Late Antiquity

Economic Change

Three factors fed into the transformation of the Mediterranean economy of antiquity into the European economy of the Middle Ages. The Germanic invasions of the later Empire were one of these factors; the other two were the civil wars of the 3rd century, and the Islamic invasions of the 7th century.

With every watershed, we move further away from the Mediterranean, further away from contact with the East, further away from the towns. At the same time, we move further away from the great villas and estates of the Roman world and closer to the family farms of the Middle Ages. These centuries mark the invention of the peasantry and the general elimination of agricultural slavery. It also marks the almost total collapse of commerce, of cities, and of all that goes with them.

I'll discuss each of these in turn.

History of Western Civilization

E.L. Skip Knox
Boise State University

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