S6 CHRISTIAN GREECE AND LIVING GREEK. work in human history: that work was to pre- serve civilization during the period of barbarism which we call the Middle Ages. For the per- formance of that work no abundant originality was needful. The mission of Christian Con- stantinople was not to create, but to save; and that mission she fulfilled for the benefit of the Europe of the future. It is not just on the part of the modern world, which has thus profited thereby, to refuse to its benefactors the tribute of this gratitude, and still less so when it carica- tures history in order to lessen the apparent burden of its indebtedness." The first fundamental principle is that the Byzantine Empire was built on the most perfect centralization. This principle of the Byzantines found its best support in the site, and thereby in the military and commercial signifiance of the capital, of Constantinople. The history of nine centuries from Justinian I. to the entrance of Ma- homet II. into the blood-soaked streets of Byzan- tium shows what great ideas Constantine had in view when he founded his new residence. Since the day on which he transferred the seat of gov- ernment to the Bosphorus it has from century to century become more apparent what wonderful offensive and defensive strength the new capital
