arts/mm/orientalist/european/gerome/index_b.html, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1399233
Bauer, S. Wise. The History of the Medieval World: From the Conversion of Constantine to the First Crusade. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010.
Fields, Nic. Roman Conquests: North Africa. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Military, 2010.
Naylor, Phillip Chiviges. North Africa: A History from Antiquity to the Present. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2009.

Posted on November 10, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Ecumenical Council of Constantinople

The Ecumenical Council of Constantinople, also known as the Second Council of Constantinople, was held on the fifth of May to the second of June in 553 AD according to the Bible Timeline Poster with World History. This was during the reign of Emperor Justinian. The ecumenical council presided by the Patriarch of Constantinople Eutychius was the fifth of the seven assemblies held in the city since 381 AD. At least 151 bishops from Greece and North Africa attended the event, but Emperor Justinian decided it would be better if he left out the Italian bishops. Pope Vigilius was at Constantinople at that time and initially attended on the first day, but declined to attend on the second day because of his ill health.

The council was assembled to confirm the edict of anathematization (condemnation) issued by Emperor Justinian to the Three Chapters between 543 and 544 AD. The condemned Three Chapters included:

* Theodore of Mopsuestia (350-428 AD) and his writings
* some writings of Theodoret (393-458 AD) against Cyril of Alexandria
* the letters of Ibas, the bishop of Edessa (435-457 AD) to Maris, the Bishop of Hardaschir

Ecumenical_Council — “Jesus depicted as the Good Shepherd”

Theodore and Theodoret both supported Nestorianism which was considered as heresy at that time, while it was only rumored that Ibas supported this kind of belief. Nestorianism, the Christological belief that Christ only had one nature (which was a fusion of human and divine), directly opposed the Chalcedonian Christology that Justinian supported, which upheld the belief that Christ had distinct human and divine natures. The bishops who gathered in the Ecumenical Council of Constantinople agreed to confirm the emperor’s anathematization of Nestorianism after several sessions and condemned the works of the second-century theologian Origen of Alexandria as well.

Pope Vigilius initially rejected the anathematization of the Three Chapters and stood his ground for six months. He only changed his mind (or was forced to) around 554 AD. Justinian allowed him to return to Rome in the same year, but he never arrived in Rome as he died at Syracuse in 555 AD. The anathematization caused a major rift between the bishops of Constantinople and others (particularly in North Africa and Italy) who rejected the council. Vigilius’ death also forced Justinian to appoint the deacon Pelagius as pope to force the Italian bishops to accept the council’s ruling on the Three Chapters.

References:
Picture By Stained glass: Alfred Handel, d. 1946[2], photo:Toby Hudson – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10163206
Kelly, Joseph F. The Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church: A History. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2009.
“Medieval Sourcebook: Fifth Ecumenical Council: Constantinople II, 553.” Fordham University Medieval Sourcebooks. Accessed August 06, 2016. http://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/basis/const2.asp.

Posted on November 9, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Gregory II, Pope

Early Life

Just like Gregory the Great who came before him, the second Pope Gregory came from a noble and wealthy family. He was the son of Marcellus and Honesta, but apart from their names, everything else about his family was shrouded in mystery. He was cared for by the popes in his youth and appointed by Pope Sergius as a subdeacon years after. He worked as a treasurer for the church, chief administrator of the Vatican library, and then elevated as deacon after many years. Finally, he was appointed as the Pope on May 19, 715 AD which is where he is recorded on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History.

As Pope Gregory II

One of the first tasks he undertook after his proclamation as Pope was to fortify the walls of Rome against the Lombards who had penetrated deep into Italy, as well as the Saracens (Muslims) who had dominated Hispania at that time. The task, however, was stopped when the Tiber river rose and flooded the city for eight days.

There was an increase of Anglo-Saxon pilgrims during Gregory II’s pontificate after their conversion to Christianity during the time of Gregory the Great and Augustine of Canterbury. Two of the most prominent of these pilgrims were the Abbot Ceolfrid and King Ina of Wessex. Ceolfrid brought Gregory II a copy of the Bible as a gift, while King Ina visited Pope Gregory and retired in the city of Rome after his abdication. Ina built a school named Schola Saxona in the city. It was established to enable the Anglo-Saxon pilgrims to learn more about church doctrine while they stayed in the city.

Theodo, the Christian Duke of Bavaria, also visited Pope Gregory and asked him to convert his people to Christianity. Pope Gregory was all too happy to comply with this request and immediately dispatched Bishop Martinian, Dorotheus, and other church officials to Bavaria to accompany the Duke. The delegates converted the Bavarians and later on, established a local church hierarchy in Theodo’s duchy.

