History Main / DarkAgeEurope

* AnAxeToGrind: Axes were probably the most frequent non-spear weapon of the era, as an axe is fairly easy for a relatively unskilled smith to make, requires much less steel than a sword, and peasants tended to have these around anyway for firewood.

* BladeOnAStick: What most fighters actually had to settle for, when they weren't stuck with [[SinisterScythe farming implements]] or just [[MartialArtsStaff the stick]].

* BladeOnAStick: What most fighters actually had to settle for, when they weren't stuck with [[SinisterScythe farming implements]] or just [[SimpleStaff the stick]].

This period heralded the [[AfterTheEnd fall]] and [[BalkanizeMe division]] of the Western Roman Empire (the Eastern half was able to survive as the Byzantine Empire... which was never called 'Byzantine' until a century after it fell, by Renaissance figures wanting to paint themselves as heirs to AncientGrome. Starting to see a pattern yet?), and the rise of monasticism in Europe. Hollywood monks are pious men, clad in long brown robes, with rosaries and tonsure haircuts. They spend their days dipping feathered quills into inkwells and scribbling strange script into large books by candlelight. That is, when they're not out chasing lusty, busty tavern wenches. Hollywood monks don't take that whole “celibacy” thing all that seriously. Neither, in fact, did the regular clergy; celibacy did not become a requirement of the priesthood until ''very'' late in the Middle Ages. It ''was'', however, mandated in nearly every set of monastic rules, including those of Benedict. It was also a time of interesting contrasts: during this period, Christian and Pagan folklore and traditions were syncretized in the minds of the public, which gave rise to some of the most famous mythologies and legends of the Middle Ages, such as Literature/{{Beowulf}}, [[Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}} Siegfried]], and the aforementioned Myth/KingArthur.

* All movie and literary versions of Myth/ArthurianLegend...although their aesthetic is almost certainly that of TheHighMiddleAges, or even TheLateMiddleAges.

A anarchy and chaos (roughly 500 - 1000 AD), when people were [[TheDungAges disease-ridden and covered with filth]], unless one [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail happened to be king]]... at least, if you believe what ''Hollywood'' says about them -- according to real modern historians this is a load of cobblers based primarily on the fact that we don't have many documents from (approximately) the first half of that time, and Renaissance figures were eager to dismiss everything between them and AncientGrome (which they claimed they were heirs to) as pure garbage and not worth discussing.

In Hollywood Land, however, this was a muck and more muck. The cleanest—and most well-known—figure of this period generally ends up being Myth/{{Arthur|ianLegend}}, King (...ish) of the Britons, who had a round table, around which sat his band of noble and chivalrous [[strike:knights]] blokes with big swords (many of whom proved ''not'' so noble and chivalrous once left to their own devices).[[note]]Many medieval knights were teenagers that worked for their lord as hired muscle, behaving more like modern gang members than the romances would have you believe.[[/note]] Since most accounts of Arthur were written centuries after he supposedly lived, and featured fashion and architecture from the time they were written, many Hollywood 'historians' lump him in with TheHighMiddleAges (but hey, since when have ''they'' been [[AnachronismStew sticklers for accuracy]]?).

This period heralded the [[AfterTheEnd fall]] and [[BalkanizeMe division]] of the Western Roman Empire (the Eastern half was able to survive as the Byzantine Empire... which was never called 'Byzantine' until a century after it fell, by Renaissance figures wanting to paint themselves as heirs to AncientGrome. Starting to see a pattern yet?), and the rise of monasticism in Europe. Hollywood monks are pious men, clad in long brown robes, with rosaries and tonsure haircuts. They spend their days dipping feathered quills into inkwells and scribbling strange script into large books by candlelight. That is, when they're not out chasing lusty, busty tavern wenches. Hollywood monks don't take that whole “celibacy” thing all that seriously. Neither, in fact, did the regular clergy; celibacy did not become a requirement of the priesthood until ''very'' late in the Middle Ages. It ''was'', however, mandated in nearly every set of monastic rules, including those of Benedict. It was also a interesting contrasts: during this period, Christian and Pagan folklore and traditions were syncretized in the minds of the public, which gave rise to some of the most famous mythologies and legends of the Middle Ages, such as Literature/{{Beowulf}}, [[Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}} Siegfried]], and the aforementioned Myth/KingArthur.

