Deck 10: Imperial Decline and the Birth of Christian Europe

Question 1

Evaluate the reforms of Constantine and Diocletian, as to how constructive they were. Which would you consider to be more effective? Explain your answer.

Answer 1

Answer not provided.

Question 2

During the age of the Barracks Emperors,

A) Rome experienced a last, brief period of peace.
B) Rome maintained the existence of the ordinary people through agriculture.
C) barbarians from the east entered the Roman Empire for the first time.
D) the Roman military was able to repel all invasions due to its cohesiveness.
E) long-distance trade became profitable.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Describe the impact of the Germanic migrations/invasions upon Western Europe.

Answer 3

Answer not provided.

Question 4

Diocletian was the first leader of the western world to

A) move his capital city to the East.
B) make Christianity the religion of the state.
C) make use of tax collectors.
D) place price ceilings on consumer goods.
E) collect taxes from the peasants.

Question 5

Evaluate Charlemagne as Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Compare his reign to that of Constantine.

Question 6

For centuries, many German commoners remained aloof from Christianity, in part because

A) they refused to give up their own pagan ways.
B) they failed to really understand the concepts of Heaven and Hell.
C) the laws seemed too complex.
D) they had no one to interpret church doctrine for them.
E) they had little use for those not true to their pagan past.

Question 7

Which of the following was not a reason for the appeal of Christianity in its early stages?

A) Christianity offered a new spirit of optimism and hope to a downtrodden people.
B) The new doctrine promised release from Roman rule in the near future.
C) The Christian doctrine of brotherly love brought people closer together.
D) Its ideals of charity and caring for others were like a breath of fresh air in a world filled with greed.
E) The religion was open to all peoples.

Question 8

Which of the following correctly describes the Germanic invasions?

A) The Vandals began their attempted conquest by invading Rome itself.
B) The Franks made their mark in France during the fifth century.
C) The Angles and the Saxons set up their kingdom in northern Germany.
D) The Angles took over Spain.
E) England became home to both the Saxons and the Franks.

Question 9

As a part of their system of government, the Germans

A) elected their leaders, whose total authority covered times of both war and peace.
B) immediately settled down in cities and fortified towns where their leaders held court.
C) had kings who sometimes lived at least part of the year in castles inside towns named for them.
D) rejected the concept that tribute should be made to the office of king rather than to the man himself.
E) used war tactics that were so different from those of the Romans that they rejected virtually everything Roman.

Question 10

The Romans found themselves in agreement with the Germans on women's status in which of the following areas?

A) Married women retained substantial freedoms and rights.
B) Widows sometimes took prominent positions that their husbands had held at their death.
C) The women with the greatest legal value were those of childbearing age.
D) Equal treatment and a high standard of morality existed between the sexes.
E) Queens and princesses sometimes ruled the people.

Question 11

Which of the following groups felt least threatened by Jesus's teachings?

A) Romans
B) Zealots
C) Saducees
D) Pharasees
E) All felt equally threatened.

Question 12

The early Christians did not appear to be too concerned about the fall of the Roman Empire to the Germanic invaders, because

A) their faith preached brotherly love, and that included German barbarians.
B) they were more concerned about mixing Christian beliefs with existing Roman pagan practices.
C) they believed that the Lord was returning soon, and no earthly empire would be in control.
D) after Theodosius, they could keep their faith and help defend the empire at the same time.
E) they believed their faith would help them repel the invaders.

Question 13

Describe the progression of Christianity from an obscure Jewish sect to Rome's official faith. Explain and evaluate the underlying reasons for this change.

Question 14

The Edict of Milan

A) established four-man rule
B) established religious toleration.
C) issued price ceilings on consumer goods.
D) "Germanized" Roman armies on the frontiers.
E) stipulated that Christianity would be officially tolerated.

Question 15

When the emperor Constantine officially recognized Christianity, fellow Christians would most likely have accepted which of the following reasons for his decision?

A) To help the new faith to grow
B) To recognize God for helping him win an important battle
C) To appease the large number of his subjects who had accepted the faith
D) To create a greater sense of unity between his government and the people
E) To make his mother, who was a Christian, happy

Question 16

What forces contributed to a "crisis" atmosphere within the Roman Empire during the third century?

Question 17

Constantine formally transferred his government to the East, to the new city of Byzantium (Constantinople), because

A) he thought the government should be centered in the world's largest city.
B) the cultured Greeks were the dominant force there.
C) he feared the encroachment of the Germans.
D) the Germans were advancing from the west and he wanted the capital to be in a safe place.
E) the eastern half of the empire needed protection, and the new capital city had a good strategic position.

Question 18

Christianity was first spread to the non-Jewish world through the efforts of

A) Peter.
B) Paul.
C) John.
D) Thomas.
E) Ambrose.

Question 19

Early Christian emperors allowed bishops to

A) participate in their coronations.
B) make church law independently.
C) create the position of Pope as supreme head of the Church.
D) operate completely separately from the civil authorities.
E) collect and retain a share of the taxes within their dioceses.

Question 20

Explain the structure of the early Christian church in Rome, and evaluate how well various emperors dealt with the new situation (i.e., Christianity in their midst).

