UNIT 1.

CONTENIDOS, CRITERIOS DE EVALUACIÓN Y ESTÁNDARES DE

APRENDIZAJE

Contenidos Bloque 3. La Historia. La Edad Media: Concepto de «Edad Media» y sus

sub-etapas: Alta, Plena y Baja Edad Media; la «caída» del Imperio
Romano en Occidente: división política e invasiones germánicas Los
reinos germánicos y el Imperio Bizantino (Oriente).

Criterios de 24. Describir la nueva situación económica, social y política de los reinos
evaluación germánicos. CSC, CCL.
(6,36%) 25. Caracterizar la Alta Edad Media en Europa reconociendo la dificultad
de la falta de fuentes históricas en este período. CSC, CCL, CAA.

Estándares de 24.1. Compara las formas de vida (en diversos aspectos) del Imperio
aprendizaje Romano con las de los reinos germánicos.
25.1. Utiliza las fuentes históricas y entiende los límites de lo que se
puede escribir sobre el pasado.

UNIT 1. THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES. THE BYZANTINE

AND CAROLINGIAN EMPIRES.

The fall of the Western Roman Empire marks the end of Ancient History and the
beginning of a new historical period: the Middle Ages. In this unit, we will look at:

● the changes to society that happened after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in
the fifth century.
● two of three empires that dominated Europe in this period: the Byzantine Empire and
the Carolingian Empire.

1.THE END OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

Before you read the text
Brainstorming: say, out loud, things you remember about the Romans

1.1. The division of the Roman Empire: the Eastern and Western Roman
Empire.

The Roman Empire dominated the Mediterranean and Western Europe for hundred of
years. Then, in 395, the emperor Theodosius divided the empire into two halves.

● The Eastern Roman Empire, with its capital in Constantinople (now Istanbul), later
known as the Byzantine Empire remained until 1453, surviving Germanic invasions.
● The Western Roman Empire, with its capital in Rome, in the fifth century was
invaded many times by barbarian tribes. Finally, in 476, a barbarian called Odoacer
defeated the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustus.After
476 various Germanic Kingdom were established in the territories of the former
Roman Empire. Among the most important were the Franks in Gaul (now France) and
the Visigoth in Hispania.
 This date is taken to mark the end of ancient history and the beginning of
Middle Ages. The end of the Middle Ages is usually marked either by the fall of
Constantinople to the Turks (1453) or the discovery of America (1492).

The fall of the Western Roman Empire resulted in big changes to society in
Western Europe.

ROMAN EMPIRE AFTER THE ROMAN EMPIRE

POLITICS Single powerful state Many smaller, weaker states

SOCIETY Urban society, big towns Rural society

TRADE Trade between different parts of Isolation

empire

ECONOMY Complex economy Simple economy based on agriculture

CULTURE Shared laws, culture and language Different laws, cultures and languages

1.2. The three empires

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Germanic tribes fought for control of
Western Europe. The Angles and Saxons invaded Britain, the Ostrogoths, and later the
Lombards, occupied Italy and Dalmatia, the Franks entered Gaul (France) and the Visigoths
took control of the Iberian Peninsula. For some time, the situation was very chaotic, but
eventually three new empires appeared. These empires were very powerful during the early
Middle Ages.

● The Carolingian Empire was the empire of the Franks. They controlled what is now
France, most of Germany, northern Italy and a little bit of the Iberian Peninsula.
● Various Islamic empires controlled North Africa, the Middle East, Arabia and Persia.
In 711 they invaded the Iberian Peninsula and founded Al-Andalus.
● The Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476, but the Eastern Roman Empire
survived for 1000 years more. In the Middle Ages,we call it Byzantine Empire.
ACTIVITIES
1. Answer the following questions
a. How many years did the Eastern and the Western Roman Empires last, from the
division of Theodosius to their extinction?
b. What happened in the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453?
c. Why did the Western Roman Empire fail?
d. Which empire did the Germanic peoples and the Byzantine replace?
e. Who was the last Western Roman Emperor?
f. What is the name given to the historical period between 476 and 1492?
g. When did the Middle Ages start?And when did they end?
2. Investigate by looking on the Internet:
a. Who were Honorius and Arcadius?
b. Who was their father? How old were they when their father died?
c. Were they strong or weak rulers?
3. Do these sentences describe the Roman Empire or the situation after the Roman
Empire?
a. the state was powerful
b. there were big, important towns
c. there was lots of trade between different areas
d. the economy was simple
e. people spoke the same language
f. Ordinary people were scared
4. Complete the following table:
THE END OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE
Theodosius divided the Roman Empire into

