New Military and Cultural Forms

The shift from an urban- to a rural-centered society meant changes not only in daily life and the economy but also in the empire’s military and cultural institutions. The Byzantine navy fought successfully at sea with its powerful weapon of “Greek fire,” a mixture of crude oil and resin that was heated and shot via a tube over the water, engulfing enemy ships in flames. Determined to win wars on land as well, the imperial government tightened its control over the military by wresting power from elite families and encouraging the formation of a middle class of farmer-soldiers. In the seventh century, the empire was divided into military districts called themes. All civil and military authority in each theme was held by a general, a strategos. Landless men were lured to join the army with the promise of land and low taxes; they fought side by side with local farmers, who provided their own weapons and horses. The new organization effectively countered frontier attacks.

The disappearance of the old cultural elite meant a shift in the focus of education. Whereas the curial class had cultivated the study of the pagan classics, eighth-century parents showed far more interest in a religious education. Even with the decay of urban centers, cities and villages often retained an elementary school. There, teachers used the Book of Psalms (the Psalter) as their primer. Secular, classical learning remained decidedly out of favor throughout the seventh and eighth centuries; dogmatic writings, biographies of saints, and devotional works took center stage.