Question 21

The main purpose of Germanic law was to

A) prevent warfare.
B) decrease personal violence.
C) obtain retribution for victims.
D) protect the wealthy.
E) raise money through fines.

Question 22

Charlemagne was given the title "emperor," making him leader of the Holy Roman Empire, b

A) St. Augustine.
B) himself.
C) Pope Leo III.
D) his father.
E) Clovis.

Question 23

The feudal system in Europe arose because of

A) economic necessity and the need for workers.
B) fears over invasions and a desire for a sense of order.
C) the conquering of new lands.
D) the establishment of large estates that required many workers.
E) the imposition of Germanic customs.

Question 24

The first major Christian Church council was held at

A) Hippo, where St. Augustine became bishop.
B) Nicaea, where a number of theological questions were settled.
C) Rome, where the doctrine of Petrine Succession was adopted.
D) Constantinople, where clergy and lay people studied many ancient documents.
E) Milan, where Church officials decided to make Rome their official headquarters.

Question 25

The Treaty of Verdun in 843

A) divided Germany between the Magyars and the Christians.
B) created the kingdom of the Franks and made Charlemagne the first Holy Roman Emperor.
C) was a compromise between Eastern and Western Christianity.
D) divided Charlemagne's empire into three states whose borders far outlived their rulers.
E) provided for religious toleration within the Holy Roman Empire.

Question 26

When an eastern pope and a stubborn patriarch excommunicated each other in 1054, their act signaled

A) the successful domination of the Christian faith by Rome.
B) the rivalry between Justinian and the Roman pope.
C) the overall weakness of Church authority.
D) the cultural differences between North and South.
E) the division of the Christian Church into Greek and Latin halves.

Question 27

After Constantine, the only non-Christian emperor was ____________________.

Question 28

Significantly enough, some of the major decisions of the Council of Nicaea were implemented by the ____________________.

Question 29

In the years following 700 C.E., the majority of the officials of the Church would best be described as

A) kind and gentle with their parishioners.
B) money-grubbing and political-minded.
C) devoted and otherworldly.
D) devoted to education and religion.
E) God-fearing and dutiful.

Question 30

The doctrine of Petrine Succession asserted that

A) Christ was not equal to God the father.
B) the Bishop of Rome was the head of the Christian Church.
C) emperors could rightfully direct religious policy.
D) Christ's Second Coming would occur after Rome had fallen.
E) Peter had a special place as the brother of Jesus.

Question 31

The most important of the Fathers of the Church were ____________________ and ____________________.

Question 32

Students of the 21st century would probably be most surprised to learn that during Greece's "Dark Age,"

A) vandals destroyed many important records.
B) many bishops did not know how to write their sermons.
C) some village priests could not read well.
D) few governmental records were kept at all.
E) time has eroded a large percentage of the documents that have been found.

Question 33

The feudal knights were originally

A) idealistic and loyal to their leaders.
B) romantic visionaries.
C) mercenaries who made a career of fighting.
D) well-educated young men from newly-impoverished families.
E) selfless and well-intentioned do-gooders.

Question 34

Identify the outstanding Byzantine accomplishment:

A) the defeat of the Bulgars and Muslims
B) the re-uniting of the Roman Empire
C) the Christianization of Eastern Europe
D) the calling of the Council of Nicaea
E) the capture of the Jews in Eastern Europe

Question 35

It can most accurately be stated of the Germanic invaders that they

A) detested the thought of intermarriage.
B) had a strong desire to adopt Roman ways.
C) believed themselves cultural equals to the Romans.
D) believed in the divine right of kings.
E) were secure in their military might.

Question 36

Which of the following statements is not true of the Vikings?

A) Their raids began as early as 790, and by 8334 they had taken Paris.
B) They soon turned from raiding and moving on, to conquering territory with plans to hold it forever.
C) Exposed to Christianity, most Vikings mocked the religion and held to their own pagan ways.
D) The Vikings and the Muslims united to keep the Magyars from having any portion of the spoils of their European ventures.
E) Instead of raiding for whatever they could find, they began to collect taxes.

Question 37

The last emperor to attempt to resurrect the broken Byzantine Empire was

A) Constantine.
B) Diocletian.
C) Hadrian.
D) Charlemagne.
E) Justinian.

Question 38

Important clergymen often obtained their offices through

A) inheritance.
B) intimidation.
C) warfare.
D) bribery.
E) treachery.

Question 39

Under the early Christian emperors, bishops were granted the significant right to have their own ____________________ and ____________________.

Question 40

The original German belief system was

A) monotheistic, with Thor as their deity.
B) polytheistic, and strongly rooted in the concept of an afterlife.
C) animistic and supernatural.
D) based on ethics.
E) rooted in theology.

Question 41

The Vandal Kingdom in Africa was destroyed by the Byzantine commander ____________________.

Question 42

Constantine transferred the Empire's capital eastward, to the old Greek city of ____________________.

Question 43

The governmental system set up by Diocletian in an attempt to end civil war was a/an ____________________.

Question 44

The first Holy Roman Emperor was ____________________.

Question 45

The movement of barbarian tribes from Asia to Roman Europe in the later third century, C.E., was termed the ____________________ of the ____________________.

Question 46

The Muslim attempt to capture Constantinople in 717 was thwarted by ____________________ ____________________.