PARTS

CAPITAL

FALL
5. Read what Saint Jerome said about the collapse of the Roman Empire, and then
answer the questions
1. Make a list of the problems that Saint Jerome describes
2. What modern countries cover the area that Saint Jerome describes?
3. How do you think the people living in this area felt when the Roman Empire
collapsed?
Barbarian tribes have invaded all Gaul. The whole region between the Alps and the
Pyrenees, the ocean and the Rhine, has been devastated.
The noble city of Mainz has been taken and ruined, and in the church many thousand
of men have been massacred. The citizens of Rheims, Amiens, Arras, Speyer and Strasbourg
have all been taken to Germany as captives. Most towns have been deserted, and in the few
towns that remain, the people are starving.
Who could believe that Rome, which conquered the whole world, would fall to the ground?
Saint Jerome, around 406 AD(adapted)

2. THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

Before you read the text
Which of these places do you believe was at some point part of the Byzantine Empire?
Ireland, Rome, Jerusalem, Toledo, Athens, Cyprus, India.

The Byzantine Empire survived after the fall of Rome and managed to keep the ideals
and traditions of the Roman Empire alive for more than a thousand years. The capital was
established in Constantinople, a city founded by Emperor Constantine in the year 324 over
the old Greek colony of Byzantium, which gave its name to the Empire. The city is now
called Istanbul.

2.1. The history of the Byzantine Empire.

When the Eastern part of the Roman Empire was divided from the Western part, its
territories, which covered the Balkans, Greece, Asia Minor, Syria and Egypt, suffered many
attacks on its frontiers. During the fifth century it resisted attacks from barbarians (which was
a name give to foreigners). During the sixth century, it grew more than ever under Emperor
Justinian (527-565) who tried to establish the unity and the splendour of the Roman Empire.
He conquered Italy, Sicily from the Ostrogoths and territories in northern Africa from the
Vandals and southern Spain from the Visigoths, but most of it was lost after his death.

In the seventh century the Muslims conquered the richest provinces of the Byzantine
Empire (Syria, Palestine and Egypt).Its greatest loss, however, took place during the eleventh
century when the Normans invaded the Italian territories and the crusaders captured some of
the territories in the east. Finally, the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks (Ottoman
Empire) in 1453 finally marked the end of the Empire.
 2.2. Society and economic activities.

The empire was controlled by the emperor (called the ​basileus)​ who had absolute
power. This power included the control of the army, the administration, and even the Church.
However, such a large empire also requires lots of civil servants and the division of the
territory into provinces or ​themata​, headed by a political and military chief called ​strategos​.
The Roman legal system, modernised by Emperor Justinian, was the basis for its legal code:
the ​Corpus Iuris Civilis.​

Most of the population worked in agricultural activities but, while the farmers were
mostly serfs and slaves, the land was owned by the nobles and the monasteries.

Trade was also very important because of the strategic location of Constantinople. It
was between Europe and Asia; the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, so all types of products
were traded: silk from China; spices, ivory and pearls from India; amber, furs and grain from
northern Europe. The artisans used them to manufacture rich tapestries, jewels and artistic
objects.

Constantinople, which was the capital of the empire, was one of the biggest and
richest cities in the world. It had a population of over 500.000

2.3. The importance of the Church

The Church had a very important role in society, it crowned the emperor, it was a very
rich and powerful landowner, and it had to confront many problems such as the iconoclastic
controversy and the East-West Schism.
 Iconoclasm (in Greek “the breaking of images”) banned representations of Christ,
God or the saints as images or, from using them for cult worship. There were two periods of
iconoclasm, one in the eighth century and another one in the ninth century, when Byzantine
emperors ordered images to be removed from the temples. These laws caused riots and fights
between the monks and the ruling class, and also among the population, until finally the
representation of images was re-established as acceptable.

The East-West Schism was a consequence of the rivalry between the pope in Rome
and the patriarch in Constantinople, who refused to recognise the supremacy of the pope over
Christianity.The confrontation ended in 1054 with the division of the Church into two
independent branches. These came to be known as the Orthodox Christian Church and the
Catholic Christian Church.

2.4. Byzantine art

Byzantine art developed from the art of the Roman Empire and incorporated
influences from oriental art.

