Can Form 843 Periods 2011-2023

We, in the midst of the laughs, attempted to look at the 7th century last time as a turning point in the history of the period that we're dealing with: the post Roman world, the early Middle Ages. Certainly, among the major shifts was the rise of Islam and the consequent radical changes in the Mediterranean territories, particularly of course the areas conquered from the Eastern Roman Empire by Byzantium, namely Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and eventually North Africa. The 7th century therefore changed the shape of the Byzantine Empire and its orientation, as well as culture. Here, I have a kind of periodization. We've spoken about Justinian's expansion. Very shortly after his death, there begins what seems in retrospect, at least in part, to be a reaction to Imperial overreach. Imperial overreach is a phenomenon seen throughout history, described most memorably perhaps by our own Paul Kennedy – the tendency for empires, simply in order to protect themselves or fulfill their ambitions, to get too large for their own ability to hold on to their possessions. This is an economic problem, a logistical problem, a resource problem, and even a cultural problem. In general, it's hard to say what provokes the crisis. That is, with the Roman Empire, as with the Abbasids, we can say, "Oh well, it was too big." On the other hand, it was too big and did just fine for centuries. In the case of the Byzantine Empire, maybe not centuries, but 150 years, which as these things go, is a pretty long time. Here, however, we're talking about something that is much more obviously related to some kind of overreach. Justinian formed his expanded Empire, which is the first map in the handout, and merely a few years after his death had started to unravel. You'll recall that...