Meanwhile, Gregory had reiterated the importance of marriage, as well as forbade the practice of magic and witchcraft. He also tried to wean the people off from their belief in astrology, as well as lucky and unlucky days that were popular at that time. He also convinced Corbinian, the Frankish monk, to take a break from his life as a hermit and help in the conversion of Bavaria. He was later consecrated as a bishop and began his ministry in Bavaria in 724 after he was sent there by Gregory.

Gregory authorized church repairs and improvement of church decorations during his tenure as pope. He established monasteries in Italy (he even turned his own ancestral house into one) and restored the broken-down sections of the monastery at Monte Cassino between 717 and 718 AD. These parts of the monastery were destroyed by the Lombards during the early years of their invasion.

In spring of the year 721, Gregory called for a synod in Rome that dealt specifically with the subject of marriage. In this council, they agreed to forbid marriage for priests, nuns, and others who were “consecrated to God,” as well as the union between close relatives. Two years later, Gregory helped reconcile the Patriarchs of Grado and Aquileia after a spat between the two. The pope had sent the pallium to the Bishop Serenus, the Patriarch of Aquileia, who took it as a sign of higher authority and then started to meddle on the territory of Bishop Donatus, the Patriarch of Grado. Incensed, the Patriarch of Grado sent a letter to Pope Gregory and informed him about his complaint, so the pope sent letters to both men with a gentle admonition to submit to each other in humility.

The Lombards in Italy

Pope Gregory had a good diplomatic relationship with the Lombard king Liutprand, but he was still worried that Italy would fall completely into the hands of the Lombards. He supported Duke John of Naples in his campaign to regain the ancient city of Cumae and negotiated later with Liutprand for the return of the port of Classis to the Exarch of Ravenna. However, he failed to convince the Frankish mayor of the palace, Charles Martel, to help him completely get rid of the Lombards in the Italian peninsula.

Conflict with Byzantine Emperor Leo III

In Constantinople, the Emperor Leo III had issued a decree that all icons in his domain be destroyed. It was met with hostility by the citizens of Constantinople which later spread to Greece and other Byzantine-dominated cities. The fight for and against the icons was especially bitter in Greece where a short-lived revolt was immediately suppressed. Still, Leo went on with his destruction of images which would later reach Rome and Pope Gregory. He sent the Byzantine emperor a letter in which he told Leo to stay away from formulating church doctrines and focus on ruling the empire but Leo was adamant and iconoclasm continued in the east, while religious flourished in the West during the medieval period.

Pope Gregory died in early 731 AD and was replaced by Gregory III as pope in the same year.

References:
Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11893106
Mann, Horace K., and Johannes Hollnsteiner. The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages. London: K. Paul, Trench, Trübner, 1902.
“Pope St. Gregory II – Catholic Encyclopedia – Catholic Online.” Catholic Online. Accessed August 02, 2016. http://www.catholic.org/encyclopedia/view.php?id=5358.

Posted on November 8, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Gregory I the Great

Early Life

Gregory was born in Rome around 540 and 545 AD—a time when the city was only a shell of its past self after the repeated invasions of the barbarians. His prominent family members included Pope Felix IV, his father, Giordanus who served as an administrator for the church, and his pious mother, Silvia, who also came from a distinguished family. Silvia was later canonized as a saint along with her husband. Gregory is recorded on the Bible Timeline Poster with World History in 590 AD.

Although Rome had collapsed long before his birth, his family still retained their wealth over the years. Gregory was born in his parents’ villa on the Caelian Hill which, at that time, was one of the richest districts in Rome. The estate was later converted to Saint Andrew’s Monastery, and Gregory’s parents were honored with a lavish picture in the property. He was born during a chaotic era; the plague of Justinian had wiped out the population of many Mediterranean cities while Gothic rulers rose and fell in Italy. He and his mother lived on the family estate in Sicily to weather Totila’s invasion of Rome in 546 AD. They only came back when peace was restored.

Gregory received an education fit for his social class, so over the years he became adept in grammar, rhetoric, dialectic, and law. Lessons in theology, however, were given at home since both of his parents were renowned for their piety. All the lessons he learned from his childhood would come in handy for him to navigate the political scene in Constantinople, as well as in Italy during the rule of the Lombards.

Gregory as Roman Prefect

In 552 AD, the Emperor Justinian hired Lombard mercenaries as soldiers to reinforce the Byzantine army in the Battle of Taginae against the Ostrogoths. It was a decision he would come to regret as it showed how rich the land of Italy was at that time. The first wave of invasion was led by the Lombard king Alboin in 568 AD. By the following year, the tribe had dominated the city of Milan and well into the region of Liguria. Their march into Italy left a trail of destruction in their wake which made the Lombard invasion the biggest challenge Gregory faced.

