"This little volume contains the substance of lectures ... delivered from October to December 1922 in several American universities."--Pref. Bibliography: p. [245]-249.

DIVRemarkable classic that developed the revolutionary theory of how the advance and influence of Islam caused the Europe of the Roman Empire to evolve into the Europe of the Middle Ages. /div

2014 Reprint of 1937 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Henri Pirenne's reputation today rests on three contributions to European history: for what has become known as the Pirenne Thesis, concerning the origins of the Middle Ages in reactive state formation and shifts in trade; for a distinctive view of Belgium's medieval history; and for his model of the development of the medieval city. Pirenne argued that profound social, economic, cultural, and religious movements in the long-term resulted from equally profound underlying causes, and this attitude influenced Marc Bloch and the outlook of the French "Annales" School of social history. Though Pirenne had his opponents who disagreed on essential points, recent historians of the Middle Ages usually take Pirenne's main theses, however much they are modified, as starting points.

Remarkable classic that developed the revolutionary theory of how the advance and influence of Islam caused the Europe of the Roman Empire to evolve into the Europe of the Middle Ages. .,."an important...seminal book, worthy to close one of the most distinguished careers in European scholarship." -- "Saturday Review of Literature,"

This is a new release of the original 1955 edition.

First published in 1939, this is a reissue of Henri Pirenne's extremely popular and influential history of Europe in the Middle Ages. It begins with the Barbarian and Musulman invasions in the fifth century AD, which signalled the end of the Roman world in the West, and ends in the middle of the sixteenth century with the Renaissance and the Reformation. Universally praised for its detailed and impartial approach, this reissue will be very welcome news to both students of medieval history and to the general reader seeking a definitive review of the period.