European History Series 1: The Middle Ages through the Early Modern Era

Week 1: Consequences of Rome’s Fall
The first week of the course introduces the Middle Ages in Europe, a period of time that is popularly seen as an in-between era of European history (even if that popular perception is not quite true!). After discussing the fall of Rome, we will be focusing on what arose from its ashes: squabbling petty kingdoms in western Europe, a successor to Rome in the East, and a fledgling religion appearing in Arabia.

Week 2: Empires Emerge
After building an understanding of the immediate aftermath of the fall of Rome, we transition into some of the empires that arose from the groups we talked about in week 1. The kingdoms of western Europe see some centralization under the renowned Frankish leader Charlemagne, while the Byzantines in the East attempt to continue the legacy of ancient Rome. Meanwhile, a new Islamic empire on the peripheries of Europe threatens both with new religion and territorial expansion.

Week 3: Religious Reform and the Crusades
The Christian kingdoms in Europe and Byzantium found themselves in direct competition with the Islamic caliphate in the Middle East, North Africa, and Iberia. In response to this new threat, Christians in Europe began reforming their practices and belief systems to strengthen the religion. Additionally, they begin large-scale direct armed conflict with Islam, fighting over places considered holy to both religions.

Week 4: The High Middle Ages
The fourth week of the class is dedicated to the period of time most people think about when they picture the medieval era. The High Middle Ages was the time of the Crusades and knights and castles. However, those popular images of the period are only a small slice of the changes
happening in Europe at the time. Other events, such as the rise of the university, set Europe on a course to many technological and scientific advancements that came in later centuries.

Week 5: Medieval Europe Falters
Though the High Middle Ages appear to be a resurgence of the splendor of days long past, cracks in the façade were present. In this week’s lesson, students will learn about the problems medieval society began experiencing in the High Middle Ages. Longstanding institutions weakened, while new additions struggled to find their place in the world.

Week 6: Disaster and Renaissance
The final week of the Middle Ages unit begins with disaster striking Europe. A plague unlike any seen before threatened to rock European civilization as its death toll soared astronomically. However, it is not all bad. After the plague died down, some European cities experienced a
rebirth and a return to classical Greek and Roman ideals.

Week 7: Exploration and Reformation
Week 7 kicks off the second half of the class and the unit on the Early Modern era. We begin with a look into the Age of Exploration that connected Europe with the rest of the world in ways never before imagined. From there, we move into the religious reformation of the Catholic Church, a force that had dominated Europe’s religion and politics for over a thousand years.

Week 8: Wars of Religion and Revolution in the Sciences
Reformation in the Christian faith and the splitting off of new Protestant denominations did not happen easily. Europe experienced massive instability in some areas as a result of new interpretations of Christianity, leading to bloody warfare. Meanwhile, priests and other Christian
scholars began studying the world around them in new ways.

Week 9: Absolutism and Constitutionalism
As Europe experienced religious, social, and scientific changes, it also witnessed changes to its political systems. The local lords and small kings of the Middle Ages were being quickly replaced by large, centralized governments. Some of these systems relied on the absolutism that
monarchy had provided the world for thousands of years before, however others sought new methods of interaction between rulers and subjects. Instead of subjects being conquered and controlled by kings, constitutionalism brought forward a more cooperative relationship between the masses and the elites.

Week 10: The Atlantic System
The Age of Exploration led Europe into near total control of the Americas and the immense amount of wealth contained within them. A new system emerged that moved that wealth into the hands of the Europeans that propelled them into the forefront of world economics and politics at the time. This week is dedicated to learning about that system and the millions of lives it touched.

Week 11: Enlightenment
The Enlightenment followed closely on the heels of the Protestant Reformation and the Scientific Revolution. This “Age of Reason” is responsible for many of the political, religious, philosophical, and scientific ideas that shaped the rest of the Modern Era and the present day.

Week 12: Revolution
Week 12 concludes our class with a look into the revolutions in Europe and the Americas in the late eighteenth century. Based primarily on Enlightenment ideals, these revolutions sought to place the people in a position greater than that of the state. Each was met with varying degrees of success, as we will see in the lesson.