Why did Constantine 1 moved the capital of the Roman Empire from Rome to Byzantium?

Answer 1

Constantine I (or the Great) did not move the capital of the Roman Empire form Rome to Constantinople. Rome had already ceased to be the capital of the empire under the emperor Diocletian, who had designated Nicomedia (in north-western Turkey) as the imperial capital of the eastern part of the Roman Empire and Milan (in Italy) as the imperial capital of the western part of the empire. Constantine basically moved the imperial capital from Nicomedia to the nearby Byzantium (69 miles to its west), which he redeveloped and renamed after himself. Constantinople means City of Constantine. It was inaugurated in 330.

Ancient writers did not say why Constantine wanted to have a capital of his own. Historians have speculated about the reasons. Some have said that he wanted a new Christian Capital. However, although he built Christian churches for the city, most notably Church of the Holy Apostles, the city also had strong pagan associations. It was said that Constantine, as the pontifex maximus, the high priest of Roman religion, a position he retained throughout his reign, performed the foundation ritual for the foundation of a city of Roman religion: he traced the sacred furrow (pomerium) for the limits of the city. He also inaugurated his new capital, wearing the sun-rayed diadem of Sol Invictus, a Roman deity. He had the Column of Constantine placed in the forum. At the top it had a statue of himself dressed as Sol and wearing the crown owith seven rays f this god and looking towards the rising sun. It had an inscription which said Constantine who shines like the sun. A statue of Palladium (an image which was a protector of a city or a nation), which had been the protector of Troy and then became the protector of Rome, was taken to the city and buried under the column. He had a bronze snake shaped statue dedicated to Python (an mythological earth-dragon of Delphi depicted as a snake) and Apollo brought from Delphi and placed in the hippodrome (at the heart of the city) together with a tripod which celebrated a Greek victory over the Persians and Hercules.

It has also been suggested that the city was meant to act as a bridge between the Christian western part of the empire and the pagan eastern part. However, there is no foundation for this. There were Christians in both parts of the empire and it is not known whether one part had more Christians than the other.

A highly likely reason was Propaganda, which Constantine was very good at. He had even invented a fictitious descent from the family of a previous emperor to give legitimacy to his quest for power before he became sole emperor. He became sole emperor after winning two civil wars, one against a usurper emperor in Italy and one against his co-emperor, Licinius. A new capital designated by him and named after himself drove the point that the empire now had a sole ruler. It would show his splendour, give him further prestige and act as a symbol of the new dawn for the empire his rule would usher in. The city was also given titles such as "The New, Second Rome,' 'Eastern Rome,' 'Alma Roma,' and 'Roma Constantinopolitana.' The city had seven hills like Rome. This created a similarity with Rome which helped to justify the titles mentioned above. Constantine built his imperial palace complex between a hill and the forum and by to the hippodrome (the Greek name for circus, the Chariot Racing track), basing the layout of the Palatine Hill-Forum Circus Maximum model of Rome.

Answer 2

Constantine became emperor in A.D 312 after Diocletian. He made changes but his changes did not halt the empire`s decline in the west.