COLLEGE OF SCIENCE

Objectives /Overview
• This module will help familiarize students with the major
events that happened in Western (European) Civilization from
the fall of Rome (476 AD) to the early part of the Second
Industrial Revolution which ended in 1914.
• The emphasis will be on scientific and technological aspects of
this part of history and not on political, cultural, economic and
social aspects
• In doing so students should develop a different perspective in
viewing and analyzing present day events as nothing but a
continuation of past events that shaped our destiny.
• The chapter is divided into four power point presentations
Chapter 2
Science & Technology in
Western European Civilization
2.1 Middle Ages
o Life in the Dark Ages
o Science & Technology in the
Middle Ages
o Golden Age of Islam

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Treadmillcrane.jpg
https://historiek.net/diocletianus-p-236-316-na-chr/2494/
https://www.slideshare.net/cmonafu/chapter-5-roman-empire
 There is a theory that lead
poisoning contributed to the
fall of Roman Civilization. The
Romans used lead water pipes
since the metal is malleable as
well as for cosmetics, cooking
pots, and defrutum, wine that
was sweetened by boiling it
down in lead pots.

Ancient lead roman water-valve

https://benedante.blogspot.com/2012/02/lead-poisoning-
and-fall-of-rome.html
 http://delphjgyvon.blogspot.com/2010/06/fall-of-
roman-empire_03.html

https://www.historyonthenet.com/when-did-the-roman-
empire-really-end

In 476 C.E. Romulus, the last

of the Roman emperors in
the west, was overthrown by
the Germanic leader
Odoacer, who became the
first Barbarian to rule
in Rome. The order that
the Roman Empire had
brought to western Europe
for 1000 years was no more
https://www.slideshare.net/yajespina/fall-of-roman
https://www.slideshare.net/yajespina/fall-of-roman
 https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Ages-Charles-Oman-
ebook/dp/B072C1GHJR

https://www.deviantart.com/jonasdero/art/The-Dark-Ages-312263111
The millennium between the collapse of the
Western Roman Empire in the 5th century CE
and the beginning of the colonial expansion of
Western Europe in the late 15th century has
been known traditionally as the Middle Ages,
and the first half of this period consists of the
five centuries of the Dark Ages. The “Middle
Ages” got its name because Renaissance
scholars saw it as a long barbaric period that
separated them from the great civilizations of
ancient Greece and Rome that they both
celebrated and emulated.
http://lastmonks.philipkosloski.com/2017/12/08/barbarians-
strike-back-europe-plunged-dark-ages/
The Dark Ages witnessed terrible
political and economic upheaval in
Western Europe, as waves of
invasions by migrating peoples
destabilized the Roman Empire like
the Vikings and Saxons in the
North. It was a period of declining
human achievement, especially
when compared to the Ancient
Greeks and Romans. The Dark Ages
evokes pictures of filthy, illiterate
peasants and rulers, with medieval
society a pale, superstitious
shadow of the Greek and Roman
ages of reason and high
philosophy.
For three turbulent centuries, the glimpse of a square sail and dragon-
headed prow on the horizon struck terror into the hearts of medieval
Europeans. Indeed, the Viking Age, from A.D. 800-1100, was the age of the
sleek, speedy longship. Without this crucial advance in ship technology, the
Vikings would never have become a dominant force in medieval warfare,
politics, and trade.

http://www.lostshipofthedesert.com/secrets-of-viking-ship/
The Dark Ages https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhcJpalbFxo
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
http://rudderresponse.pbworks.com/w/page/106962789/Medieval%20Life
https://wccshoeing.wordpress.com/2011/11/26/life-in-a-manor/
The typical manor was https://agustinadearagonschool.blogspot.com/2013/05/pre
history-and-history-timeline.html
largely self-sufficient,
growing or producing all
of the basic items needed
for food, clothing, and
shelter. To meet these
needs, the manor had
buildings devoted to
special purposes, such as
the mill for grinding grain,
the bake house far making
bread, and the blacksmith
shop for fashioning metal
goods. Some of the fields
has been left unplanted,
so that the soil can
replenish its nutrients.
 Mill house using a water wheel to grind grain

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/e9/ae/f5/e9aef5e6e856a34629162a97cc01442c.jpg
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
Primitive medieval clayey house
from the dark ages with straw roof
 Living in the Middle Ages, interior view, wooden furniture, old
sod house, turf and sod constructions, open-air museum

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-living-in-the-middle-ages-interior-view-wooden-furniture-
old-sod-house-48866781.html
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-
the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-
middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-
middle-ages-27685267
 Medieval Kitchen

https://www.flickr.com/photos/43377991@N06/5071705725/
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-
middle-ages-27685267
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-
ages-27685267
 https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluk
e/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-table-
of-medieval-food-including-nuts-seeds-
berries-vegetables-and-72931666.html
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-
in-the-middle-ages-27685267

