History 181: Europe Transformed, c. 300-1400

This course examines the creation of “Europe” starting with Rome’s slow disintegration in the third century and ending with the formation of a new medieval synthesis by the middle of the 14th century. It explores continuing tensions between local and central interests in religion, politics, and culture, including the development of feudal social and political structures, the transformation of free peasants into serfs, the growth of church authority, and the rapid expansion of towns and trade. Medieval people reacted to these changes in many ways, including widening the scope of intellectual exploration, reassessing social status, and engaging in warfare and in the Crusades. The course requires short analytical papers, exams, and historical analysis of primary sources.