Daniel Power, ed. The Central Middle Ages: Europe, 950-1320. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. xv + 394 pp. $26.95 (paper), ISBN 978-0-19-925312-8.

Reviewed by Julie A. Hofmann (Department of History, Shenandoah University)
Published on H-German (October, 2006)

In the Middle

The Central Middle Ages is in many ways a useful addition to the currently narrow selection of textbooks available on the topic. Like its sister volume in the Short Oxford History of Europe series, The Early Middle Ages (2001), it is thematically organized, with each chapter taken on by a different author who specializes in the subject (a third volume on the Late Middle Ages is forthcoming). The book contains a comprehensive chronology that teachers will welcome and less advanced students will find absolutely necessary. Overall, the book provides a detailed, comprehensive picture of a very complex period. What it does not offer, in part because of its thematic structure, is a completely coherent narrative.

Daniel Power begins the book with a general introduction that informs the reader of many of the issues involved in trying to present a concise account of such a dynamic period. A brief discussion of historical periodization follows, in which he explains the preference for the term "Central Middle Ages" to the somewhat more familiar "High Middle Ages" in the book's title. Power then addresses and helps to put to rest many of the misconceptions a non-specialist audience might have about the period. However, while Power outlines general trends and begins with fairly strong narrative structure, he does so more in the sense of telling the readers where they will find these topics later in the book, rather than by providing a framework upon which the subsequent chapters can build. The following essays vary not only in theme, but in pitch and organization, making it difficult to evaluate the total before addressing the constituent parts.

Martin Aurell's chapter, "Society," focuses largely on the transitions in lay society for the period beginning in around the year 1000. Following a short discussion of the scholarly debate on the "Transformation (or "Mutation") of the Year 1000" (p. 28), Aurell introduces to the reader the discrepancies between attempts of scholars to describe these transformations adequately on the one hand, and the realities of a complex society that was characterized by differences in regional, local and circumstantial practice on the other. He nevertheless takes these differences and pulls from them the most important points, organizing them in such a way that students will likely be able to come away with a fairly clear picture, while still realizing that it is indeed a general one.

The second chapter, "Economics," is rather more detailed. Its author, David Nicholas, presents the information in a typically straightforward manner, but the chapter seems pitched to students with a stronger background than that assumed by Aurell. Part of this apparent divergence is doubtless due to the more specialized terminology used by economists and economic historians. However, part of it is also structural. Concepts and events mentioned early in the chapter do not receive elaboration until later. Without some prior knowledge of the subject at hand, less advanced students may find the organization difficult to grasp.

In contrast, Björn Weiler's "Politics," which, Weiler acknowledges, "owes much to the outline Timothy Reuter devised for it before his death" (p. 91), is by far the clearest of the book's chapters. The clarity and fluidity of its prose arguably make this the best "textbook chapter" of the book. Weiler maintains a careful balance of general theories of kingship, community and royal administration on the one hand, and specific supporting examples and exceptions to the rule on the other.

"Religion," the book's next essay, is similarly well organized and useful. Julia Barrow provides her readers with a detailed discussion, but one nonetheless pitched to an audience that might not be familiar with ecclesiastical terminology; potential problems are alleviated by Barrow's good judgment in deciding which terms need glossing. The one drawback to the chapter is the relative paucity of information on Judaism and Islam, although this marginalization is more the rule than the exception in survey texts. Barrow's overview of the subject is broad, and readers familiar with the subject might want more detail, but that detail can be found elsewhere in the book, especially in the following chapter.

Anna Sapir Abulafia takes up the subject of "Intellectual and Cultural Creativity" with somewhat mixed results. Here, the reader is overwhelmed with detailed information, so much so that it is sometimes difficult to see the overall picture. Part of this difficulty results from the nature of the chapter. Some of the discussion of theology might have been better placed in the chapter on religion. In addition, the subject itself is immense; dealing with it in such a limited space must give any author pause. Unfortunately, most of the chapter's weaknesses might have been avoided with a better overall organization and internal structure. Where judicious glossing might help to clarify, the reader is often faced with glossary definitions that merely repeat parenthetical or appositive definitions already in the text. Thus, while the chapter makes clear that this was a period of incredible intellectual and cultural productivity, any greater effects of that productivity remain obscure.

The final essay, by Nora Berend, focuses on "The Expansion of Latin Christendom." In trying to juggle both the political and religious motivations at work, Berend must walk a fine line. She is successful in conveying that these motivations were often inseparable. Moreover, she makes it quite clear that modern sensibilities of religion and politics are inapplicable when trying to understand their interactions in the Central Middle Ages. Berend tries to avoid potential difficulties by using terminology and analogies that are "modern-reader-friendly." Despite offering a caveat that the use of modern terms (especially geographical ones) is merely for convenience--and not reflective of historical reality (p. 184)--a less-sophisticated reader is likely to end up confused or misled by much of the following discussion. For example, Hungary, Bohemia and Poland are referred to as both polities and countries, and "Germany"' and "Germans" are used haphazardly and anachronistically throughout the essay to refer both to inhabitants of the Holy Roman Empire and "ethnic" Germans. Such inaccuracies undermine Berend's earlier discussion of the complexities of her topic and may ultimately confound the reader.

Daniel Power ties together the main points of the previous essays in his brief conclusion. The book also includes recommended readings, a comprehensive chronology, extensive and detailed maps and a glossary. Of these, student readers will find the chronology of most use, while perhaps wishing that there had been internal chapter references to particular maps--or indeed, that the maps had been placed alongside the text where they would do the most good.

No textbook is perfect, especially when the intent is to provide concise accounts of broad and complicated subjects to a possibly wide-ranging audience. Overall, The Central Middle Ages does that job reasonably well. While it may be somewhat problematic for undergraduate students, its benefits outweigh its weaknesses. For readers who already have a good grasp of the narrative, the book is a thorough and comprehensive review of key information.

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Citation: Julie A. Hofmann. Review of Power, Daniel, ed., The Central Middle Ages: Europe, 950-1320. H-German, H-Net Reviews. October, 2006.
URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=12430

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