Christianity in the Eastern Roman Empire
I can explain why a slightly different Christian Church emerged in the East.
Christianity in the Eastern Roman Empire
I can explain why a slightly different Christian Church emerged in the East.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- After Rome's fall in 476 CE, the Byzantine Empire survived in the east, and considered themselves Romans.
- Constantinople grew strong and beautiful with impressive artworks, churches and the famous hippodrome.
- The Emperor Justinian ruled from 527 to 565 CE.
- Justinian compiled a code of law and ordered all his subjects to be Christian, and to worship in the way he told them.
- The Eastern Church believed many of the same things as in the West, but they did not recognise the pope's supremacy.
Keywords
Byzantine - the Byzantine Empire is the name given by historians to the eastern half of the Roman Empire
Hippodrome - a hippodrome is an arena for chariot or horse races
Law - laws are a set of rules that everyone agrees to follow
Worship - to worship is to show love and respect to a god
Pope - the pope is the head of the Roman Catholic Church
Common misconception
The Byzantines weren’t Roman.
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was a continuation of the Roman Empire. The term "Byzantine" is a modern designation used by historians, but the people of that time considered themselves Romans.
To help you plan your year 4 history lesson on: Christianity in the Eastern Roman Empire, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 4 history lesson on: Christianity in the Eastern Roman Empire, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
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Explore more key stage 2 history lessons from the The Romans: what is the story of Christianity's rise? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
ultimate power and authority
a belief in a god or gods
to change to a different religion
a religious leader in some Christian churches
Exit quiz
6 Questions
for Christian worship, such as Hagia Sophia
for chariot races and public events
to adorn the city and show religious scenes