European History - From Prehistory to the 19TH Century

World history is incomplete without the inclusion of history of Europe. Different nations of the European Continent played major roles in the political, economic, and scientific history of the world. From the classical to the modern period, one or more European nations remained at the forefront of World Politics.

Prehistoric Period

According to recent scientific research, modern humans initially inhabited Europe nearly 54,000 years ago [1]. This initial European era is divided into the Paleolithic (stone), the Neolithic (New Stone), and the Bronze Age. The technical advancements in these periods came through the Mediterranean people in the south and gradually spread to northwest Europe. 

A few famous civilizations of the Bronze Age were the Minoan (27^th Century-15^th Century BC) and Mycenaean (1600-1100 BC), both in modern-day Greece. The prehistoric period in Europe has left several inventions in arts and architecture that still amaze today. Some notable ones are Stonehenge (UK), Passage tombs of Newgrange (Ireland), Carnac stones (France), and the cave art of Altamira (Spain) and Chauvet (France). 

Cave paintings are notable features of prehistoric Europe

Classical Period

The classical period in Europe is famous for the civilizations of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, known as the Greco-Roman World. This period starts with the rise of Greek civilization (8^th Century BC) and ends with the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 AD). It played a significant role in shaping the modern era by exporting many important thoughts during the Renaissance.

Ancient Greece

City States

The Ancient Greek civilization started with the formation of city-states in Greece around the 8^th Century BC. These City-States were autonomous, self-governed, and largely independent. However, all these States shared the same religion and civilization. The two most famous city-states were Athens and Sparta, known for democracy and militarism, respectively.

Greco-Persian Wars (490-479 BC)

All Greek city-states joined together to fight against the invading Persian Empire. The Greco-Persian wars, started in 490 BC, ended with a decisive victory for Greece. It assisted these city-states to preserve their independence and culture against the superior Persian Empire. 

Peloponnesian Wars (431-404 BC)

Internal conflicts between various Greek city-states resurfaced after their victory in the Persian Wars. The two most powerful states, Athens and Sparta, formed alliances to fight the Peloponnesian Wars. The armed conflict ended with Spartan victory. However, it degraded the strength of both alliances and made it easier for Macedonia to conquer all city-states. 

Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Period

The Hellenistic period started after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and lasted till 30 BC when the Roman Empire occupied all these areas of Greece. In the beginning, Philip II (King of Macedonia) took advantage of the weakness of Greece city-states and took them under his direct rule in 338 BC after the Battle of Chaeronea.

Later, his son Alexander the Great used the combined strength of these city-states to conquer the Persian Empire. He advanced further and captured other parts of Asia, Europe, and Egypt. After his death in 323 BC, all these conquered areas came under the strong influence of Greek civilization for the next two to three centuries. This process is known as Hellenization. 

Ancient Rome

Roman Kingdom

The civilization of Ancient Rome started around the 8^th century BC from the Italian Peninsula.

Romulus, the first king of Rome, established the Roman Kingdom in 753 BC. After the death of a king, the Senate had the authority to elect a new king. Seven Roman kings passed through around 250 years of this kingdom. The Roman Republic replaced the kingdom in 509 BC.

Roman Republic

The Roman Republic was headed by two consuls, elected by citizens annually. In this republic form of government, the rulers had less power than monarchs due to the separation of power. Checks and balances were ensured between different state organizations through a complex constitution.

Lucius Brutus was the first ruler of this republic. At its farthest extent, the Roman Republic captured modern-day Italy, Belgium, France, and parts of Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Turkey, and North Africa. Julius Caesar was the most famous ruler of the Roman Republic during his victories in Gaul and the Roman Civil War (49 BC-45 BC). 

Roman Empire

In 27 BC, Gaius Octavianus (Augustus) founded the Roman Empire and became its first Emperor. During the period of the Roman Empire, the emperor was the sole powerful ruler who controlled the empire according to his will and the role of people in government was minimal. During the rule of Trajan (98-117 AD), the empire reached its peak by conquering most of southern, western, and central Europe, Anatolia, Egypt, North Africa, the Levant, and parts of Asia.

Crisis, Division, and Fall 

During the 3^rd Century (235-284 AD), Rome faced a crisis due to civil wars, invasions, economic destabilization, and plague, thus weakening the empire. To overcome this crisis, emperor Diocletian decided to split the Roman Empire into two parts in the 3rd Century CE. The division included the Western Roman Empire with its capital Rome, and the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire) with its capital Constantinople (now Istanbul). The Eastern Roman Empire later adopted Christianity as its state religion in 380 AD.

