Why Medieval Studies?

What were the Middle Ages?

The one thousand year span of time between the fall of the ancient world and the beginning of the modern era, the middle age, is, in English, commonly referred to as the Middle Ages. English-speaking scholars break this long period of time into three distinct phases: the early Middle Ages, the high Middle Ages, and the late Middle Ages.

Scholars of the early Middle Ages concern themselves primarily with the transition away from the characteristic cultural, social, and institutional systems of Greece and Rome. They begin with the Germanic migrations, formerly referred to as the barbarian invasions. The arrival of new peoples in the domain of the old Roman empire meant radical changes to the fabric of European civilization. In the past, scholars viewed the loss of Roman ways as a great tragedy, one that would only be corrected one thousand years later when ancient culture was "reborn" in the Renaissance. This way of thinking gave birth to the somewhat derogatory term the Dark Age. Today, however, we appreciate much more that the ancient ways of the Romans did not disappear but, rather, were transformed. They were infused with new ways of doing things and new ways of thinking. Although many Roman traditions and institutions were lost or decayed, others continued on or were transformed. One great link between the ancient world and the early Middle Ages, of course, was Latin. Latin remained the lingua franca, the common tongue, of the educated in Europe. Another great link between ancient Rome and early medieval Europe, of course, was the Catholic church. During the early Middle Ages, the church succeeded in converting most of Europe to Christianity. So, the study of the early Middle Ages is concerned with examining the transformation of Roman Europe into something new and exciting.

The high Middle Ages, from roughly about the turn of the millennium to about 1300, saw the flourishing of medieval culture. During this era many of the institutions typically associated with medieval Europe peaked and began to decline. Knighthood and chivalry, the Crusades, the Roman Catholic papacy, and monasticism are just some major examples. In the high Middle Ages, as populations settled and the great migrations of the prior era ended, kingdoms began to take shape. As a result, it is during this time that Europeans laid the foundations for their modern nation-states. The artistic climate of this time fostered great innovations. The survival of the great gothic cathedrals is a testimony to this fact. At the same time, the rediscovery of Aristotle, lost in the West for hundreds of years, sparked major innovations, too. Kings and princes competed to establish the first universities whose students and masters articulated new ways of thinking and ordering knowledge. In the south of Europe, the reconstitution of Roman law allowed civil and ecclesiastical jurists to reassess and redevelop their systems of justice.

By the late Middle Ages, the west stood on the threshold of a new world. Between 1300 and 1500, everything Europeans knew to be true changed. The beginning of the fourteenth century saw the arrival in Europe of the Great Famine with its ensuing demographic crisis. Hundreds of thousands starved to death after 1315. Two generations later, and linked to that climatic event, the first wave of plague hit Europe. Although scholars no longer accept without reservation that this was Bubonic plague, the impact of the Black Death is incontrovertible. In the following years, some one-third of Europeans died suddenly. While all of this happened, the major super powers of the day, England and France, battled each other in the Hundred Years War. The papacy, chased out of Italy, relocated to the city of Avignon, which is today in southern France. Although the popes eventually returned to Rome, a split in the church resulted in not one but two, and, eventually, three, popes. Challenges to Catholicism continued in the fourteenth century and, unlike earlier perceived heresies, the church was unable to silence them effectively. From England to Bohemia Europeans expressed their discontent with the broken church. Meanwhile, one the great symbolic remnants of chivalric idealism, the Knights Templar, were disgraced. The king of France burned the Grand Master of the Templars while the pope, the knight's protector, stood by. Throughout all of these crises new economic powers were stirring. In urban centres everywhere a growing class of merchants and artisans flexed their economic muscles and demanded a political voice. These transformations continued until, at the end of the fifteenth century, Europe appeared very different. The hegemony of the Catholic church was broken. The discovery of the New World greatly expanded the boundaries of European expansion. New technologies, such as the importation of gunpowder from China, and improvements to ship building, changed the face of warfare. The solidification of national monarchies led to the development of international relations on a state level. These and other factors signalled the end of the middle age and the start of something new and different.

Why Study the Middle Ages?

If you are interested in, or have read about, the Crusades, the Black Death, courtly love, the Hundred Years War, cathedrals, Geoffrey Chaucer, illuminated manuscripts, Latin, monasticism, Thomas Aquinas, Augustine, the fall of the Roman empire, Joan of Arc, the trial of the Knights Templar, the Vikings, the Celts, the rise of Islam, the fall of Constantinople, or the capture of Jerusalem, you already understand something about the value of such knowledge.

But Medieval Studies is not simply about studying the past for its own sake. In that light, the study of western society between the fall of the Roman Empire and the discovery of the New World may even appear, to some, outmoded, Euro-centric, or irrelevant. In fact, however, such study is essential in helping us to interpret the world around us.

A few examples illustrate. In a post 9/11 world it is essential to understand the historical inter-connectedness and mutual evolution between Islam and Christianity or Europe and the Near East. It is equally vital, as Europe moves toward ever greater legal, economic, and political union, and as regional resentments toward such a move increase, to understand European hegemony prior to the rise of nation-states and nationalism. Further, the lessons of past empires are instructive as super powers topple opposing regimes and are then met with forceful resistance. More concretely, when first-world countries seek to develop the third-world, medieval peasants provide successful agricultural strategies and technologies. Parliament, religion, universities: all have medieval structures as do our sexual values, our gender norms, and many of our cultural priorities and biases. So, if you want to understand where we are, you need to understand where how we got here. Medieval Studies gives students the tools necessary to interpret the world around them at the most fundamental level.