An illuminating look at the monumental inventions of the Middle Ages, by the authors of Life in a Medieval Castle. change in historical theory that has come to perceive technological innovation in all ages as primarily a social process rather than a disconnected series of. LibraryThing Review. User Review – TLCrawford – LibraryThing. I truly enjoyed reading Frances and Joseph Gies’ Cathedral, Forge and.
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Apr 28, VR O’Mahony rated it really liked it. I would recommend this book as an eye-opener for anyone who assumes the ‘Dark Ages’ were a time of stagnation, other writers of fantasy and anyone intrigued by that period in time.
Nothing of note waterwwheel during this period.
Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel: Technology and Invention in the Middle Ages by Frances Gies
Aug 22, Cat rated it liked it Shelves: If you like insightful historical trivia, you can’t do much better than this book. Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel: In their latest medieval study, the Gieses Life in a Medieval Village,etc. When the wool arrived, he sold it to the andd, who took it home to sort, card, spin, and weave, with the help of his wife and children.
Early modern technology and experimental science were direct outgrowths of the decisive innovations of medieval Europe, in the tools and techniques of agriculture, craft industry, metallurgy, building construction, navigation, and war.
Medieval historians have long been fighting this notion, which is popularized by Renaissance and Enlightenment historians, and as a Medievalist I thought it was my duty to read it.
Boinebroke contracted through his agents to buy wool from Cistercian monasteries in England, making a down payment of about 3 percent. This knowledge came from a variety of sources – Muslim, Chinese, Simply an outstanding treatise on how the “Dark Ages” lead to our modern world.
This book provides and excellent introduction to the scholarship on the history of the middle ages, specficically as it relates to technology.
Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel: Technology and Invention in the Middle Ages
Finally, he sold the fulled and dyed cloth to his agents, who took it to sell at either the Douai cloth market or the Flemish or Champagne fairs. Consequently, large landowners and even the Roman state were reluctant to build it.
And the information density isn’t quite what I’d hoped for either. Early modern technology and experimental science were direct outgrowths of the decisive innovations of medieval Europe, in the tools and techniques of agriculture, craft industry, metallurgy, building construction, navigation, and “In this account of Europe’s rise to world leadership in technology, Frances and Joseph Gies destroy two time-honored myths.
But as bad as the smiths were A spin-off branch of the trade was found even more objectionable. Frances and Joseph Gies have been writing books about medieval history for thirty years. The fall of Constantinople in and the consequent shifting of Greek scholars to the West is sometimes presented as the trigger for this change. Apr 02, Andy Todd rated it it was ok Shelves: Published January 6th by Harper Perennial first published In the chapter on “The Not so Dark Ages: Medieval historians have long been fighting this notion, which is popularized by Renaissance and Enlightenment historians, and as a Medievalist I thought it was An incredibly important, valuable book that I couldn’t finish.
I have a much greater love and understanding of mechanics now that I’ve read this. Simply an outstanding treatise on how the “Dark Ages” lead to our modern world. No trivia or quizzes yet. Overall I found it fascinating and a good read on how tech spreads out. Real stories and hard data about how many water powered mills were operating in London or what kinds of problems had to be solved by a particular cathedral builder turn what could have been an abstract discussion into real, gritty nuts and bolts that you can get your hands on and sink your intellectual teeth into.
The accumulation of small improvements in technology was important enough to deserve the sobriquet of a mini-industrial revolution in 12th century Europe. Contains many bits of useful information that answer the question ‘However did they do that?
I’ll try my best though. For what that’s worth. And now that I’ve over-shared to an alarming degree, on to the review.
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Europe did not develop ideas in isolation but was able to adopt ideas originating in the civilizations of Islam, India and China. I must confess, I’m not sure how to review a non-fiction book, I’ve read plenty but never reviewed. Dec 15, Leslie rated it it was amazing.
Recall what a “groin vault” is? I marked every inspiring piece with a flag, for a peek at what this book looked like part-way through look at this post from my blog: Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. Quotes from Cathedral, Forge, Cathedral, Forge and Waterwheel: