Editing Justinian I (section)

===Economy and administration===
{{further|Byzantine silk}}
[[File:Gold coin of Justinian I 527CE 565CE excavated in India probably in the south.jpg|thumb|Gold coin of Justinian I (527–565) excavated in [[India]] probably in the south, an example of [[Indo-Roman trade]] during the period]]

As was the case under Justinian's predecessors, the empire was an agrarian-based economy. In addition, long-distance trade flourished, reaching as far north as [[Cornwall]] where tin was exchanged for Roman wheat.<ref>John F. Haldon, "Economy and Administration", in Michael Maas (ed.), ''The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Justinian'' (Cambridge 2005), pp. 28–59 (p. 35)</ref> Within the empire, convoys sailing from [[Alexandria]] provided Constantinople with wheat and grains. Justinian made the traffic more efficient by building a large granary on the island of [[Ancient Tenedos|Tenedos]] for storage and further transport to Constantinople.<ref>John Moorhead, ''Justinian'' (London/New York 1994), p. 57</ref> Justinian also tried to find new routes for the eastern trade, which was suffering badly from the wars with the Persians.

Silk was an important luxury product, which was imported and then processed in the empire. In order to protect the manufacture of silk products, Justinian granted a monopoly to the imperial factories in 541.<ref>Peter Brown, ''The World of Late Antiquity'' (London 1971), pp. 157–158</ref> In order to bypass the Persian landroute, Justinian established friendly relations with the [[Kingdom of Axum|Abyssinians]], whom he wanted to act as trade mediators by transporting Indian silk to the empire; the Abyssinians, however, were unable to compete with the Persian merchants in India.<ref>Vasiliev (1952), p. 167</ref> Then, in the early 550s, two monks succeeded in [[Smuggling of silkworm eggs into the Byzantine Empire|smuggling eggs of silk worms]] from [[Central Asia]] back to Constantinople,<ref>See Moorhead (1994), p. 167; Procopius, ''Wars'', 8.17.1–8</ref> and silk became an indigenous product.

[[File:Byzantinischer Mosaizist des 5. Jahrhunderts 002.jpg|thumb|Scene from daily life on a mosaic from the [[Great Palace of Constantinople]], early 6th century]]

Gold and silver were mined in the Balkans, Anatolia, Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt and Nubia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://technology.infomine.com/articles/1/3707/justinian-gold.roman-mines.egypt-gold/justinian%E2%80%99s.gold.mines.aspx |title=Justinian's Gold Mines – Mining Technology &#124; TechnoMine |publisher=Technology.infomine.com |date=3 December 2008 |access-date=14 November 2012 |archive-date=2 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090302061813/http://technology.infomine.com/articles/1/3707/justinian-gold.roman-mines.egypt-gold/justinian%E2%80%99s.gold.mines.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> At the start of Justinian I's reign, he had inherited a surplus 28,800,000 ''solidi'' (400,000 pounds of gold) in the imperial treasury from Anastasius I and [[Justin I]].<ref name="tulane.edu"/> Under Justinian's rule, measures were taken to counter corruption in the provinces and to make tax collection more efficient. Greater administrative power was given to both the leaders of the [[prefectures]] and of the provinces, while power was taken away from the [[vicarius|vicariates]] of the [[dioceses]], of which a number were abolished. The overall trend was towards a simplification of administrative infrastructure.<ref>Haldon (2005), p. 50</ref> According to [[Peter Brown (historian)|Brown]] (1971), the increased professionalization of tax collection did much to destroy the traditional structures of provincial life, as it weakened the autonomy of the town councils in the Greek towns.<ref>Brown (1971), p. 157</ref> It has been estimated that before Justinian I's reconquests the state had an annual revenue of 5,000,000 ''solidi'' in AD 530, but after his reconquests, the annual revenue was increased to 6,000,000 ''solidi'' in AD 550.<ref name="tulane.edu"/>

Throughout Justinian's reign, the cities and villages of the East thrived, although [[Antioch]] was struck by two earthquakes (526, 528) and sacked and evacuated by the [[Sassanid Empire|Persians]] (540). Justinian had the city rebuilt, but on a slightly smaller scale.<ref>Kenneth G. Holum, "The Classical City in the Sixth Century", in Michael Maas (ed.), ''Age of Justinian'' (2005), pp. 99–100</ref>

The empire suffered several major setbacks in the course of the 6th century. The first one was the plague, which lasted from 541 to 543 and, by decreasing the empire's population, probably created a scarcity of labor and a rising of wages.<ref>Moorhead (1994), pp. 100–101</ref> It has been proposed that the lack of manpower also led to a significant increase in the number of "barbarians" in the Byzantine armies after the early 540s,<ref>John L. Teall, "The Barbarians in Justinian's Armies", in ''Speculum'', vol. 40, No. 2, 1965, 294–322. The total strength of the Byzantine army under Justinian is estimated at 150,000 men (J. Norwich, ''Byzantium: The Early Centuries'', 259).</ref> but others are skeptical of this view.<ref>A.D. Lee, "The Empire at War", in Michael Maas (ed.), ''The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Justinian'' (2005), p. 118</ref> The protracted war in Italy and the wars with the Persians themselves laid a heavy burden on the empire's resources, and Justinian was criticized for curtailing the government-run post service, which he limited to only one eastern route of military importance.<ref>Brown (1971), p. 158; Moorhead (1994), p. 101</ref>