Gregory served as a junior administrator in the bureau of the Prefect during the earliest years of his career as a government worker. It seemed that he excelled in his responsibilities because he was rapidly promoted as Prefect of Rome in 573 AD at the age of thirty. The role Gregory took over was still illustrious at that time, but the influence had somewhat diminished over the years. He was the city’s top administrator with responsibilities that included the supervision of local officials, food distribution, maintenance of city infrastructure, as well as the head of the military.

Gregory, however, needed to confront the results of the Lombard invasion as well as Rome’s increased isolation from the seat of Byzantine rule in Constantinople. By 574 AD, the great Byzantine general Narses and Pope John III were dead. Which meant Gregory was left alone to rule Rome. To rule alone might have been the dream of other rulers, but Gregory was different; after much inner struggle and prayers, he eventually decided to become a monk which suited his quiet disposition. Perhaps the responsibilities of the prefect weighed heavily on his shoulders, or it was possible that the position left a bitter taste in his mouth after many Byzantine ministers rose and fell through the whims of the emperor.

The Monk

Whatever the reason, Gregory left the position of the prefect after three years in the office and started to convert his family’s villa in the Caelian Hill to the Monastery of St. Andrew. He was one of the richest men in Rome at that time and the owner of some of the greatest estates in the city, as well as in distant Sicily. He endowed these estates to the church which were later converted into various monasteries and nunneries. He became a monk at St. Andrews for three years which were the happiest of his life.

Gregory in Constantinople

Those three years Gregory spent as a simple Benedictine monk would not last after he was summoned by Pope Benedict in 578 AD out of the monastery and ordained him as the “Seventh Deacon.” The Lombards besieged Rome in the same year while the plague and the death of Pope Benedict worsened the city’s situation. Pope Pelagius was appointed to replace Pope Benedict, and the new pontiff sent Gregory as a papal apocrisiarius (a representative) to Constantinople. His mission was to beg the emperor Tiberius II Constantine to send reinforcements to the beleaguered city of Rome during the Lombard invasion. However, Tiberius was also busy with the Persians in the east and could not afford to send the required troops that would counter the Lombard threat. Instead, he sent a few soldiers with the rest of the delegation to Rome while Gregory remained in Constantinople as representative of the pope.

Gregory would not see Rome for another six years, and Constantinople would have another change of hands after Tiberius was replaced by Maurice as emperor in 582 AD. Gregory, once again, made a petition to the new Emperor to send troops to the city of Rome, but Maurice would not relent. He inherited the Byzantine empire’s problem with the Persians, as well as the new threat of the Slavs and Avars who pressed in from the north. In 585 AD, Pope Pelagius II sent an urgent letter to Gregory in Constantinople and told him to appeal to the emperor again to send for soldiers to besieged Rome, but this request was also denied. These repeated appeals for troops annoyed the emperor, and it seemed the feeling was mutual as Gregory did not hold Maurice in high regard. Although the emperor repeatedly declined his requests, Gregory’s time in Constantinople was not in vain as he developed close friendships with some people and his skills in diplomacy were sharpened through his observation of Maurice’s court.

Return to Rome

Pope Pelagius summoned him back to Rome in 586 AD—he must have breathed a sigh of relief to be back in the city and upon his return, the monks of St. Andrew elected him as the abbot. Gregory spent his time managing the daily affairs of the monastery. He wrote the Magna Moralia or the Exposition of the Book of Job during this period. He also attempted a mission to Britain, but Pope Pelagius recalled him immediately before he could travel out of continental Europe. Back in Rome, Gregory worked as the Pope’s secretary and was appointed as pope when Pelagius died of the plague that raged in the city in 590 AD.

Pope Gregory I

Gregory was initially unwilling to accept his appointment. He greatly enjoyed the secluded life of a monk, and he wrote a letter to Emperor Maurice to ask him not to confirm his appointment. But this was intercepted by the Roman prefect who sent Gregory’s appointment documents to Constantinople. He was ordained as the new pope on the fifth of September in the year 590 AD. He had no time to rest as the plague that raged on inside the city and beyond its walls needed to be addressed. The refugees driven out by the Lombard invasion fled into Rome, and many of the patrician families who might have helped him cope with the crisis had left long ago for Constantinople, so Gregory needed to direct the relief to a city in crisis himself. For many Italians at that time, Gregory was the epitome of charity and godly leadership.

After his successful peace negotiation with the Lombard king Agilulf in 598 AD, Gregory now had time to focus on the people’s spirituality. He addressed the spiritual needs of the citizens of Rome and sent a mission across to convert the Anglo-Saxons who conquered Britain a few years back. The mission was a success, and the group of monks led by Augustine soon established Canterbury as the Catholic church’s center in England.

