6. Dark Ages
• As the Western Roman Empire became weakened
because of the ills within it, barbaric tribes
swarmed into it. These long years after the end of
the western Roman Empire referred to the Dark
Age.
7.
8. Why the Dark Ages?
Petrarch, who was born in
Arezzo in Tuscany, northern
Italy, in 1304, was able to
look back over almost a
thousand years to what
many historians have
classed as the greatest
disaster ever to afflict
Europe: the end of the
Roman Empire which had
been an oasis of civilization
for five hundred years
before it was swamped by
barbarian invaders during
the 5th Century AD.
9.
10. What was Lost During the Dark Ages?
• The “darkness” which then descended on Europe
was to lasted for some eight or nine hundred
years.
• “The Dark Ages” was not simply a poetic name
designed to stir the imagination. It was an
appropriate description of the immense loss
Europe and Europeans suffered as Roman law
and order broke down and the safety and security
of Pax Romana, the Roman Peace, gave way to
danger and uncertainty.
13. The End of Safeguards
• All safeguards disappeared once the Roman
Army ceased to be the powerful disciplined
force which had once conquered a great
empire. Instead, the Army became weak, torn
by rivalries among its officers.
14. • no longer prevent the Vandals from plundering Rome
in 455AD
• can’t stop other tribal leaders from flooding into the
Empire’s territory
• German tribes such as the Suebi, Ostrogoths
and Alani swarmed into Roman Spain, Gaul
and Italy where they killed, robbed, enslaved
and destroyed
15.
16. The Invaders Settle Down
• The raiders had not come just to raid and rob
and then go home, taking their booty with
them. In time, they settled in the fertile, well-
developed lands which offered them a better
life than they could have in their own, home,
territory.
17. However, the
Anglo-Saxons had
no use for the
elegant Roman
towns many of
which became
deserted. The
once well-kept
gardens became
overgrown with
weeds. The
fountains in town
streets which had
once flowed with
21. MIDDLE AGES
Period of gloom was followed by the period
middle ages, which extended from the 5th to
15th century.
22. It represents the gradual
but steady and laborious
progress of civilization
In this period, the church
was rising into power and
authority. Practically all
intellectual pursuits and
activities took place in the
monasteries
23. Christianity Spreads to Northern
Europe
• As the Roman Empire fell, various groups
from the north and east moved into former
Roman lands. As they moved in, these groups
created their own states. The rulers of these
states, usually powerful warlords, began to
call themselves kings. These kings often
fought among themselves and as a result, by
the early 500s Europe was divided into many
small kingdoms.
24. • These kingdoms marked the beginning of the
Middle Ages, a period that lasted from about
500 to about 1500. We call this time the
“middle” ages because it falls between ancient
times and modern times. Another name for
the Middle Ages is the medieval (mee-DEE-
vuhl) period, from the Latin words for “middle
age.”
25. • At the beginning of the Middle Ages, many of
the kingdoms of northern Europe were not
Christian. Christianity was only common in
places that had been part of the Roman
Empire, such as Italy and Spain. As time
passed, however, Christianity slowly spread
farther north. This spread was largely through
the efforts of two groups of Christians—
missionaries and monks.
27. Epic
The literature of civilized Europe is believed to have
begun with the epic literature of the middle age
Epics are part of the oral literature which, later,
was written down.
28. Epic is inseparable from the idea of
grandeur, it is inferred purely as an individual
can be the proper subject of an epic. A hero
remains an individual although he rises
above the average human stature; but a hero
becomes an epic hero when he represents
something greater than himself- a nation, a
race, a faith.
29. They also
reflect the
life of and
civilization
of a heroic
age and
reveal the
influence of
Christianity.
