THE BEGINNING OF THE MIDDLE AGES.

Owner:
School: I.E.S. Carmen Pantión.
Level: 2º E.S.O.
Author: Jose María Tintore Parra.

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CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION:
1- BYZANTIUM:
2- MUHAMMAD'S LIFE:
3- ISLAM:
4- MUSLIM EMPIRE:
5- AL ANDALUS:
6- THE MUSLIM LEGACY:
7- EXERCISES:
8- GLOSSARY:

INTRODUCTION:

The Middle Ages began when the Roman Empire fell. It begins in 453, when the barbarians killed
the last Roman emperor. The Middle Ages finish in the XVth Century.

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1- BYZANTIUM:

In A.D. 395 Rome split into two separate empires. The eastern empire took the name of Byzantium.
The Byzantine Empire lasted until 1453.

BYZANTIUM

The emperor Justinian (482-565) was a wise ruler. He was a very important man. He conquered a
lot of territory. He almost recovered the old Roman Empire! His generals conquered Italy, North
Africa and part of Spain. But this empire was very expensive for Byzantium.

Here, a picture of
the old
Constantinople.
(Istanbul)

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Byzantine armies:

Byzantine art:

MOSAIC

CHURCH OF
SAINT SOPHIA

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2- MUHAMMAD'S LIFE:

The Arabian Peninsula has no forests.

There is water in the oasis.
Medieval arabs.

Muhammad was born in 570 a.D. in Makkah. He was an orphan. He

worked in a caravan company.

He married Jadicha, a rich widow.

Later, Angel Gabriel came and gave him a message

from God.

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 He told people of what the angel said. But people
didn't believe him, and they wanted to kill him.

So, Muhammad told his children and his friends to

leave Makkah and go to Madina in the year 622.

Madina.

Muhammad defeated all his enemies and returned to

Makkah. Later, Muslims conquered all Arabia.

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3- ISLAM:

The five principles:

Islam means submission to Allah. Allah means “God”.

Five principles:

1- There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the prophet.

2- Muslims pray five times a day.

3- Zakat, or alms.

4- Pilgrimage to Makkah once in their lifetime.

TO KA'ABA
ROCK
PILGRIMAGE
IN MAKKAH

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5- Fast during Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islam calendar. Muslims do not eat or drink during
daylight hours.

Qur'an

The Qur'an is the Muslim's holy book. It is the word of Allah (God).

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The mosque:
The mosque is the Muslim temple, the sacred place.

MIHRAB

At the Qibla there is a niche. This niche is the central and sometimes most decorated feature of any
mosque, known as the mihrab. Number 3 in the picture.

QIBLA

This wall is looking to Meccah. Number 1 in the picture.

ABLUTION AREA

Area where Muslims wash before prayer. Number 6 in the picture.

MINARET

Tall tower. There, the Muadhin calls people to prayer. Number 4 in the picture.

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4- MUSLIM EMPIRE:

By 640 (after the death of Mohammed) the Arabs controlled West Asia.

Muslims conquered Sassanid Empire and a lot of territories of the Byzantine Empire.

DEFEATED
Byzantine
Empire

Muslim soldiers

Persian Empire. This empire

dissapeared completely

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The reason being: Sassanid Persian and Byzantine Roman empires were exhausted from decades of
war.

In 732, the Arab expansion stopped. They lost the Battle of Tours, and the conquests ended.

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5- AL ANDALUS

In 711 a Moorish Islamic army from North Africa invaded Visigoth Hispania.

The leader was Tariq ibn-

Ziyad.

They were victorious over the Visigoth army at the Battle of Guadalete on July 19, 711.

Now the Iberian Peninsula was Muslim. They named their

territories "Al-Andalus". They treated Christians and Jews with
tolerance.

This was a very quick conquest. In 715, all the Iberian Peninsula
was Muslim. Some rebels resisted in the North, in Asturias.

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The splendor of Muslim Spain:

In 756, the exiled Umayyad prince Abd-ar-Rahman I came to Spain, and founded and independent
muslim kingdom. Al-Andalus became a very rich and prosperous kingdom. The Mosque of
Cordoba was a symbol of Al-Andalus.

The Caliphate:

The period of the Caliphate (929-1031) It was the golden age of al-Andalus. Caliph is a religious
and political leader. Abd al Rahman III became the first Caliph in 929.

