Albigensians were also called Cathars This story starts about 1050 AD, not long after the Capetians took power in northern France. Some Christian people in the south of France began to think differently about God from the [...]
Medieval university Fewer universities than before With the fall of Rome, the universities of northern Europe closed too. The end of Mediterranean trade meant that nobody could afford to get an [...]
St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice, Italy (about 1100 AD) The Seljuks destabilize Europe's neighbors In 1071 AD, the Byzantine Empire lost most of Anatolia (modern Turkey) to the Seljuk Turks at the Battle of Manzikert. [...]
Monogram of Hugh Capet (980s AD) Who was Hugh Capet? When the Carolingians died out in 987 AD, the lords of France met to choose a new king. They chose a man named Hugh [...]
Church of St. Sernin, Toulouse, France In 1080 AD, the church of St. Sernin in Toulouse was a busy place. Charlemagne had given the church some saints' relics, and many people stopped to pray [...]
Façade of Pisa's Duomo We call this kind of building Romanesque because it is a little like Roman architecture, with its columns and round arches. But people built Romanesque buildings around 1000-1200 AD instead [...]
Carcassonne (1060s to 1240s AD) Where is Carcassonne? Carcassonne, on top of a hill where you can see for miles, has always been important for any army that wanted to [...]
