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The Middle Ages, or medieval period, spanned roughly from 500 to 1500 AD and traditionally represents the central chapter of European history, bridging classical antiquity and the modern era.
- The Middle Ages: Birth of An Idea
- The Catholic Church in The Middle Ages
- The Middle Ages: The Rise of Islam
- The Crusades
- The Middle Ages: Art and Architecture
- The Black Death
- The Middle Ages: Economics and Society
The phrase “Middle Ages” tells us more about the Renaissance that followed it than it does about the era itself. Starting around the 14th century, European thinkers, writers and artists began to look back and celebrate the art and culture of ancient Greece and Rome. Accordingly, they dismissed the period after the fall of Rome as a “Middle” or even...
After the fall of Rome, no single state or government united the people who lived on the European continent. Instead, the Catholic Church became the most powerful institution of the medieval period. Kings, queens and other leaders derived much of their power from their alliances with and protection of the Church. In 800 CE, for example, Pope Leo II...
Meanwhile, the Islamic world was growing larger and more powerful. After the prophet Muhammad’s death in 632 CE, Muslim armies conquered large parts of the Middle East, uniting them under the rule of a single caliph. At its height, the medieval Islamic world was more than three times bigger than all of Christendom. Under the caliphs, great cities s...
Toward the end of the 11th century, the Catholic Church began to authorize military expeditions, or Crusades, to expel Muslim “infidels” from the Holy Land. Crusaders, who wore red crosses on their coats to advertise their status, believed that their service would guarantee the remission of their sins and ensure that they could spend all eternity i...
Another way to show devotion to the Church was to build grand cathedrals and other ecclesiastical structures such as monasteries. Cathedrals were the largest buildings in medieval Europe, and they could be found at the center of towns and cities across the continent. Between the 10th and 13th centuries, most European cathedrals were built in the Ro...
Between 1347 and 1350, a mysterious disease known as the " Black Death" (the bubonic plague) killed some 20 million people in Europe—30 percent of the continent’s population. It was especially deadly in cities, where it was impossible to prevent the transmission of the disease from one person to another. The plague started in Europe in October 1347...
In medieval Europe, rural life was governed by a system scholars call “feudalism.” In a feudal society, the king granted large pieces of land called fiefs to noblemen and bishops. Landless peasants known as serfs did most of the work on the fiefs: They planted and harvested crops and gave most of the produce to the landowner. In exchange for their ...
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Overview: The Middle Ages, 1154 - 1485. Far from their dour reputation, the Middle Ages were a period of massive social change, burgeoning nationalism, international conflict, terrible natural...
Jul 10, 2020 · In Florence, laypeople in the late 1420s could expect to live only 28.5 years (men) and 29.5 years (women). Dying a ‘good’ death was very important to medieval people, and was the subject of many books.
Nov 15, 2018 · Ask medieval historian Michael McCormick what year was the worst to be alive, and he's got an answer: "536." Not 1349, when the Black Death wiped out half of Europe. Not 1918, when the flu killed 50 million to 100 million people, mostly young adults.
May 26, 2024 · Spanning approximately 1000 years from the 5th to the 15th century, the medieval period saw the formation of European kingdoms, the rise of the Catholic Church, the ravages of the Black Death, and the beginnings of the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery.
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Jun 17, 2011 · Overview: The Middle Ages, 1154 - 1485. By Professor Tom James. Last updated 2011-06-17. Far from their dour reputation, the Middle Ages were a period of massive social change, burgeoning ...
