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==Russians, Slavs and Turks==

==Russians, Slavs and Turks==

[[Russia]] today is by far the largest country in the world in land mass, having almost twice the area of the second-largest country ([[Canada]]).  Russia currently has the world's ninth largest population, ranking behind number one [[China]], number two [[India]], number three [[United States]], and several other Asian countries and [[Brazil]].  Russia is 15% Muslim today.

[[Russia]] today is by far the largest country in the world in land mass, having almost twice the area of the second-largest country ([[Canada]]).  Russia currently has the world's ninth largest population, ranking behind number one [[China]], number two [[India]], number three [[United States]], several other Asian countries, and [[Brazil]].  Russia is 15% Muslim today.

Russia is located on what is known as the "[[steppe]]" (pronounced simply as "step"), which is a broad, flat grassland lacking trees.  The steppe stretches across Asia and eastern Europe.  The steppe has fertile soil and navigable rivers for trade.  By A.D. 100, [[Slavic]] peoples (the "Slavs") had settled the steppe and cultivated the soil with iron tools.  They lived in tribes and villages but were easy victims for nomadic fighters such as the [[Huns]] (recall our encounter last week with "Attila the Hun").

Russia is located on what is known as the "[[steppe]]" (pronounced simply as "step"), which is a broad, flat grassland lacking trees.  The steppe stretches across Asia and eastern Europe.  The steppe has fertile soil and navigable rivers for trade.  By A.D. 100, [[Slavic]] peoples (the "Slavs") had settled the steppe and cultivated the soil with iron tools.  They lived in tribes and villages but were vulnerable to nomadic fighters such as the [[Huns]] (recall our encounter last week with "Attila the Hun").  The Slavs established an important trade city known as [[Kiev]], which exists to this day, and named the territory "Rus", from which the name Russian comes.

Beginning in the A.D. 800s, the [[Vikings]] conducted trade from [[Constantinople]] and the [[Black Sea]].  The Slavs established an important trade city known as [[Kiev]], which exists to this day, and named the territory "Rus", from which the name Russian comes.

The capital of Rus was Kiev from A.D. 882 to 1169, and it prospered.  [[Prince Vladimir]] of Kiev chose [[Orthodox Christianity]] as the religion, and established the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] for the Russian people, which led to cultural exchanges between Russia and [[Byzantine]].  Some historians say that the prince rejected Islam because of its prohibition on alcohol, which has been a profitable export for Russia to even this day.  The more likely reason for the rejection of Islam was that the prince was [[Christian]] himself, as he enthusiastically promoted Christian [[baptism]] for everyone.

Kiev furnished many slaves to the Byzantine empire (the word "Slav" comes from same word root as the word "slave").  This was enormously profitable.  Kiev also traded in many other goods, and by A.D. 1000 was one of the wealthiest cities in the world.  It later declined in the 13th century as the [[Mongols]] successfully invaded Russia and interfered with trade.

 

Kiev furnished many slaves to the Byzantine empire (the word "Slav" comes from same word root as the word "slave").  This was enormously profitable.  Kiev also traded in many other goods, and by A.D. 1000 was one of the wealthiest cities in the world.  It declined in the 13th century as the [[Mongols]] successfully invaded Russia and interfered with trade.

Meanwhile, Islam was converting many [[Turks]], who were superb fighters.  Many of them had been raised as slaves in the [[Abbasid empire]].  When these slaves were used as soldiers, they were called "[[mamelukes]]".

Meanwhile, Islam was converting many [[Turks]], who were superb fighters.  Many of them had been raised as slaves in the [[Abbasid empire]].  When these slaves were used as soldiers, they were called "[[mamelukes]]".

A group of Turks known as the [[Seljuk Turks|Seljuks]] had converted to become [[Sunni Muslims]], and they gained control of trade routes connecting Asia and Europe.  In A.D. 1055, the Seljuks captured [[Baghdad]] from the Persians, and killed the [[Shiite]] officials there.  The Seljuk Turks gained in power and defeated the Byzantine empire in 1071 at the [[Battle of Manzikert]].  They soon controlled [[Anatolia]].  But the Turks did not adopt the Arabic language.  Instead, they adopted the culture and language of Persia, referred to their rulers as "shah", and almost obliterated the Arabic language from Persia.  Seljuk ruler [[Malik Shah]] (1055-1092) supported Persian artists and culture.  They were not great engineers, and the Persian irrigation and canal system collapsed.  Disagreements between the Sunnis and Shiites emerged, and the Seljuk power declined after the death of Malik Shah.

A group of Turks known as the [[Seljuk Turks|Seljuks]] had converted to become [[Sunni Muslims]], and they gained control of trade routes connecting Asia and Europe.  In A.D. 1055, the Seljuks captured [[Baghdad]] from the Persians, and killed the [[Shiite]] officials there.  The Seljuk Turks gained in power and defeated the Byzantine empire in 1071 at the [[Battle of Manzikert]], and soon controlled [[Anatolia]].  But the Turks did not adopt the Arabic language.  Instead, they adopted the culture and language of Persia, referred to their rulers as "shah", and almost obliterated the Arabic language from Persia.  Seljuk ruler [[Malik Shah]] (1055-1092) supported Persian artists and culture.  They were not great engineers, and the Persian irrigation and canal system collapsed.  Disagreements between the Sunnis and Shiites emerged, and the Seljuk power declined after the death of Malik Shah.

