Deck 11: The Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity in the West, 31 BCE -800 CE

Question 1

What is the source of most of our information on early German tribes?

A)Goths.
B)Franks.
C)Greeks.
D)Asian Huns.
E)Romans.

Answer 1

Romans.

Question 2

All of the following are true of Pope Gregory I EXCEPT

A)He became a Benedictine monk.
B)He was born into a peasant family.
C)He most important legacy was his work at converting German leaders.
D)He initially protested against his own election as pope.
E)He was pope for nine years.

Answer 2

He was born into a peasant family.

Question 3

Wealthy Romans built their tombs beside well known

A)buildings.
B)monuments.
C)roads.
D)aqueducts.
E)religious shrines.

Answer 3

roads.

Question 4

Which one of the following exemplifies some of the major aspects of the Barracks Emperors period of Roman history?

A)Rome experienced a last, brief period of peace.
B)Rome maintained the existence of the ordinary people through agriculture.
C)In about 50 years Rome had twenty emperors, 18 of whom died by violence.
D)The Roman military was able to repel all invasions due to its cohesiveness.
E)Roman generals brought on relative peace and prosperity through martial law.

Question 5

What is meant by the doctrine of Petrine Succession in the Christian faith?

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

Question 6

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 had a spirit of mutuality in which each member was to help the other members out in times of trouble.
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 universal, meaning it was open to all peoples.

Question 7

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 8

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 9

The early Christians would not have appeared to be too concerned about the fall of the Roman Empire to the Germanic invaders, because

A)their faith preached religious toleration, and that included German barbarians' pagan rituals.
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 10

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 11

Which of the following convinced Romans to abandon the West?

A)The adoption of Christianity by German leaders.
B)The invasion of the Asian Huns.
C)The pagan rituals spreading from the Franks.
D)The lack of military leaders willing to stay in the west.
E)None of the options are correct.

Question 12

What was the purpose of Emperor Constantine's Edict of Milan that was issued in 313 CE?

A)It established the tetrarchy, or four-man rule.
B)It established the Rhine as the official northern border of Roman territory.
C)It called for open borders to allow any and all migration into Roman territory.
D)It "Germanized" Roman armies on the frontiers by recruiting barbarians.
E)It stipulated that Christianity would be officially tolerated.

Question 13

Who is the founder of Christianity?

A)Siddhartha Gautama.
B)Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
C)The Hebrews.
D)Zarathustra.
E)Paul of Tarsus.

Question 14

In the earliest decades of Christianity, who were two of the most influential persons involved in spreading the faith?

A)Mary and Esther.
B)The Apostles Paul and Peter.
C)The Apostle John and the Pope.
D)Constantine and Diocletian.
E)Saint Augustine and Saint Ambrose.

Question 15

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 16

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 17

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 18

The early bishops claimed to be a direct descendent of

A)Jesus of Nazareth.
B)The 12 Apostles.
C)John the Baptist.
D)The 12 Disciples.
E)Judas.

Question 19

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 20

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 21

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

Question 22

All of the following are true of the Dark Ages, EXCEPT

A)literacy rates went up dramatically.
B)there was an increase in piracy and vandalism.
C)towns and cities declined and people increasingly went to live on manorial lands.
D)the churches suffered numerous scandals.
E)the Roman transport network fell to pieces.

Question 23

Due to the chronic succession problem that often caused serious disruptions in the government of Rome, the governmental system set up by Diocletian in an attempt to end civil war was a(n)____________________, or rule of four.

Question 24

The first Holy Roman Emperor was ____________________.

Question 25

The ____________________ were the most serious threat to the Carolingian Empire due to their tactics of swift amphibious raids that eventually evolved into more permanent conquests.

Question 26

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

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

Question 27

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

Question 28

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

Question 29

Which of the following was one of the many reasons for the rise of the feudal system in Europe?

A)Feudalism reflected a need for widespread economic activity and the need for workers.
B)Feudalism arose out of fears over more invasions and a desire for a sense of order.
C)Feudalism allowed for the growth of large military forces used for conquest of new lands.
D)Feudalism was a reaction to a desire to spread Roman culture.
E)Feudalism was the result of the desire to impose Germanic customs on all of Western Europe.

Question 30

Which of the many substantial accomplishments of the Byzantine Empire had the most long-term historical impact?

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 31

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 32

In 800 C.E., who crowned Charlemagne as the official emperor of the Holy Roman Empire?

A)St. Augustine.
B)Charlemagne crowned himself.
C)Pope Leo III.
D)Charlemagne's father.
E)The monk Einhard.

Question 33

The concept created by the Byzantine emperor Justinian, that made the monarch the head of the church and state was known as

A)Hagia Sophia.
B)Corpus Iuris.
C)Alcuin.
D)Caesaro-Papism.
E)Missi dominici.

Question 34

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

Question 35

What was the German belief system before many of them converted to Christianity?

A)They were monotheistic and worshipped Thor as their deity.
B)They were polytheistic but had no religious ceremonies.
C)They were animistic with supernatural beliefs.
D)They were logical and had a society based on ethical principles.
E)They were atheistic and rejected the idea of deities.

Question 36

Our chief source of information on Charlemagne comes from the book ____________________.

Question 37

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 38

Charlemagne started the ____________________, which was a group of special officers who reported on courts directly to the emperor.

Question 39

What prompted the original feudal knights to perform their duties?

A)They served because of an idealistic loyalty to their leaders.
B)The knights were motivated by chivalry and fulfilling romantic visionaries.
C)The knights were mercenaries who usually served for the highest bidder and made a career of fighting.
D)They wanted to see justice and mercy balanced out in treatment of the serfs.
E)The knights were usually of a monastic order who were selfless servants of the people.

Question 40

The most serious threat of invasion from the Carolingian empire came from the ____________________.

Question 41

Term for identification: Justinian

Question 42

Term for identification: Barracks Emperors

Question 43

Term for identification: Saul of Tarsus

Question 44

Term for identification: Alcuin

Question 45

Term for identification: Treaty of Verdun

Question 46

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

Question 47

Term for identification: Dark Age

Question 48

Discuss the early history of Christianity and elaborate on the significance of its early leaders and ideas.

Question 49

Term for identification: Council of Nicaea

Question 50

Term for identification: Vikings

Question 51

Describe the impact of the "barbarian" groups on Rome, to include constant warfare, some of the Germanic tribes eventually becoming Christianized, migrations/invasions, Germanic law, and erosion of Roman control of Western Europe.

Question 52

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

Question 53

What were the significant challenges of the Roman empire from the beginning of the millennium through the Byzantine empire?

Question 54

Term for identification: Charlemagne

Question 55

Term for identification: Huns

Question 56

Christianity went from being a small group of believers to the most populous religion in existence. What made Christianity so appealing to so many people?