Formation of a European Idea and Reality in the Middle Ages

In ‘The Birth of Europe’, Jacques Le Goff discusses the inception of a European identity
which he proposes began during the region’s Middle Ages. While those were a transitory
phase for Europe, marked by the emergence of a new socio-political order and ideas, the old
ideas and norms of the antiquity did not die out completely. Greco-Roman influences
remained strong, albeit modified to suit the new reality of Europe. The fall of Rome ended
Roman hegemony and dominance, and made way for newer cultures to take centre stage, but
the legacy of Rome remained coveted. This is reflected in the later attempts of European
empires to fashion themselves as successors of Rome. Even more noteworthy is the merging
of the pagan aspects of Europe with the newer religion of Christianity, which led to the
creation of interesting social and religious practices and customs. Le Goff proposes that
Europe does not have a single monolithic identity, but a myriad of them. Many actors and
circumstances were at play during the Middle Ages, each creating different ideas of Europe
which were sometimes complimentary and sometimes opposites. Nevertheless, all of them
contributed to the conception of a European continent as we know it today.
Christianity and Feudalism constitute the dominant characteristics of the Middle Ages,
emerging after the end of the Romans. Christianity, an eastern religion which was initially
persecuted and later embraced by the Roman State, would go on to become a unifying force.
Missionaries would spread the word of Christ and bring the Germanic peoples of the west
into the Christian fold, following the ideas of Saint Augustine who blamed the decline of
Rome on its pagan heritage. In his works, he propounded the idea that the Church is a
representative of God on earth, thereby placing it on a position of authority and changing the
power dynamics of a post-Roman society. Approval from the Church became a source of
legitimisation for rulers, who sought to build monuments to God in their lands and practice a
virtuous Christian life. In the years to come, the same authority was sabotaged by the ruling
elite, which fashioned itself as a divine authority to justify its wars and territorial ambitions,
which went against the essence of the faith. After the Germanic people, other European
groups such as the Slavs, Scandinavians and Hungarians were brought into the fold, each
bringing their own unique elements to the religion. Veneration of saints became
commonplace, giving rise to pilgrimages to holy sites, especially Rome, which further
increased the power and wealth of the Church.
The de-urbanisation of Roman lands and disruption of a centralised authority gave birth
to Feudalism. Cities fell into ruin as people migrated to the countryside, and an urban
economy gave way to an agrarian one. Manors sprung up all over the continent, led by rulers
who demanded labour from the peasants in return for protection. This system was
decentralised, where the lord commanded authority for the most part but answered to his
liege at certain times. Kings took over as overlords in this new Europe. New customs
emerged in rural communities, brought on by the new Christian faith. A chapel became a
necessary addition to a village’s collection of buildings, and the dead were buried in special
marked places within the villages, a notion uncommon in pre-Christian times. Old pagan
superstitions, however, continued to exist, those about death and the afterlife, which were
eventually adopted by the Christian faith. With feudalism came the idealisation of honor,
chivalry, virtue, nobility and courtliness, ideas that the new ruling class, the nobles, were to
aspire towards. Knights became successors of Greek heroes, paragons of chivalrous conduct,
and staples of various European stories and epics. Along with virtuous princesses and
benevolent lords and kings, they became the objects of popular European imagination and
culture.
These two factors were in no means the only characteristics of an emerging European
identity. The mindsets and thought processes of Europe’s inhabitants were developing,
fuelled by religion and social constructs in equal measure. Attempts were made to unify the
continent by Charlemagne, but his empire was predominantly Frankish in character,
contrary to the diversity of Europe. Le Goff refers to this as a perverted Europe. At this point,
the people of Europe began to form an identity of their own, through the creation of the
‘other’, a term which could refer to pagans, Jews and most notably the Muslims. By
differentiating themselves from these ‘others’, on religious and geographical lines, they
formed new notions of what a European is, and the extent of Europe ended at beginning of
Muslim territories. Religious fervour was high in the European mind, which became obsessed
with the idea of Jerusalem as their holiest city. The re-conquest of the Iberian Peninsula from
Muslim rule served as a precedent for holy wars, and soon enough the Western Europeans
embarked on the Crusades to reclaim the Holy Land. Though ending in failure, they
reinforced the idea of a European as a distinct identity, separate from an Arab or a Moor.
Persecution of these ‘others’, unfortunately, can also be seen during this period. Various
Jewish populaces faced the brunt of it.
In the later Middle Ages began a process of urbanisation and education, and the finer
aspects of European culture appeared. Cities attracted large numbers of people, many of
them intellectuals. To accommodate them, universities were set up, the first of them being the
University of Bologna. They offered religious as well as secular education, which consisted
of the sciences and liberal arts. Le Goff proposes that the universities created a culture of
scholasticism, that is, a systematic approach of learning that required study of the ancients,
such as Greek philosophers of old, as well as theology. It aimed to reconcile faith with reason,
providing a kind of justification for tradition and religion. Universities also played a major
role in preserving knowledge and playing a part in the technological advancement of Europe.
Europe was also marked with disease and conflict, the most prominent being the Black
Death, which wiped off a significant portion of European population. This brought about
many changes in the power dynamics of feudalism. Peasant uprisings became commonplace,
setting the stage for further revolutions. The ‘others’ such as the Jews were blamed for the
misery of people and were victims of pogroms, creating a culture of violence as well.
To conclude, the major philosophy of Jacques Le Goff is the existence of various Europes.
There is a Europe of Christianity, a Europe of Peasants, a Europe of Cities, a Europe of
Universities, and a Europe of Violence and so on. The Middle Ages were not dark, as many
often believe, but rather a time when the knowledge of the ancients was preserved, social
structures were created and a European consciousness began to emerge. Many factors, such
as geography, religion, culture, politics and intellectualism were at play in this process. This
period laid the foundation for the Renaissance and modern Europe, and was characterised by
unification on religious lines, formation of a distinct European identity and cultural exchange
between the diverse peoples of the continent. Therefore, the Middle Ages were the period
where both the concept and reality of Europe were created.