Science and Technology in the Middle Ages

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Science and technology in the middle ages flourished because of the need of inventions to make life easier. In Europe, from the 5th century to the 16th century there was a radical change in the inventions made. It was between the fall of the Western Roman empire and the early modern era. This was a time for exploration in new ideas and ways of doing things. Europe invented many things for wars, time-keeping, and for everyday use. These inventions may be still used today. They range from huge mortar to a small set of eyeglasses. Europeans found that life was easier with new better inventions to help them in everything. There are a series of inventions about war because of nearby wars with neighboring civilizations or even within Europe.

War was important to make the civilizations expand. Fist of all, the kings needed a good army with the best weapons they can get. To win battles, they used cavalries and a larger army near the borders of cities. In ancient times, the sword is a famous weapon because there were no enough mortars and guns back then. Some swords that were invented are the claymore which is the traditional long sword with a long handle used for more powerful attacks. For instance, the saber was popular because it had a curved single-edged blade and was long. It would be used in a heavy cavalry. There were also bows that can be used like a ballista which has a long, strong arrow with enough force to destroy an army. Reloading was a hassle so it was greater in large numbers. Knights first used chain mail and then moved on to plate armor which was strong enough to resist a sword slash.

With the need for war came the need for protection. Castles surrounded the king for his protection against enemies. In addition,...

... middle of paper ...

...y other inventions that have been discarded like the swords and the plate body. These were discarded because of the invention of the early hand held gun. The gun was good for long range and penetrated through plate body’s steel or iron. The chain mail was discarded because the plate body was stronger and later became a symbol of honor and royalty.

Works Cited
Alchin, Linda. “ The Middle Ages”. 2006 Alchin, Linda. 20 Sept. 2009

Howarth, David. 1066: The Year of the Conquest. New York :Penguin Group, 1981.

Findon, Joanne. Science and Technology in the Middle Ages. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 2004.

Various/anonymous. “Middle Ages” . 2009. Wikipedia. 9 Dec. 2009.

Anonymous. “ The Middle Ages”. 2009. The Middle Ages. 2009 .

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