9781422277614

Learning in the Medieval World After the fall of the western Roman Empire in 476 ce , Europe gradually entered a period of economic and intellectual decline. Various invading forces attacked and pillaged schools and libraries, and much ancient learning was lost. Beginning in the eleventh century ce , European Christians waged a series of wars, called the Crusades, against Arab Muslims for control over Jerusalem and other important areas of the Middle East. As the Europeans conquered territory, scholars began bringing large quantities of manuscripts to Europe. Among them were Arabic editions of ancient Greek books: the work of such men as Galen, Ptolemy, Euclid, Archimedes, and, most importantly, Aristotle. These works were translated into Latin, the language of educated Europeans, and scholars throughout the continent began to study the ideas and knowledge of the ancient philosophers. They were overwhelmed by their insights into the natural world. This ancient knowledge would dominate European scholarship for 500 years. Some of this ancient knowledge was thought to contradict the Christian scriptures. But, thanks to translations and commentaries by such churchmen as Saint Thomas Aquinas during the thirteenth century, explanations were created to resolve some of these conflicts. Soon, nearly all of the ancient Greeks’ work—particularly that of Aristotle—began to be blended with Christian belief. To argue against Aristotle was to argue against God’s view of the world as expressed in the Bible. Galileo was born toward the end of this period, and grew up in this climate of reverence for Greek thought.

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