The origins of global modern civilization and the historical trends of modernity, in which Europe played a central role.
Greek culture, which laid the foundations for later developments in political science and philosophy, and the spread of that culture through the Mediterranean world.
The Roman aptitudes for law, government, administration, and military organization, which allowed them to control an extensive empire.
The emergence and spread of Christianity, and the new sense of sanctity of all human life promoted by the Christians.
Christian dualism, which allowed for the separation of spiritual and political power.
The decline of the Roman Empire, and its fragmentation into the Byzantine Empire and Latin Christendom.
The dynamism of the third part of the Mediterranean, the Arabic world.
The influence of Germanic culture and the invading barbarians' adoption of Roman culture.
The rise of new Christian religious institutions and the growing influence of the papacy.
The achievements of Charlemagne, which included a revival of learning and the reunification of the west for the first time since the Romans.
The emergence, by about 1000 A.D., of a recognizably European civilization.
The technological innovations in agriculture and the accompanying expansion of population in the early Middle Ages.
The emergence of feudalism.
The evolution of economies and the growth of commerce.
The growth of towns and their challenge to the feudal order.
The efforts of monarchs to consolidate their rule, and how parliaments checked monarchical power.
The causes for the reformation of the Church in the High Middle Ages.
The founding of universities and medieval scholars' interest in theology.
The Crusades as one of the earliest movements of western expansion.
