the rise of england and france
At the start of the 8th century, the whole of western Europe was literally in the Dark Ages. Its leaders were totally immersed in theology, personal enrichment, murder and self-aggrandizement and were oblivious not only of the rising Arab threat but also of the deep misery of the people they ruled.
Emperor Justinian II and the Roman Pope Constantine -- a Syrian, as was the former pope -- met for mutually enhancing discussions at Nicomedia in 711. Emperor Justinian dutifully kissed Pope Constantine's feet and took communion -- only to be murdered soon after, as was his successor.
The new Emperor Leo III (717-741) and the new Pope Gregory II (715-731) were not so cosy, but were equally neglectful of the people they ruled. Leo III imposed enormous taxes on Italy and ordered Pope Gregory II to break all images of worship. Pope Gregory II was having trouble at home with the Lombards and Emperor Leo III's impositions acted to draw the Lombards and the pope into an alliance against imperial rule.
In Britain, at the same time as the Lindisfarne Gospels were being written the Venerable Bede wrote 'The Ecclesiastical History of the English People' in 731 from a monastery in Jarrow of the River Tyne which, while religiously based, does take note of the ordinary English people -- the Angles and the Saxons -- as well as their conversion to Christianity.
Bede was put in a monastery at Wearmouth when he was seven, became a deacon at 19 and a priest at 30. Being a soldier or a priest -- or both -- was the only occupation open to most young men without a farm to inherit, and he was perfectly aware of the comfort of his life compared to that of others.
Previoulsly, in 725, he had written 'On the Reckoning of Time' arguing that the Church should not rely on the pagan system of dating according to the accession dates of the Roman Emperors. Instead, he suggested a new way of dating by the birth of Christ -- AD anno domini. So, we have an Englishman to thank or curse for our current dating system -- and that it came about shows how much lack of prestige the Roman Empire held at that time, and how influential England had become.
It was Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People of 731 that gained him the honor of becoming the 'the Father of English History' as it was the very first account of Anglo-Saxon England ever written.
Starting with Julius Caesar's invasion in the 1st century BC, it goes on to tell of the kings, bishops, monks and nuns who helped to develop government and convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity.
But, far more importantly, he also describes the landscape, the customs and the terrors facing ordinary people -- such as famines where starving South Saxon families, hold hands and jump off white cliffs in tragic suicide pacts. He also includes a famous analogy comparing life in Anglo-Saxon Britain to a sparrow's experience of flying out of the darkness into a great hall. "After a few moments of comfort the bird vanishes from sight into the wintry world that he came from."
Early western civilization, though, was about to suffer worse problems. By 750 the Ummayad caliphs were finally overthrown by the Abbasids who moved their capital to Baghdad, shifting attention to the east and splitting the Islamic empire. At that time, Persia had reasserted itself and North Africa came under the rule of the Aghlabids, Egypt was taken over by the Tulunids and Spain had been invaded and conquered by the Ummayad exiles.
During the Arab invasion, the Christian nobles of Spain rapidly converted to Islam but many Spanish scholars fled to other parts of Christian Europe, enriching their new countries with the texts they brought with them.
The Arabs were eventually checked from expanding into France in 752 by Charles Martel, a Frank, who was at the time the Mayor of the palace at Poitiers. Were it not for the actions of this man, Islam would have spread throughout western Europe in much the same way that Christianity had -- by forced conversion -- and in view of the fact that Spain flourished under Islam while the rest of Europe languished under Christianity for centuries after, one must ask whether early Islam provided a better way of life than early Christianity.
Because both the Roman Popes and the Roman Emperors were totally incompetent during this period, the resultant power vacuum was quickly filled by two rising nations -- France and Engand -- and these two countries formed the backbone of western civilization (in its Christian form) from then on.
Emperor Justinian II and the Roman Pope Constantine -- a Syrian, as was the former pope -- met for mutually enhancing discussions at Nicomedia in 711. Emperor Justinian dutifully kissed Pope Constantine's feet and took communion -- only to be murdered soon after, as was his successor.
The new Emperor Leo III (717-741) and the new Pope Gregory II (715-731) were not so cosy, but were equally neglectful of the people they ruled. Leo III imposed enormous taxes on Italy and ordered Pope Gregory II to break all images of worship. Pope Gregory II was having trouble at home with the Lombards and Emperor Leo III's impositions acted to draw the Lombards and the pope into an alliance against imperial rule.
In Britain, at the same time as the Lindisfarne Gospels were being written the Venerable Bede wrote 'The Ecclesiastical History of the English People' in 731 from a monastery in Jarrow of the River Tyne which, while religiously based, does take note of the ordinary English people -- the Angles and the Saxons -- as well as their conversion to Christianity.
Bede was put in a monastery at Wearmouth when he was seven, became a deacon at 19 and a priest at 30. Being a soldier or a priest -- or both -- was the only occupation open to most young men without a farm to inherit, and he was perfectly aware of the comfort of his life compared to that of others.
Previoulsly, in 725, he had written 'On the Reckoning of Time' arguing that the Church should not rely on the pagan system of dating according to the accession dates of the Roman Emperors. Instead, he suggested a new way of dating by the birth of Christ -- AD anno domini. So, we have an Englishman to thank or curse for our current dating system -- and that it came about shows how much lack of prestige the Roman Empire held at that time, and how influential England had become.
It was Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People of 731 that gained him the honor of becoming the 'the Father of English History' as it was the very first account of Anglo-Saxon England ever written.
Starting with Julius Caesar's invasion in the 1st century BC, it goes on to tell of the kings, bishops, monks and nuns who helped to develop government and convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity.
But, far more importantly, he also describes the landscape, the customs and the terrors facing ordinary people -- such as famines where starving South Saxon families, hold hands and jump off white cliffs in tragic suicide pacts. He also includes a famous analogy comparing life in Anglo-Saxon Britain to a sparrow's experience of flying out of the darkness into a great hall. "After a few moments of comfort the bird vanishes from sight into the wintry world that he came from."
Early western civilization, though, was about to suffer worse problems. By 750 the Ummayad caliphs were finally overthrown by the Abbasids who moved their capital to Baghdad, shifting attention to the east and splitting the Islamic empire. At that time, Persia had reasserted itself and North Africa came under the rule of the Aghlabids, Egypt was taken over by the Tulunids and Spain had been invaded and conquered by the Ummayad exiles.
During the Arab invasion, the Christian nobles of Spain rapidly converted to Islam but many Spanish scholars fled to other parts of Christian Europe, enriching their new countries with the texts they brought with them.
The Arabs were eventually checked from expanding into France in 752 by Charles Martel, a Frank, who was at the time the Mayor of the palace at Poitiers. Were it not for the actions of this man, Islam would have spread throughout western Europe in much the same way that Christianity had -- by forced conversion -- and in view of the fact that Spain flourished under Islam while the rest of Europe languished under Christianity for centuries after, one must ask whether early Islam provided a better way of life than early Christianity.
Because both the Roman Popes and the Roman Emperors were totally incompetent during this period, the resultant power vacuum was quickly filled by two rising nations -- France and Engand -- and these two countries formed the backbone of western civilization (in its Christian form) from then on.
Labels: Abbasids, anglo-saxons, charles martel, dark ages, england, france, islam, Lindisfarne Gospels, spain, Ummayad caliphs, Venerable Bede, western civilization
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