In class the past few days we have been studying the Islamic Empire, paying close attention to its rapid growth, tremendous achievements, and influence on the world – especially Europe & the Renaissance. In fact, many historians refer to the first several centuries of the Islamic Empire as the “Golden Age” of its existence. Contrast that with the conditions in Europe after the fall of Rome that in many ways lasted throughout the Early and Late Middle Ages. While Western Europe was in the “Dark Ages”, the Islamic Empire was flourishing.
Included are the handouts given in class, as well as links to the PBS special Islam: Empire of Faith that we watched portions of. I have also included the specific times that we watched from. Altogether it was about 20 minutes of footage. I wish we could have watched the whole thing, but it is several hours.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yX3UHNhQ1Zk ( Part 1: The Messenger – we watched from about minute 40 until the end, so the last 13 minutes)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1PxJomypQE&feature=related (Part 2: The Awakening – we watched the beginning until the 16 minute mark.)
