Download After Charlemagne - Saugerties Central School

The Early Middle Ages
After the fall of Rome, waves of invaders
swept across Europe. Trade slowed, towns
emptied, and learning ceased. From 500 to
1000, Europe was backward and isolated.
This period is often referred to as the “Dark
Ages.” Eventually, a new medieval civilization
emerged that blended Roman, Germanic, and
Christian traditions.
Geography of Western Europe
Location
Relatively small – second smallest in land area of the seven
continents
Lies on the western end of Eurasia, the giant land mass
stretching from Portugal to China
Resources
A frontier land – a sparsely populated, undeveloped area on
the outskirts of civilization
Untapped potential
Dense forests in the north
Rich soil for farming
Underground mineral resources
Seas for food and transportation
Rivers for trade and streams to turn water wheels
The Germanic Kingdoms
The Franks
•Between 400 and 700, Germanic tribes carved Western Europe
into small kingdoms
•The strongest kingdom to emerge was that of the Franks
In 486, their king, Clovis,
conquered the former Roman
province of Gaul
He converted to Christianity
This gained him the support
of the people in Gaul
It also gained him a powerful
ally in the Christian Church of
Rome
Europe and the Muslims
•The religion of Islam began in Arabia in 622.
•From there, Muslims built a huge empire and created a new
civilization.
Muslim armies overran Christian
lands from Palestine to North Africa
to Spain.
A Muslim army invaded France,
but was defeated at the battle of
Tours in 732 by the Frankish king,
Charles Martel.
Muslims advanced no farther into
Europe, but continued to rule most
of Spain.
•Christians viewed Muslims with hostility, but would learn
much from them
The Age of Charlemagne
•Around 800, Charlemagne built an empire across France, Germany,
and part of Italy.
•His conquests reunited much of the old Roman Empire
The Age of Charlemagne
A Christian Emperor
•After Charlemagne crushed a rebellion in Rome in 800, the pope
placed a crown on his head and proclaimed him Emperor of the
Romans.
In doing so, the pope revived
the idea of a united Christian
community.
He also laid the ground for
power struggles between future
popes and German emperors.
It also helped widen the split
between the eastern and western
Christian worlds.
The Age of Charlemagne
Government
•Charlemagne tried to exercise control over his many lands and
create a united Christian Europe
Working closely with Church,
he helped spread Christianity to
the conquered peoples on the
fringes of his empire.
He appointed powerful nobles
to rule local regions.
To keep control, he sent out
officials called missi dominici to
see that justice was done.
The Age of Charlemagne
Revival of Learning
•Charlemagne wanted to revive Latin learning in his empire.
•Education had drastically declined, but he saw the need for
educated officials to keep accurate records and write clear reports.
•Charlemagne founded a school at Aachen, his capital, under the
direction of a respected scholar, Alcuin of York.
Alcuin created a curriculum,
or formal course of study, based
on Latin learning.
He also hired scholars to copy
ancient manuscripts, including
the Bible and Latin works of
history and science.
After Charlemagne
•After Charlemagne’s death in 814, his empire soon fell apart.
•In 843, his three grandsons drew up the Treaty of Verdun, which split
the empire into three regions.
After Charlemagne
Legacy of Charlemagne
He extended Christian
civilization into northern
Europe.
He furthered the blending of
German, Roman, and Christian
traditions.
He set up a strong, efficient
government that later rulers
looked to as an example.
A New Wave of Invaders
In the late 800s, Muslims
conquered Sicily, which became
a thriving center of Islamic
culture.
From Hungary, the Magyars
overran eastern Europe and
plundered Germany, parts of
France, and Italy.
The Vikings burst out of
Scandinavia and looted and
burned communities along the
coasts and rivers of Europe.