Chapter 6- Economy and Society of the High Middle Ages 6.1- Europe’s population grew rapidly in the high middle ages which caused agricultural production to increase due to the spread of new technologies and newly cultivated lands. 6.2- Technological innovations for agriculture produced the economic prosperities prior to the nineteenth century, because the economy was reliant on agriculture, although much of the technology wasn’t widespread until after 1050. 6.2.1- In the eleventh-century water and wind power were being exploited, by the end of the century water mills fell into disrepair and windmills became more popular, it took two centuries for them to appear in Western Europe.
The first reason the Dark Ages were not as dark as the name claims for them to be, is because during the Dark Ages there were tons of advances in education. The information in Doc A that claims “Europe suffered a decline in commerce and manufacturing, in education, in literature and the arts and in almost all that makes possible a high civilization.” is completely biased. And that the Dark Ages “Did not support learning” (Background Information) which is completely untrue. During the Dark Ages, there were still people learning and teaching. One of them being a monk named Richer, who “went to the town of Chartres, in what is today France, to study.”
The Middle Ages were a time where kings and nobles owned the land and serfs worked with little pay. Serfs were like slaves that worked on a farm (Doc. 1). They got one day to farm for themselves and the other six they were working for their king or noble (OI). Nobles and kings had knights called vassals (OI). Vassals were knights who protected and served kings and nobles in exchange for land (OI).
Europe in Dark Age Before you say “Europe was never in a dark age.” think of the middle ages right after the fall of Rome, in The Crusades or The Black Death. These are just examples of why Europe was in a dark age. The phrase dark age means unsightly and dreadful, the term comes from Francesco Petrarch, he was an Italian scholar who compared Europe to Asia. The dark ages lasted 500 AD to 1500 AD.
According to H. C. Davis’s description of the positive aspects of the middle ages [Document 7], the culture wasn't perfect but in the long run it served as a great influence to other countries. They thought highly of education which is why they took the time to study and flourish in topics, such as philosophy and law. New thoughts formed from the translated works of Aristotle which contributed to Europe's Medieval Universities. All in all, topics grew and became more elaborate over time which strengthened society. Finally, as topics advanced and became more intricate it wasn’t long until they opened a center of learning.
The Middle Ages was a dark time period. It was dark because education and culture were beginning to decline drastically. This is evident in document #1. As it states,”Europe suffered a decline in commerce and manufacturing, in education, in literature and the arts, and in almost all that makes possible a high civilization”. This detail demonstrates that the decline in education caused the civilizations to not reach their best potential and education began to become really rare to find as it was only accessible/available in Churches.
The term dark ages means to be in a time of war, isolation, and sickness, and was first coined by the Petrarch of Italy by comparing it to Rome, the most powerful, wealthy empire known to Europe. During the time of 500 AD through 1500 AD, Europe was in a time of disease, chaos, war and instability. On one hand, people argue that Europe was in a Dark Age, but on the other hand, some historians oppose the idea that Europe was in a growth age. Our own belief is that Europe was in a Dark Age.
The Medieval Ages were a time where many things like romance, art, music, poetry, disease and death all thrived. Everyone in this time period had a different point of view on it. Some thought it was a golden age, some thought it was an age of feudalism, and some also thought it was a dark age. Yes, this time may have had its ups, but it also had many, many downs. Its darkest times consisted of Barbarian invasions, death, and wars.
The Middle Ages led to the Age of Exploration. The Middle Ages (500 CE-1500 CE) was a time in history after the Roman Empire collapsed (476 CE). The Age of Exploration was when people traveled off to foreign lands and explored or traded. The Middle Ages had a lot of important events that led to the Age of Exploration. Here are some examples the fall of the Roman Empire, Feudalism,The Crusades, the Black Death, the Commercial Revolution, the Renaissance, and the Vikings.
The church was the only thing that survived and provided stability, order, and security. An Empire, ran by the idea of a churchly kingdom evolved. The three labels that best describe the middle ages are the Dark Ages, a time of loss and declension, the Age of Faith, a time that was dominated by Christianity and the Golden
The Dark Ages consisted of invasion, and loss of trade and government. “The barbarians have broken through the ramparts. The Saracen [Moors] invasions have spread in successive waves over the South. There is no longer any trade, only unceasing terror...society has no longer any government,” (Doc. 1). These problems led to the decline and therefore this period of time was named the Dark Ages.
In the History Channel's documentary "The Dark Ages", the Early Middle Ages is portrayed in many ways that aren't consistent with actual history. The History Channel portrays the Early Middle Ages as The Dark Ages. The Early Middle Ages was not the actual Dark Ages because, the real Dark Ages was in Greece in 1100-759 B.C.E. when Greece collapsed. However, History Channel's, "The Dark Ages" was supposed to be around 500-1000 C.E. History Channel makes The Early Middle Ages appear as a gloomy, dark, "hellish" time. I'm class we discuss how The Early Middle Ages was a time of art, development, and education.
“ During the Middle ages much of Europe passed through a time of turmoil and confusion, of ignorance and lawlessness. Europe suffered a decline in commerce and manufacturing, in education, in literature and the arts, and in almost all that makes possible a high civilization. Europe became a a region of poverty-stricken farming communities, each virtually isolated from
The Renaissance was a period in time where everything started to change after the middle ages. During this historical period humans stared evolving by becoming smarter and inventing useful recourses that have changed the world. The renaissance was a life changing period which brought more joy to the world after conquering the dark ages. The Renaissance changed man’s view on the world by using Art, Science and Literature to make humans brighter and because of the rapid information they were gaining. Art during the Renaissance grew rapidly because of Leonardo Da Vici, and Michelangelo who changed the way people painted and drew by creating strategies which made art more interesting.
New agricultural technology changed the early middle ages for the better. The agricultural revolution of the middle ages meant a technical advance in farming which makes lives of those involved