The Germanic people of Northern Europe grew in strength in the 4^th and 5^th centuries and invaded the Western Roman Empire several times. In 476 AD, they defeated the Western Roman Empire by capturing Rome. Consequently, the last Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus surrendered to the Germanic King Odoacer. The fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD marks the end of the Classical Period and begins the Middle Ages.

Early Middle Ages (476-1000 CE)

The Early Middle Ages started with the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE and continued up to the 10th Century (1000 CE). The period is sometimes called "Dark Ages" due to the prevalence of religious dogmas and social backwardness. 

Barbarian Kingdoms

After the dissolution of the Western Roman Empire, several Germanic tribes formed their kingdoms on the former Roman lands. Most famous were the Frankish Kingdom (France and Germany), the Visigothic Kingdom (Iberian peninsular), and the Ostrogothic Kingdom (Italy). These kingdoms ruled by combining Roman laws with Germanic customs. 

Byzantine Empire

Despite the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Eastern Roman Empire continued to rule over parts of Europe and Asia with its capital in Constantinople. The Byzantine Empire survived nearly 1,000 years after its western counterpart. However, it continuously lost areas and influence to various rivals. During this period, the empire preserved Roman law, Greek culture, and Orthodox Christianity. 

Muslim Conquests

Muslim Arab armies started to raid the Asian and North African parts of the Roman Empire in the 7^th century. During the periods of the Rashidun and Umayyad caliphates, Muslims fought relentlessly against various European powers. In the 7th Century, they captured the Levant and North African parts of the Byzantine Empire, alongside several islands in the Mediterranean Sea. In 711, Muslim General Tariq bin Ziyad conquered the Iberian peninsular, resulting in the demise of the Visigothic kingdom. In 756 AD, an Umayyad prince Abdul Rahman I established the Emirate of Cordoba, which became a Caliphate in 929 AD.  

Carolingian Empire

In 800 CE, Pope Leo III crowned the king of the Franks Charlemagne as emperor by the pope for his support to Christianity. The empire united most parts of Western Europe under a single ruler for the first time after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The kingdom was based in modern France, Germany, and their adjacent areas. Later, this kingdom was divided in two parts: West Francia (later Kingdom of France) and East Francia (modern Germany), which became the Holy Roman Empire. 

Viking Raids and Settlements

Vikings, people from Scandinavia, continuously raided Europe from the 8th to 10th Century. During these raids, they captured and settled in parts of the British Isles (Britain, Scotland, and Ireland), France (Normandy), Eastern Europe (Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus), and the North Atlantic Ocean (Iceland, and Faroe Island). They also raided unsuccessfully on the Iberian Peninsular, Paris, and Italy. 

Feudalism and Serfdom

Knowing the social structure of the Middle Ages, known as feudalism, is necessary to understand this period. The main social classes of the entire Middle Ages were the nobility, clergy, and workers (peasants and serfs). Nearly 90% of the population consisted of peasants and serfs. Their only duty was to work for landowners. Serfs, belonging to the lowest class, were not allowed to marry, leave the land, or change profession without permission from their lord.

High Middle Ages (1000-1300 CE)  

New Towns, Universities and the Middle Class

More agriculture production due to better tools and safe trading routes introduced a newer city-based middle-class of merchants and craftsmen. Monasteries were no longer suitable for urban centers with a growing middle-class. This gave rise to Cathedral schools and universities in major cities (Paris, Bologna, and Oxford). 

Crusades 

Despite the division of the Church due to the East-West Schism of 1054, the social and political power of the Church grew immensely during the High Middle Ages. Under their influence, several kingdoms in Europe united to launch the Crusades in 1095. The primary aim of these "Holy Wars" was to liberate the Holy Land, while secondary campaigns were also launched in Hispania (Reconquista) and northern Europe (Northern Crusades). 

After some initial successes, the Crusades in the Levant failed miserably. They ended in 1291 when Muslims reconquered all Christian strongholds in the Levant. However, the Reconquista and the Northern Crusades remained successful. 

Mongol Invasion

The rise of Mongols changed the whole scenario in Eastern and Central Europe during the 13th Century. By 1241, they had conquered and devastated almost the entire modern-day Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, and Moldavia. In 1242, Mongol ruler Batu Khan established the empire of Golden Horde, comprising Eastern Europe and its surrounding areas.  

Magna Carta

In 1215, England adopted Magna Carta (Great Charter) to settle a dispute between the royalty and nobility. The charter included clauses related to rule of law, basic human rights, and a limit on royal powers. This charter became a foundation for the modern legal system and democratic values. 

