Christianity spread north from the Mediterranean world of the Roman Empire, thanks to the medieval church. Universities were invented in the Middle Ages as a result of collaboration between the church and secular governments. And the architectural accomplishments of the middle ages, castles and above all, cathedrals, are perhaps the most beautiful buildings built by men in all of recorded history. The best way to introduce the Middle Ages to students is with biographies. To really understand all of the strands that go into this long and significant period of western history, parents ought to select some representative figures from each time period to focus on.
Nobody Expects the . . .
You need at least a cursory knowledge of the history and significance of the Roman Empire in order to understand how important a concept it was for medieval rulers and statesmen throughout the next 1,000 years. Parents and teachers should also make sure their students know something of the background of the Germanic tribes whose persistent attempts to emigrate into the Roman Empire were the proximate cause of its collapse. The struggle of the Germanic chieftains and church leaders to create some kind of order, and on the part of the church to preserve literature and learning, is largely the story of the Middle Ages. And finally, we who are Protestants need to overcome our biases and attempt to acknowledge and appreciate the many positive accomplishments of the medieval church. Greats of the Middle Ages Back to our three divisions.