* TheTimeOfMyths: As mentioned above, it can overlap in more fantastical or whimsical works as a natural consequence of the more sparse surviving primary sources and also the fact that many famous mythical canons such as the Arthurian mythos originated around this time.

* TheTimeOfMyths: As mentioned above, it can overlap in more fantastical or whimsical works as a natural consequence of the more sparse surviving primary sources.

A time of anarchy and chaos (roughly 500 - 1000 AD), when people were [[TheDungAges disease-ridden and covered with filth]], unless one [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail happened to be king]]... at least, if you believe what ''Hollywood'' says about them -- according to real modern historians this is a load of cobblers based primarily on the fact that we don't have many documents from (approximately) the first half of that time, and Renaissance figures were eager to dismiss everything between them and AncientGrome (which they claimed they were heirs to) as pure garbage and not worth discussing.

In Hollywood Land, however, this was a time of muck and more muck. The cleanest—and most well-known—figure of this period generally ends up being Myth/{{Arthur|ianLegend}}, King (...ish) of the Britons, who had a round table, around which sat his band of noble and chivalrous [[strike:knights]] blokes with big swords (many of whom proved ''not'' so noble and chivalrous once left to their own devices).[[note]]Many medieval knights were teenagers that worked for their lord as hired muscle, behaving more like modern gang members than the romances would have you believe.[[/note]] Since most accounts of Arthur were written centuries after he supposedly lived, and featured fashion and architecture from the time they were written, many Hollywood 'historians' lump him in with TheHighMiddleAges (but hey, since when have ''they'' been [[AnachronismStew sticklers for accuracy]]?).

This period heralded the [[AfterTheEnd fall]] and [[BalkanizeMe division]] of the Western Roman Empire (the Eastern half was able to survive as the Byzantine Empire... which was never called 'Byzantine' until a century after it fell, by Renaissance figures wanting to paint themselves as heirs to AncientGrome. Starting to see a pattern yet?), and the rise of monasticism in Europe. Hollywood monks are pious men, clad in long brown robes, with rosaries and tonsure haircuts. They spend their days dipping feathered quills into inkwells and scribbling strange script into large books by candlelight. That is, when they're not out chasing lusty, busty tavern wenches. Hollywood monks don't take that whole “celibacy” thing all that seriously. Neither, in fact, did the regular clergy; celibacy did not become a requirement of the priesthood until ''very'' late in the Middle Ages. It ''was'', however, mandated in nearly every set of monastic rules, including those of Benedict. It was also a time of interesting contrasts: during this period, Christian and Pagan folklore and traditions were syncretized in the minds of the public, which gave rise to some of the most famous mythologies and legends of the Middle Ages, such as Literature/{{Beowulf}}, [[Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}} Siegfried]], and the aforementioned Myth/KingArthur.

* TheTimeOfMyths: Can overlap, depending on the degree of realism.

* TheDungAges: Although this trope [[ExaggeratedTrope is a vastly exaggerated version of reality]], many larger cities and towns in this period did indeed have plenty of dirt and waste on their streets (although people still had a basic understanding of hygiene).

* TheDungAges: Many cities and towns in this period were filled with plenty of dirt and garbage.

* HereThereWereDragons: In some of the more fantastical stories set around this period.

* ''Series/{{Kaamelott}}'' is theoretically set in the 5th century, but deliberately and gleefully uses AnachronismStew such as Renaissance-era full plate armor coexisting with Roman iorica segmenta, the Roman Empire is on its last legs but GladiatorGames are still going strong (they'd been banned by Christian emperors), the Egyptians still have architects capable of building pyramids while the Pope is sending Inquisitors around to sniff out heresy and witchcraft (the Medieval Inquisition only began in the 13th century), etc.

* BarbarianHero: The Vikings.

* ''ComicStrip/PrinceValiant'' is one of the few Arthurian works explicitly set in this time period (specifically the 5th century) in spite of its anachronistic elements, and many [[HistoricalDomainCharacter important historical figures]] of the time like Genseric and Attila the Hun make appearances.

* All movie and literary versions of Myth/ArthurianLegend...although their aesthetic is almost certainly that of TheMiddleAges, or even TheLateMiddleAges.

* ''Film/TheLastLegion'': This one is set right after the fall of the Western Empire and ties Caesar's lost sword to Excalibur, no less.

