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Assessing the Dark Ages

Driving Question: Did Europe go through a dark age after the fall of the Roman Empire?

When historians call this period the “Dark Ages,” they’re usually talking about Europe. And that’s where we’ll start—but there’s a big world beyond Europe. We’ll try to figure out if the medieval period in Europe was really a dark age and evaluate how other societies around the world responded to collapse.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Analyze the extent to which Europe experienced a period of societal collapse following the fall of the Roman Empire.
  2. Evaluate historical debates surrounding the Dark Ages in Europe and beyond.

Vocab Terms:

  • administrative
  • aristocracy
  • bureaucrat
  • clergy
  • feudalism
  • province
STEP 1

Opener: Assessing the Dark Ages

STEP 2

Dark Ages?

Evaluate the evidence you’ve encountered in this lesson and take sides in the debates about the Dark Ages.

STEP 3

Closer: Assessing the Dark Ages

You’ve learned about debates surrounding the so-called Dark Ages. In this activity, it’s your turn to weigh in—did Europe experience a dark Age after the fall of Rome?