History 323 Middle Ages

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History 323Middle Ages

• 9th Century Invasions Saracens, Magyars, and
  Vikings

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Europe Emerges

• While the Carolingian period can be considered
  part of Late Antiquity (marked by the continuing
  influence of Roman civilization), a distinctive
  Europe emerges as 9th and 10th century invasions
  disrupt Carolingian institutions and medieval
  Europe begins to take on its unique political and
  cultural characteristics
• For the first half of this course, we have been
  concerned with the legacy of Rome and the
  character of barbarian societies in Western
  Europe (200 A.D. to 800 A.D.)
• For the rest of the course, we will be studying
  Europe in the Central Middle Ages (800 1300).
  During this period, Europe is invaded by
  outsiders (Arabs, Magyars, and Vikings), national
  governments develop, the Roman Catholic Church
  gains momentum, the Crusades are launched,
  powerful cities emerge and fuel economic growth,
  and distinctive universities are founded

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Invasions of Arabs, Magyars, and Vikings in the
9th and 10th centuries
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Islamic Civilization

• Who is the founder of the Islamic religion?
• Islam began c. 610 A.D. when Muhammad, a merchant
  from Mecca (modern Saudi Arabia) had a vision
• The angel Gabriel spoke to him and said
  Readread in the name of thy Lord who creates
  man from a clot
• This is the first of many messages from God that
  Muhammad received for his contemplation. They
  form the Quran, which in Arabic means reading
  or recitation
• The Quran is considered by Muslims to be a book
  of divine revelation

Man with Arabic text, pen and ink, Iran
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Early Islam

• Muhammad began to preach in Mecca, telling the
  people to give up their idols and submit to the
  one and indivisible God
• This message was unpopular among the leaders of
  Mecca, whose prosperity was tied to guardianship
  of the Kaba, a polytheistic sanctuary
• Muhammad moved to Medina, and his followers grew
• Muhammad became involved with political, legal,
  and military issues. The parts of the Quran
  written in Medina therefore concerned with
  practical problems of living together in community

Arabia, including Mecca and Medina
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Early Islam
See Peters, Chapter 5, for more about the early
history of Islam and Arabia!

• The house of the Prophet in Medina was the first
  communal gathering place for prayer, and it
  served as a prototype for the earliest mosques
• In congregation the act of prayer, which is
  intended to create a sense of unity and cohesion,
  is led by a prayer leader. The first of these
  prayer leaders was Muhammad
• Later, Muhammad returned to Mecca, and one of his
  first acts was to cleanse the Kaba of its idols
  and to rededicate the shrine to Allah. It has
  remained important for Muslims ever since

Arabia, including Mecca and Medina
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The Quran (Koran)

• The two foundations of Muslim faith are God's
  revelations to Muhammad, known as the Quran, and
  reports about Muhammad's life and deeds, known as
  the hadith
• The central miracle of Islam is God's revelation
  to Muhammad, whose human fallibilities as a mere
  mortal are repeatedly mentioned in the Quran
• The revelations that comprise the Quran were
  revealed over a period of more than two decades
  in two places
• The first revelations from the period of
  Muhammad's residence in Mecca are short and
  incantatory verses of extraordinary poetic beauty
• The later revelations from the period after
  Muhammad immigrated to Medina are longer,
  legalistic texts appropriate to a developing
  community of believers in need of rules and
  regulations

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The Quran

• The Quran is comparable in length to the
  Christian Gospels. It contains 114 Arabic
  chapters (suras) of varying length. The opening
  sura is called the Fatiha, a short prayer or
  invocation for many situations
• In the Name of God, the Merciful, the
  Compassionate
• Praise belongs to God, Lord of all Being
• the All-merciful, the All-compassionate
• the Master of the Day of Doom
• Thee only we serve to Thee alone we pray for
  succor
• Guide us in the straight path
• the path of those whom Thou hast blessed,
• not of those against whom Thou art wrathfulnor
  of those who are astray.