* ''Film/{{Outlander}}'' (2008), i.e., Beowulf, [[RecycledInSpace the Sci-Fi Remix]].

* DropTheHammer: Vikings are frequently depicted as using hammers in battle.

* AfterTheEnd

* BarbarianHero

* DroitDuSeigneur
* DropTheHammer
* TheDungAges
* FeudalOverlord: The Feudal system developed around this time, though it had roots in Roman era patron-client relationships.

** The Carolingian dynasty of [[ManBehindTheMan Mayors of the Palace]], Kings, and finally Emperors helped another one explode on the mainland towards the end of this period, capping off with [[TheEmperor Charlemagne]] reconstructing the largest empire in continental Europe since Rome. This was just the first of three different such renaissance periods in Europe prior to the Italian Renaissance that is generally known by that name.
* HereThereWereDragons

* HeroicFantasy
* HornyVikings

* VestigialEmpire: UsefulNotes/TheRomanEmpire collapsed in the fifth century, leaving crumbling roads and aqueducts to lace Europe-but only the Western half. [[UsefulNotes/ByzantineEmpire The Eastern Roman Empire]] continued on until the fifteenth century: advanced infrastructure, a literate culture, and a higher standard of living, and remained a major power well into the early 13th century. In terms of actual territory, it waxed and waned in size, such as under Justinian I [[note]] Who reconquered North Africa, almost all of Italy, as well as some of France and Spain in the 6th century [[/note]], and Heraclius [[note]] Who nearly lost the empire in the early 7th century, then finally ended the ForeverWar with Persia and was poised to take it whole, before the Muslims happened [[/note]], and Basil II [[note]] who gave the Empire it's greatest post Heraclius territorial extent by his death in 1025 [[/note]]. However, they suffered some permanent losses (Syria and Egypt from 661, Rome from about 754), before entering a permanent decline after the 4th Crusade took Constantinople and balkanized the Empire in 1204: while Constantinople was retaken and the Eastern Empire re-established in 1261, large chunks had wandered off to do their own thing and the Turks had exploited the divisions to eat up a lot of territory.

* ''VideoGame/TotalWarAttila'': ''The Last Roman'' DLC campaign is about the [[UsefulNotes/ByzantineEmpire Eastern Roman Empire]]'s attempts to retake the lost territories of the West from the Barbarian Kingdoms.

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'' is set in the late 9th Century, shortly before the establishment of the Danelaw.

* ''Beowulf and Grendel'' (2005)

* ''Literature/TainBoCuailnge''

* VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'' is set in the late 9th Century, shortly before the establishment of the Danelaw.

According to several historians the reason we have writings from Pliny and other earlier writers at all is because they were dutifully copied by monks. The reason we tend to look down on this period is because in the Renaissance there was a massive upsurge in interest in ancient Greek, Roman, and Egyptian culture and a great deal of belittlement and scorn for the previous millennium. The fact that we have so few historical documents from the 'Dark Ages' could well be explained by the distaste for this time and the outright systematic destruction of many great Gothic buildings from the Middle Ages (aside from ones that were ''still under construction'', like the Cologne Cathedral). From a historical view point it would be more accurate to pinpoint this age from 661 (when the Europeans lost contact with Syria and Egypt due to Muslim invasions) to about 1100 (when the Crusades recovered lost information from the Classical Era). We know what happened during those times though, and it is for [[UsefulNotes/TheCrusades whatever reason]] a rather touchy subject, so fiction writers do not touch it.

The notion of the "Dark Ages" is thus tied in inexorably with the notion of UsefulNotes/TheRenaissance, since it was Renaissance and later [[UsefulNotes/TheEnlightenment Enlightenment]] and post-Enlightenment European thinkers who argued that the period after the fall of the Roman Empire was an age of backwardness and superstition where the Catholic Church imposed its theological narrative on the world and held back science and progress. In short, it can be argued that it is [[TheWarOnStraw a strawman]] set-up by [[KnowNothingKnowItAll misinformed intellectuals]], often from Protestant countries, and whether Protestant themselves or personally secular, were biased against Catholicism specifically and in some instances religion in general. It also has somewhat [[UnfortunateImplications racist implications]] as the word "Europe" was usually not included at all, meaning that the achievements of Asian and Middle Eastern civilizations during this time were downplayed if not outright ignored as the only civilization that mattered was ''Western'' civilization, and as such the concept of the Dark Ages is often used to justify Western imperialism and white supremacy amongst other unpleasant ideas.

