The Roman calendar was still in use in the West until the sixth century, when the monk Dionysius the Little determined that, in a Christian world, the calendar should be dated from the birth of Jesus. He established the seven-day week to reflect the time it took to create the world. Church bells began to mark the hour of the day, allowing villagers to organize their activities in sync with Church worship and each other.75
Pope Gregory (c. 540-604), who also was a general, defended much of what was left of the Roman Empire in an attempt to introduce religious and humanitarian ideas. He sent representatives throughout Europe to convert pagans wherever possible. In addition to his many reforms he originated Gregorian Chant.76
For much of the first millennium there were no clear countries with borders in what eventually was called Europe, but a collection of settlements that were periodically invaded and changed governance, depending on the success of the latest invaders.77 Christendom continued to be split between the Eastern and Western Churches.78
The central administration of the Romans yielded to fiefdoms throughout what eventually became Western Europe, and for most people there was little communication with the world beyond their immediate vicinity. Most of the goods needed by the lords and serfs of the estates were produced locally. The Roman roads, which had been solid and straight to allow the movement of troops, deteriorated into dirt paths that discouraged communication and commerce.79 Eventually landlords needed to introduce small reforms in their contracts with their serfs because of a shrinking labor market.
Feudalism provided a degree of protection from the waves of barbarian marauders and an opportunity for a relatively stable life. It was based on a contract between the lord and tenant – protection in exchange for services such as working the land. A breach of contract by feudal lords led to occasional revolts among peasants.80
Within the family, the Church forbade marriage between close relatives and committed married couples to continue their vows for a lifetime. The Church also encouraged the contribution of property to itself of those who died without heirs, which added to its immense wealth. One-third of the farmland in France was in Church hands at the end of the seventh century.81
England, like the rest of Europe after the fall of Rome, was at first divided into self-governing tribes. Households were grouped into villages with the king at the head of such tribes as Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Celts. They were governed by tribal laws, with compensation due to the injured based on the nature of the injury.
Germany also had similar tribal law in place which included retaliation not just against the perpetrator but against the criminal’s family. The introduction of Christianity provided greater equality and morality via models of saints who taught compassion and equality rather than retribution, although clearly that model often was not followed. The conversion of the pagans in Eastern Europe was not complete until 1417.82
The third major monotheistic religion, Islam, was founded by the Prophet Muhammad after his revelation and vision of the One God in the year 610 near Mecca, in Saudi Arabia. At first he was persecuted and ridiculed by believers in the traditional gods who were members of the local nomadic tribes. But by 628 he was able to march with 10,000 followers on Mecca in a primarily peaceful takeover of that city during which idols were smashed by him and his followers. By his death in 632, most of the Arabian Peninsula had been converted to Islam, some via war and some by peaceful means.83 A series of civil wars followed Muhammad’s death to determine the leadership of the new religion which divided his followers into the eventual Shiites (followers of Muhammad’s cousin Ali) and Sunnis (followers of the caliph Mu’awiya, who administered the first, or Caliphate dynasty from 661-750). The enmity between these divisions has lasted to this day.
The Qur’an exhorts Muhammad’s followers to use war in an attempt to spread his vision, but it also includes passages that deny superiority to any race and encourages believers to avoid violence and to treat women respectfully.84 Early Islam had no actual codes of law but was administered by judges under the guidance of the Qur’an.85
The followers of Muhammad spread his religion – mainly by force – at a rapid pace through much of the Middle East, North Africa, the Orient, and Spain within the next 100 years. Muslim armies moving northward from Iberia (modern Spain) into Gaul only were stopped from conquering Europe by Charles Martel at Poitiers in 732.86 But once established, the huge areas under Muslim rule were tolerant of Christians and Jews who they considered “people of the book,” although Muslim teaching is that Islam has superseded those religions.87
Germany is the world’s northernmost quality wine producing region.
Wines in Germany were made in Roman times with extensive plantings near the Mosel and Rhine rivers. Monasteries developed wines for sacramental purposes starting about three hundred years later. Over time, economic fluctuations and phylloxera, a louse that destroys vineyard stock, greatly reduced the wine-making capacity of the area.
Germany is known mainly for its long-lived white wines, usually made from Reisling, which come in various levels of sweetness. Kabinett is the driest, with Spatlese and Auslese (select harvest) coming next. A greater level of sweetness is found in Beerenauslese (second harvest), from hand picked grapes that stay on the vine until almost consumed by rot, and Trockenbeerenauslese (dried berries), which is rare and expensive. The famous Eiswein is made from grapes that stay on the vine until frozen. Wine, Page 446-47
Between the fourth and seventh centuries the scrolls used by scribes to pass on human knowledge and history were gradually replaced by the codex, a small book or manuscript which was much easier to read and copy. The codex was copied onto animal skins and still very expensive, but it resulted in knowledge being more available to those who could read (still a small minority).88
The ruler who united most of the lands that eventually became Europe was Charlemagne (c742-814), who engaged in continual and brutal wars to Christianize Europe. The pagan Saxons were given a choice to convert or die, with up to 4,000 being killed in one day.89 He established a unified currency and code of laws in addition to having his counselors reform writing to make it more accessible. Charlemagne’s efforts to establish rule by law throughout his realm – rather than by the whim of local lords – was a step in the direction of democratization. The serfs also won their emancipation under Charlemagne.90 He had himself crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 799 by Pope Leo III and spread education and literacy among young knights.
In 910 the great abbey of Cluny was established in southern Burgundy, which attempted to overcome many of the previous abuses that made monks and peasants vulnerable to the whims of wealthy patrons. Cluny’s influence – an attempt to return to the Christian principles of godliness and justice – spread throughout Europe and dominated Western culture for over 200 years. It led to a resurgence of religious practice – including care for the poor and the encouragement of religious art. The monasteries under the Clunaic influence also served as the inns of Europe for the travelers of their time.91
In 987, Hugh Capet took over the Carolingian Dynasty of Charlemagne, which became centered in Paris, and lasted over three centuries. As of the year 1000, Europe still was composed of a number of small kingdoms with no real nations as we know them.92 However, during the next three hundred years many areas were converted to Christianity, including what is now Bulgaria, Bohemia, Poland, Hungary, parts of Scandinavia, and Western Russia. Yet this area remained largely feudal and ineffectively governed, especially after incursions by the Mongols.93
After the Muslims conquered North Africa in the eighth century, they developed trade routes using camels traveling a thousand miles south. The two most profitable commodities were gold and