An ancient Quran, Islamic Museum, Cairo
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The Quran, Hadith, and Art

• The Quran is the cornerstone of Muslim faith,
  practice, and law
• It provides guidelines for social welfare, family
  and inheritance laws, and proper behavior within
  the framework of a just and equitable society
• The Quran does not speak against the creation of
  figural images, only the making of idols
• Restrictions on figurative arts are, however,
  found in another body of literature known as
  Hadith, or "tradition
• Hadith includes accounts of the sayings, deeds,
  and thoughts of the Prophet and is superseded in
  importance only by the Quran

A page of the Quran from 10th century Tunisia
(blue parchment with gold lettering)
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Islamic Artwork and Illustration
Early Muslim Vase with Quran writings
Illustrated manuscript, Iraq
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Doctrine Five Pillars of Islam

• The creed belief (Iman) in God, his angels, his
  books, his prophets, and the last judgment. Core
  statement There is no God but God and Muhammad
  is the Prophet of God. If you can say this, you
  can be regarded as a minimalist Muslim
• Prayer or worship (Salat) five times a day
  (rising, early afternoon, late afternoon, sunset,
  and before bed). Friday prayers as a group.
  Prayer symbolizes humility of men and women in
  the presence of God
• Fasting (Sawm) during daylight hours during the
  month of Ramadanfasting from eating, drinking,
  smoking, and sex. This is a time of discipline
  like Christian Lent encourages a focus on God
  and unity in the community
• Giving of alms (Zakat)a Muslim should give
  1/40th of his revenue per year in cash or kind to
  the poor or those striving in the way of God
• Pilgrimage (Hajj)A trip once in a lifetime to
  Mecca, if a person is physically able. Only
  Muslims can participate. Ritual acts recall
  great events in early Hebrew and Islamic history

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The Expansion of Islam

• Although Muhammad died in 632, Islam became a
  motivating force in the formation and conversion
  of Arabia and much of Palestine (634)
• By the 640s, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Egypt were
  unified by the Muslim religion and government
• By 711, Islam had spread into central Asia,
  India, North Africa, Spain
• The Byzantine Empire stopped the expansion at
  Constantinople in 717-718, and would battle
  Muslims until the 15th century
• European expansion of Islam stopped in 732
  (Poitiers, France, Charles Martel) but Spain
  remained partly Muslim until 1492
• Islamic leaders called Caliphs in this early
  period
• Various dynasties arose that controlled different
  geographic regions, so the Islamic world was
  rarely united
• Arabic remained the only accepted language of
  religious expression in Islam, and even to this
  day the Quran cannot be translated if it is to
  be used for religious purposes

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Arab Invasions during Carolingian Period

• During the 9th century, Arab sea power had grown
  stronger, and from bases in North Africa, Spain,
  and Southern Gaul, they attacked Europe
• By 830 A.D., Sicily had fallen to Arab raiders
• As the 9th century wore on, Carolingian defenses
  in Southern Europe were badly damaged by Arab
  invasions
• For the next century, Muslim scholarship and
  science will excel anything in Western Europe

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Magyar Invasions

• In eastern Europe, a new invader proved even more
  troublesome than the Arabs for 9th and 10th
  century Europeans
• The Magyar were a Finno-Ugrian people from the
  steppes of western Asia (their later name,
  Hungarians, derives from the name of one group of
  the Magyar, the Onogurs)
• In 896, the Byzantines persuaded the Magyar to
  attack the Bulgars. But they subsequently invaded
  Western Europe using cavalry. Their raids
  disrupted the Eastern Franks in Italy, Germany,
  and France
• 898-920 A.D. were the toughest years for invasions

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Magyar Invasions

• The Saxon kings of East Francia, Henry I (r.
  916-936) and Otto I (r. 936-973) slowly turned
  back the Magyars. In 955 the Magyars were
  defeated significantly at the Battle of the Lech
  River (Austria).
• Otto I led a dynasty called the Ottonians who
  ruled Germany after the fading of Carolingian and
  Magyar power. The Magyar gradually became
  farmers or moved East.

Seal with image of Otto the Great, who was
crowned emperor in 962 in Rome
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Viking Invasions

• The Vikings were the most influential invading
  group, raiding Western Europe in the 8th, 9th,
  and 10th centuries
• The Vikings were bands of Scandinavian warriors
  who sailed south in their long wooden ships in
  the summer, looted and pillaged along the coasts
  and river valleys, and sailed home in Autumn
• Vikings took advantage of weakening central
  governments and poor local resistance
• Norwegians chiefly attacked Ireland and Western
  Britain Swedes the Eastern Baltic and Russia
  The Danes, Eastern England, Frisia, and the
  Rhineland
• The Vikings also founded colonies in Greenland,
  Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and (briefly) in
  North America

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Viking Invasions

• In 865, the famous Great Army landed in England
  and stayed
• By 878, a substantial part of NE England had
  falled under Dainish rule, and was known for
  centuries as the Danelaw
• The last Viking King of Northumbria was Eric
  Bloodaxe (d. 954)
• Canute, a Viking King, was ruler of England,
  Denmark, and Norway from 1016-1035