TSR Wiki > Study Help > Subjects and Revision > Revision Notes > History > Regional survey of urban change ad survivals
- Syria and Palestine by 500 – great urban tradition from classical world – Oriens dioceses peak in 6th century – 6th and 7th century suffered from earthquakes etc – little disturbed after Muslim conquest. Archaeological state patronage falls after – lose link with Constantinople, thus rise Damascus. Bishops often important in urban survival decline – local admin under Umayyads manned by Christian gentry – classical memories of culture declined. Urban continuity but urban lifestyle changes dramatically – not acute until Abbasids.
- Western Asia Minor –severe military pressure 0 some cities vanish all together, reduced to island pattern of cities, or forts – much of Greece, Thrace, Thessalonica an exception.
- Rebuilding under Diocletion in late 4th, economically strong with links to Rome and then Constantinople, 5th and 6th centuries urban decline – despite Justinian aid. Increasingly ruralised but neither impoverished – Sicily or southeast Italy may have been comparable.
- Keay and Panella indicate high import levels of towns show dislocation between town and territoria – but how did they pay for imports – Barbarian kings, barbarian land-owners penchant for hoarding and duty of personal largesse – ability and inclination to spend on secular urban buildings declined
- Northern and Central Italy – recently formed, gravely weakened in 3rd century – last emperors and Ostrogthic rulers sought legitimacy and prestige with preservation of urban monuments 5th and 6th centuries involved in church building above all. Suffered from Gothic wars and 568 onwards Lomabrd invasion
- Most Italian city site survived, new ones, street grids retained, implies dense settlement civic pride and social control to stop rubble and ruin and encroachment. Not island city status, theatres of political events – residence of Lombard kings. Residency of local gentry indicated by frequency of church building 8th – 10th century. Provincial gentry hung on and tastes for semi-urban life as well – imparting to Lombards.
- Central to southern Gaul – long decline tax system served already weak links with Rome. Few towns retain urban grids. Some like Trier remained Roman in layout.
- Merovingian period, royal grants of immunities and formation of local lordships in territoria fragmented what survived from social and political structures of Roman cities.
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