Athens city (state capital), foreign domination - - Pictures
Although Athens virtually lost its independence to Macedonia in 338 BC, the town continued to be an important cultural center. It fell to Rome in 146 BC but maintained good relations with the Romans until they sacked it in 86 BC, destroying many of Athens' monuments. Nonetheless, Athens remained a center of learning for prominent Greeks and Romans from the 1st century BC until late antiquity. In the 3rd century AD it was damaged by invading Goths, who were repelled with some difficulty. In AD 529 the Christian emperor Justinian closed the pagan philosophical schools, virtually ending the city's classical tradition.
During the Byzantine period Athens became a cultural backwater. Many of the city's artworks were moved to Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), and the temples became Christian churches. Byzantine emperors occasionally visited Athens, but the city was largely ignored and impoverished. After the Latin Crusaders conquered Constantinople in 1204, Athens became a French feudal duchy. The Catalans took over the city in 1311, but they were expelled when a Florentine dynasty successfully installed itself in the late 14th century.