It was the occupation of [[Jerusalem]] by the Sunni Seljuk Turks that later led to the Crusades to recapture Jerusalem for Christianity, which we will discuss in the next class.  Today Turkey is 99% Muslim, but it is controlled by the military, which prohibits the wearing of head coverings by women in schools and government buildings.  About 3 million Muslims in Germany are immigrants from Turkey today.

It was the occupation of [[Jerusalem]] by the Sunni Seljuk Turks that later led to the Crusades to recapture Jerusalem for Christianity, which we will discuss in the next class.  Today Turkey is 99% Muslim, but it is controlled by the military, which prohibits the wearing of head coverings by women in schools and government buildings.  Today, about 3 million Muslims in Germany are immigrants from Turkey.

==Western Europe in the early Middle Ages==

==Western Europe in the early Middle Ages==

Historians credit Christian monasteries for preserving culture and knowledge during these "dark" times.  The monasteries were communities of Christian monks, usually male, who had committed the rest of their lives to God.  They often moved apart so that they could be by themselves and pray many times a day.  While not praying, the monks would read and write and teach, and they preserved the knowledge and history that might otherwise have been lost.

Historians credit Christian monasteries for preserving culture and knowledge during these "dark" times.  The monasteries were communities of Christian monks, usually male, who had committed the rest of their lives to God.  They often moved apart so that they could be by themselves and pray many times a day.  While not praying, the monks would read and write and teach, and they preserved the knowledge and history that might otherwise have been lost.

The most famous of these "orders" or communities was one established by St. Benedict in Italy in about A.D. 520.  His "Rule of St. Benedict" is a strict set of disciplinary guidelines that require giving away all of one's possessions and vowing obedience to the "abbot", a monk elected to supervise the others.  The Rule includes other requirements also, such a vow of stability (promise not to move somewhere else), and it stresses the importance of prayer and manual labor ("ora et labora").  St. Benedict had a sister, St. Scholastica, who established a similar rule for devout, unmarried women (nuns) to live by.

The most famous of these "orders" or communities was one established by St. Benedict in Italy in about A.D. 520.  His "Rule of St. Benedict" is a strict set of disciplinary guidelines that require giving away all of one's possessions and vowing obedience to the "abbot", a monk elected to supervise the others.  The Rule also includes other requirements, such a vow of stability (a promise not to move somewhere else), and it stresses the importance of prayer and manual labor ("ora et labora").  St. Benedict had a sister, St. Scholastica, who established a similar rule for devout, unmarried women (nuns) to live by.

Abiding by strict rules of discipline and living separate from society, monks had no distractions.  So they established schools and libraries, and transcribed or copied great works that needed to be preserved and duplicated (the printing press was not invented until about A.D. 1440).  Venerable Bede, an English monk, wrote a history of England in A.D. 731 that is considered a masterpiece.

Abiding by strict rules of discipline and living separate from society, monks had no distractions.  So they established schools and libraries, and transcribed or copied great works that needed to be preserved and duplicated (the printing press was not invented until about A.D. 1440).  Venerable Bede, an English monk, wrote a history of England in A.D. 731 that is considered a masterpiece.

===Britain, King Arthur and the Anglo-Saxons===

===Britain, King Arthur and the Anglo-Saxons===

As the Roman empire was collapsing in the A.D. 400s, it withdrew from Britain.  In the view of some, the legend of King Arthur dates to this time, when a hero named Ambrosius Aurelianus emerged for the British people.  But no one knows how much, if any, of the legend of King Arthur, Camelot, the Knights of the Round Table, Lancelot and Guinevere, who was Arthur's wife (a romantic couple like the one at right) is factual.

As the Roman empire was collapsing in the A.D. 400s, it withdrew from Britain.  In the view of some, the legend of King Arthur dates to this time, when a hero named Ambrosius Aurelianus emerged for the British people.  But no one knows how much truth there is in the legend of King Arthur, Camelot, the Knights of the Round Table, Lancelot and Guinevere, who was Arthur's wife (a romantic couple like the one at right).

[[Image:From King Arthur times.jpg|400px|right]]

[[Image:From King Arthur times.jpg|400px|right]]

Who were the British people at that time?  The "Anglo-Saxons", who were Germanic tribes that conquered England and ruled it in a chaotic manner until the Norman conquest of A.D. 1066 brought order and prosperity to the entire island.  The "Anglo-Saxons" were actually a mixture of three different Germanic peoples:  the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes.  The "Picts" were another group of people who emerged in Scotland at this time. During this period, much of England was captured by the Vikings from Scandanavia, with eventually only Wessex left. However, the greatest Anglo-Saxon ruler Alfred the Great, recaptured the rest of England from Viking occupation in the A.D. 800s.

Who were the British people at that time?  The "Anglo-Saxons", who were Germanic tribes that conquered England and ruled it in a chaotic manner until the Norman conquest of A.D. 1066 brought order and prosperity to the entire island.  The "Anglo-Saxons" were actually a mixture of three different Germanic peoples:  the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes.  The "Picts" were another group of people who emerged in Scotland at this time. During this period, much of England was captured by the Vikings from Scandanavia, with eventually only Wessex left. However, the greatest Anglo-Saxon ruler Alfred the Great, recaptured the rest of England from Viking occupation in the A.D. 800s.