评论
打印
Most history books will tell you the Roman Empire fell in the fifth century CE.
多数历史书会讲到罗马帝国于公元五世纪时灭亡。
But this would've come as a great surprise to the millions of people who lived in the Roman Empire up through the Middle Ages.
但这个说法可能会让数百万名生活在中世纪罗马帝国的人非常惊讶。
This medieval Roman Empire, which we usually refer to today as the Byzantine Empire, began in 330 CE.
这个中世纪罗马帝国，现今我们认知的拜占庭帝国，始于公元330年。
That's when Constantine, the first Christian emperor, moved the capital of the Roman Empire to a new city called Constantinople,
第一位基督教皇帝康士坦丁把罗马帝国的首都搬到新城市康士坦丁堡，
which he founded on the site of the ancient Greek city Byzantion.
该城位于古希腊城市拜占庭。
When the Visigoths sacked Rome in 410 and the Empire's western provinces were conquered by barbarians,
当西哥特人在410年洗劫罗马城，而罗马帝国的西边领域也被野蛮人占领时，
Constantine's Eastern capital remained the seat of the Roman emperors.
康士坦丁作为东边首都，保留了罗马帝国的名号。
There, generations of emperors ruled for the next 11 centuries.
在那里，历代帝王统治接下来的11个世纪。
Sharing continuity with the classical Roman Empire
从原罗马帝国直接传承，
gave the Byzantine empire a technological and artistic advantage over its neighbors, whom Byzantines considered barbarians.
让拜占庭帝国在技术及艺术上比起它的邻国更有优势，因此拜占庭认为邻国都是野蛮人。
In the ninth century, visitors from beyond the frontier
九世纪时，从外邦来的旅人
were astonished at the graceful stone arches and domes of the imperial palace in Constantinople.
对君士坦丁堡皇宫里优雅的石拱门和圆顶赞叹。
A pair of golden lions flanked the imperial throne.
一对黄金老虎盘坐皇帝王位。
A hidden organ would make the lions roar as guests fell on their knees.
当客人跪在地上时，一个隐藏的机关会让老虎吼叫。
Golden birds sung from a nearby golden tree.
黄金鸟在身旁的黄金树上唱歌。
Medieval Roman engineers even used hydraulic engines to raise the imperial throne high into the air.
中世纪罗马工程师甚至使用液压引擎将王座高高举起。
Other inherited aspects of ancient Roman culture could be seen in emperors' clothing, from traditional military garb to togas,
其他古罗马文化的影响可以从皇帝的衣着上见到，如传统军服和托加长袍；
and in the courts, which continued to use Roman law.
而法庭上仍沿用罗马法律。
Working-class Byzantines would've also had similar lives to their Ancient Roman counterparts;
拜占庭劳工阶级的生活和古罗马的劳工相似；
many farmed or plied a specific trade, such as ceramics, leatherworking, fishing, weaving, or manufacturing silk.
许多人务农或从事特定工作，例如制陶、制皮革、捕鱼、编织或制作丝绸。
But, of course, the Byzantine Empire didn't just rest on the laurels of Ancient Rome.
但当然，拜占庭帝国不只是躺在古罗马的荣誉簿上而已。
Their artists innovated, creating vast mosaics and ornate marble carvings.
艺术家创新，创造了巨幅马赛克及华丽的大理石雕刻。
Their architects constructed numerous churches, one of which, called Hagia Sophia,
建筑师建造许多教堂，其中一个叫圣索菲亚大教堂，
had a dome so high it was said to be hanging on a chain from heaven.
她有非常高的圆顶，据传有一条天堂垂下的锁炼挂着它。
The Empire was also home to great intellectuals such as Anna Komnene.
帝国同时也聚集许多学者，例如安娜·科穆宁娜。
As imperial princess in the 12th century, Anna dedicated her life to philosophy and history.
身为12世纪的帝国公主，安娜致力于哲学和历史。
Her account of her father's reign is historians' foremost source for Byzantine political history at the time of the first crusade.
她对她父亲统治时期的记录，是历史学家对第一次十字军东征时期拜占庭政治历史最重要的资料来源。
Another scholar, Leo the Mathematician, invented a system of beacons that ran the width of the empire -- what's now Greece and Turkey.
另一位学者，数学家利奥，发明了在帝国境内的烽火系统，该系统位于现今的希腊和土耳其。
Stretching more than 700 kilometers, this system allowed the edge of the Empire
绵延长达700公里的这套系统，能传送信号到帝国的角落，
to warn the emperor of invading armies within one hour of sighting them at the border.
以此警告皇帝有敌军入侵，传递只需要一小时。
But their advances couldn't protect the Empire forever.
但他们先进的技术无法永远保护帝国。
In 1203, an army of French and Venetian Crusaders made a deal with a man named Alexios Angelos.
1203年，一支法国和威尼斯的十字军和阿历克塞·安杰洛斯达成协议。
Alexios was the son of a deposed emperor,
阿历克赛是一位被废黜皇帝的儿子，
and promised the crusaders vast riches and support to help him retake the throne from his uncle.
他承诺给十字军巨额财富，请求协助他从叔叔那里重夺王位。
Alexios succeeded, but after a year, the population rebelled and Alexios himself was deposed and killed.
阿历克赛成功了，但一年后人民反叛，阿历克赛被罢黜且处死。
So Alexios's unpaid army turned their aggression on Constantinople.
还没得到报偿的军队因而挥军康士坦丁堡。
They lit massive fires, which destroyed countless works of ancient and medieval art and literature,
他们放火，摧毁无数古代及中世纪的艺术和文学作品，
leaving about one-third of the population homeless.
也让约三分之一的人无家可归。
The city was reclaimed 50 years later by the Roman Emperor Michael Palaiologos,
这座城市在50年后由罗马皇帝迈克尔·帕里奥洛加斯重建，
but his restored Empire never regained all the territory the Crusaders had conquered.
但重建的帝国再也没有夺回那些被十字军征服的领土。
Finally, in 1453, Ottoman Emperor Mehmed the Conqueror captured Constantinople, bringing a conclusive end to the Roman Empire.
最后，在1453年，奥斯曼皇帝、“征服者”穆罕默德夺下了康士坦丁堡，为罗马帝国划下了句号。
Despite the Ottoman conquest, many Greek-speaking inhabitants of the Eastern Mediterranean
尽管被奥斯曼征服，许多讲希腊语的东地中海居民
continued to call themselves Romans until the early 21st century.
仍旧称自己是罗马人，直到21世纪初。
In fact, it wasn't until the Renaissance that the term "Byzantine Empire" was first used.
事实上，一直到文艺复兴时期，“拜占庭帝国”才开始被使用。
For Western Europeans, the Renaissance was about reconnecting with the wisdom of antiquity.
对西欧人来说，文艺复兴是和古老智慧重新连结。
And since the existence of a medieval Roman Empire suggested there were Europeans who'd never lost touch with antiquity,
因为中世纪罗马帝国的存在暗示着仍有欧洲人没有失去和古老的连结，
Western Europeans wanted to draw clear lines between the ages.
所以西欧人想要划分清楚不同的时代。
To better distinguish the classical, Latin-speaking, pagan Roman Empire from the medieval, Greek-speaking, Christian Roman Empire,
为了更好地将古典的、讲拉丁语的异教罗马帝国与中世纪、说希腊语的基督教罗马帝国区分开，
scholars renamed the latter group Byzantines.
学者于是将后者重新命名为拜占庭。
And thus, 100 years after it had fallen, the Byzantine Empire was born.
因此，在帝国灭亡100年后，拜占庭帝国这个词语就诞生了。
