English

The upper layers of society in 8th–10th-century England were characterized by the close relationship between a lord and his followers. This relationship was not based on tribal or kinship structures, but was distinctly personal in nature. The followers served their lord faithfully and were prepared to die for him in war. In times of peace, they...

The spread of the Christian religion—alongside Romanization and the Migration Period—was the third major factor that significantly influenced the economic development of Europe. This dynamically developing new religion rearranged previous values and gave human life new directions and goals.

The economic life of the ancient world began to decline relatively early. The first signs of this were already visible at the end of the 2nd century AD, though more perceptive contemporaries had noticed them even earlier.