* ''Literature/TheSevenwatersTrilogy''bis set in 9th century Ireland, where Vikings and Britons (implied to be the UsefulNotes/AngloSaxons) are occasionally at war with the Irish.

A time of anarchy and chaos (roughly 500 - 1500 AD), when people were [[TheDungAges disease-ridden and covered with filth]], unless one [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail happened to be king]]... at least, if you believe what ''Hollywood'' says about them -- according to real modern historians this is a load of cobblers based primarily on the fact that we don't have many documents from (approximately) the first half of that time, and Renaissance figures were eager to dismiss everything between them and AncientGrome (which they claimed they were heirs to) as pure garbage and not worth discussing.

A time of anarchy and chaos (roughly 500 - 1500 AD), when people were [[TheDungAges disease-ridden and covered with filth]], unless one [[Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail happened to be king]]... at least, if you believe what ''Hollywood'' says about them -- according to real modern historians this is a load of cobblers based purely on the fact that we don't have many documents from that time.

This period heralded the [[AfterTheEnd fall]] and [[BalkanizeMe division]] of the Western Roman Empire (the Eastern half was able to survive as the Byzantine Empire...which was never known as Byzantine until a century after it fell), and the rise of monasticism in Europe. Hollywood monks are pious men, clad in long brown robes, with rosaries and tonsure haircuts. They spend their days dipping feathered quills into inkwells and scribbling strange script into large books by candlelight. That is, when they're not out chasing lusty, busty tavern wenches. Hollywood monks don't take that whole “celibacy” thing all that seriously. Neither, in fact, did the regular clergy; celibacy did not become a requirement of the priesthood until ''very'' late in the Middle Ages. It ''was'', however, mandated in nearly every set of monastic rules, including those of Benedict. It was also a time of interesting contrasts: during this period, Christian and Pagan folklore and traditions were syncretized in the minds of the public, which gave rise to some of the most famous mythologies and legends of the Middle Ages, such as Literature/{{Beowulf}}, [[Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}} Siegfried]], and the aforementioned Myth/KingArthur.

The term “Dark Ages” only makes sense if you understand the technical definition of the word “history”, which is: “The study of stuff people wrote about themselves back in the day.” The Dark Ages were dark not because they were DarkerAndEdgier, or because there was a shortage of candles, but because very few of their writings have survived to the present day, leaving History in the dark about what things were like. We cannot tell for certain whether the Dark Ages were darker and edgier than the eras that came before and after. In fact, there is absolutely no evidence at all that there was any kind of 'technological Dark Age', rather the evidence favors continued gradual development.

* FeudalOverlord

* VestigialEmpire: UsefulNotes/TheRomanEmpire collapsed in the fifth century, leaving crumbling roads and aqueducts to lace Europe-but only the Western half. [[UsefulNotes/ByzantineEmpire The Eastern Roman Empire]] continued on until the fifteenth century: advanced infrastructure, a literate culture, and a higher standard of living, but in an increasingly smaller territory.

In Hollywood Land, however, this was a time of muck and more muck. The cleanest—and most well-known—figure of this period generally ends up being [[Myth/KingArthur Arthur]], King (...ish) of the Britons, who had a round table, around which sat his band of noble and chivalrous [[strike:knights]] blokes with big swords (many of whom proved ''not'' so noble and chivalrous once left to their own devices).[[note]]Many medieval knights were teenagers that worked for their lord as hired muscle, behaving more like modern gang members than the romances would have you believe.[[/note]] Since most accounts of Arthur were written centuries after he supposedly lived, and featured fashion and architecture from the time they were written, many Hollywood 'historians' lump him in with TheHighMiddleAges (but hey, since when have ''they'' been [[AnachronismStew sticklers for accuracy]]?).

* AnachronismStew: It's fairly common to see things that were invented in the [[TheHighMiddleAges High]] and [[TheLateMiddleAges Late Middle Ages]] such plate armor to pop up in fiction during this period. Myth/KingArthur is a particularly bad offender in this.

* Myth/KingArthur

* All movie and literary versions of ''Myth/KingArthur''...although their aesthetic is almost certainly that of TheMiddleAges, or even TheLateMiddleAges.