The Medieval World

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Medieval Europe 04: Monasticism Jan 01, 2014

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In the previous lecture, we saw the rise of the early medieval Church. We saw the solidification and concentration of power under the Papacy of Gregory the Great. In this lecture, we are going to explore another Christian phenomenon, monasticism, which is the processes of experiencing the Christian faith as a monk, be it as a hermit or in a communal living space called a monastery. Throughout this lecture, I answer a fundamental question, what was monasticism and how did it develop? In addition to this, I also address how it functioned inside and outside of the Church.

Heavy Interlude by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100515 Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Medieval Europe 03: The Early Medieval Church (30-604) Jan 01, 2014

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In the previous lecture, we saw the Byzantine Empire try and regain its holdings in the West. These attempts, while initially successful, ultimately failed. With the Roman state largely gone in the West and the fractured nature of Europe with barbarian kingdoms, there really was one final authority in the West, the Church and this is the subject of this lecture. We will be looking at the Church from the death of Jesus up to the death of Pope Gregory the Great. This lecture will lay the foundations necessary for discussing the Church and its interactions with various kings in the future lectures as we explore Anglo-Saxon England, Ireland, and Merovingian Gaul.

Medieval Europe 02: The Gothic War (535-554) Jan 01, 2014

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In the previous lecture we looked the Barbarian Kingdoms that popped up across Europe in the fifth century. As we saw, these “barbarians” were heavily Romanized. In my final lecture on Rome, I explained why it is quite complicated to simply say that the Roman Empire fell with the deposition of Romulus Augustulus in 476. One of the reasons, I said, was because the Roman Empire continued on in the East until it finally fell nearly 1,000 years later. In this lecture, we will meet one of the more significant Eastern Roman Emperors, a man named Justinian.

Medieval Europe 01: The Barbarian Kingdoms (476-533) Jan 01, 2014

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Welcome to the Middle Ages. If you are coming to these lectures having just finished my lectures on Rome, there will be some minor overlap here. If you have not listened to my lectures on Rome, I recommend listening to the last few so that you can begin these lectures with a running start.

In the coming lectures, we will be looking at Europe’s transition from the fifth to the fifteenth century. This lecture begins by looking at the so-called “barbarian” kingdoms after the deposition of Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman Emperor in the West formally recognized as Roman Emperor by the Roman state. This will lay the groundwork necessary for understanding the next lecture in which we explore the early sixth century invasions of western Europe by the Eastern Roman Emperor, Justinian.

Rome 29: The End of the Western Roman Empire? Jan 01, 2011

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In the last lecture, we saw the Goths rise up and overthrow the last Roman Emperor in the West. In this lecture, we ask a single, simple question. Did the Roman Empire in fact fall? The answer, as we shall see, is more complicated than it may seem.

Rome 28: The Goths Jan 01, 2011

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In the last lecture, we got a sense of what Europe looked like as Rome expanded northward and westward. It was a diverse region with many different peoples, separated roughly into two groups: the Celtic and the “Germanic” tribes. In this lecture, I want to zoom in and examine, more closely a “Germanic” tribe called the Goths. The reason for this is because the Goths will largely be responsible for maintaining some of the institutions of the Roman Empire once it “falls” in the West.

Rome 27: The "Germanic" Tribes Jan 01, 2011

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In the last lecture, we met the Celts, a diverse people who inhabited Gaul, modern-day France, and Ireland primarily. In this lecture, we will examine another major group of people who are collectively referred to as “Germans” or “Germanic” tribes. Like the classification of the Celts as Celts, Germanic tribes are classified by culture and language. But also like the Celts, these people were quite diverse and resided in regions from Scandinavia to Bavaria and from eastern Europe to England. In this lecture, we will meet some of the more important Germanic peoples with whom the Romans came into contact.

Rome 26: The Celts Jan 01, 2011

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In the past few lectures, we’ve seen the rise of Christianity and its acceptance in Rome. In this lecture, I want to look at another theme, the people whom Romans called “barbarians.” This will be the first of a few lectures that address this group of people. As we shall see, there were roughly two categories of the so-called barbarians: the Celtic Tribes and the Germanic tribes. In this lecture, we explore the former.

Rome 24: The Rise of Christianity Jan 01, 2011

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Before reading this chapter, STOP. Take a moment and think about what your perceptions are of the medieval Church. What came to mind? The Pope, corruption, scandal, power, controllers of Europe, manipulators of kings? These popular images of the medieval Church and the Papacy are not unfounded. But these images and notions are, for the most part, that of a Church developed. In the Early Middle Ages the Papacy was only a few hundred years old. Christianity was only made legal in the the early fourth century by Emperor Constantine and not made the official religion of the Roman Empire until 380 by Emperor Theodosius. What did the Church look like before this? How much power did it wield after? And how did it function after the "fall" of the Roman Empire in the West in the late fifth century? These questions shall frame this lecture.

Rome 23: The Crisis of the Third Century Jan 01, 2011

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In the previous lectures, we’ve seen the relatively good rule of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty. In this lecture, we turn to the third century. Unfortunately for Rome, this is a period known as the Crisis of the Third Century. The reason is rather similar to the crisis we saw in 69 when there were four emperors in a single year, just stretched out over much of a century. The crisis was the result of economic, militaristic, and egoistical problems that emerged all at once. Power became divided and the manners of ascension became inconsistent and decentralized.

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