Middle Ages

Byzantine Empire

Period
AD 633 – AD 1474
Duration
approx. 841 years
Greatest extent
around AD 633
Area (max.)
approx. 2.3 million km²
Byzantine Empire at its greatest extent (around AD 633) · Borders: Cliopatria
▶ View on the interactive map

Profile

Strength

Disciplined professional armies, cataphracts and 'Greek fire'; the walls of Constantinople held off attackers for almost 1,000 years.

Famous figures

  • Justinian I
  • Belisarius
  • Heraclius
  • Basil II
  • Alexios I Komnenos

Wars & battles won

  • Vandalic War (533–534)
  • Gothic War (535–554)
  • Heraclius' Persian War (622–628)
  • Battle of Kleidion (1014)

Wars & battles lost

  • Battle of Yarmouk (636)
  • Battle of Manzikert (1071)
  • Sack of Constantinople (1204)
  • Fall of Constantinople (1453)

Languages

  • Greek
  • Latin

Period and duration

Byzantine Empire — according to the map data from AD 633 to AD 1474, roughly 841 years. The dates refer to the time the empire is drawn as its own territory on the world map; historians sometimes date its founding and end differently.

Greatest extent

Byzantine Empire — greatest extent around AD 633: the mapped borders then cover about 2.3 million km², roughly 1.6% of Earth's land area. The area is calculated from the border lines of the map and is therefore an approximation.

AD 633Area according to the map data (max. 2.3 million km²)AD 1474

Predecessors and successors

States that ruled the same territory directly before and after:

Before (AD 632)

After

Neighbours around AD 633

The largest states in the region at the same time:

Learn more

Borders and dates: Cliopatria / Seshat Global History Databank (CC BY 4.0). Coastlines: Natural Earth. Text: Centaurian.