Review Sheet
for Midterm Exam
Topics
for Review.
Familiarize yourselves with the following six themes from the
first half
of the semester (up to approximately
410). Careful review of these questions
should help you focus on important issues and will be excellent
preparation for
the essay section of the midterm.
1.
Barbarians
& the Military. Describe
the earliest contacts between barbarians and Romans.
What role did the military play in relations between the two
groups? How was the army an agent of
Romanization of
the provinces, and in what sense did the military serve as an agent of
barbarization? In what ways and for
what reasons did increasing barbarization of the army take place, and
what
problems did this pose for the Roman Empire in the fourth and early fifth century?
Be specific.
2.
Church
& State. In its early
history the church experienced various forms of relationship with the
Roman
state, ranging from illegal status and persecution to near identity
with the
state. Be ready to discuss different
phases of this relationship, e.g., martyrdom and persecution in the
third
century, toleration in the early fourth century, Christianity as the
official
religion of the Roman Empire in the later fourth century.
What role did specific emperors play? (Think
about the policies of Diocletian,
Constantine, Constantius, Julian & Theodosius).
What role did bishops play vis-à-vis the state? How did most Christians view the state, both
before and after Constantine?
3.
The
Reign of Emperor Julian. Who
was Julian the Apostate, and what is the significance of his short
reign as
emperor? Be prepared to trace Julian’s
background and rise to power. How does
Ammianus Marcellinus portray Julian, and why?
What does he approve of and what does he criticize in Julian’s
character
and leadership? To what extent does
Julian typify the state of mid-late fourth century paganism? How did Christians and pagans react to his
rule? What does Julian’s career
contribute to our understanding of Late Antiquity?
What do you think might have happened if Julian had been
successful in his Persian campaign?
4.
The
Late Roman Economy. To what
extent were the crises of the third century fueled by economic factors,
and to
what extent did the reforms of Diocletian (largely continued by
Constantine)
reverse the economic problems of the third century?
Discuss the effectiveness and the significance of the economic
policies they instituted. What factors
might account for some of their failures?
Finally, do any changes of direction or new developments
characterize
the economic situation in the fourth century?
If so, give examples. If not,
suggest some reasons for the lack of significant change.
5.
Pagans
& Paganism. What different
forms did paganism take in the third and fourth centuries?
Discuss how pagans and Christians viewed
each other both before and after the edicts of toleration.
(What aspects of paganism were particularly
problematic for Christians, and what did pagans find most annoying
about
Christians?) As Christianity became
first the most favored and then the official religion of the Roman
Empire
during the course of the fourth century, what happened to paganism? What major figures and/or events signal its
continuance? When and in what ways did
the status of paganism deteriorate, and how did relations between
pagans and
Christians change? What difference, if
any, did class or social status make in relations between the two
groups?
6.
Christianity
& Culture. In what ways did
Christians relate to the dominant Greco-Roman culture prior to the
legalization
of Christianity? Give some examples of
practices, ideas and/or individuals that represent a particular
Christian
stance with regard to the non-Christian cultural context.
Did Christians agree in their perspectives
on culture? How did Christian responses
to culture differ or change after the legalization of the religion? To what extent did Christians try to
influence late Roman culture & society once they were in a position
to do
so? In what ways did Christian
practices and doctrines reflect the dominant ideals of the late Roman
world? Note concrete examples.
**********
Dates
of Major Importance
161-180
Marcus Aurelius – last of 5 “good
emperors” toward end of Pax Romana
235-284
Period of “Crisis” (Military
Anarchy)
284-305
Reign of Diocletian
306-337
Constantine; Battle of Milvian
Bridge, 312
313
“Edict
of Milan”; Edict of toleration of Galerius, 311
325
Council
of Nicaea (=First Ecumenical Council)
330
Foundation
of Constantinople
361-3
Reign of Julian
378
Battle
of Adrianople
379-394
Reign of Theodosius I
381
Council of Constantinople (=Second Ecumenical Council)
391
Prohibition
of Pagan Sacrifice (during reign of Theodosius I)
410
Alaric
& Visigoths sack Rome