The borders of the empire fluctuated through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Justinian I (r. 527–565), the empire reached its greatest extent after the fall of the west, reconquering much of the historically Roman western Mediterranean coast, including Africa, Italy, and Rome, which it held for two more centuries. The Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628 exhausted the empire's resources, and during the early Muslim conquests of the 7th century, it lost its richest provinces—Egypt and Syria—to the Rashidun Caliphate. It then lost Africa to the Umayyads in 698, before the empire was stabilized by the Isaurian dynasty.
ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY b ɔ ɹ d ə ɹ z WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ m p aɪ ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY f l ʌ k t̠ʃ uː eɪ t ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY θ ɹ uː WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ v ɹ ə l WORD_BOUNDARY s aɪ k ə l z WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ k l aɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ ɪ k ʌ v ə ɹ ɹ i WORD_BOUNDARY d ʊ ɹ ɹ ɪ ŋ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ eɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY d̠ʒ ʌ s t ɪ n iə n WORD_BOUNDARY aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɑ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY f aɪ v h ʌ n d ɹ ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY t w ɛ n t i WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ v ə n WORD_BOUNDARY f aɪ v h ʌ n d ɹ ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY s ɪ k s t i WORD_BOUNDARY f aɪ v WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ m p aɪ ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ iː t̠ʃ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t s WORD_BOUNDARY ɡ ɹ eɪ t ɪ s t WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ k s t ɛ n t WORD_BOUNDARY æ f t ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY f ɔ l WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY w ɛ s t WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ iː k ɑ ŋ k ə ɹ ɹ ɪ ŋ WORD_BOUNDARY m ʌ t̠ʃ WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY h ɪ s t ɔ ɹ ɪ k l i WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ oʊ m ə n WORD_BOUNDARY w ɛ s t ə ɹ n WORD_BOUNDARY m ɛ d ɪ t ɪ ɹ eɪ n iə n WORD_BOUNDARY k oʊ s t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ ŋ k l uː d ɪ ŋ WORD_BOUNDARY æ f ɹ ɪ k ə WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t ə l i WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ oʊ m WORD_BOUNDARY w ɪ t̠ʃ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY h ɛ l d WORD_BOUNDARY f ɔ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY t uː WORD_BOUNDARY m ɔ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ n t̠ʃ ə ɹ ɹ i z WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY b ɪ z ʌ n t iː n WORD_BOUNDARY s æ s eɪ n iə n WORD_BOUNDARY w ɔ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY s ɪ k s h ʌ n d ɹ ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY t uː WORD_BOUNDARY s ɪ k s h ʌ n d ɹ ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY t w ɛ n t i WORD_BOUNDARY eɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ ɡ z ɔ s t ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ m p aɪ ə ɹ z WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ ɪ s ɔ ɹ s ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY d ʊ ɹ ɹ ɪ ŋ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɜː l i WORD_BOUNDARY m ʊ z l ɪ m WORD_BOUNDARY k ɑ ŋ k w ɛ s t s WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ v ə n θ WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ n t̠ʃ ə ɹ ɹ i WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY l ɔ s t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t s WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ ɪ t̠ʃ ɪ s t WORD_BOUNDARY p ɹ ɑ v ɪ n s ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY iː d̠ʒ ɪ p t WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY s ɪ ɹ i ə WORD_BOUNDARY t ə WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ æ ʃ ɪ d ʌ n WORD_BOUNDARY k æ l ɪ f eɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɛ n WORD_BOUNDARY l ɔ s t WORD_BOUNDARY æ f ɹ ɪ k ə WORD_BOUNDARY t ə WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY j uː m eɪ j æ d z WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY s ɪ k s h ʌ n d ɹ ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY n aɪ n t i WORD_BOUNDARY eɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY b ɪ f ɔ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ m p aɪ ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY w ʌ z WORD_BOUNDARY s t eɪ b ɪ l aɪ z d WORD_BOUNDARY b aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ s ɔ ɹ iə n WORD_BOUNDARY d aɪ n ʌ s t i WORD_BOUNDARY