History of Lebanon under Byzantine rule

History of Lebanon
This article is part of a series
Ancient History
Phoenicia
Arab rule
Ottoman rule
French Rule
Modern Lebanon
1958 Lebanon crisis
Lebanese Civil War
Cedar Revolution
2006 Lebanon War
Lebanon Portal

Upon the death of Theodosius I in AD 395, the Roman Empire was divided in two: the eastern or Byzantine part with its capital at Constantinople, and the western part with its capital at Rome. Under the Byzantine Empire, intellectual and economic activities in Beirut, Tyre, and Sidon continued to flourish for more than a century. However, in the sixth century a series of earthquakes demolished the temples of Baalbek (Heliopolis) and destroyed the city of Beirut, leveling its famous law school and killing nearly 30,000 inhabitants. To these natural disasters were added the abuses and corruptions prevailing at that time in the empire. Heavy tributes and religious dissension between Chalcedonians and Monophysites produced disorder and confusion. In addition, a long period of Sassanid Persian occupation in the early decades of the 7th century temporarily detached the area from Roman control. Although the Byzantines re-established themselves in the region, their hold was shaky, and they soon lost their Middle Eastern provinces to the Muslim conquests.