Gregory was never healthy for much of his life and suffered from various ailments over the years which included gout and indigestion. Perhaps it was the years of austerity inside the monastery that weakened his body or the stress of administering a city during a period of great crises, but he was eager to go when death approached him during the last years of his life.Gregory died in March, 604 AD. His body was buried in Saint Peter’s Basilica. He was one of the few popes who were canonized soon after his death. He would be remembered as one of the greatest leaders of the church during the disintegration of Italy.

References:
Picture By José de Ribera – Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica, Rome; User Gerald Farinas on en.wikipedia(Uploaded using CommonsHelper or PushForCommons), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1236624
Dudden, Frederick Homes. “Gregory the Great : His Place in History and Thought.” Gregory the Great : His Place in History and Thought. Accessed July 27, 2016. https://archive.org/stream/gregorygreathisp01dudduoft#page/152/mode/1up.
“Pope Gregory the First.” Saint Gregory the Great Church. 2013. Accessed July 27, 2016. http://www.saintgregoryordinariate.org/faith-formation/pope-gregory-the-first/.
“Pope St. Gregory I (“the Great”).” CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Gregory the Great. Accessed July 27, 2016. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06780a.htm.

Posted on November 7, 2016September 16, 2016 by Kat Cendana — Leave a comment

Exarch of Ravenna Ruled

Ravenna is a city located in northeastern Italy along the Adriatic coast. It was first inhabited by Italic peoples, and they were soon followed by the Etruscans, Gauls, and Romans by the 2nd century BC. The city’s location along the Adriatic coast made it an ideal harbor for ships that came in from the Mediterranean in the ancient times but by 402 AD, the emperor Honorius made Ravenna the Western Roman Empire’s capital to escape the barbarian invasion in Mediolanum (Milan). The marshes that surrounded the city made it initially difficult for various barbarian invaders to break through the city walls, although it was breached by barbarians a number of times during the Medieval Period. The Exarch of Ravenna ruled from 476 – 538 AD where it is recorded on the Biblical Timeline Chart with World History.

The Lombards in Italy

It was the Western Empire’s capital from 402 AD to 476 AD, but it finally fell to the barbarians during the reign of King Odoacer and Theodoric the Great. By 551 AD, the Lombards ended the Ostrogoth domination of Italy and continued their push toward the southern part of the country. These barbarians first started out as mercenaries hired by general Narses during the war with the Ostrogoths and they were promised land in Pannonia in exchange for their skills in the battlefield.

Exarch_of_Ravenna — “Location of Exarchate of Ravenna”

Once they had settled in Pannonia, they found that the land was already overpopulated by other barbarian tribes, and they needed to move out if they were to survive. The Lombards, led by fierce warrior-king Alboin, turned west to the rich but ravaged land of Italy. They stopped at nothing to get the land they needed. They first took the cities in the Liguria region including Milan and Pavia but failed to take Ravenna, Rome, and other fortified cities in Italy. After the death of Alboin in 572 AD, the cities in the Italian peninsula (except for Ravenna, Rome, and others still held by the Byzantine Empire) crumbled into various duchies ruled by its own Lombard duke.

Exarchate of Ravenna

Ravenna proved resilient and withstood the Lombard invasion for many years. It remained the only place where the Byzantines still held power and the city became an exarchate—a place where the Byzantine emperor Maurice ruled through his representative, the exarch. The exarch initially had full command of the troops loyal to Byzantium, but over the years, his responsibilities expanded to the administrative, judicial, and religious branches of the city. He had unlimited power over Ravenna, as well as the towns from the southern border of Venice and to the coastal city of Rimini. The Byzantine-allied dukes and Magister militum who governed other cities submitted to his authority. Except for the Lombard dukes who ruled Spoleto, Benevento, and Pavia. The threat of the Vandals also pushed the emperor to establish the Exarchate of Africa later on.

The conflict over iconoclasm that started in Constantinople spilled over to Italy in 727 AD and a bloody revolution over the icons in Italy ended with the death of Ravenna’s Exarch Paul and his followers. Eutychius replaced Paul as the exarch. He ruled the city until the Lombards completely captured Ravenna in 751 AD. The position of the exarch also ended in the same year.

References:
Picture By Castagna – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7042496
Paul the Deacon, William Dudley Foulke, and Edward Peters. History of the Lombards. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2003.
“P927 Exarchate of Ravenna.” Exarchate of Ravenna. Accessed July 23, 2016. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Emilia-Romagna/Ravenna/Ravenna/Ravenna/_Periods/medieval/Exarchate/Britannica_1911*.html.
Vasiliev, Alexander A. History of the Byzantine Empire. Vol. 1. Univ of Wisconsin Press, 1952.