Middle Ages: The Dark Age

4. The Romans hired foreign soldiers to help protect their borders. What term describes such a

The Middle Ages is associated with the Dark Ages due to the period including social disorder, political turmoil and widespread disease. The Middle Ages was a period between 500 A.D. to 1500 A.D. during which Europe experienced many drastic changes following the fall of Rome. Some of these changes were beneficial, but the changes also caused negative effects too. Overall, the Middle Ages was a dark time for Europe.

The word "dark" usually hints to death, dullness, or lifelessness. In this way, when one describes the Middle Ages as the "Dark" Ages, it is most likely expected that the time wasn't precisely the most magnificent of times. As opposed to this, the Middle Ages were the complete antithesis. While the early Middle Ages were generally peaceful as far as the knowledge that history books provide, the period was loaded with new thoughts and lively developments. This is not advocated by the expression: "Dark Ages."

Historians first gave the Middle Ages the nickname “Dark Ages” because of the lack of information and evidence the world had on what all had occurred during these times. As time went on, and more information was found, the meaning of the Dark Ages developed into a negative connotation, using dark to describe the overall Middle Ages. I believe the term is outdated in one sense, but in another sense I think the term is perfect. This sense of the term is completely understandable to because of certain events such as the signing of the Magna Carta, and the execution of Joan of Arc.

Europe fell into the Dark Ages in 410 AD, when the Mother of the World fell to economic and social troubles. Rome had supplied food, language, and knowledge of architecture and farming, et cetera. So much, in fact, that Europe was conquered immediately after Rome fell. The Visigoths are a tribe of nomadic barbarians from Germany, who are more commonly referred to as the Goths. They were the ones who conquered Europe after the Mother of the World’s demise.

During the Middle ages it experienced many things that would be considered dark, faithful, and Feudal. The Middle ages were dark because they were attacked by several disasters; including the Bubonic plague, robberies connected to pirates and “booty”. The Middle ages were faithful because during these dark times there was no government, so everyone had to go and connect with their local church and the churches had to be the government figure for everyone. The churches eventually got lots of the church to go fight for the Crusades, which lasted for a hundred years. The Middle ages would have been called Feudal because the Feudal system was their social order and that's how they operated in life. If I could label the Middle ages it would be dark

The most desolate time period in history lasted roughly from A.D. 400 to A.D. 1000 and was plagued with no social progress, incessant warfare, lawlessness, recurring epidemics, and low intellect of the people. This was considered the Dark Age, or the medieval ages. The Dark Ages are thought of by historians to be extremely dim, no notable progress, and controlled heavily by the rise of the Christian Church. The medieval age followed the decline of the Roman empire which fell in the fifth century due to barbaric attacks, strength of the empire’s rulers, and religious changes of the period. The same problems of the Roman Empire continued into the medieval ages. William Manchester author of A World Lit Only by Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance, Portrait of an Age discusses the concept of the medieval mind and the history of the time period. According to Manchester the medieval world was not a civilization, “If by civilization one means a society which has reached a relatively high level of cultural ad technological development, the answer is no” (Manchester, 15). The medieval age had no accomplishments and actually led to a decline of society since the Roman Empire. The medieval ages are characterized by a specific mindset of the medieval people, a narrow world view, and the heavy influence of the Christian Church.

The term “The Dark Ages” has been used for centuries to describe the period of the middle ages, while the term might imply that this period of time was dreary and uneventful it is quite the opposite. The term was first used by historians to describe the period as a way of showing that they had little knowledge of what actually happened, but through time this term greatly changed causing people to believe that the age went without knowledge or innovation and that everyone lived a miserable life. While the term has been misused for a long time the “Dark Ages” was actually filled with many wonders be it through literary, cultural, or political matters.

No, the “Dark Ages” were not dark if you were to look at the sources. The first reason why it wasn’t is that they had a lot of

Is it appropriate to call the middle ages the dark ages? In my opinion, no; it is not at all appropriate. The middle ages has been overlooked for years, The dark ages name was created because people thought the people of that time discovered nothing. This was thought because the middle ages was between two major advancements in society; hence its name, the middle ages. Three major points explain why the dark ages, weren't so dark after all.

Though media sources like ‘The American Cyclopedia’ were interpreted in a way which made the Dark Ages a bad thing; it wasn’t intended to be that way. But instead it was intended to mean that we didn’t have a good grasp of what happened in that time period. Once researchers learned about the things that happened during the Dark Ages they started referring them to the Middle Ages to try and scrap the idea that there

The dark ages is a term used to describe the middle ages, but was it really the dark ages. Yes the early middle ages were known as the dark ages, but to describe it as a whole as the dark ages is false. The middle ages brought many great people and things to the table like the Magna Carta, Joan of Arc, and the Kokin Wakashu Anthology. I believe that these three things are what made the middle ages substantial in history.

Throughout Europe, several figures have influenced the people’s religion and beliefs. From Charlemagne’s empire and religious strengthening to the Pope’s significant role in the government, down to the limited rights of a King, the study of God’s existence and the 95 Theses, we learn of all the true Reformations the Middle Ages has faced.

When Petrarch divided history into three periods – the classical zenith, the age of cultural rot and decay, and the age in which there would be a revival of classical values and art – he did so with the conviction that he was living in the “middle age.” This division was wholly secular, and yet Protestant leaders of the Reformation began and encouraged the study of the Middle Ages. They sought to prove that the Catholic church of the 16th century was doctrinally deviant from the church of apostolic times and pointed to the Middle Ages as the beginning of that deviance. Voltaire studied the Middle Ages in the eighteenth century to scorn its thinkers for their lack of reason – a result, in his view, of their emphasis on religion. These perceptions

According to the sources, the “Dark Ages” were rather a time of prospering and creation. Farmland availability grew tremendously and technological advancements, such as improved water mills, the heavy plow, and metal horseshoes, allowed the food supply to rocket. With that, the population spiked. Areas once deserted were recolonized with many. Adding to that, the Cathedral Notre Dame de Paris, a 420 ft. long, 226 ft. wide cathedral was constructed. The architecture was grand and opulent, adding to the development of Europe. The sources show the prospering economy of Europe in the “Dark