Changes

Justinian wanted to revive the Roman Empire, which he saw as essential for the future of Christianity. He stamped out any practices deemed to be pagan, for example in his reign the last pagan communities were suppressed or converted. However, his policy of Christianization meant that classical learning and philosophy all but disappeared and that education came increasingly under the purview of the Church. His conquests were to end the last vestiges of the Classical World in the Mediterranean, which emphasised reason, secular values, and an urban culture. The wars he fought to secure Italy and Rome were devastating. Here classical culture, continued to flourish, urban living, a state apparatus, and the study of classical subjects had continued even during the rule of the Ostrogoths, preserved by the old Roman aristocracy.

His conquests were to end the last vestiges of the Classical World in the Mediterranean, which emphasized reason, secular values, and urban culture. The wars he fought to secure Italy and Rome were devastating. Here classical culture continued to flourish, urban living, a state apparatus, and the study of classical subjects had continued even during the rule of the Ostrogoths, preserved by the old Roman aristocracy.  The reconquest of Italy left it depopulated and a wasteland and destroyed the last relics of the ancient world. Then the need for evermore taxes for his never-ending wars led to a growing centralization of power in the Imperial Court in the Byzantine territories. This resulted in the end of the autonomy that had been enjoyed by the cities for centuries . <ref>Brown, Peter The World of Late Antiquity: AD 150–750 (London, Fontana, 1989), p 17</ref>. The high taxes and the loss of autonomy meant that many urban centres centers declined, which had long been important in preserving the culture and ideals of the classical world. Justinian’s attempts to revive the Roman Empire led to the demise of the society and culture of Late Antiquity and helped to usher in the Medieval World.<ref>Brown, p 67</ref>