Dark Ages Dbq

The term “dark ages” comes from Petrarch, who was an Italian scholar that lived after the dark ages, and compared it to the classical era. Medieval Europe happened from 500 AD to 1500 AD, also known as the medieval period in Europe. It is called “the dark age” because of the disease, famine, murder, chaos, and death that happened during that time.

When people associate things with the word “dark” there mainly referring to things that are evil, bad or have an evil look. So when you put the label “Dark ages” on the Middle ages, you make the assumption that it was not a good time. But you’d be mistaken, it was completely the opposite. Though not much revolution took place in the early Middle Ages, the people were happy and content, and "the Dark Ages" just doesn’t fit with that, it’s not a accurate label to put on the Middle Ages.

First, “The Dark Ages” was the time that followed the collapse of the Western Roman Empire but before the Renaissance from the 5th to 15th century. Very few writings survived during the Dark Ages, so most believe that people during this time were illiterate;

There is many examples of evidence to support how Europe wasn’t in a dark age. To support this claim there are some examples. The Government ,The Rise of University, and the Gothic Cathedrals shows that Europe was not in a dark age. One reason Europe was not in a dark age was because if it was in a dark age they wouldn't know to stand up for themselves. They also had a lot of money, even though King John took it all proving that they were not in a dark age.They were also beginning to request laws so they can have some rights. According to the Black Death Documents,"To all free men of our kingdom we have also granted, for us and to our heirs for ever, all the liberties written out below, to have and to keep for them and their heirs.”Another

During the 400-1400 CE, there were barbarians and Vikings that killed many people, plagues that were fatal, and cruelty that was all around. Yet that wasn’t the only things that happened. A dark age is a time of cultural decline. In spite of the cruelty, there were many good things like a judicial system, schools and education, and architectural advancements in gothic cathedrals.

The dark ages were a time where chaos ruled everything and no one felt safe. The term dark age came from an Italian Scholar named Petrarch. He called it the dark age because he compared it to the classical period before. In the dark ages many terrifying things happened like the Black Death, the crusades, the viking attacks, and many more. Europe was in a dark age from 500 to 1500 AD.

During this period, the Crusades and the Black Death occured. According to the Document C of the Crusade passages, explaining what happened in the First Crusade, “None of them were left alive; neither women nor children were spared.” This quote points out how violent and merciless the Crusaders were. This period of time had war and chaos which is what makes it a dark age. According to the the Document B of the Black Death article, “There the plague sat like a lion on a throne and swayed with power, killing daily one thousand or more and destroying the population.”

Europe was in a Dark Age because they went through tragic and disastrous events. Such as the crusades and the black death. The Crusades shows that Europe was in a dark age because there is war, violence, and chaos. According to Document A, “ Some of our

The time period between 400 AD and 1400 AD was not a Dark Age for Europe and not a time of cultural decay and decline. It was not a Dark Age for the following reasons: Cathedrale Notre Dame’s construction, the laws of currency that were established, and how Europe prospered during this time period. Cathedrale Notre Dame’s construction showed how far culturally Europe got by the late Middle Ages. “Common features of gothic Cathedrals included architectural innovations. (Document G: Gothic Cathedrals)” This piece of text shows me that Europe developed their architectural design; gothic architecture which originated in France.

Europe fell into the Dark Ages on August 24th, 410 A.D. Rome was one of the greatest empires at the time. That is, before August. It controlled most trade routes, and a lot of land. Then came the day where the Visigoths invaded the Visigoths were western branches of the nomadic tribes of Germanic. Famine, plague, persecutions, and persistent warfare followed. Half of the healthy people living in Rome died. The thugs looted markets, causing a downfall in supplies such as food and clothing. After that, traders brought rats over to europe to the crushed, once powerful empire.

The Black Death was a major part of Europe being in a dark age. The Black death is a huge example of Disease, which proves that Europe was a dark age. According to the Black Death Document A, it states,“In all the city there was nothing to do but carry the deed to a burial.” This proves that many people died due to the Black Death. As well as the Black Death, the crusades also contributed to Europe being a dark age. The crusades were a religious war between the Christians and Muslims. According to Document A, “Some of our men (and this was more merciful) cut off the heads of their enemies; others shot them with arrows, so that they fell from the towers.” With this evidence you can see

‘Were the 1,000 years the Dark Ages lasted actually “dark”?’ is a highly debatable topic as some claim that the whole period was “dark” while others claim it was only “dark” for the early stages of it. Through textual evidence provided, the supposed 1,000 years of decline and decay known as the Dark Ages were not “dark” for the 1,000 years. According to the American Cyclopedia, the 1,000 year period did not support education, have creation of culture, any central government, and a bad economy. Document F says, “Beginning in the early 11th century, universities were founded throughout Europe. Attendance at these universities was limited to a small percentage of the population” (Document F).

The first reason this time period is not a “Dark Age” is that the education in Europe improved. In Document F, the texts states that “Universities were founded all throughout Europe.” They introduced a new form of education in Spain to France, England, and Italy that replaced the monastery and church schools. Document E states that people studied liberal arts in school. Most people from the Middle Ages wanted greatly to learn from philosophers.

The “Dark ages” was found by an Italian scholar, Petrarch, in the 1300s. The term Dark Age was used to explain the period (movie talk-dark ages).The Dark Age could be in a growth age or a dark age. This is applied to “dark” and “light”. This can be argued by the evidence of what is going on during 500AD-1500AD. The debate between Europe being in a Dark Age or growth age is based off of how well the evidence supports the statement and this judgment is clearly stated that Europe is NOT in a dark age based on all the supported evidence.

There are many factors that one could say to support the theory that Europe was in a dark age such as, the first crusade, the black death, and the government. The black death was the biggest reason that Europe was in a dark age because the black death killed one third of Europe's population. As read in Document A ¨ Frightened people abandoned the house and fled to another.¨ this shows how there were small towns, small population and isolated communities, as you can see since the disease spread so quickly, people would do anything to keep them and their family safe. When the first crusade started many fought to to their deaths. Many Christians, knights, lords, and peasants killed 70,000 muslims so they could have salvation. In document B