The most notable building of Byzantine architecture are the churches. The
Greek-cross plan, with four naves of equal size, was commonly used. Churches were often
build with brick, occasionally covered with marble on the outside, and decorated with rich
mosaics inside. Large domes resting on pillars are also very characteristics of this style. The
most famous example of Byzantine art is the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, built
by order of Emperor Justinian in the sixth century.

Mosaics decorated the walls and the domes inside the churches. They were made with
small, coloured pieces of ceramic. The commonly represented religious themes, such as
scenes from the life of Christ or the saints. Some of the most famous mosaics are in the
Church of San Vitale, in Ravenna, representing Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora
with their aides carrying offerings for the Church.

Icons are religious images; they were usually painted on a wooden surface and gold
paint was used to represent the radiance of Heaven.

ACTIVITIES
6.Answer the following questions:
a. Where does the name of the Byzantine Empire come from?
b. What was the new name given to the city?
c. When did the Empire enjoy its greatest expansion?
d. Which territories did Justinian conquer and which did the Muslim
conquer years later?
e. Why was the strategic position of Constantinople very important for
trade?
f. Name three present-day countries which formed part of the Byzantine
Empire in the 7th century.
g. Name the social groups in Byzantium
7. Match up the two halves of the sentences and write the complete sentences in your
exercise book:

1 Constantinople and Antioch were a old Roman laws and the ne laws, one of them
said that a person was innocent until proven
guilty.

2 Justinian expanded b important cities

3 Theodora was c the Byzantine Empire

4 The Justinian Code contained d the Hagia Sophia (a huge church)

5 Justinian built e Justinian´s wife

8. Put the following events in chronological order, then make a timeline including these
events and any others you consider to be important.
a. The Turks conquered Constantinople.
b. Emperor Justinian tried to re-establish the unity and the splendour of the
Roman Empire.
c. Emperor Constantine the Great rebuilt Byzantium.
d. Emperor Theodosius divided the Roman Empire between his sons.
9. Why was the Church so important to Byzantine society? When and where did the
Orthodox Christian Church begin?
10.Complete the following summary about Byzantine art:

The most important expressions

The most notable buildings

The most famous example of Byzantine art

The main characteristics of Byzantine churches

*Investigate by looking on the Internet: there is a story that when the Hagia Sophia was
finished, Justinian said​ “Salomon, I have outdone you”​. Why did Justinian say this?To help
you answer, find out what Salomon built.

3.THE CAROLINGIAN EMPIRE

Before you read the text

Have you heard about Charlemagne before? What do you think his name means?

Among the Germanic kingdom established in the territory of the old Western Roman
Empire were the Franks. The Franks governed the north of France (Gaul) and the
Merovingian dynasty, ruled from 481.
 3.1.Historical events

In 751 King Pippin the Short established a new dynasty among the Franks: the
Carolingian dynasty, which took the name from Charlemagne, Pippin´s son.

Charlemagne (742-814) wanted to re-establish the unity and splendour of the old
Western Rome Empire. He almost succeeded, conquering the north of Italy by defeating the
Lombards, central Europe by defeating the Bavarii and the Avars, and the north of Germany
from the Saxons.

After his conquests Charlemagne was crowned emperor by Pope Leo III on Christmas
day in the year 800. The Empire, however, would not last long because Charlemagne's son,
Louis the Pious, died in 840 and three years later it was divided between his three sons
(Charles, Lothair and Louis) in the Treaty of Verdun.

3.2. The government and the land

The emperor had all the military and political power, and even intervened in Church
issues. To control such a big territory it was divided up and counties were ruled by a counts,
and marches (territories on the borders of the Empire that had to be defended) were ruled by
marquises.
 Agriculture was the main activity. Cereal, which was the basic food crop, was
cultivated on large plots of land.The land was owned by nobles and the Church, but peasants
had to look after it under a system of feudalism that divided the land between manors (whose
produce belonged to the lords) and fiefs, or holdings (small plots the peasants rented from the
lords and could use to grow crops for themselves). Some peasants were free men and women
and some were serfs. The serfs, descendants of slaves, belonged to the land and could not
move away without the lord´s permission.
Craftwork produced objects for daily life, like textiles and tools. Trade was limited to
luxury products that were demanded by the wealthy people.

3.3.Carolingian society

Carolingian society was divided into three social groups:

● The nobles and the high Church owned the land and occupied the higher positions in
the administration.

● The free people: peasants, craftsmen and merchants.

● The serfs: descendants of slaves who were bound to the land; they could not leave
without the lord´s permission.

