Major developments in the political, social, and religious history of Western Europe from the accession of Diocletian to the feudal transformation. Topics include the conversion of Europe to Christianity, the fall of the Roman Empire, the rise of Islam and the Arabs, the "Dark Ages," Charlemagne and the Carolingian renaissance, and the Viking and Hungarian invasions.
Course Introduction: Rome’s Greatness and First Crises
The Crisis of the Third Century and the Diocletianic Reforms
Constantine and the Early Church
The Christian Roman Empire
St. Augustine’s Confessions
Transformation of the Roman Empire
Barbarian Kingdoms
Survival in the East
The Reign of Justinian
Clovis and the Franks
Frankish Society
Britain and Ireland
Monasticism
Mohammed and the Arab Conquests
Islamic Conquests and Civil War
The Splendor of the Abbasid Period
The Crucial Seventh Century
The Splendor of Byzantium
Charlemagne
Intellectuals and the Court of Charlemagne
Crisis of the Carolingians
Vikings / The European Prospect, 1000