How did Europe escape the Dark Ages?

The cultural decline associated with the Low Middle Ages began to reverse during the Carolingian Renaissance, so named because Charlemagne instituted political, cultural, and educational reforms while trying to create a new "Holy" Roman Empire. read more

The only sensible definition of the dark ages specifically refers to Christian Europe between the 7th and 12th centuries. The Arabs, Indians, and Chinese were not in any dark ages during this entire period of time, while Christian Europe certainly was. read more

So, too, did Charlemagne’s famous “Charter of Modern Thought,” which he issued in 787. In this document, issued to all the bishops and abbots of the Empire, Charlemagne required that “every monastery and every abbey have its own school, in which boys may be taught the Psalms, the system of musical notation, singing, arithmetic and grammar,” and that professional teachers be chosen for this task. read more

When Europe was in the “Dark Ages”, technically not all of Europe was in the Dark Ages. Not long after the fall of Rome, and after a very brief Visigothic period, the Iberian Peninsula was rapidly overrun by the Moors. read more