3.4. Culture and art

During Charlemagne's reign there was a revival of culture inspired by the Roman
models. Literatura, writing, architecture and the arts were promoted and acquired great
importance. The most important architectural achievement of this time is Charlemagne's
Palace in Aachen of which today only the Palatine Chapel remains.

Latin was used as the language of administration and in education the classical
curriculum (the ​trivium -​ grammar, logic and rhetoric) and the ​quadrivium ​-arithmetic,
geometry, astronomy and music-) was adopted. Copying manuscripts and adding goldwork to
them, and the creation of small sculptures were other cultural and artistic formas.

ACTIVITIES
11. Answer the following questions:
a. Why was Pippin the Short so important?
b. The division of the Carolingian Empire at Treaty of Verdun shows the beginning of
three big modern countries, which three countries?
c. What were the two types of provinces in the Carolingian Empire called? Who were
they governed by?
d. What seven subjects were taught in schools?
12.Explain how the land was divided.
13. Write a word from this section that corresponds to each definition.
a. An area of land on the border of the empire that had to be defended.
b. An area of land ruled by counts.
c. Small plots of land that the farmers rented from the lords.
d. Descendants of slaves who could not move away without the lord´s permission.
14. Read the text describing the Hagia Sophia and answer the questions in your exercise
book.
Hagia Sophia, the Holy Wisdom, was the principal church of the Byzantine world; its vast
dome could be seen all over the city. Materials were brought from all parts of the empire,
even the lead conduits of Constantinople were melted down to make covering for the domes.
The basic plan was a basilica with a very wide nave, covered by a central dome.Paul the
Silentiary, and official of Justinian's court wrote a poem describing the building. He said that
when the first rosy light of morning, driving away the dark shadows, leapt from arch to arch
it seemed as if the mighty arches were set in heaven.
H.and R. LEACROFT
The buildings of Byzantium
a) Where is Hagia Sophia? What is the modern name of this city?
b) What part of the church can be seen from a great distance?
c) What is the basic plan of the church?
d) What was the effect of the morning light on the arches, according to the court official?
e) Translate these words:lead, melt, wide, leap, mighty.

4. THE VISIGOTHS IN HISPANIA

In 409, a series of Germanic peoples: the Suebi, Vandals and Alans invaded the
Iberian Peninsula. The Visigoths came to Spain as allies of Rome to expel the invaders.

4.1. The formation of the Visigothic Kingdom of Toledo

From 415, the Visigoths pushed the Vandals and Alans into North Africa and the
Suebi into present-day Galicia. In the middle of the 5th century, they settled in southern Gaul,
where they formed the kingdom of Tolosa.
Later, the Franks, who came from the north of Gaul, defeated the Visigoths (Battle of
Vouillé, 507) and drove them south of the Pyrenees and into Hispania. Here, they organised a
kingdom that survived for over two hundred years with its capital in Toledo (554).

4.2.The organisation of the kingdom

The Visigoths were a minority (about 150000 of a population of six million) but held
most of the land and, along with the great Hispano-Roman landowners, formed the
aristocratic and privileged social group.
The Visigothic monarchy established a kingdom based on:
● a strong monarchy. Theoretically elected but often hereditary, the monarch
relied on institutions, such as the Aula Regia (advisory body of nobles and
clergy) and the Councils of Toledo (religious and civil assemblies), where
laws were made.
● control of the entire Peninsula. They expelled the Suebi (585), conquered
Byzantine territories in southern Spain (572-623) and stopped the advance of
the Franks in the north.
● the legal and religious unification of the Visigoths and Hispano-Romans. King
Leovigild repealed the law banning mixed marriages, Reccared achieved
religious unity by converting to Catholicism (587) and, Recceswinth
established a single law for the kingdom, the ​Liber Iudiciorum​ (654).
 However, internal divisions between the nobles in the early 8th century allowed a
Muslim army to defeat the last Visigothic King (Roderic) and conquer most of the Iberian
Peninsula (711).

4.3.Culture
Over two hundred years, a cultural fusion took place between the Hispano-Romans
and the Visigoths. The role of the Christian clergy was very important in this process. They
knew how to read and write and were great conservers of Roman culture, St Leander and St
Isidore of Seville are examples of clergy who were also intellectuals in Visigothic Hispania.

The importance of the Church and the fusion of Roman tradition with Germanic
influences is also reflected in art and architecture. Many small churches were built (San Juan
de Baños, San Pedro de la Nave, etc). Stone blocks, marble, columns and reliefs from the
Roman era were used in the construction of these churches.

