The Middle Ages

By Xingyue
  • 475

    Beginning of the Middle Ages

    Beginning of the Middle Ages
    The most commonly given starting point for the Middle Ages is around 500, with 476—the year the last Western Roman Emperor was deposed—first used by Bruni.
  • Period: 523 to 524

    Boethius writes The Consolation of Philosophy

    Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius, a Roman senator and official, is imprisoned by King Theodoric the Great. As he awaits his trial, Boethius writes this philosophical treatise, which examines various questions, including why bad things happen to good people. It has since become a major work of philosophy.
  • 525

    Anno Domini calendar invented

    Anno Domini calendar invented
    A monk named Dionysius Exiguus creates this new dating system as part of his efforts to understand the dating of Easter. It wanted the year 1 AD to be the date when Jesus Christ was born, although later calculations show that his birth occurred before this. Gradually use of this calendar became more widespread, and is now the most widely accepted system for counting years in the world.
  • Period: 717 to 718

    Siege of Constantinople

    A one-year siege by the Umayyad Caliphate against the capital city of the Byzantine Empire ended with the Umayyads withdrawing. Often considered one of the most important military conflicts in the Middle Ages, this would lead to significant changes within the Islamic world.
  • 800

    Charlemagne crowned emperor

    Charlemagne crowned emperor
    On Christmas Day, the Carolingian ruler is crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III, the first person in Western Europe to hold that title.
  • 1136

    Gothic buildings emerge

    Gothic buildings emerge
    A new architectural style that would flourish in medieval Europe, it has its beginnings with the work done by French abbot Suger and his work on the Basilica of St Denis in Paris.
  • Period: 1170 to 1180

    Maimonides writes Mishneh Torah

    The Jewish philosopher Moses ben Maimon writes this 14 volume work on Judaism, becoming one of the key books on the religion.
  • 1265

    Thomas Aquinas begins his Summa Theologica

    Thomas Aquinas begins his Summa Theologica
    This Dominican friar does not complete this massive work before his death in 1274, but the text has become one of the most important works on theology.
  • Period: 1315 to 1317

    Great Famine

    A series of crop failures and bad weather that struck large parts of Europe.
  • 1453

    End of the middle ages

    End of the middle ages
    The Middle Ages ended with the fall of Constantinople in 1453 AD