Western History: The Middle Ages

The Middle Ages, referred to as the “Dark Ages,” was an undoubtably an eye opening and brooding time period in Western history. Its issue today is figuring out what aspect was the most compelling and what really is behind some of the social and political traditions today. Events ranging from the Reformation, to the Bubonic Plague, and to the growing amount of intellectuals and nation changing ideas. Many events however need to be put into context as to find out how this period really affected us in the centuries after such an time and earning a reputation for its name. Our first example, the devastating and dark, Black Plague.

During the late twelfth and thirteenth century the plague had made numerous manifestations in the European civilizations. Its most popular theory as to how such a disease was spread by the Mongolians having taken infected bodies from, according to McKay, “Tatar army under Khan Djani-Beg that was besieging the city of Caffa in the Crimea, southern Russia.”(McKay Chapter 12, 3). Other ideas suggest breakouts of the sickness in regions of China and Central …show more content…
As heavily implied by James M. Powell, “Between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries the Middle Ages witnessed the making of scholasticism, the revival of Roman law and the founding of universities.”(Powell, Excerpted from The Civilization of the West, 131-94). These institutions created idea machines specifically people of Wycliff and Hus. By reviewing history as it was, many people can infer about specific morals, making them think and expand their knowledge. This is also said by Powell, “certain periods do have a special importance in light of their contribution to future age or trend.” Not only had it struck open-mindedness in the people who could afford such an education (the Nobility) it had was the forefront of the modern education