Medieval Europe: A Short History Book

Abbreviations and Conventions xi

Biographical Sketches xii

Medieval Myths xiii

Timelines xiv

Maps xv

List of Figures xvi

Preface xix

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Romans, Christians, and Barbarians 4

The Early Middle Ages 4

The Roman Peace (31 B.C.E-180 C.E.) and After 5

Christianity 8

Barbarians and the Western Empire 19

The Decline of the Western Empire 25

Conclusion 27

Chapter 2 Early Western Christendom, c. 500-700 28

Introduction 28

Early Medieval Society 28

Early Medieval Politics 33

The Early Medieval Church 40

Intellectual Life 48

Conclusion 50

Chapter 3 Neighbors: Byzantium and Islam, c. 500-1000 51

Introduction 51

From Eastern to Byzantine Empire 52

The Byzantine Centuries 59

The Ascent of Islam 65

The Islamic Empire 70

Islamic Culture 77

Conclusion 79

Chapter 4 Carolingian Europe, c. 700-850 80

Introduction 80

The Early Carolingians 82

Charlemagne (r. 768-814) 83

Intellectual Revival 95

Conclusion 100

Chapter 5 Division, Invasion, and Reorganization, c. 800-1000 102

Introduction 102

Division: The Later Carolingians 102

Invasion: Muslims, Magyars, and Vikings 104

Reorganization: New Polities 111

Conclusion 130

Chapter 6 Economic Takeoff and Social Change, c. 1000-1300 131

The Central Middle Ages 131

Agricultural Revolution 139

Rural Society 141

The Commercial Revolution 150

Urban Society 156

The Landholding Aristocracy 162

Feudal Society 163

Conclusion 166

Chapter 7 Popes and the Papacy, c. 1000-1300 167

Introduction 167

Papacy, Clergy, and Laity, c. 1000-1122 168

The Reformed Papacy and Its Church 175

Innocent III and the Papacy Ascendant 184

The Papacy after 1250 187

Conclusion 189

Chapter 8 New Paths to God, c. 1000-1300 190

Introduction 190

Judaism 190

The Evolution of Christian Piety 191

Orthodoxy and Heresy 197

Changes in Monastic Life 199

The Mendicant Orders 205

Conclusion 210

Chapter 9 Conquests, Crusades, and Persecutions, c. 1100-1300 211

Introduction 211

Conquests and Territorial Expansion 212

Crusades 221

Persecutions 231

Conclusion 235

Chapter 10 States Made and Unmade, c. 1000-1300 236

Introduction 236

The Holy Roman Empire: Disintegration 237

England: King and Parliament 248

France: The Monarchy Triumphant 258

Iberia: Some Consolidation 267

The States of Northern and Eastern Europe 268

Conclusion 268

Chapter 11 Literature, Art, and Thought, c. 1000-1300 269

Introduction 269

Byzantine and Islamic Influences 270

Intellectual Trends 271

Literature 283

Architecture and Sculpture 290

Conclusion 296

Chapter 12 Famine, Plague, and Recovery, c. 1300-1500 297

The Later Middle Ages 297

Economic Woes and Demographic Crisis (1300-1350) 301

Adjustment and Recovery (1350-1500) 306

Late Medieval Christianity 313

Conclusion 321

Chapter 13 Toward the Sovereign State, c. 1300-1500 322

Introduction 322

England, France, and the Hundred Years' War 323

England: Parliament, Civil War, and Tudor Monarchy 327

France: Constitutional Crisis, War, and the Spider King 329

The Iberian Slates: Consolidation through Homogenization 332

New Powers on the European Periphery 335

The Heritage of the Holy Roman Empire 338

Conclusion 341

Chapter 14 Diversity and Dynamism in Culture, c. 1300-1500 344

Introduction 344

Literacy and Vernacular Languages 345

Humanist Education 347

Literature 350

Art and Architecture 352

Philosophy 354

Political Thought 359

Conclusion 360

Glossary G-1

Photo Credits P-1

Index I-1