ABSTRACT
Justinian I was one of history's most visionary rulers. Justinian hailed from the region of Iliyricum on the Balkan peninsula. Justinian was the last Byzantine emperor to maintain control over the western territories of the former Roman Empire. The stunning victories achieved by Belisarius during the sixth century were ultimately reversed, and in 800 the west came under the rule of Charlemagne. Justinian's involvement in Church life, following the example of fourth-century rulers such as Constantine I and Theodosius I, left a much deeper legacy than his foreign policy. The power of the ruler often benefited the Church. Russian rulers such as Ivan III Vasilyevich acted to protect and expand eastern Christianity even after its former patron state, the Byzantine Empire, fell to the Islamic Turks in 1453.