These crops would

be discovered from
the New World (the
Americas)
https://www.slideshare.net/jatoluke/life-in-the-middle-ages-27685267
 https://www.slideshare.net/jatol
uke/life-in-the-middle-ages-
27685267

https://www.slideshare.net/MrPower14/medieval-
times-research-power-point
https://slideplayer.com/slide/13159398/
https://slideplayer.com/slide/13159398
 https://wiccanrede.org/2016/01/the-guild-
structure-of-british-traditional-wicca/

https://www.heraldry-
wiki.com/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Wesen
berg_(German_guilds)
Merchants and workers began to unite in associations called
guilds. A guild was an association of artisans who controlled
the practice of their craft in a particular town. A few guilds in
France even gave rise to the earliest of the universities, where
our modern academic degrees—bachelor’s, master’s,
doctorate—retain this guild-like structure: apprentice,
journeyman, master.

In each town, a merchant guild had the sole right to trade

there. Craft guilds also formed over time. Each guild member
had a single craft (shoemaker, weaving, etc. )

In time, towns' guild members became the-middle class

whose status was between the class of a noble and that of a
peasant and unskilled workers.
https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/369224869421069678/
https://www.bigboytravel.com/europe/to
pmedievalcities/
As towns and trade grew in the Middle Ages, townspeople saw
they did not fit into the manorial system. Townspeople now
made their living by making and trading goods. .

The growth of towns during the Middle Ages could be exciting,

but the growth of a town was also filled with turmoil and
hysteria

Waste was dumped into open gutters and diseases spread

quickly through crowded cities the most notable was the Black
Death.

Since this amazing era of history ended, countless cities in

Europe have managed to retain their Medieval elements,
architecture, charm, and flair. From mighty walled cities, to
small villages with castles, and Gothic meccas, there are a lot of
well-preserved Medieval towns to visit in Europe
Weaving in the Middle Ages
Fabric

Linen Flax plant Undergarments,

bed mattress

Wool Fleece from sheep Outer garments

Silk Silkworms (fro garment

China)

Cotton Cotton plant (from garments

India and Americas)
https://www.slideshare.net/biniyaa1/natural-fiber-to-yarn-
stage-linen
https://www.slideshare.net/biniyaa1/na
tural-fiber-to-yarn-stage-linen

https://www.lifegivinglinen.com/
flax-to-linen-display.html
Linen making https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pxz1U1bG2Sg&t=259s
 https://www.pinterest.ph/jesikahsundin/medieval-rustic-
life-and-artifacts/

https://www.pinterest
.ph/pin/18964383428
3229444/
Fulling Mill

https://peasantartcraft.com/traditional-crafts/fulled-
http://www.vicnewey.co.uk/mills/mills_002.htm
weaving-fulling-wool/
Woven cloth straight from the loom has an open, loose texture and the woven
threads needed closing or tightening. The fulling process consolidates and
thickens the structure of the fabric by knitting the fibers together more
thoroughly and by shrinking them which transforming the cloth into a more
compact tight weave.

Fulling involves the cleansing of cloth (particularly wool) to eliminate oils, dirt,
and other impurities, and to make it thicker. Fulling involves two processes:
scouring and milling (thickening)

Scouring used river water and a soap cleaning agent was used to help rid the
cloth of any natural oils and grease. This process involved the use of a number
of different agents such as Fuller's earth, stale urine or soap. By the medieval
period, fuller's earth had been introduced for use in the process. More recently,
soap has been used. The second function of fulling was to thicken cloth by
matting the fibers together to give it strength and increase waterproofing
(felting).

Originally, fulling was carried out by the pounding of the wool cloth with a club,
or the fuller's feet or hands. From the medieval period, however, fulling was
often carried out in a water mill.
Wool making https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngLoJxssEao
Activity:

1. Feudalism began in Europe in the Middle Ages. When

the Spaniards came to the Philippines in the 16th
century they brought that system here. Explain the
political, economic and social structures of feudalism
during the Spanish colonial era here and which still
survive today

2. Hand weaving is a household hobby today and was a

cottage industry back then. Using simple materials
create a piece of rug or cloth. (hint: There are many
youtube videos that can help you. They use use simple
hand-made looms and yarns)
Questions:

1. Why did the Roman Civilization fall? Did other great

civilizations fall in the same way? Cite them.

2. Outline the steps in

a) Linen making
b) Wool making

3. Compare life in the middle ages with that in the Roman

civilization. Explain why the former paled in comparison
with the latter.

4. Show how houses evolved from simple thatch and mud

construction in the Dark Ages to brick and mortar in the
High Middle Ages