Cookie Policy

Our website uses cookies to understand content and feature usage to drive site improvements over time. To learn more, review our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Unit 5: Regional Webs

200 to 1500 CE

The fall of Rome and the Han Dynasty sent shockwaves through the ancient world. Were these collapses followed by a dark age, or did a period of restructuring lead to a new era of prosperity and innovation?

Lesson 5.1

Collapse and Restructuring
After the fall of empires, societies don’t collapse, they adapt, rebuild, and restructure. Challenge the idea of universal decline and explore how people showed resilience after catastrophe.

A Dark Age?

Lesson 5.2

Why do Empires Collapse?
What causes empires to collapse? Explore some of history’s greatest collapses to uncover what went wrong—and what these turning points reveal about the past, present, and future.

Lesson 5.3

Assessing the Dark Ages
Were the Dark Ages really that dark? Take part in the historical debate to determine how much societal collapse actually followed the Roman Empire’s fall.

The Middle Ages

Lesson 5.4

Systems Restructure in Europe and China
How do societies respond to disruption and change? Explore how communities in medieval Europe and Song China rebuilt and restructured after the fall of empires.

Lesson 5.5

The Islamic World
Islam spread quickly across Afro-Eurasia through trade, conquest, and cultural interactions. Explore how this expansion shaped communities and transformed global networks.

The Silk Routes

Lesson 5.6

The Silk Roads
The Silk Roads carried a lot more than just silk—they also brought technologies, cultures, and religions to new places. Discover how trade routes like the Silk Roads expanded and contracted over time.

Lesson 5.7

Expanding the Silk Routes
Explore the caravan routes and sea lanes called the Silk Roads to discover how merchants traveled from China to the Mediterranean Sea, moving goods, ideas, and cultures across continents.