Decline Of The Middle Ages example essay topic

One of humanity's darkest hours, the decline of the middle ages was a truly horrific time in history. Such a lamented time, though, was not brought to its worst point overnight. Several factors, the most prominent being the bubonic plague, actually combined to bring mankind to an all time low. During the middle ages, religion played a major role in the lives of everyday people.

The last book of the bible, the book of Revelation, prompted multitudes of people to believe the world was coming to an end. This, coupled with the rising mortality rate due to the plague, inspired many to take refuge in God. What else could they do in the midst of such chaos? Though the church was many peoples' last hope, the house of God itself was having some domestic issues. It was so bad, in fact, that the church actually added to the misery of the times. Events like the Babylonian Captivity cut the church off from its historic roots and deeply hurt its prestige.

Religious leaders became so focused on bureaucracy and politics that some of the religious nature of the church was lost. Such problems badly hurt the moral of the people and their faith in God. The Hundred Years War, actually lasting from 1337-1453, also took its toll on the general moral throughout Europe. With several immediate and distant causes, the war was a deeply intertwined ball of land rights and political unrest.

Whatever the cause, the Hundred Years War brought both England and France into a tiresome battle that would claim the lives of thousands and plunge Europe ever deeper into the maelstrom of destruction that was the Middle Ages. Although it now seems strange, at the time, the hundred years war was supported on both sides. It offered new opportunities of wealth and prestige to those in the noble class. It also changed the reputation of war itself so that it was thought of as glorious.

Such were the major effects of the war. The most devastating and far reaching event of the middle ages, however, was the bubonic plague. Nicknamed the black death for the dark sores it produced on the victims bodies, it was a truly disgusting disease. It claimed the lives of over one third of Europe's population, causing mass panic and hysteria. If any one sign was a definitive reason for the people of Europe to believe it was the end of the world, the Bubonic plague was that sign. Originally carried to Europe through mice aboard a ship from the middle east, it was an amazingly fast acting disease.

In fact, the crew and passengers on the ship returning home had already begun to die before they made it to port. Such a horrible affliction destroyed the lives of so many people, thus earning it the place of biggest contributor to the decline of the middle ages. The middle ages was a time of chaos and destruction that showed mankind its lowest limits. From this dark hour, the road was so arduously paved to the future we live in today.