Barbarians to Angels: The Dark Ages Reconsidered

Description

The barbarians who destroyed the glory that was Rome demolished civilization along with it, and for the next four centuries the peasants and artisans of Europe barely held on. Random violence, mass migration, disease, and starvation were the only way of life. This is the picture of the Dark Ages that most historians promote. But archaeology tells a different story. Peter S. Wells, one of the world's leading archaeologists, surveys the archaeological record to demonstrate that the Dark Ages were not dark at all. The kingdoms of Christendom that emerged starting in the ninth century sprang from a robust, previously little-known, European culture, albeit one that left behind few written texts. This recently recognized culture achieved heights in artistry, technology, craft production, commerce, and learning. Future assessments of the period between Rome and Charlemagne will need to incorporate this fresh new picture. Preface xi 1. Between Antiquity and the Middle Ages: What Happened? 3 2. The Decline of the Roman Empire 13 3. The Peoples of Europe 28 4. Childeric and Other Early Dark Age Kings 47 5. What Happened to the Roman Cities? 70 6. Roman Londinium to Saxon Lundenwic: Continuity and Change (A.D. 43-800) 88 7. New Centers in the North 121 8. The Revolution in the Countryside 130 9. Crafting Tools and Ornaments for the New Societies 142 10. Royal Exchange and Everyday Trade 153 11. Spread of the New Religion 170 12. Arts, Scholarship, and Education 186 13. Charlemagne’s Elephant and the History of Europe 199 Appendix: Selected Museum Collections 203 Sources and Suggestions for Further Reading 205 Acknowledgments 217 Illustration Credits 219 Index 221