Late Middle Ages (1300-1500 CE)

The Great Famine

Northern and western Europe suffered from heavy rains and extremely cold weather for months in 1315 due to the impact of the Little Ice Age. It resulted in the Great Famine of 1315-17 due to low agricultural production. The famine caused millions of deaths and reduced the population of the affected areas by up to 15%. The high number of deaths reduced trust of the population on religious and political authorities. Furthermore, reduced immunity due to malnutrition exacerbated the impact of the upcoming Black Death. 

The Black Death

The Black Death was a plague endemic that affected Europe from 1348 AD to 1353 AD. Along with Europe, it also affected parts of Asia and Africa. According to an estimate, this endemic killed around 75 to 100 million people worldwide. It is thought that almost half of the total European population vanished due to the Black Death. The Great Famine and Black Death reduced the influence of the Church among people as it failed to stop these disasters. These negative sentiments paved the way for the Renaissance.

Hundred Years’ War

The Hundred Years’ War was a conflict containing a series of battles fought between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of France from 1337 AD to 1453 AD. The French remained victorious in this long conflict. England lost all the continental territories except the Pale of Calais (now in France). The Hundred Years' War established stronger national identities in both states.

Fall of Constantinople

In 1453 AD, the Ottomans conquered Constantinople and brought the fall of the Byzantine Empire. The event is usually associated with the end of the Middle Ages. 

Early Modern Europe

Early Modern Europe is the period roughly from 1500 to 1800 AD or more exactly from the discovery of the New World (The Americas) in 1492 to the French Revolution in 1789. The major characteristics of this period are the Renaissance, exploration and discovery, reformation, technological progress, the rise of nation-states, and witch-hunts. 

Renaissance 

Renaissance (rebirth) was a cultural movement that started in Italy and gradually spread throughout Europe between 14^th and 16^th centuries CE. During this period, there was a tendency of learning about the European classical period (Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome). The invention of the printing press during the 15th Century (c. 1440) assisted in spreading these ideas among the masses. 

The primary reason behind this interest was a rebellion against the Pope and the religion due to their failure in stopping the endemic Black Death and the Great Famine. Furthermore, the Church also opposed scientific inventions and considered them against religion. 

The major work done during the Renaissance was in the fields of arts, music, science and humanism. The influential personalities of this movement were Leonardo da Vinci, Niccolo Machiavelli (author of The Prince), and Michelangelo. Most of these figures belonged to modern-day Italy. 

Discovery and Exploration (15th-17th Centuries)

The Ottomans conquered Constantinople in 1453, which cut the European trading routes to the east. This forced the Europeans to find new trading routes for eastern countries. The effort to find a solution to this problem gave rise to the age of Exploration and Discovery. 

Prominent Explorers

• Vasco da Gama: A Portuguese explorer who sailed from Portugal to Calicut (India) through the Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) in 1497-98. 
• Christopher Columbus: An Italian explorer who discovered the Americas (Central and South America, and the Caribbean) for the Kingdom of Spain. He explored these lands during his voyages during the last 15th and early 16th centuries. 
• John Cabot: An Italian explorer in the service of the United Kingdom. He became the first European after the Norse to reach North America. John Cabot arrived at Newfoundland (Canada) during a voyage in 1497. 
• Giovanni da Verrazzano: This Italian explorer, in the service of Francis I of France, became the first European to reach the New York  Harbor in 1524. 
• Dutch Explorers: In 1606 CE, a Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon became the first European to reach the western shore of Queensland (Australia). In 1643 CE, another Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman, became the first European to reach Tasmania (an island in southern Australia), New Zealand and Fiji islands.
• By 1660 AD, Russians had explored and conquered the whole of Siberia and reached the Pacific Ocean.   

Colonialism and the Atlantic Slave Trade

The discovery of new lands and military superiority enabled European powers to colonize weaker nations. The motives behind these expansionist policies were to extract untapped resources, spread Christianity, and find a new consumer market. The Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, Russians, Dutch and other European nations established colonies in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australia. To occupy most of the colonies, these European powers fought against the local population and also against each other. Colonization by European powers continued from the 15th to 19th centuries.

European colonists needed strong workers to do plantation jobs in new colonies, particularly in the Americas, due to shortage of population. Therefore, they transported nearly 12.5 million slaves from Africa to the Americas from the early 16th century to 1867 . Nearly 1.5 million slaves perished during this brutal ocean voyage, known as the Atlantic slave trade. Those who reached their destination had to suffer relentless working and harsh treatments. However, these African slaves generated immense wealth in Europe. 