THIS IS ABD AL RAHMAN III,

THE FIRST AND GREATEST
CALIPH, IN 929

In 1031, with the total decadence, the Caliphate ended and

Al Andalus was divided into little kingdoms called
"Taifas".

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Cordoba and other cities had a very good agriculture because of irrigation and new oriental crops.
For example, new crops were: cotton, saffron, sugar cane, bananas, pears, lemons... but the main
crops were wheat, vines and olives.

Córdoba had a population of 500,000,

and was the biggest city in Europe. (For
example, Paris had 38,000 and was a
huge city)

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6- THE MUSLIM LEGACY:

Language: We have a lot of Arab words in our language: Almohada, alambique, alcázar, alcalde,
Guadalquivir, Guadiana, acequia, jarabe, mazapán, zaguán...

Art: They gave us great monuments and pieces of art: The Mosque of Cordoba, the Alhambra in
Granada, the Giralda en Sevilla... and a lot of poets and writers, for example, Ibn Ammar...

Philosophy: They maintained the classic philosophy, and there were some
very good Muslim philosophers. A very important philosopher was
Averroes.

Science: Our numbers are arabic. Córdoba was a important

cultural centre. There were philosophers and scientists. For
example: Abulcasis and Averroes. Spanish muslims became
leaders in maths, science, medicine, astronomy, navigation, etc...

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7- EXERCISES:

1- Colour in this map: The Byzantine Empire during Justinian (VIth Century)

2- True or false? Mark with an X

SENTENCE TRUE FALSE

The Byzantine Empire survived until 1453
Justinian was a fool ruler.
Saint Sophia is a famous castle.
Mosaics are important in Byzantine art.
Justinian conquered France and Germany.
Byzantium was the Western part of the Roman Empire.
Constantinople is nowadays the capital town of Turkey.
Muslims attacked the Byzantine territores.

3- Solve this wordsearch:

- An important emperor.
- The name of a very important Byzantine Church.
- Art consisting of small pieces of colored stone or
glass. Very important in Byzantium.
- Capital of the Byzantine Empire.
- Byzantine generals conquered this peninsula.
- Byzantium conquered the northern part of this
continent.

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4- Exercise: In English and Spanish, look for the words:

Ulema. Yihad, Ramadan, Imam, Khalifa.

5- The mosque:

5.a Find pictures of:

Mosque of Samarra
Mosque of Kairouan.
Mosque of Cordoba.

Send the links to the teacher: tintoreprofe@gmail.com or paste them in your notebook.

5.b In which country are them?

5.c In this picture, point to: Qibla, Mihrab, Minaret and Ablution Area..

6- Mark in this map:

Makkah, Madina, Tours.

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7- Link with arrows:
An angel visited Muhammad, he Makkah
was...
The five principles of Islam Jadicha

Muslims must go once in their life to Qur'an

Muhammad's wife Gabriel

The Muslim temple Submission to Allah

Muhammad worked in a.... Prayer, alms, fast, pilgrimage and

“there is no god but Allah”
The sacred book for Muslims is Mosque

Muslim means... Caravan company

8-Rewrite in the correct order:

ORDER
The Archangel Gabriel spoke to Muhammad.
Muhammad defeated his enemies and came back to Makkah.
Muhammad married a rich woman, Jadicha.
Muhammad was born in Makkah, by 570 a.C.
Muhammad and his family had to go to Madina.

8- Colour the Muslim Empire in green, in 732 (the battle of Tours)

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9- Write two diferences between Islam and Christianism.

10- Who was Tarik? Look for his biography and write it here. (100 words maximum, 3o minimum)

11- Rewrite in the correct order:

CORRECT ORDER.
Tarik disembarked at Gibraltar
Battle of Tours.
Abd al Rahman III becomes a Caliph
Tarik wins the Battle of Guadalete.
Abd al Rahman I foundes the great Mosque of Cordoba.

12- Muslim Priego:

In the middle of the ninth century, Priego was called Madinat Baguh, and as the capital of a cora or
province, it played an important role in the wars fought by the emirs of Córdoba. In 889 AD, the
town became the headquarters of Ibn Mastana, one of the greatest revolutionary leaders, who gave
himself the title of Lord of Priego and Luque.

