Sports (Hippodrome)
Although
the
Church
Fathers
and
the
ecclesiastic
writers
encouraged
the
care
of
the
body
for
health
reasons, sports
in
Byzantium
were
seen
in
a
totally
different
way
in
comparison
with
the
ancient
Greek
society, as
they were limited in demonstrating professional skills and were no longer
associated with the education of the youth.
Wrestling,
high jump, long jump and javelin were among the popular sports of the period,
while traditional sport venues such as the stadium, the arena and the gumnasium,
continued to be in use during the early centuries of Byzantium.
One
of
the
most
important
sports
venues
and
the
main
entertainment
area
for
the
residents
of
the
empire
was
the
hippodrome
that
held, among
others,
endurance
races, horse races and chariot races. These took place at fixed dates but also
with the opportunity of various official celebrations. The hippodrome also gave
people the opportunity, through the anonymity of the crowd, to applaud the
emperor of to publicly express their dissatisfaction.
Almost
all
of the
big
cities
of
the
empire
had
an
hippodrome; the most famous of all was the one of Constantinople that was founded
at the end of the 2nd century.
It had
the form of the Roman hippodrome, with a
horseshoe shape and elongated sides, while at the
central area, which was divided into two parts by an oblong obstacle, the
Euripus (spina) the races and the celebrations took place. The spectators that could be of different age, religion and social
status, sat at the stands,
under which there were ancillary areas (stables, areas for preparation etc),
while the emperor had his own special royal gallery, the Seat.
Nobody worked on the days of the
races as everything was closed.
The 8 chariot races that carried on through the day started
with a signal of the
emperor. On the intermission between the races spectators could dine or be
entertained by dancers, actors, mimes, acrobats and wild animals.
The municipalities (Greens, Blues,
White and Red), who took their name by the distinctive color of clothing that their
charioteer was wearing, were sporting clubs that were in charge of organizing
the races.
Other
popular
sports
among
the
imperial
court
and
the
aristocracy was tzikanion, a game that was played in open court and resembled
the sport of polo that we have today and also tornemes and tzostra, which were
played following the rules of the knightly encounters.
Glossary (2)
Church Fathers:
a group of theologians and church authors
that lived during the
first five
centuries
of Christianity and exerted great influence.
Among them are:
Tertullian, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of
Nazianzus, John Chrysostom, etc.
palaestra or arena:
wrestling ring.
Information Texts (1)
The city:
Constantinople, the capital city of the Byzantine
Empire, was built on the site of the ancient Greek colony of Byzantium, on the
triangular peninsula formed by the Golden Horn,
the Bosporus and the Sea
of Marmara. This was an excellent location that controlled trade
routes linking the Aegean to the Black Sea. Emperor Constantine founded Constantinople
in 330 AD as a city to rival Rome
in splendour, wealth and power. The city grew fast, leading to problems of
space and facilities, so Theodosius I extended it to the west by building new
strong walls that protected Constantinople
until the end of the Byzantine Empire.
The
city was laid out after Rome.
A main road, the Mese Odos, linked the palace to the Golden
Gate. On this road was the Forum, a circular plaza with a statue
of Constantine
mounted on a column, surrounded by public buildings. Theodosius I and Arcadius later
built more forums decorated with their own statues.
Following
the Nika riots in the 6th century, Justinian adorned Constantinople
with magnificent edifices, palaces, baths and public buildings. This time also
saw the construction of Agia Sophia (the Holy Wisdom), the church which served
as the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate throughout the Byzantine period.
During
the 7th and 8th centuries Constantinople faced
major problems that threw it into disarray: attacks by the Avars (a siege in
674) and Arabs (attacks in 674 and 717-718); natural disasters (a powerful,
destructive earthquake in 740); and epidemics (plague in 747). Limited building
activity resumed in the 8th and 9th century, mainly concentrated on
strengthening the city's fortifications.
With
the recovery of the Byzantine Empire from the
9th to the 11th century, Constantinople became
the most populated city in Christendom; the majority of inhabitants were
Greek-speaking, but many other ethnic groups lived alongside them, such as
Jews, Armenians, Russians, Italians merchants, Arabs and mercenaries from Western Europe and Scandinavia. Many public, private and church-owned buildings were erected at the time, with
an emphasis on establishing charitable institutions such as hospitals, nursing
homes, orphanages and schools. Higher education flourished, thanks to the care
of the state and the emergence of important scholars. This renaissance lasted
until the mid-11th century, when economic problems due to poor management set
in, compounded by the adverse outcome of imperial operations beyond the borders.
The
Crusaders left Constantinople entirely
unscathed when first passing through, but in the Fourth Crusade of 1204 the
Franks conquered and ransacked the city, slaughtering those inhabitants they
did not take prisoner or drive out. In 1261 the city was retaken by Michael
VIII Palaeologus, who rebuilt most of the monuments and the walls but proved
unable to restore the city to its former splendour and glory. Enfeebled as it
was, the empire was incapable of checking the advance of the Ottomans, and in
1453 Constantinople finally fell into their
hands.
The fall signalled the end of the empire. Nevertheless, the Byzantine intellectual
tradition remained significant, as many scholars settled in the Venetian dominions
of Crete and the Peloponnese,
as well as in European countries, conveying Greek learning to the West.
Bibliography (5)
1. Γιάτσης Σ., Το θέαμα του ιπποδρόμου και οι σωματικές ασκήσεις στο Βυζάντιο, Thessaloniki, 1988
2. Ιωαννίδης, Α., Ο βυζαντινός ιππόδρομος στην Κωνσταντινούπολη, 1982
3. Κουκουλές Φ., Βυζαντινών Βίος και Πολιτισμός, Παπαζήση, Athens, 1954
4. Ραμπώ, Α., Σπουδές πάνω στη Βυζαντινή ιστορία, Στοχαστής, Athens, 2007
5. ‘ Η κοινωνική ζωή στο Βυζάντιο’ in Ψηφίδες του Βυζαντίου
Comments (0)