In the TLS, May 22, 2009, Rosamond McKitterick, professor of medieval history at the University of Cambridge, reviews with great praise Chris Wickhams book, The Inheritance of Rome: A history of Europe from 400-1000. She begins:

The notion of the "Dark Ages" is a very British one. On the Continent, the period has more neutral designations.... The negative associations of the British term are surely connected to the loss of empire, the Romans having been so careless as to let theirs "decline and fall", although in a post-colonial world, the aftermath of empire might be thought to offer instructive parallels and comparisons. There are many other reasons why clinging to a notion of "dark ages" makes no sense. The centuries that saw the consolidation of Christianity, the emergence of Islam and a vibrant and distinctive Islamic culture, the codification of Roman law, the development of a European intellectual and cultural tradition, the preservation of classical literature and enrichment of the Latin and Greek languages, the formation of the complex and very diverse successor states to the Roman Empire, and the diversification and eventual expansion of both the north European and Mediterranean economies ought to need no apology.

She concludes:

This book does its job admirably: it shows the complexity of the centuries after the "fall" of Rome and the wealth of evidence that has been explored and remains to be elucidated. The formative nature of this inheritance, common to all successors of the Christian (Catholic, Orthodox and heretical), Muslim, Jewish communities of the early Middle Ages, is indisputable. The book is a pleasure to read. Let us hope it achieves the popular success it deserves, and dispels the nonsense about the Dark Ages" once and for all.

But if a letter-writer in the June 5th issue is any indication, her latter hope is not likely to be fulfilled. Neil Cooper writes:

If McKitterick could only explain to us what happened to the population of Britain between, say, 400 and 600, and specifically why it is that we speak English, then she may be correct in pouring scorn on the "Dark Age" tag. As it is, we cannot see through the darkness, and for many medievalists that very darkness is a great draw. Over twenty years ago, Michael Wood went In Search of the Dark Ages, and by doing so spurred an enthusiasm for the period in many who might not have been as inspired by a search for the Early Middle Ages.

It is odd that I could find Cooper's letter on-line, but not McKitterick's review.

Rev. Joseph A. Komonchak, professor emeritus of the School of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of America, is a retired priest of the Archdiocese of New York.

Also by this author
© 2024 Commonweal Magazine. All rights reserved. Design by Point Five. Site by Deck Fifty.