When the caliphate of Córdoba disappeared, Priego became part of the Zirita kingdom of Granada

Around 1090, Priego was occupied by the Almoravids, who were replaced by the Almohads in the
middle of the twelfth century. Later fell under Nasrid rule. That is, Priego was part of the Nasrid
Kingdom of Granada.

After lifting the siege of Jaén in 1225, Fernando III marched on Priego: he took the town after three
days, and gave it over to the Christian Order of Calatrava.

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Questions:
A) How many years was Priego a Muslim town?

B) Point in this map to a Muslim building in Priego.

C) Did you know? Adarve is an Arab word. Look for its meaning.

13- True or false?

SENTENCE TRUE FALSE
Tarik and his army killed all the Christians and Jews.
Abd Al Rahman was the greatest Caliph. He lived in the Xth Century
Muslim army won the Battle of Guadalete.
Tariq was a Christian general.
In 715, Muslims ruled over the complete Iberian Peninsula.
Cordoba was bigger than Paris during the Caliphate period.
Muslims didn't use irrigation for agriculture.
Al Andalus was the Arab name for Andalusia.
The main crops were: Olives, vines and wheat
Taifas were little Muslim kingdoms, after the Caliphate.

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14- Look for five Spanish words with Arab origin. Translate them into English:
Spanish words with Arab English word
origin

15- Look for the words in English in the dictionary, and draw them. You can use the link:
http://www.wordreference.com/
− Acequia.
− Noria.
− Azafrán.

16- Finally, ask your teachers:

SUBJECT QUESTION ANSWERS

Maths A famous Muslim mathematic

Spanish Language What is a “jarcha”

French A French word with Arabic root.

Technology What is a horseshoe arch.

Natural Sciences A famous Muslim doctor or

biologist
Music What is a lute.

English An English word with Arabic root.

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8- GLOSSARY:

Almost: Casi. Orphan: Huérfano.

Alms: Limosna. Philosopher: Filósofo.
Army: Ejército. Pilgrimage: Peregrinación, peregrinaje.
Battle: Batalla. Poet: Poeta.
But: Pero, excepto. Prayer: Oración.
Caliph: Califa, líder político y religioso, algo así Principles: Principios (ideológicos).
como una mezcla de rey y papa musulmán. Prosperous: Próspero.
Caliphate: Califato. Es decir, reinado del califa. Quick: Rápido.
Cane: Caña. Sugar cane: Caña de azúcar. Reason: Razón, motivo.
Cotton: Algodón. Rebel: Rebelde.
Crop: Cultivo. Ruler: Regla (de medir), pero también
Daylight: La luz del día, mientras haya sol. gobernante.
Decade: Década. Sacred: Sagrado.
During: Durante. Saffron: Azafrán.
Eastern: Oriental, del este. Saint: Santo/a, san.
Emperor: Emperador. Soldier: Soldado.
Empire: Imperio. Temple: Templo.
Exhausted: Exhausto. Tower: Torre.
Exiled: Exiliado. Umayyad: Omeya, el nombre de una familia.
Feature: Característica. Vine: Parra.
Fast: Ayuno. Wall: Muro, pared.
First: Primero. West: Oeste.
Forest: Bosque. Wheat: Trigo.
Golden: Dorado. Widow: Viuda.
Greatest: El más grande. Wise: Sabio.
Holy: Santo.
Huge: Enorme. To believe: Creer.
Irrigation: Irrigación, regadío, riego. To call: Llamar.
Jew: Judío. (Hoy día suena un poco ofensivo, se To conquer: Conquistar.
prefiere la expresión “Jewish”) To defeat: Derrotar.
Kingdom: Reino. To dissapear: Desaparecer.
Known: Conocido. Viene de to To end: Acabar, finalizar.
know/knew/known: Conocer, saber. To found: Fundar. No confundir con el pasado y
Leader: Líder. participio de “To find”.
Lifetime: Vida. To last: Durar.
Moorish: Moro. To leave: Dejar, partir de.
Mosaic: Mosaico. To lose/lost/lost: Perder.
Mosque: Mezquita. To maintain: Mantener.
Muadhin: Muecín, el que llama a los musulmanes To mean/meant/meant: Querer decir, significar.
a la oración. To pray:
Muslim: Musulmán. To split/split/split: Dividir, repartir.
Niche: Nicho. To take/took/taken: Coger, tomar.
Old: Viejo/a, antiguo/a. To tell/told/told: Decir.
Once: Una vez. To wash: Lavar, lavarse.

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