A History of the Middle Ages

By: Crane Brinton, John Christopher, Robert Wolff

Narrated by: Charlton Griffin

Length: 19 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

A History of the Middle Ages is the amazing story of European man in transition. It is a dramatic chronicle of 1,000 years of political, social, and economic transformation beginning with the dissolution of the classical Mediterranean civilization and ending with the first flowering of the Renaissance. It is also the story of two new religions, Christianity and Islam, both of which were destined to dominate the mind of every person in those new civilizations arising in their wake. This was the great Age of Faith, a time of darkness and a time of enlightenment...a time of lords and vassals, popes and kings, and commerce and cathedrals.

This great history starts with a survey of Christianity, then continues with an exploration of the "dark ages" following the fall of Rome, before proceeding with an explanation of how Europe coped with, and absorbed, the barbarians who overran the Empire. It goes on to trace the development of feudalism and Islam, and describes the harrowing survival of Byzantium throughout the brutal chaos that swirled about the Eastern Roman Empire during the 9th and 10th centuries. Discover how national monarchies and the modern nation state came into being, how the West responded to the Islamic invasions, and how Christianity penetrated into the farthest reaches of Northern Europe. Understand the dramatic repercussions of the Great Schism in Christianity and how economic change in the West almost destroyed the church. Finally, discover the events which gave rise to the magnificent flowering of the Gothic Age and the explosion of knowledge which subsequently paved the way for the Renaissance. The Middle Ages were the precursor to everything which we in the west consider "modern." This beautifully written history tells you why.

©2004 Audio Connoisseur (P)2004 Audio Connoisseur

Avoid this one!

To start off the earlier review by akeelshah, from Edmonton is spot on in my opinion. This is a very badly done work.

Having read extensively over the past 20 years on history in general (it's a favorite hobby) and the Middle Ages specifically I was extremely disappointed in this piece.

First off it starts off shilling for Christianity which presents a several notable problems for a book purporting to be written by scholars of the subject. While it's absolutely without question that the Christian church had a huge and central influence in that time period (hard not to have been when rejection of the church could lead to loss of life and limb)in Western Europe, offering events that are solely supported by writings of the New Testament as "history" is wrong. It's a fairly well accepted bugaboo among true scholars of any of the three main monotheistic religions that many of the purported events and characters are not known or otherwise mentioned in any of the other significant writings of the matching time period.

Moreover there's no legitimate reason to include any of the New Testament material as the generally accepted period for the Middle ages is around the middle of the 5th. century until the middle of the 15th. century C.E. Including events found only in a religious text as "history" that purportedly occurred approximately 400 years earlier is inappropriate. I am a bit tired of so called scholars using every excuse to push their personal religious agenda. If I wanted a treatise on the early Christian church I would have purchased such a title.

Add to this, as has been mentione by several other reviewers, the grating, professorial English accent and the reverb quotes and the work is unbearable.

pompous and biased

Religiously biased in a very bad way.

disappointed

sort on facts, long on moralizing. imperialist to the point of outright racism. I'm not sure when the book was written but I'd guess in the late 1940s or early 50s from the antiGerman or anti-everyone who doesn't speak English sentiments.

How Christian Brits are Gods Favorites

What would have made A History of the Middle Ages better?

I had to turn this off before I started murdering my neighbors. The readers arrogant English accent and tonality did nothing but made me angry.

He spent 5, yes 5 chapters attempting to convince me that Christianity is the true religion, no mention of the Cathars, the sacking of Alexandria or other atrocities committed by Christian just what a great religion Christianity is.

I felt as though it was 1900 and some psychotic British Imperialist was trying to convince me of things that we know now are anything but made up history.

I truly wish practice of breaking someone on the wheel was still practiced so that I could personally break the legs of Charlton Griffen with an iron rod while impaling Briton, Christopher, and Wolff.

If you are a Anglophile in need of validation you will love this book, if you are a normal air breathing human it will drive you insane and make you want to drown the first living thing you can get your hands on.

Has A History of the Middle Ages turned you off from other books in this genre?

It turned me off of any book read by an Englishman

How could the performance have been better?

If I could have put read hot pokers in the ears of Mr. Griffen

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from A History of the Middle Ages?

the part between the first sentence and the last

Any additional comments?

I wish I had my money back, this book made me feel like I had just paid for a hooker who was actually a man in drag and everyone knew but me.

UGH-is the production a joke?

Can't/won't really talk about the content. Don't know much about the period - wanted to learn so got the book. I'm sure I learned something.

But, good lord! Every time there was a quote they ran the reader through an echo-y reverb machine. In the first chapter I thought it was some throwback to movies about God from the 50s or 60s or whenever it was, when they tried to make God's voice mystical or lofty or otherworldly or whatever. But this wasn't only for God's voice! Every single time there was a quote in the book, no matter who from, it received the same treatment! I felt like I was being treated like I was six years old. It was awful, annoying, insulting, and just plain STRANGE! Please, may I never encounter this again.