In Europe, monasteries became "islands of light." Irish and Continental monks painstakingly copied manuscripts, ensuring that classical knowledge survived the transition.
Cities shrank as people moved to the countryside for safety and food. the_dark_ages_explained_part_1
Part 1 of the "Dark Ages" is best understood not as a period of stupidity, but as a . It was the death of a centralized ancient superpower and the messy, decentralized birth of modern Europe. It wasn't a void; it was a transformation. In Europe, monasteries became "islands of light
While the Church preserved Latin, the general literacy rates plummeted compared to the Roman era. It was the death of a centralized ancient
While the West was struggling to reorganize, much of the world was thriving.
Europe broke into smaller, warring Germanic kingdoms (the Franks, Saxons, and Visigoths), leading to constant localized conflict. Why "Dark" is a Misnomer