The Reformation, Religious Wars, and Counter-Reformation

The Renaissance and the invention of the printing press challenged the authority of the Church in the 15^th Century. In 1517 AD, a German Catholic priest Martin Luther questioned the authority of the Pope through “The Ninety-Five Thesis”. The Pope and Church aggressively opposed this Protestant Reformation movement. However, it received positive response from several Scandinavian (Denmark-Norway and Kingdom of Sweden), western European (England and Scotland), and central European (Switzerland and parts of the Holy Roman Empire) regions. Hence, these kingdoms formed their independent protestant churches.

The conflict triggered a wave of Religious Wars during the 16th and 17th centuries, notably the Eighty Years' War (1566-1648) and the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). The Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 ended these wars in western and central Europe. These wars weakened the authority of the Catholic church and accelerated the rise of secular states. 

Primary reasons behind the Reformation were corruption in the Church and adoption of several religious dogmas. The Catholic Church adopted the Counter-Reformation movement in the 16th and 17th century to address these issues and defend its ideology. This movement remained partially successful as it kept Catholicism intact in some European regions (Spain, Portugal, France, etc.). Moreover, the global missionary work spread it to the Americas, Africa, and parts of Asia. 

Absolutism

Before the 17th Century, Kings had to share their powers with church and nobility. However, years of lethal religious wars and the role of nobility urged people to demand the rule of strong kings for peace and stability. Therefore, the 17th and 18th centuries saw powerful monarchies with absolute powers. These monarchs justified their rule on religious grounds by saying that God gave them power and others can't question their rule [2]. King James I of England (1603-25), Louis XIV of France (1643-1715), and Peter the Great of Russia (1682-1725) were powerful monarchs of that era.

Enlightenment

The Renaissance and Reformation movements bought Enlightenment among the populace during the 17th and 18th centuries. It emphasized the importance of reason (science) instead of tradition (religion), thus promoting rationalism and scientific thinking. Many philosophers of that age were epitome of this movement. Famous among them are physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727), philosophers John Locke (1632-1704) and Voltaire (1694-1778).

Revolutionary Period

The 18th and 19th centuries was the period of revolutions in Europe. It was dominated by the Industrial Revolution and Political Revolution (French Revolution and Revolution of 1848). These revolutions paved the way for the rise of Nationalism.

Industrial Revolution

The industrial revolution started in the 18th Century when Europe shifted from farming to factory machines. The revolution started from Britain around 1760 and gradually spread to other European states through the 19^th Century. The technological advancements during this revolution introduced coal and steam power, factory machines, railroads, and steamships. transport. This revolution improved the standard of life, created more job opportunities, and shifted the population from rural to urban areas.

French Revolution

The most prominent and lasting political revolution was the French revolution in 1789. The revolution was the result of a financial crisis due to wars, royal overspending, and poor harvests in the late 18th Century. The majority French population (the third estate) revolted against the royalty (first estate) and church (second estate) due to an unequal social divide. This resulted in the abolition of monarchy and execution of the last king, Louis XVI. The revolutionaries replaced monarchy with a democratic and secular republic under the revolutionary motto of “Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood.”

The revolution paved the way for the era of great French ruler and military commander Napoleon Bonaparte. He became emperor in 1804 CE and established internal security and prosperity by uniting different sections of France. Later, he formed the First French Empire by capturing modern-day Italy, Spain, Germany, and large parts of western and southern Europe. However, the Seventh Coalition finally defeated him in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo.

Spring of Nations

1848 is known as the "Year of Revolutions" due to widespread political uprisings in a single year. The revolution started in Italy and soon spread to France, Austria, Germany, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Ireland, and other European states. Nationalism, political repression, and economic discontent were the main reasons behind this unrest.  

Most of these revolutions failed to consolidate their powers. However, the movement gained several immediate and long-term impacts. It achieved abolition of serfdom in Austria and parts of central Europe. Moreover, several European monarchies had to set up elected parliaments and became constitutional monarchies. The ideology of nationalism in these revolutions was also behind the Italian Unification (1815-71) and German Unification (1860s).

Conclusion

From prehistoric tribes to the age of revolutions, Europe’s history has been noted for cycles of empire-building, intellectual advancement, and destructive conflict. Its religious divisions developed political conflicts for centuries, while its revolutions in science and industry transformed the world. European nations transferred their ideology, inventions, and governance to other continents as colonial powers. By the 19th century and beyond, Europe had both dominated and devastated the globe.