History glossary
Orthodox Christianity
the eastern branch of Christianity historically centered on Constantinople and other patriarchates.
- Category
- Religious tradition
- Region
- Eastern Europe, Balkans, Middle East, and global churches
What it means
Orthodox Christianity developed in the eastern Roman and Byzantine worlds. It became central to the religious and cultural life of Byzantium, Kievan Rus, Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, and many other societies.
Related terms
Stories using this term
Kievan Rus
The founding of the Rus’ state in the north.
The Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia fractured through crisis, nationalism, and war, collapsing violently in the 1990s.
The First World War
World War I reshaped empires, borders, and societies, setting the stage for World War II.
The Causes of the Second World War
From the flawed peace of 1919 to the invasion of Poland in 1939, this story traces the interlocking causes of the Second World War across two decades of crisis, ideology, and failed deterrence.
The Rise of the Medieval Church
From the fall of the Western Roman Empire to the Avignon papacy, this story traces how the Christian Church built its authority through bishops, monasteries, missions, reform, and direct confrontation with Europe's rulers.
The Crusades
From Pope Urban II's call at Clermont to the fall of Acre, the Crusades reshaped the medieval world through religious war, cross-cultural encounter, and lasting consequences for Europe and the Middle East.
The Ottoman Empire
From a small frontier principality in Anatolia, the Ottomans built a multiethnic empire across Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa before reform, nationalism, and world war ended imperial rule.