Metal and gold work was also important, and influenced by Germanic tastes and
techniques.

ACTIVITIES
15.Why did the Visigoths leave southern Gaul? What was the Visigothic monarchy
based on?
16. Correct the sentences.
a. The Visigoths pushed the Vandals into France.
b. The Aula Regia was a book of law.
c. Reccared achieved religious unity by converting to Islam.
d. A Byzantine army conquered most of the Peninsula in 711.

TEST YOUR COMPETENCES

17. Read the text about the description of Charlemagne's coronation and answer the
questions.

Two days later it was Christmas. St.Peter's Basilica was full of people wearing colourful
clothing and shiny ornaments.Charlemagne entered, wearing sandals and dressed in the
Roman style with a long tunic and ​cloak​. He proceeded to the altar, where ​knelt down​ and
prayed​ for a long time in silence. Leo III, the pope, walked towards him and placed a golden
crown​ on his head. All the people ​cheered​ and shouted three times: “To the Emperor Charles
Augustus, crowned by God, noble and peaceful emperor of the Romand, life and
victory!”The noise was very loud. The pope knelt before the emperor and kissed his cloak.
Charlemagne became the emperor of the West.He was the first since the fall of the Roman
Empire in 476.
F. LEBRUN
The days of Charlemagne.
a. What do the underlined word mean? Try to guess and then check in a
dictionary.
b. What was Charlemagne wearing for his coronation?
 c. What did he don when he entered the church?
d. Who put the crown on his head?What is the significance of this?
e. Were the people happy with their new emperor? How do we know?

18. Copy and match the words (a-h) with their definitions (1-8).

a)Marble 1)Baked clay used for building walls.

b)Brick 2) A type of hard stone that is usually white.
c) Dome 3) A cross with arms of equal length.
d)Greek-Cross (plan) 4) A tall, solid, vertical post, which supports or decorates a building.
e)Nave 5) A hemispherical roof of a building, erected over a circular or
polygonal ground plan.
f) Arch 6) The long central part of a church where most of the seats are located
g) Column 7) A curved structure that supports the weight of something above it.
h)Buttress 8) A stone or brick structure that supports a wall.

19.Copy in your notebook and put each term in its correct place.

Byzantine Carolingian

Terms
1.Constantinople 2. Manor 3. Palatine Chapel
4. Basileus 5. The Balkans 6. Pippin the Short
7. Gaul 8. Palestine 9. Justinian I
10. Aachen 11. Themata 12. Corpus Iuris Civilis

20.Copy and complete the following sentences in your notebook.

a) ………………..divided the Roman Empire into two parts, one for each of his sons.
b) The last Roman Emperor was…………….
c) …………………….modernised the Roman legal system.
d) …………………..are made with small, coloured pieces of ceramic and the
…………were usually painted on a wooden surface.
e) ………………….created the Carolingian dynasty.
f) ……………….are small plots of land that the peasants rented from the lords and
could use to grow crops for themselves.

21.Create a timeline. Place the dates and events listed below in order to create a timeline
of the Early Middle Ages. You can add more dates and events if you consider them
important.
Dates: 843- 1453-534-1054-395-800-529-476
Events:
● Fall of Constantinople.
● Foundations of Hagia Sophia laid.
● End of the Western Roman Empire.
● Division of the Church into two independent branches.
● Division of the Roman Empire into two parts by Theodosius.
 ● Charlemagne crowned emperor.
● The Justinian Code of Laws passed.
● Charlemagne's Empire was divided into three kingdoms.

FOCUS ON ENGLISH

CAPITAL LETTERS
In English capital letters are used for the names of countries but also for their people and
languages: Germany, the Germans, the German language.

HOW TO READ DATES

In English, dates can be read as simple numbers if they have one, two or three digits. For
example, 324 as three hundred and twenty four; however, it is also common to read 324 as
three twenty-four.
But if the date contains four digits, then we separate the number into small units. Examples.
1453 is read as fourteen fifty.three; 1603 is read as sixteen oh three.
But remember: 2012 can be read as two thousand and twelve or twenty twelve.

PROPER NOUNS
In History you will find a lot of proper names to memorise; many of them are the names of
king, emperors or popes. Notice that they do not take an article and that the Roman numeral
is read as an ordinal number. Examples: King Pepin the Short, Pope Leo III (the third).