How valid is the view of Medieval Europe as a 'Dark Age'?

Tanja Hollederer

• Publisher: GRIN Verlag
• Year: 2005
• eBook ISBN: 9783638418614
• Edition: 0
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: European History
• Index: History

Essay from the year 2005 in the subject History of Europe - Middle Ages, Early Modern Age, grade: High Distinction, University of New England (Australia), language: English, abstract: Nowadays, when the people think about the Middle Ages, names like Joan of Arc, Nostradamus, Richard the Lionheart, William the Conqueror, King Arthur, and Robin Hoodimmediately spring to mind. Chivalry, magic, romance, adventure, superstition, and tortureare the first characteristics they come up with and events they associate with it are theCrusades, the Hundred Years War, witchcraft trials, and the spread of the Black Death. As themodern view of the Middle Ages is biased by novels and the latest Hollywood movies, ingeneral, the perception of it as a time of glorious battles and brave knights dominates. The ageis glorified in annual festivals like knight games and bard contests, partly because this is moreattractive and partly because the inconvenience of everyday life then can hardly be imaginedby people enjoying today's living standards. This has not always been the case, yet. The termMiddle Ages indicates what Italian humanists of the Renaissance think about that time. Theysee it as a mere interim between the greatness of the Antiquity and its revival in theRenaissance.1 Furthermore, this episode is often referred to as the Dark Age, an expressionintroduced by Petrarch in the 1330s and later used to criticise the lack of culturalachievements during that period of time.2 The question, how valid this view is concerningMedieval Europe, forms the centre of the following explanations. To answer it, the paperfollows the common distinction between the Early Middle Ages (500-1050), the High MiddleAges (1050 to 1250), and the Late Middle Ages (1250-1500)3. After talking about each phaseseparately, it brings findings together in a conclusion answering the initial question. Due tothe limits of this essay, it will deal with the question from an economic point of viewexclusively. 1 See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages#Periodization_issues. 2 See www.answers.com/topic/dark_ages. 3 See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages#Periodization_issues.