The Early Middle Ages, or Dark Ages, is a period in the history of Europe following the fall of the Western Roman Empire. It lasted from about AD 500 to 1000. The period featured raiding, migration, and conquest by Huns, Germanic peoples, Arabs, Vikings and others.

There was frequent warfare and a virtual disappearance of urban life. By the eighth century, the volume of trade reached its lowest level since the Bronze Age. Islam, founded by Mohammed, conquered the Middle East and North Africa.

Toward the end of this period, Europe experienced a return to systematic agriculture in the form of the feudal system, which included such innovations as three-field planting and the heavy plow. The Early Middle Ages were followed by the High Middle Ages. Starting in the second century, various indicators of Roman civilization began to decline, including urbanization, seaborne commerce, and population.

Only 40 percent as many Mediterranean shipwrecks have been found for the third century as for the first. The population of the Roman Empire shrank from 65 million in 150 to 50 million in 400, a decline of more than 20 percent. Some have connected this to the Migration Period Pessimum (300-700), when there was a decline in temperature globally which reduced agricultural harvests.

Migrating south from Scandinavia, the Germanic peoples reached the Black Sea early in the third century. They created confederations which proved more formidable opponents than the Sarmatians, whom the Romans had dealt with earlier. In Romania and the grassy steppes north of the Black Sea, the Goths, a Germanic people, created at least two kingdoms, one Therving, the other Greuthung.

The arrival of the Huns in 372-375 ended the history of these kingdoms. The Huns were a confederation of central Asian tribes who founded an empire with a Turkic-speaking aristocracy. They had mastered the difficult art of shooting composite recurve bows from horseback.

The Gothic people were forced to seek refuge in Roman territory (376). The Goths agreed to enter the Empire as unarmed settlers, but many bribed the Danube border guards into allowing them to bring their weapons with them. The discipline and organization of a Roman legion made it a superb fighting machine.

The Romans preferred infantry to cavalry because infantry could be trained to retain formation in combat, while cavalry tended to flee when faced with danger. But unlike a barbarian army, the legions required constant training and salaries that made them a huge expense for the empire. As agriculture and economic activity declined, taxes grew harder to collect, and the system came under strain.

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