L32_ch09-Early Middle Ages

Timeline: 5th - 9th C

Topic: The "Dark Age" & The Rise of the Frankish Kingdom
FQ: Where in Western Europe did 'light' shine during the 'Dark Age'?

Main Idea: Medieval Europe was a transition between Classical and Modern Europe. The Medieval
European Period was marked by changes brought about initially by the collapse of the Roman
Empire in the West (Western Europe). In this lesson, the focus is the kingdom of the Franks. The
relatively brief period of political and social stability established by the Merovingian and Carolingian
monarchs witnessed significant efforts toward permanent change as well as long-standing
achievement.

Do Now: Word Puzzle

PO: SWBAT...
● Explain how the political vacuum created by the collapse of Rome ushered in a “Dark Age”.
● Describe the peculiar events or developments that addressed the political vacuum.
● Evaluate the impact of the Franks as a stabilizing force as well as contributors to instability.

I. ‘The Dark Ages’: Absence of a central authority changes urban lifestyle.

A. City/ Town Infrastructure Collapse
1. Roads in disrepair
2. Sanitation suffers
3. Aqueducts in disrepair
4. Economic Activity Collapses
a. Lack of Security (ex. law enforcement & fire)
b. Unenforced Standards
B. Population Plummets
1. 2nd Century Rome => ~1,000,000 inhabitants
2. 6th C. Rome => ~30,000 inhabitants.
3. The countryside becomes the destination of many seeking sustenance and security.
C. Institutions Weakened or Disappear (Judicial, Religious, Education)
1. Local loyalties based on kinship replaces loyalty to a central authority.
2. Laws are not codified, but influenced greatly by custom & tradition.
3. Houses of worship experience shrinking congregations. Negative impact on ability to
offer services and maintain the facility.
4. Learning becomes decentralized and provincial (based on local history & customs)

II. ‘The Dark Ages’: From "Goth" to "Frank"1

A. 'Provincial’ [local] authority based on tribal/ kinship bonds. It replaces the duties and
responsibilities of citizenship to a central government.
B. The Goths, a Germanic tribal-based ethnic group, contains many different tribes and
dominate northern and western Europe.
C. Christianity spread among the Germanic tribes before the collapse of Rome through
contact with Roman civilization. The ‘brand’ of Christianity practiced by many Goths was a
hybrid of Roman Catholicism and the native religious beliefs. This ‘heretical’ hybrid faith is
called Arian Christianity.
1. Clovis, the Frank, unifies the Franks and converts to Roman Catholicism in the 5th C.
(Merovingian Family)
2. Kinship ties and loyalties contribute to the conversion of most Goths to Roman
Catholicism.
3. Mayor Domo: (Mayor of the Palace) Exercised 'true' political power in the Frankish
Kingdom.
a. Charles Martel- Charles the Hammer: Expanded the kingdom and concentrated
power in the position.
b. Carolingian Family.
III. The Rise of the Frankish Kingdom
A. The Franks unite many of the Gothic tribes under one central political authority. Thus,
the tribal bonds diminish in importance.
B. The Frank monarch and the Papacy join in an alliance. Pepin the Short (son of Charles
Martel) is anointed King by the Pope. This papal coronation subverts the authority and
legitimacy of the actual Frank king. Pepin vows that the Franks will subdue and convert non-
Roman Catholic tribes that could threaten the Church (eg. The Lombards).
C. Charlemagne ascends the Carolingian throne and establishes his court at Aachen.
1. Succeeds his father (Pepin the Short) as King of the Franks.
2. Despite his illiteracy, he paves the way for a brief rebirth in learning (Carolingian
Renaissance).
a. Carolingian Handwriting
A great accomplishment of Carolingian era monasteries was the preservation
of manuscripts. Monks copied the Bible, works of the Church Fathers, sacred
writings and commentaries, and works of classical authors as well. Many of
the works of ancient Rome that we possess exist in their earliest form in a
Carolingian manuscript. This copying contributed to a reform of handwriting.
Merovingian script [was] all but unreadable, and each copying led to new
corruptions in the text. With the Carolingian Renaissance there was a new
emphasis on accuracy, and this drew attention to the need for better
handwriting.
b. The invention of Carolingian Miniscule,2 was significant. This script has
clear, neat letters, with each word separated from one another, rather than
all run together as Merovingian script often was. Alcuin3 formed a scriptorium
(writing office) that produced many books in the new script and influenced
writers far and wide. One of Charlemagne's capitularies is entitled "On Scribes
- That They Should Not Write Corruptly". Carolingian miniscule was revived
during the Renaissance and has survived as our lower case letters (the capital
letters come from ancient Rome).4
3. Political, Economic and Social Initiatives
a. In his government, Charlemagne systematized the administrative
machinery of his predecessors. He permitted conquered peoples to retain
their own laws, which he codified when possible, and he issued many
capitularies. A noteworthy achievement was the creation of a system by
which he could supervise his administrators in even the most distant lands;
his missi dominici were personal representatives with wide powers who
regularly inspected their assigned districts. He strove to educate the clergy
and exercised more direct control over the appointment of bishops and he
acted as arbiter in theological disputes.5 He stimulated foreign trade and
entertained friendly relations with Christian allies (e.g. England) as well as
Muslims (e.g. Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid).6
b. Charlemagne's court at Aachen was the center of an intellectual
renaissance. The palace school, under the leadership of Alcuin, became
famous; numerous schools for children of all classes were also established
throughout the empire during Charlemagne's reign. The preservation of
classical literature was aided by his initiatives.6

IV. ‘The Dark Ages’: Collapse Of The Frankish Kingdom

A. Rivalry among the sons and grandchildren of Charlemagne fractures the kingdom.
Among the Franks, there had been a long tradition of land division among male heirs.
B. Treaty of Verdun (c. 843)7, 8
Charlemagne had several sons, but only one survived him. This son, Louis the Pious,
followed his father as the ruler of a united Empire. The dispute between the sons of Louis
the Pious (son of Charlemagne) results in the permanent division of the kingdom,
determined by the Treaty of Verdun. Over the next two centuries, these divisions become
 divided further, combine with others, and change their borders. ‘Feudal’ lords become
increasingly powerful as the central authority weakens.
The origins of familiar states appear as a result of the fragmentation of the Frankish
Kingdom. The Holy Roman Empire emerges from the property of Louis the German, which
further down the timeline gives rise to the nation-state of Germany. The property awarded
to Charles the Bald, over time, becomes the center of the nation-state of France.
C. Viking Invasions: “Save us, O [GOD], from the fury of the Northmen”
D. Expansion of Islamic Civilization

V. Summary Activity: TBA

1
<http://www.utexas.edu/courses/romanciv/end%20and%20legacy/westerneurope.jpg> Borrowed and edited by Mr. V for
classroom use (Jan. 2008). Also <http://www.bartleby.com/67/407.html> last accessed on 12 Dec.08.
2
<http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/19/BritLibAddMS11848Fol160rText.jpg> Borrowed and edited by Mr. V for
classroom use (Jan. 2008).
3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcuin
4
<http://history.boisestate.edu/WESTCIV/charles/16.shtml> Borrowed and edited by Mr. V for classroom use (Jan. 2008).
5
787, 7th ecumenical council, convened by Byzantine Empress Irene. Called to refute iconoclasm, the council declared that
images ought to be venerated (but not worshiped) and ordered them restored in churches. Practically the only Western
delegates were the papal legates, but popes have confirmed the conciliar canons. It is the last council accepted by both the
Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Eastern Church as ecumenical.
6
http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/section/Charlema_AchievementsofHisReign.asp Also, a source of definitions for certain
terms appearing in this lesson. Borrowed and edited by Mr. V for classroom use (Feb. 2004).
7
In the stipulations of the Treaty of Verdun
● Louis' eldest surviving son Lothair became Emperor and ruler of the Central Franks. This kingdom was in turn
divided among his three sons, into Lotharingia, Burgundy and (Northern) Italy. These areas would later vanish as
separate kingdoms.
● Louis' second son, Louis the German, became King of the East Franks. This area is the kernel of the later Holy
Roman Empire, which eventually evolved into modern Germany.
● His third son, Charles the Bald, became King of the West Franks; this area is the foundation for the later France.
8
On the map, the area outlined in green is controlled by Louis II [eldest son of Lothair], the area in yellow is controlled by
Louis the German, and the portion in purple is controlled by Charles the Bald.
<http://historymedren.about.com/library/atlas/blatmapwestemp843.htm> Borrowed and edited by Mr. V for classroom use-
Feb. 2004

Curriculum Linkage (PDF file)

Unit Two: Expanding Zones of Exchange & Encounter (500 - 1200 CE)
Section F 1, 2
Materials/Sources: Refer to the course calendar for additional materials, assignments and pertinent due dates.
● Politics & Religion in Post Roman (Western) Europe
● Perspectives on the Past
● Slide Presentation