Byzantine Greece In Greece, the period from the seventh through the ninth centuries is

described as the Byzantine Dark Ages or the Early Byzantine Age and was marked by
economic and social disruption, the apparent collapse of urban society, barbarian and
Arab raids, and the establishment of Slavic settlements in various parts of the countryside.
The period from the tenth through the twelfth centuries is usually described as the Middle
Byzantine Age, and it witnessed the apparent high point of Byzantine civilization in
Greece, with the efflorescence of cities, trade, and culture. The Fourth Crusade and the fall
of Constantinople to the Crusaders in 1204 marked a major turning point, and from that
time Greece was divided and ruled by various powers: the western Crusader states, the
Italian merchant republics, and the revived Byzantine states.

In the broadest terms one may speak of Byzantine Greece as a geographical entity, since
Greek culture survived (or reemerged) in these regions despite various invasions and
threats. Nonetheless, there were many regional differences, and the countryside was
politically divided. At the beginning of the Byzantine Period all of Greece was subject to
the western Roman Empire, and the church was administratively under the Pope in Rome.
The country was divided into the provinces of Thessaly, Macedonia, and Thrace in the
north, Epiros in the northwest, and Achaia in the center and south; the Aegean Islands
were part of a province of the islands, and Crete was administered as a province along
with Cyrene in Africa. Thessalonike became the seat of the prefecture of Illyricum and one
of the major administrative centers of the empire. From the seventh century onward
Greece was brought into the Byzantine administrative system of “themes” (themata), and
religiously it was placed under the authority of the patriarch of Constantinople. Central
Greece became the theme of Hellas, and there were themes of the Peloponnesos,
Nikopolis, Thessalonike, Macedonia, and the Kibyrrhaiotai. The theme system began to
disintegrate in the twelfth century due to regionalism, and it was swept away by the Latin
conquests in the early thirteenth century. Various Frankish principalities ruled much of
the countryside: the kingdom of Thessalonike (an immediate dependency of the Latin
Empire in Constantinople) in the north, the duchy of Athens in central Greece, and the
principality of Achaia in the Peloponnesos, but in fact semiautonomous western
feudatories controlled most of the land. Greek “survivor states” existed in the despotate of
Epiros and the despotate of the Morea, and the revived Byzantine Empire exerted its
control against the Latin rulers until it too was ultimately displaced by the growing power
of the Ottoman Turks in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Byzantine culture, of
course, lived on after the Ottoman conquest, and it survives in many aspects of Greek life
today.

Byzantine archaeology has been relatively well developed in Greece, in part because the
Byzantine heritage is considered to be of some contemporary importance. Nevertheless,
excavation and study has tended to focus almost exclusively on ecclesiastical monuments,
especially early Christian basilicas, frescoes, and icons, and interest has been more
characteristically art historical rather than historical or archaeological. In addition,
Byzantine archaeology in Greece suffers by comparison with the much higher prestige
afforded to the archaeology of prehistory and the Classical Period.

From the Early Byzantine (or Late Roman) Period most work has been done on the
literally hundreds of basilicas discovered throughout the country. Most of these were
located in the ancient cities in the plains, or more commonly along the sea, and nearly all
of these were discovered in a state of complete destruction, the result of the Byzantine
Dark Ages, when many of the buildings were apparently abandoned and left to collapse.
A few early Christian basilicas are still preserved and in use, but these are primarily in the
north (most notably Thessalonike) and they have all undergone extensive renovation.
Early excavation (prior to 1950 and not uncommonly since) has focused primarily on the
uncovering of the plan of the church and the recovery and of any decorative scheme (most
notably the mosaic floors), and little attention has been paid to stratigraphy or to social or
liturgical considerations. A primary interest has involved the determination of
architectural types and their place of origin. Thus, it has become commonplace to see early
Byzantine Greece as an architectural crossroads, with influences coming from
Constantinople, western Asia Minor, Syria, and Italy.

Among the most important monuments of this period are the churches of Thessalonike,
especially the basilicas of St. Demetrius and the Acheiropoietos, and the “rotunda” of St.
George. Nea Anchialos (Thessalian Thebes) preserves a remarkable series of early
churches, and the islands of the Aegean are especially rich in the number and lavishness of
the early Christian buildings, including the Panagia Hekatontapyliane in Paros and at
least fifty-four churches from the island of Lesbos. Few secular monuments of the period
have been excavated or studied; most important of those are from the agora in Athens.

The Byzantine Dark Ages are, not surprisingly, poorly documented archaeologically.
Investigation has focused primarily on urban collapse and the effect of Slavic and other
barbarian invasions in Greece. The question of the nature and extent of Slavic settlements
in Greece remains problematic.

The archaeology of Middle Byzantine Greece has been concerned almost exclusively with
the documentation of standing churches and their mosaic and frescoed decoration. The
work of A. K. Orlandos has been especially important in this regard. Notable buildings
such as Hosios Loukas in Phokis and Daphne near Athens have received detailed
treatment.

The cultural contacts in the period from the thirteenth century onward present a picture of
remarkable variety. Archaeological investigations, again, focus almost exclusively on
description of the many standing buildings. An important exception is the recent
excavation of a large Frankish ecclesiastical complex in Corinth. The Frankish castles have
been studied in detail by A. Bon, the monastic complex at Meteora by D. M. Nicol, and the
well-preserved city of Mistra and its houses and churches by many scholars. Important
Late Byzantine churches are found throughout the country, and regional styles of
architecture and painting developed, especially in Macedonia, Thessaly, and Epiros. More
detailed and intensive archaeological investigation in the future will allow important new
insights into the history and social and cultural interactions characteristic of this
period.[See also Byzantine Culture, articles on Byzantine Decorative Arts, Byzantine
Fortifications.]

Bibliography
Antoine Bon, Le péloponnèse byzantin jusqu'au 1204 (1951).
Antoine Bon, La Morée franque (1969).
Allison Frantz, The Church of the Holy Apostles (1971).
Paul Hetherington, Byzantine and Medieval Greece (1991).

Timothy E. Gregory

How to cite this entry: