For the scholarly journal, see Early Medieval Europe (journal).
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Early Middle Ages" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR(October 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
The early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century.[note 1] They marked the start of the Middle Ages of European history, following the decline of the Western Roman Empire, and preceding the High Middle Ages (c. 11th to 14th centuries). The alternative term late antiquity, for the early part of the period, emphasizes elements of continuity with the Roman Empire, while early Middle Ages is used to emphasize developments characteristic of the earlier medieval period.
The period saw a continuation of trends evident since late classical antiquity, including population decline, especially in urban centres, a decline of trade, a small rise in average temperatures in the North Atlantic region and increased migration. In the 19th century the early Middle Ages were often labelled the Dark Ages, a characterization based on the relative scarcity of literary and cultural output from this time. The term is rarely used by academics today.[1] The Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine Empire, survived, though in the 7th century the Rashidun Caliphate and the Umayyad Caliphate conquered the southern part of the Roman territory.
Many of the listed trends reversed later in the period. In 800, the title of Emperor was revived in Western Europe with Charlemagne, whose Carolingian Empire greatly affected later European social structure and history. Europe experienced a return to systematic agriculture in the form of the feudal system, which adopted such innovations as three-field planting and the heavy plough. Barbarian migration stabilized in much of Europe, although the Viking expansion greatly affected Northern Europe.
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
^Mommsen, Theodore E. (1942). "Petrarch's Conception of the 'Dark Ages'". Speculum. 17 (2). Cambridge MA: Medieval Academy of America: 226–227. doi:10.2307/2856364. JSTOR 2856364. S2CID 161360211.
and increased migration. In the 19th century the earlyMiddleAges were often labelled the Dark Ages, a characterization based on the relative scarcity...
Wales in the earlyMiddleAges covers the time between the Roman departure from Wales c. 383 until the middle of the 11th century. In that time there was...
three intervals: Early, High, and Late MiddleAges. In the 19th century, the entire MiddleAges were often referred to as the Dark Ages, but with the adoption...
The EarlyMiddleAges in Romania started with the withdrawal of the Roman troops and administration from Dacia province in the 270s. In the next millennium...
from AD 1000 to 1300. The High MiddleAges were preceded by the EarlyMiddleAges and were followed by the Late MiddleAges, which ended around AD 1500 (by...
MiddleAges are sometimes called the Medieval Age or Period. The MiddleAges are also divided into the Early, High, and Late MiddleAges. The early modern...
important phenomenon that took place within the lands of Poland in the EarlyMiddleAges, as well as other parts of Central Europe was the arrival and permanent...
decline in individuals as they age. This time span is generally referred to as "middleage" and can be defined as the time of ages about 40–45 to about 60–65...
the MiddleAges may refer to: History of Ireland (400–800), Ireland in the earlyMiddleAges History of Ireland (800–1169), Ireland in the high Middle Ages...
in the MiddleAges concerns the history of England during the medieval period, from the end of the 5th century through to the start of the early modern...
the second phase of three, in the Metal Ages. An ancient civilization is deemed to be part of the Bronze Age if it either produced bronze by smelting...
and helping at home, they did much more to influence the MiddleAges. In the earlyMiddleAges, women's lives varied greatly dependent upon their location...
Spain in the MiddleAges is a period in the history of Spain that began in the 5th century following the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ended with...
The Netherlands in the earlyMiddleAges was inhabited by various Germanic tribes, including the Frisians, who played a significant role in the development...
Horses in the MiddleAges differed in size, build and breed from the modern horse, and were, on average, smaller. They were also more central to society...
Medieval films imagine and portray the MiddleAges through the visual, audio and thematic forms of cinema. The 20th century is not the first to create...
Pomerania during the EarlyMiddleAges covers the History of Pomerania from the 7th to the 11th centuries. The southward movement of Germanic tribes during...
in the 11th century, infantry played an important role throughout the MiddleAges on both the battlefield and in sieges. From the 14th century onwards...
The Kingdom of France in the MiddleAges (roughly, from the 10th century to the middle of the 15th century) was marked by the fragmentation of the Carolingian...
The history of Italy in the MiddleAges can be roughly defined as the time between the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and the Italian Renaissance...