10.3: Dark Ages

Dark Ages

Although urban life continued to flourish in some parts of the world (Middle East, North and sub-Saharan Africa), Western Europe recorded a decline in urbanization after the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century. During this early medieval period, A.D. 476-1000, also known as the Dark Ages, feudalism was a rurally oriented form of economic and social organization. Yet, under Muslim influence in Spain or under Byzantine control, urban life was still flourishing. As Rome was falling into decline, Constantine the Great moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Byzantium, renaming the city Constantinople (current Istanbul, Turkey). With its strategic location for trade, between Europe and Asia, Constantinople became the world’s largest city, maintaining this status for most of the next 1000 years (Figure 12.16).

Figure | Byzantine Empire Author | User “Tataryn” Source | Wikimedia Commons License | CC BY SA 3.0

Most European regions, however, did have some small towns, most of which were either ecclesiastical or university centers (Cambridge, England and Chartres, France), defensive strongholds (Rasnov, Romania), gateway towns (Bellinzona, Switzerland), or administrative centers (Cologne, Germany). The most important cities at the end of the first millennium were the seats of the world-empires/ kingdoms: the Islamic caliphates, the Byzantine Empire, the Chinese Empire, and Indian kingdoms.